These present clear, in-depth discussions of well-chosen pieces from (mostly) classical music. The musical sections highlight the discussion well- I always want to go hear the full piece when I finish with the podcast. The presentations are simple enough for those with little music training and deep enough to hold the attention of those with experience. It is easy to see why Mr. Weilerstein is doing well as a conductor!

What superlatives can I use to describe this podcast: THE BEST if you love or want to learn more about classical music: Tip-Top

I love this conductors energy. Really enjoy the high quality musical examples. I wish he would talk about his personal experiences with these compositions. Maybe interviews with musicians who have performed the selections. Just a thought, but really enjoy this podcast. Please fix the echo. It sounds like you are recording this in a large room.

Fantastic show. Thanks for this gift to music lovers.

The Copland episode was my intro. Fun listen for a long time string player.

A wonderful analysis of this piano concerto masterpiece! As usual, Maestro Weilerstein gives his conductor’s perspective and educates the listeners to the themes and keys of this great concerto. Bravo!

Insightful, interesting, and well paced discussion of wonderful pieces I would love to hear an episode on Michael Haydn’s Requiem some time.

Not since Karl Haas’ Adventures in Good Music, have I enjoyed a classical music program like Joshua Weilerstein’s Sticky Notes. Sticky Notes energetically and intelligently focuses on explaining both the history and mechanics of particular pieces. Weilerstein has also created excellent shows on broader topics, most recently Klezmer and Modes. Haas is smiling down from Heaven.

Fantastic show. Thank you for sharing!!

The narratives behind the music that Joshua presents are so compelling (and so well written) that no one could hear these podcasts and claim classical music is boring! Thank you for inspiring this amateur pianist to get back to the keyboard.

The first podcast I subscribed to and listened to voraciously! Joshua’s episodes are extremely well-researched, witty, insightful, and rewarding! (He pretty much hates brass playing, but he’s a violinist, so it’s to be expected 🤣 … someday I’ll do the number crunching about how often he uses negative descriptors in his narratives regarding brass players versus the superfluous and glowing praise reserved for the string sections, but even with that chip on my shoulder, I adore every episode. If you are a novice, experienced admirer, or seasoned pro, you’ll enjoy this podcast time and time again!

I just found this podcast and listened to the first few minutes of the Sibelius 5 episode. Sadly the information is inaccurate. I’m not sure why Mr. Weilerstein says the opening melody in thirds in the WWs is “a chromatic scale” (the pitch content of the top oboe line, for instance, is Bb-C-Db-Eb-F-Gb, which is a diatonic collection. The tremolos that accompany what he calls “the second theme” are also not a chromatic scale (Vln 1: D-D#-E#-F#-G-A). This is indeed one of the most ingenious works in the canon, but I frankly had to stop listening to the ‘analysis’ due to these inaccuracies, and it doesn’t engender faith to give the other episodes a try. Kudos for the success of the podcast, but really not for the musician who wants accurate analysis.

Always a treat. Uncovers layers previously unseen.

Plenty of musical details ands historical context for adult listeners. And amazingly keeps my 6- and 8-year-old kids engaged and asking for more episodes! Perfect for all ages and enjoying every episode.

I appreciate the quality of the discussion provided in this podcast. It certainly helps me to appreciate the intricacies of many styles of music, composer, and their works. There is no dumbing it down for the audience here, which pushes me towards appreciation of nuance in many pieces. Keep it up!

Outstanding, love it!

This is the only podcast review I’ve ever written, and I’m here to say that this is hands down the best podcast I’ve ever encountered. I’ve been playing and listening to classical music for four decades; I’ve always loved it. But now, thanks to Joshua’s perceptive commentaries, I *inhabit* it. For the first time in my life, I feel as though I’m truly *inside of* this music. I now can hear choices, moods, structures, and depth that I couldn’t hear before. It’s as if I’m seeing for the first time the architectural beauty of the building in which I’ve already lived most of my life. It’s difficult to say how much this has enriched my life. Joshua is truly gifted.

