National Sawdust (Paola Prestini, Artistic Director/Co-Founder; Ana De Archuleta, Managing Director) announces album playcast series Live from National Sawdust. Drawing from the countless transportive and transcendent performances presented and recorded live at National Sawdust over the decade since its inception, the series—part playlist, part podcast, part radio show—offers a curated journey through the evolution of contemporary music. Created in collaboration with WNYC’s New Sounds and Apple Music Classical, and curated by acclaimed composer and National Sawdust Co-Founder and Artistic Director Paola Prestini and Death of Classical Founder/Artistic Director Andrew Ousley, Live from National Sawdust teems with the unparalleled energy of live performance. It launches October 18 with the release of its first of three albums: Joy. New Sounds will present playcast selections on its daily show on WNYC Radio and the full playcasts—with commentary from hosts Prestini and Ousley—from their YouTube channel; the music featured in the playcasts will also be available on Apple Music Classical.
Amidst its 10th Anniversary season recalling the groundbreaking musical and sound-based work incubated and shared in one of the best-sounding halls in New York City, National Sawdust now brings these singular performances to listeners everywhere.
Each collection is based on a one-word theme and the deep emotions contained therein. As it unlocks the hidden gems of National Sawdust’s ten-year archive, the series blends the immediacy of playlists with the storytelling depth of podcasts.
The initial drop from this series features pieces that fall under the theme of joy — followed, in November 2024, by Faith, and December 2024, by Healing. For the first time, listeners will experience these vibrant pieces, specially mined from the National Sawdust archive. Joy’s track list, detailed in full below, features works by composers including Andy Akiho, Bach, Beethoven, Magos Herrera, Emma O’Halloran, Caroline Shaw, and Paul Wiancko, and performances from Andy Akiho, Aizuri Quartet, Attacca Quartet, Theo Bleckmann, Magos Herrera, The Refugee Orchestra Project, Brooklyn Rider, Ian Rosenbaum, and Chris Thile.
Built into Live from National Sawdust is a core tenet of artist empowerment: involved artists are not only compensated upfront, but they also receive artist-friendly royalties. Setting a new standard for fairness in the streaming era, this model ensures creators can thrive across platforms, from streaming services to live events.
As Live from National Sawdust explores its given theme, each episode offers a behind-the-scenes look at the creative processes of artists, blending live performances, studio recordings, and intimate interviews. These playcasts give listeners an immersive experience—taking them on a journey through the minds of the artists and the stories behind the music.
Prestini and Ousley bring their combined expertise and unparalleled vision to creating a platform where art transcends the stage, in a pioneering exploration of sound, storytelling, and human connection. Prestini says, “I’m excited to contribute to building solutions in the field in regards to royalties and dissemination through this carefully planned experiment. Upfront royalties and excellent live never heard before recordings plus excellent distribution partners help the financial and discovery process for artists we greatly believe in.”
Ousley says, “Classical music’s ability to be transcendently expansive, and at the same time also profoundly intimate, is something that’s always fascinated me. With this project, Paola and I have been able to take vast overarching themes like “Joy” and “Faith,” and then choose from National Sawdust’s singular archive to find pieces that resonate with us in a deeply personal way, and then tell the stories of why we chose them. It’s a great privilege to have Apple Music Classical and WNYC’s New Sounds provide a platform for this project, and a dream to do it alongside an artist like Paola, whom I admire both as a visionary composer and a magnificent human being.”
National Sawdust (Paola Prestini, Artistic Director/Co-Founder; Ana De Archuleta, Managing Director) announces album playcast series Live from National Sawdust. Drawing from the countless transportive and transcendent performances presented and recorded live at National Sawdust over the decade since its inception, the series—part playlist, part podcast, part radio show—offers a curated journey through the evolution of contemporary music. Created in collaboration with WNYC’s New Sounds and Apple Music Classical, and curated by acclaimed composer and National Sawdust Co-Founder and Artistic Director Paola Prestini and Death of Classical Founder/Artistic Director Andrew Ousley, Live from National Sawdust teems with the unparalleled energy of live performance. It launches October 18 with the release of its first of three albums: Joy. New Sounds will present playcast selections on its daily show on WNYC Radio and the full playcasts—with commentary from hosts Prestini and Ousley—from their YouTube channel; the music featured in the playcasts will also be available on Apple Music Classical.
Amidst its 10th Anniversary season recalling the groundbreaking musical and sound-based work incubated and shared in one of the best-sounding halls in New York City, National Sawdust now brings these singular performances to listeners everywhere.
Each collection is based on a one-word theme and the deep emotions contained therein. As it unlocks the hidden gems of National Sawdust’s ten-year archive, the series blends the immediacy of playlists with the storytelling depth of podcasts.
The initial drop from this series features pieces that fall under the theme of joy — followed, in November 2024, by Faith, and December 2024, by Healing. For the first time, listeners will experience these vibrant pieces, specially mined from the National Sawdust archive. Joy’s track list, detailed in full below, features works by composers including Andy Akiho, Bach, Beethoven, Magos Herrera, Emma O’Halloran, Caroline Shaw, and Paul Wiancko, and performances from Andy Akiho, Aizuri Quartet, Attacca Quartet, Theo Bleckmann, Magos Herrera, The Refugee Orchestra Project, Brooklyn Rider, Ian Rosenbaum, and Chris Thile.
