Conductor Cristian Macelaru tells his amazing musical life story

Available for 18 days

Tom Service with guests, stories and the perfect classical soundtrack for the weekend! The Romanian conductor Cristian Măcelaru is the embodiment of the old school American dream: growing up in Soviet Romania a hugely talented violinist and getting a scholarship to study in the USA as a boy. Now he's the music director of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra and known for his exciting and inclusive music making. He chats to Tom about his journey to Cincinnati and a new album with the Orchestra de Paris of the unknown music of French composer Elsa Barraine. This week it's the first in a brand new series for Saturday Mornings: The Creators. Each week we'll meet a musical guest who has made something game-changing in music or audio - from the smallest ringtone to the biggest concert hall. Today we start off with a splash - quite literally! - as Japanese composer Dai Fujikura talks about his new opera inspired by one of the most iconic images in all visual art - The Great Wave off Kanagawa by Katsushika Hokusai. We all know the image of the Great Wave, but very few know anything about Hokusai. Dai helps tell both Hokusai's story and the story behind his genre-spanning operatic collaboration between Scottish Opera and Japanese instrumentalists. And as Artemis II prepares to launch, Tom looks at the music that has actually been taken to the moon over the years, with the help of BBC Sky at Night writer Mary McIntyre. To listen on most smart speakers, just say "ask BBC Sounds to play Saturday Morning”.