Classical Californians: Jefferson Mays & Sam Clemmett

On this episode of Classical Californians, Tony Award-winner Jefferson Mays (I Am My Own Wife) and Sam Clemmett (Harry Potter and the Cursed Child) from Pasadena Playhouse’s Amadeus share the music behind one of theater’s great rivalries. From Salieri’s sharp, theatrical arias to Mozart’s playful brilliance in The Magic Flute and The Marriage of Figaro, their playlist moves from joy to heartbreak with the Requiem’s “Lacrimosa”. Along the way, they reflect on how this music reveals humor, jealousy, and humanity at the heart of Amadeus.

Salieri: La Secchia Rapita: Son qual lacera tartana,

Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, Adam Fischer, Cecilia Bartoli (mezzo-soprano)

Salieri: Prima la musica e poi le parole: Cavatina “Cucuzze! Che concorso”

Julia Hamari, Nikolaus Harnoncourt, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra

Mozart: Magic Flute: Pa-Pa-Pa-Pa-Pa-Pa Papagena,

Budapest Failoni Chamber Orchestra, Michael Halasz [hal-lesh], Georg Tichy (baritone)

Mozart: Marriage of Figaro: Non più andrai,

London Philharmonic Orchestra, Georg Solti, Samuel Ramey (bass)

Mozart: Requiem: Lacrimosa,

Academy of St. Martin in the Fields, Academy of St. Martin in the Fields Chorus, Sir Neville Marriner

Mozart: String Quartet No. 19 in C Major, K. 465 "Dissonance"

Emerson String Quartet