Classical music and I are old friends. I loved it since I was a child and almost became a professional musician (French horn, if you must know). I’ve been listening carefully to recorded music from medieval to composed-yesterday for over 60 years. I wrote music reviews for about 50 years. This podcast is not only the best of its type that I’ve run into but the best that I can imagine. Josh, the host, is a violinist and conductor and is from music royalty. His father was the founding first violinist of the world-famous Cleveland Quarter and his mother and sister are both super cellists. Unlike many musicians, Josh is a good teacher. He knows the pieces he talks about inside out (literally) and explains them really well. And it’s not a bunch of musical-academic garbage. He’s more than ready to say things like “listen here, the music is getting scary” or “listen to how happy things sound now” and to show exactly what he’s talking about with sound clips. There’s something strange about how we deal with this kind of music in U.S. culture. It’s considered Very Important, Difficult, and an insider thing. That’s nonsense. This music is like movies. It’s a world where things are funny, scary, peaceful, exciting, sad, happy - just like life, only dialed up a bit because it’s art. We are depriving ourselves of so much of the joy and richness of life if we don’t give this music a chance to speak to us. So Josh is the basic music teacher we all should have had in elementary school. He makes things clear, simple, and interesting. But, he’s also the advanced listener and teacher we all should have had in college. He shows us how composers are talking in the music by changing tunes around and using them to connect to our feelings. Don’t deprive yourself of the sheer joy of this podcast. If you don’t know the music, it’s like a tour of wonderful new world. If you do know the music, it’s like getting a chance to understand it on a whole new level. I would not miss an episode of this podcast. I have not heard a single one that didn’t teach me something (despite how long I’ve been listening to this music) and I have not heard a single one that any ordinary listener would find too hard to follow. Try an episode or two to start: maybe the St. Saens “Carnival of the Animals” - lots of tunes you already know; or the Dvorak 8th Symphony - lots of tunes that sound like you’ve always known them; or even Beethoven Symphony No. 5 - everyone knows that, but not as much as they will at the end of the podcast. Or even “The Nutcracker” if you’re in a holiday mood. You won’t regret it. And there are great interviews with performers and scholars and shows on music-related topics. My advice is start with the music - the other stuff can wait. If you’ve read this far, this podcast is for you. Go. Listen. Decide for yourself. And enjoy the beautiful new world it opens to you.

Joshua’s in-depth analysis of each work is genuinely informative and brings a new life and vibrancy to the classical music world.

Thee Podcast for a classical immersion into music, the souls’s own speech. A must follow!

Fantastic! Check it out!

Unfailingly interesting and engaging. Joshua weaves pure musicology with cultural relevance and personal insight. Every episode is a learning experience that leaves me wanting more…and thinking about the music and beyond.

Of all the classical podcasts I listen to, this is without a doubt, the very best. The historical background information, the musical clips inserted throughout, and the host/instructor’s enthusiasm for the musical work combine to provide a wonderful experience.

🙌😀😀😀😀😂🤣😄😅😁🎹🎹🎼🎺🪘🎻🪗🎻🎻🪗🎤🪗♟️🪈🪇🎺🎷🎷🪘🎹🎼🎲🎸🪗🎸♟️🪗🪈🪈🎻

Well presented. Easy to follow and absorb knowledge. Pleasant and incredibly knowledgeable host. I have just recently discovered this presentation and am so looking forward to almost 100 episodes! Thank you for enlightening my world and feeding my hunger to learn of this amazing art form!

The host’s palpable passion for the music, his deep expertise, and his ability to communicate the essential truths and history of the works make this podcast an utter joy. It’s magical to listen to people in love with what they do.

When I was a kid in Detroit in the 60’s and 70’s, I used to listen to Karl Haas’ Adventures in Good Music on WJR — this was my introduction to classical music. In the years since that show ended, I have struggled to find a good classical podcast that takes a similar approach, dissecting and analyzing pieces (unlike the BBC and Gramophone podcasts, which are fine but not really what I was looking for. I recently happened upon Sticky Notes (the episode on Lutoslawski’s Concerto for Orchestra) and this was EXACTLY what I had been looking for. Josh Weilerstein does an excellent job revealing and explaining music from the Baroque to the 21st century, showing me things I would not have picked up on by myself. Highly recommended to those who want more in-depth knowledge and analysis of music.

When I was in college I used to listen to Karl Haas in NPR to learn more about classical music. This show is so awesome and so informative it is allowing me to continue to learn about classical music again! Love the show so much!

As a young musician and being in middle school, I normally do not get this much information. Listening to this podcast, I loved learning about new composers and about the history behind the pieces. It was amazing!

