The plays of Shakespeare are filled with references to herbs and flowers. 

“There’s fennel for you and columbines.  There’s a daisy. I would give you some violets, but they withered all when my father died.”

In "Hamlet," when Ophelia mentions flowers, Shakespeare was making statements that probably were quite obvious to his audiences.

In Elizabethan times, fennel was the symbol of flattery, while columbines signified marital infidelity and ingratitude. Daisies were symbols of unhappy love. 

So maybe you heard there was an eclipse last weekend. Did you see it? Or did you go out to look at the brilliant lunar light and wonder what everybody was talking about? Sometimes it’s like that.

The Embrace Everything series is an exploration and celebration of the music of Gustav Mahler.

Throughout his life, Mahler insisted that music had to, literally, embrace everything. This makes his compositions unusually rich in what they offer both audience and musicians.

Each episode of the series explores a different Mahler symphony and includes interviews with leading conductors, music scholars and musicians. Additionally, Mahler’s own words and those of his contemporaries will be read by actors.

  On this week’s episode: game music that sets a mood.

Though plenty of videogames are about pulse-pounding action thrills, there are also lots of games that are more atmospheric, reflective, even meditative, and music plays a major part in creating the atmosphere for your experience.

We’ll sail peacefully down majestic dunes, take our first steps up a mystical mountain, and even build a colony on the surface of Mars.

During this unusual summer, Classical IPR is proud to continue the tradition of presenting the World Youth Symphony Orchestra on Sunday evenings.

This week we share more performances from the Interlochen archives.

Tune in Sunday at 8 p.m., or listen below at any time.

On the Program:

Debussy: Nocturnes - Fêtes, WYSO (1981)

Nicolai: Merry Wives of Windsor - Overture, National High School Symphony Orchestra (1961)

Barber: Adagio for Strings, WYSO (2012)

Saint-Saëns: Symphony No. 3 "Organ", WYSO (2000)

Since the 1940s, Hugh Downs has been known to most Americans as a television host on programs including "Tonight: Starring Jack Paar," "Today" and "20/20."

Downs, who died July 1 at the age of 99, was also a composer of classical music. He hosted the PBS classical music program "Live from Lincoln Center" during the 1990s.

A few weeks ago, IPR reported on the problems facing rural schools in northern Michigan before next fall. Now, Governor Gretchen Whitmer has provided a roadmap for them to reopen.

But there is still a lot of uncertainty on what next school year will look like.