In his ground-breaking pre-Surrealist drawings, the French illustrator Grandville (born Jean Ignace Isidore Gerard) (1803–1847) created worlds of anthropomorphic vegetables and zoomorphic figures that would influence artists up through the 20th century. His 1843 book Un autre monde (Another World),

On 9 May 1868, Anton Bruckner stepped onto the podium in the Austrian town of Linz. He stood in front of an orchestra consisting of members of the Linz theatre, regimental bands, and some local amateur musicians, and the premiere

Winning the XVIII International Chopin Piano Competition in 2021 propelled Chinese-Canadian pianist Bruce Liu “from near obscurity to rock-star status in the classical music world.” Born Xiaoyu Liu in Paris on 8 May 1997, his path to stardom has been

The name Johannes Brahms, born on 7 May 1833 in Hamburg, is generally known around the world. And while some of his melodies and compositions have gained international and popular currency, the psychological depths of his character have remained a

We always listen to music, whether voluntarily or involuntarily. Recently, I met my friends at a music conference that was held at a casino resort. Our conversation about classical music in our lives began when we heard Beethoven’s Ode to

Franz Liszt divides opinion. For some he is regarded as one of the greatest pianist-composers of the Romantic era; for others, he is a showman and a charlatan who wrote vulgar, showy music. In fact, he was a remarkable musician

Pianist Yunchan Lim exploded onto the international music scene in 2022 when he won the gold medal at the prestigious Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, joining the ranks of past winners like Radu Lupu and Olga Kern. Yunchan Lim was

For a good many opera lovers around the world, Puccini’s passionate, timeless, and indelible story of love among young artists in Paris is the world’s most popular opera. Indeed, La Bohème “is the definitive depiction of the joys and sorrows