The Hungarian violinist, composer, conductor and educator Joseph Joachim (1831-1907) was one of the most influential musical personalities of his time. At the tender age of 12, with Mendelssohn conducting, he performed the Beethoven violin concerto in London, and later

A standing ovation is a form of applause where members of a seated audience stand up while applauding after extraordinary performances of particularly high acclaim. In Ancient Rome returning military commanders (such as Marcus Licinius Crassus after his defeat of

“Minors of the Majors” invites you to discover compositions by the great classical composers that for one reason or another have not reached the musical mainstream. Please enjoy, and keep listening!

In some ways there has never been a more difficult time to be a composer. Funding cuts, an over-saturated market and classical music’s waning cultural significance mean that finding a compositional voice and a place for that voice is perhaps

Music lovers adore their favorite divas. One high C and we are smitten. It is no surprise that sopranos have their share of musical sweethearts. Russian cellist Mstislav Rostropovich, one of the greatest cellists of the 20th century, was charmed

In my last article I discussed Čiurlionis’ genius, single-handedly introducing Symbolism to his native Lithuania. Alexander Scriabin (1872-1915) in contrast, lived and worked within well-established artistic traditions in Russia, in which the various avant-garde movements in music and art from

String Quartet no 1 II. Tema con variazioni From Bacewicz: String Quartets (2015) Released by Naxos Bacewicz: String Quartet no. 1 – II. Tema con variazioni Musicologist Adrian Thomas considered Grażyna Bacewicz’s string quartets “unrivalled in 20th-century Polish music and…

The contribution of Thomas Alva Edison to modern life is so enormous that it is difficult to appreciate! He registered a grand total of 1,093 patents, including numerous telegraph machines, the first voice recording and playback system, the phonograph and