Fantastic discussions illuminating aspects of classical pieces that I have never fully appreciated.

I highly appreciate the fascinating way in which you tell and connect the story of the musical pieces, the music themes and the music. It enriches my music appreciation and it helps me to put some words to the feelings I experience while listening to the music.

This podcast is everything I wished my music appreciation class had been. The breadth, clarity and engaging style draws you in whether you’re new to classical music or an aficionado. I’ve learned so much, not only about the music, but about the composers, musicians and historical influences. Thank you!

Sticky Notes

Episode 207 was wonderful Thank you Episode 218 was so good. Thank you. 😀😀 Episode 219! Excellent. Keep getting better. Thank you

I absolutely love this podcast! The episodes are extremely thorough without being boring. I am a classical musician and teacher and I learn something new (or multiple somethings) about the pieces I already love. The mix of history, explanation and dissection of music and samples of professional performances make this podcast a must listen!

I am totally delighted to continue learning about what I have loved since (pre-classroom) childhood — classical music. In these troubled times, this offers much needed joy. Thank you!!

Joshua has a great mind and ear for music and we’re all lucky to have a pro share his thoughts on a regular basis. I especially like that he plays many musical examples.

I learn so much from you. Thank you. My husband and I love listening to your show.

Thank you for all your Podcasts! They are uniformly excellent, educational and fun. I also listened to your zoom on Mozart’s Requiem (at a later date due to having been out of town). It was wonderful and very enjoyable. I loved the Amadeus inserts. Definitely preferred the Karajan interpretation. Thank you so much for doing all this work.

This show is very well prepared and presented. The host is a professional conductor and his expertise and insight is invaluable. The well placed music examples show the care and planning he puts into this show. My disappointment is only because the majority of pieces covered are really old - like 18th & 19th century. I understand there's a contingency that wants this, but not me. Please more coverage of 20th century and contempory composers and help bring the classical music audience into more modern times. All other arts seem able to do this, why can't we? I loved the episodes on Ingram Marshall, Bartok dous, atonity, etc. You just have to be selective because there aren't many of them.

I’m excited to have found this wonderful podcast, which I now listen to every week!

I’m so grateful to this show and Joshua Witherstein for his insightful guidance through the classical masterpieces. The show breaks down orchestral components so nicely and also gives fascinating details on the background of each composer. It has introduced me to the thrill of classical music and greatly enriches the listening experience. Thanks!

I very much appreciate, enthusiastically listen, and always look forward to Maestro Weilerstein’s episodes on this fabulous “Sticky Notes” podcast. His knowledge is vast, his passion evident, and the topics, composers, and music he covers is diverse and attention grabbing. I had been looking for a classical music podcast for a while and I am sure glad I stumbled upon this gem. Give this podcast a listen, folks!

Joshua’s unique perspective as a conductor and player, plus his engaging storytelling, combine to ensure you will learn something new every time. He peels away the layers of complexity beneath every piece for experts and novices to enjoy. A weekly delight not to be missed.

Uniquely brilliant insights well organized and I especially love when he plays back sections of the music. Refreshed my love for great music Accessible to all but also provides depth of appreciation. I would love to have this conductor as someone leading an orchestra I played in. Very likeable and draws you in

Score!

Very good job of presenting the music in a way that will interest experienced classical musicians as well as those with less formal training.

The show has great content, some of the best out there, the huge problem to me is the sound quality, you can’t hear the voice when you drive, the music extracts are so loud. It’s really a shame because the host is so knowledgeable, and so passionate about the music. It shows how the technical aspect of a Podcast can ruin a great content. Please listen to The Soundtrack Show and hear how well the voice is compressed and sits in the mix.

Fascinating and fun. Clear and digestible by anyone. Great show.

I adore sticky notes! As a retired professional musician/band director, I really appreciate JW’s insight in to the music, but also his occasional insight into the music from conductor’s perspective. He is a skilled conductor, yes, (find his conducting on YouTube) but to hear him communicate with such passion for great music is inspiring. It’s so refreshing to see quality conductors behaving like real humans instead of egotists and tyrants. Musicians respond to intelligence, musicianship, and kindness, and preparation. If I were in a professional orchestra, I’d play my butt off fo him! I listen to every episode - even the ones that have music that doesn’t interest me. I always learn something. 😁