Classical music WGUC-FM (90.9) will celebrate the $135-million renovation of Music Hall with a two-hour special, "Music Hall: Welcome Home," at 8 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 1.
Morning music host Brian O'Donnell will host the special, which premieres before the Oct. 6-7 opening weekend.
"Welcome Home" includes comments from Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra conductors Louis Langree, Paavo Jarvi and Jesus Lopez-Cobos; Cincinnati Pops conductor John Morris Russell; Cincinnati Opera Artistic Director Evans Mirageas; Cincinnati Ballet Artistic Director Victoria Morgan; acoustician Paul Scarborough; and 10 others.
Music selections will include Rossini's Stabat Mater: Finale by the CSO and May Festival with Thomas Schippers conducting; Barber's Adagio for Strings from the Cincinnati Pops with Erich Kunzel conducting; and Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition from the CSO with Paavo Jarvi conducting.
Completed in 1878, Music Hall was named a National Historic Landmark in 1975. Renovation and restoration started May 29 last year.
The special will be broadcast and streamed 8-10 p.m. Oct. 1 on WGUC-FM and wguc.org. It will repeat 8-10 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 7, on sister stations WVXU-FM (91.7) and WMUB-FM (88.5) and on wvxu.org. After the broadcasts, "Welcome Home" will be archived at wguc.org.
"Welcome Home" was produced by Jessica Lorey and O'Donnell. Lorey also wrote the script. It was engineered by Stephen Baum. Elaine Diehl, Frank Johnson, Rick Andress, Suzanne Bona, Conrad Thiede and Naomi Lewin helped with the special.
