Banalites, FP107 – No.2 Hotel From Poulenc: Les Anges Musiciens (2014) Released by Harmonia Mundi Banalites, FP107 – No.2 HotelFrancis Poulenc’s corpus of songs is one of the most generous and accomplished in the French repertoire. A friend of poets

With his three last and largest tone poems – Ein Heldenleben (1897/8) the Sinfonia Domestica (1903) and Eine Alpensinfonie (1915) – Richard Strauss faced mounting criticism, charges of excess, megalomania, superficiality, and bad taste. For the eminent Richard Strauss scholar

The prestigious Conservatoire de Paris is the next stop on our Music College world tour. Alexandre Pansard-Ricordeau, the director of communications, talks to me about the strong links this conservatoire has with both the musical life of France, and further

In the summer of 1910, Gustav and Alma Mahler once more made their way to Toblach for their annual summer routine. Their personal relationship, however, was becoming severely strained. Much of the marital discontent can be traced back to the

Before we enter that hallowed space—the concert stage— there are the ritual last minute precautions—men: fly zipped, check; women: hooks and buttons fastened especially in the front, check; string players: extra strings, check; oboe and bassoon players: good reeds soaking

Britten: Owen Wingrave, Op. 85 A TV opera? Yep, it happened… Back in 1971 to be precise, when Benjamin Britten wrote Owen Wingrave for the BBC. The opera was taken from TV-land and given a live revival this summer, to

Ludwig van Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 31, Op. 110 “Allegro molto” We have long known that Ludwig van Beethoven was a man of high eccentricity. Stories about his temper became legendary, and detail sudden rages, uncontrolled emotional states, suicidal tendencies,

To the city dwellers of Hong Kong, noise has always been, and always will be, an inescapable part of life. If you have ever experienced living here, you will understand just how difficult it is to find a quiet place