June, 2012

32 Posts
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Krzysztof Penderecki
One of the most versatile, multi-faceted and stylistically diverse composer of modern times, Krzysztof Penderecki was born 23 November 1933 in Dębica, Poland. Education and Early Compositions After initially taking private music lessons, Penderecki enrolled in the State Higher School
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The Cultural Ambassador – pianist Xu Zhong
Once a French concession, Shanghai, with its rich culture and roadside platanes, is regarded as the ‘Paris’ in China. Pianist Xu Zhong, who grew up in Shanghai and furthered his study with Dominique Merlet in Paris, is perhaps one of
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Let’s get the Party started!
Franz Liszt and Caroline de Saint-Cricq
One of the foremost musical personalities and arguable the greatest virtuoso of his day, Franz Liszt (1811-1886) expanded the technical limits of the piano and the performer in both his own playing and in his compositions. However, what really distinguished
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Cello Concerto Overview – Two Three and Four cellos!
Virtually every time I mention that I play the cello, the response is an enthusiastic “Oh I love the cello!” Despite the fact that the soulful instrument is very popular today, the solo concerto repertory is not abundant like the
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Franz Liszt versus Sigismond Thalberg
The culture of the traveling virtuoso, so prevalent in the first half of the nineteenth century and clearly reincarnated in today’s concert environment in which pianists like Lang Lang play more than 300 concerts a year, brought forth a unique
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Mozart and his World: Salzburg I
For one reason or another, the name Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart has become a marketing cliché, selling everything from alcohol to chocolates. Perfectly sane and healthy people swoon at the mere mention of his name, and he is habitually referred to
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Schumann – Piano Quintet Op.44 / Piano Quartet Op.47
Piano Quintet Op. 44 in E Flat Major – Allegro Brillante Alexander Melnikov, piano Jerusalem Quartet From Schumann – Piano Quintet Op.44 / Piano Quartet Op.47 (2012) Released by Harmonia Mundi Schumann – Piano Quintet Op. 44 in E Flat
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Beethoven and Shostakovich 9th
Leonard Slatkin conducts Shostakovich and Beethoven: 2 Ninth SymphoniesOrchestre National de Lyon, The Gulbenkian Choir, Manuela Uhl, Bea Robein,Christian Elner, Morten Frank Larsen29 June 2012, Auditorium de Lyon Watch the concert Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125, “Choral”
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