June, 2018

51 Posts
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“The Pleasure of Love”
On a list of the most popular love songs in classical music, Plaisir d’amour (The pleasure of love) would undoubtedly rank supremely high. Originally composed in 1784, Hector Berlioz arranged the tune for orchestra, and various pop-music settings include the
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Britten: A Midsummer Night’s Dream
In August 1959, Jubilee Hall in Aldeburgh was undergoing a complete refurbishment, and to celebrate the reopening a year later, a new opera was definitely required. Since Benjamin Britten already was the artistic director of the Aldeburgh Festival at that
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Mozart and the Cairo Goose
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart scored a resounding triumph with The Abduction from the Seraglio in 1782. Impatient to write for the stage again he made two abortive attempts at opera buffa. Initially, Mozart requested a libretto from the Salzburg court chaplain
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‘Small is beautiful’ – Petworth Festival turns 40
This coming July sees one of the UK’s most stylish ‘small is beautiful’ annual festivals celebrating a ‘significant’ year – the 2018 Petworth Festival is the 40th such event. Founded jointly by Lord Egremont and Robert Walker, the well-known composer
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On This Day
9 Jun: Schumann’s Cello Concerto Was Premiered
With Robert Schumann teetering on the verge of yet another breakdown, his wife Clara sincerely welcomed her husband’s cello concerto. She confided in her diary, “I have played Robert’s violoncello concerto through again, thus giving myself a truly musical and
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Brahms on the Road
A Trip to Transylvania with Piano and Violin III
After their mountainous trip of over 760 km between Arad, Sighişoara, Braşov, and Sibui, Brahms and Joachim closed the tour in Cluj (now Clug-Napoca). Their final concert, in Cluj, was an outstanding success. Their arrival was attended by a distinguished
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RACHMANINOV, S.: Piano Concerto No. 2 / Études-tableaux, Op. 33
Études-tableaux, Op. 33: No. 3 in C Minor: Grave From RACHMANINOV, S.: Piano Concerto No. 2 / Études-tableaux, Op. 33 (2017) Released by Naxos Rachmaninov: Études-tableaux, Op. 33: No. 3 in C Minor: GraveRachmaninov’s Piano Concerto No. 2 is one
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The Roman Holiday
Charles Gounod and Fanny Hensel
The most prestigious artistic scholarship in France, the “Prix de Rome,” was created in 1663. It originally was awarded in painting, sculpting and architecture, with music and engraving added in 1803 and 1804, respectively. The fortunate recipients, selected via a
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