Summer is here! School’s out, weekends never seem long enough if you’ve been at work all week, and the outdoors becomes the place to be. We’ll look at summer through sound, and a few pieces of music, and see how

Celebrated Finnish composer Jean Sibelius and his wife Aino were married for sixty-five years, from 1892 to 1957. It was one of the longest marriages in classical music history. Between 1903 and 1904, the couple famously built a rustic house

You need to get ready to sprinkle some pixie dust and celebrate International Fairy Day, a magical moment on June 24 when we honour the whimsical world of fairies. Just think of tiny, glowing creatures flitting through enchanted forests, their

Alfred Brendel, who passed away at the age of 94 in June 2025, was not merely a pianist but a towering figure in classical music whose intellectual depth, technical mastery, and poetic sensibility left an indelible mark on the world.

Frédéric Chopin is possibly the most beloved composer of the Romantic era. He also, despite his shy and somewhat aloof nature, had many friends in the musical world, and he often dedicated his compositions to them. These dedications offer a

Get ready to unleash your inner selfie superstar because National Selfie Day is strutting into the spotlight on June 21. This delightfully fun holiday is your official excuse to channel your best angles, perfect that pout, and flood your socials

In a previous article, Maurice Ravel as a Young Man, we followed the story of Ravel’s early life and first forays into the world of professional composition. We left off at the turn of the century, with twenty-five-year-old Ravel poised

Composer Ludwig van Beethoven loved to push music to its limits, both technically and emotionally. How exactly did he do it? He employed a variety of methods, but he especially enjoyed using driving rhythms and intense dynamic contrasts (i.e., quickly