The 1950s saw enormous changes in popular music. In the US, rock and roll displaced an enormous number of popular genres, from yodelling to ballads. Outside the US, rock and roll also shifted local music off the stage. In Argentina,

Something entirely inconceivable took place on 16 January 1938. On that day, Benny Goodman invaded Carnegie Hall, the citadel of American high culture. The “King of Swing” brought his own band, including Harry James on trumpet, Lionel Hampton on vibraphone

Puerto Rican composer Robert Sierra created a Carnaval of animals, and all come from the land of myths: Gargoyles, Sphinxes, Unicorns, Dragons, and The Phoenix. We start up on the roof, where the gargoyles live – their mysterious and somewhat

Two of the most iconic keyboard instruments in the history of music are the piano and the harpsichord. Of course, at first glance, they share important similarities. They look alike: both have keyboards, both come in a case and have

Program music, music written to a pre-existing storyline, was at the centre of the battle with absolute music, music written for the sake of music. Nonetheless, program music is something that, for many people, gives them a way to negotiate

Credit: NPR Classical

Latvian-born conductor Mariss Jansons (1943-2019) is habitually ranked among the world’s greatest and best conductors, bringing perfectionism, versatility, intensity, and passion to the stage. He was known for his rigorously prepared performances, always looking behind the notes to find what

Walevska Cellist Extraordinary film of her life as a young cellist Two cellists you may not know were widely admired in the Twentieth Century. Christine Walevska (B 1945) had a scintillating tone with a gorgeous vibrato and was thought of