Built into Live from National Sawdust is a core tenet of artist empowerment: involved artists are not only compensated upfront, but they also receive artist-friendly royalties. Setting a new standard for fairness in the streaming era, this model ensures creators can thrive across platforms, from streaming services to live events.
As Live from National Sawdust explores its given theme, each episode offers a behind-the-scenes look at the creative processes of artists, blending live performances, studio recordings, and intimate interviews. These playcasts give listeners an immersive experience—taking them on a journey through the minds of the artists and the stories behind the music.
Prestini and Ousley bring their combined expertise and unparalleled vision to creating a platform where art transcends the stage, in a pioneering exploration of sound, storytelling, and human connection. Prestini says, “I’m excited to contribute to building solutions in the field in regards to royalties and dissemination through this carefully planned experiment. Upfront royalties and excellent live never heard before recordings plus excellent distribution partners help the financial and discovery process for artists we greatly believe in.”
Ousley says, “Classical music’s ability to be transcendently expansive, and at the same time also profoundly intimate, is something that’s always fascinated me. With this project, Paola and I have been able to take vast overarching themes like “Joy” and “Faith,” and then choose from National Sawdust’s singular archive to find pieces that resonate with us in a deeply personal way, and then tell the stories of why we chose them. It’s a great privilege to have Apple Music Classical and WNYC’s New Sounds provide a platform for this project, and a dream to do it alongside an artist like Paola, whom I admire both as a visionary composer and a magnificent human being.”
National Sawdust (Paola Prestini, Artistic Director/Co-Founder; Ana De Archuleta, Managing Director) announces album playcast series Live from National Sawdust. Drawing from the countless transportive and transcendent performances presented and recorded live at National Sawdust over the decade since its inception, the series—part playlist, part podcast, part radio show—offers a curated journey through the evolution of contemporary music. Created in collaboration with WNYC’s New Sounds and Apple Music Classical, and curated by acclaimed composer and National Sawdust Co-Founder and Artistic Director Paola Prestini and Death of Classical Founder/Artistic Director Andrew Ousley, Live from National Sawdust teems with the unparalleled energy of live performance. It launches October 18 with the release of its first of three albums: Joy. New Sounds will present playcast selections on its daily show on WNYC Radio and the full playcasts—with commentary from hosts Prestini and Ousley—from their YouTube channel; the music featured in the playcasts will also be available on Apple Music Classical.
Amidst its 10th Anniversary season recalling the groundbreaking musical and sound-based work incubated and shared in one of the best-sounding halls in New York City, National Sawdust now brings these singular performances to listeners everywhere.
Each collection is based on a one-word theme and the deep emotions contained therein. As it unlocks the hidden gems of National Sawdust’s ten-year archive, the series blends the immediacy of playlists with the storytelling depth of podcasts.
The initial drop from this series features pieces that fall under the theme of joy — followed, in November 2024, by Faith, and December 2024, by Healing. For the first time, listeners will experience these vibrant pieces, specially mined from the National Sawdust archive. Joy’s track list, detailed in full below, features works by composers including Andy Akiho, Bach, Beethoven, Magos Herrera, Emma O’Halloran, Caroline Shaw, and Paul Wiancko, and performances from Andy Akiho, Aizuri Quartet, Attacca Quartet, Theo Bleckmann, Magos Herrera, The Refugee Orchestra Project, Brooklyn Rider, Ian Rosenbaum, and Chris Thile.
Built into Live from National Sawdust is a core tenet of artist empowerment: involved artists are not only compensated upfront, but they also receive artist-friendly royalties. Setting a new standard for fairness in the streaming era, this model ensures creators can thrive across platforms, from streaming services to live events.
As Live from National Sawdust explores its given theme, each episode offers a behind-the-scenes look at the creative processes of artists, blending live performances, studio recordings, and intimate interviews. These playcasts give listeners an immersive experience—taking them on a journey through the minds of the artists and the stories behind the music.
Prestini and Ousley bring their combined expertise and unparalleled vision to creating a platform where art transcends the stage, in a pioneering exploration of sound, storytelling, and human connection. Prestini says, “I’m excited to contribute to building solutions in the field in regards to royalties and dissemination through this carefully planned experiment. Upfront royalties and excellent live never heard before recordings plus excellent distribution partners help the financial and discovery process for artists we greatly believe in.”
Ousley says, “Classical music’s ability to be transcendently expansive, and at the same time also profoundly intimate, is something that’s always fascinated me. With this project, Paola and I have been able to take vast overarching themes like “Joy” and “Faith,” and then choose from National Sawdust’s singular archive to find pieces that resonate with us in a deeply personal way, and then tell the stories of why we chose them. It’s a great privilege to have Apple Music Classical and WNYC’s New Sounds provide a platform for this project, and a dream to do it alongside an artist like Paola, whom I admire both as a visionary composer and a magnificent human being.”
