Charles-Valentin Alkan (1819-1888) was one of the most celebrated pianists of the nineteenth century, mentioned in the same breath as Frédéric Chopin and Franz Liszt. He was also a most unusual composer, “remarkable in both technique and imagination,” and compared

Only one of Engelbert Humperdinck’s compositions may have entered the repertoire, but what a composition it is! Today we’re looking at the life and work of Engelbert Humperdinck, composer of the magical fairy tale opera “Hansel und Gretel.” Engelbert Humperdinck’s

Benjamin Britten (1913–1976) first fell under the influence of Balinese music when he met the Canadian composer Colin McPhee (1900–1964) in New York in 1939. McPhee had just returned from 6 years in Bali and in 1940, wrote his highly

Composed in 1865 but drawing on a theme which Brahms had written twelve years earlier, the trio for natural horn with violin and piano first sounded on 28 November 1865 in Zürich with the composer at the piano. Nature, nostalgia

In 1959 the Greek/American conductor Dimitri Mitropoulos wrote: “All my life I have searched for the perfect modern work. In this symphony I have found it. I shall perform it the next season.” The work in question was Erich Wolfgang

The therapeutic qualities of music are well known and this new release from award-winning British composer, sound artist and pianist Helen Anahita Wilson is intended to help people who are undergoing cancer treatment. “Every single sound that you hear comes

Frederick Delius (1862–1934) was born in Bradford, West Yorkshire, a center for wool manufacture. Known as the ‘wool capital of the world’, it also took on the names ‘Woolopolis’ and ‘Wool City’. Delius’ parents came from Germany to Bradford and

A highly gifted pianist and composer, Sergei Taneyev (1856-1915) was one of Russia’s most influential music theorists. His treatise on counterpoint was called “one of the best books of its kind” by Stravinsky. The delightful blend of rigorous counterpoint, brilliant