Bach to Bock

Though we had promised to name this episode "Tongue Feel," we're finally bringing out the Mahler Symphony No. 2 as we talk about resurrection and other happy things with Mark and Nichole Stevens from Maine Beer Tours! We brought Rogue Dead Guy, and they brought along some wicked good bottles from Austin Street and Foundation Breweries...and together we had a listen to the first movement of a symphony that lives up to the word "epic." Check it out today!

When was the last time you had a beer that was 14% ABV? We sat down with Sean Sullivan, Executive Director of the Maine Brewers Guild and tried not one, but two heavy-hitters in our nod to Winter and its perfect compliment; barleywine. Featuring two pieces that perfectly capture the coldest time of year, Sean opens up a local Sebago Brewing barleywine, and a very special treat all the way from Austria! If it's snowing outside, find a comfy chair, crack a beer and listen in!

Our next step to introduce you to the instruments of the orchestra, we talk Double Reeds, Double IPA, and Double Oates. The oboe has been getting a bad rap on our podcast, and we want to turn that around and give you some of the best music we've ever heard with a dance party from Camille Saint-Saens, and some Shakespeare from Felix Mendelssohn! All of it chased by a delicious Road 2 Ruin Double IPA from the Two Roads Brewery..do yourself a favor and double your listening pleasure!

We're breaking down walls and building bridges with the world of Jazz, as we bring on Chas Lester and Emmett Harrity from the Fogcutters to perform live on the air! With cans of Baxter Tarnation Lager strewn about the table, we talk about the similarities between the genres, where we all got our musical starts, and pump up for the release of the newest Fogcutters album, Flotsam, this coming weekend! Get your copy today!

In Part 2 of our Valentine's episode, we've got our two music powerhouses (and all-around wonderful people) Lyle Divinsky and Sara Hallie Richardson, the voices behind the 'Portland In Love' concert! Lyle is still charming as ever while working on two hours of sleep while lovely Sara makes sure we call her when we do a Leonard Bernstein episode...with snow falling outside we open up some Mean Old Tom from Maine Beer Company. With Special Guest Star: Muggsy Bogues

We're getting in the mood with three of the most talented and good-looking people we know. In Part I of our Valentine's Day episode, our friend and PSO Assistant Conductor Norman Huynh is back to talk about the upcoming "Portland in Love" concert this weekend, where the PSO will be playing songs of love with legends Lyle Divinsky and Sara Hallie Richardson! We listen to three versions of THE classic love story of Romeo and Juliet, all by three masters of composition...

We get to sit down with the one and only Carla Jean Lauter, otherwise known as The Beer Babe! We just joined the legions of fans who follow her writings, and we crack open some beers over the classical pieces of Looney Tunes and Merry Melodies, to talk about her picks of 2015, what to look for in 2016, and why stealing tasting glasses makes you a dingus! Listen now!

We've got one more mini before we get back to guests and new locations! We're starting a series of introductions to the instruments of the Symphony, and what better place to start than with the noble tuba? We put it into action with "Mars: Bringer of War" from The Planets, by Gustav Holst. If you haven't heard it, prepare to feel the earth shake beneath your feet. We break out the Nightmare Porter and Heady Topper to top off the evening!

Matty was out of the state this past week, so we've done another mini-episode bringing you some background about where our podcast name came from, along with stories of Bach himself, and the German-style Bock beer. We'll have a full-length episode next week, throwing new guests and new beers your way. Today, we're drinking Anchor Brewing Company's "Anchor Bock."

Happy 2016 from Bach to Bock! We kick off the new year with a mini-episode talking about Dress Codes at the Symphony, and we throw in a bit of Samuel Adams Winter and some Samuel Barber music for kicks!