In the first part of this article, we surveyed the rather sensational veneer of the story of Henryk Górecki’s Symphony of Sorrowful Songs – the surreal happenings, the seemingly chance developments, and the absurdity of a reticent Polish composer outselling

The piano music of Robert Schumann isn’t just challenging for the hands, it is a real workout for the mind and heart as well. Technical challenges aside, Schumann’s music is full of nuanced emotional expressions, often requiring the pianist to

For the past hundred years, classical music lovers have gotten to know the work of the great pianists through their recordings. Today we’re looking at the final recordings that six great pianists made. In some cases, these recordings were made

Hector Berlioz was a man of unbridled passion and relentless innovation. He possessed a rebellious spirit that defied convention, and his character was as dramatic and vivid as the music he created. His personality was dominated by an almost volcanic

The celebrated New Zealand soprano Dame Kiri Te Kanawa stands as one of the most luminous figures in the world of opera and classical music. Her extraordinary vocal talent and captivating stage presence propelled her from humble beginnings to international

Every piece of classical music has a unique composition story. Inevitably, some of those stories ended early after, say, a composer left a score unfinished, or destroyed it, or never wrote anything down in the first place. These lost works

In his day, Moritz Moszkowski was a famous and well-respected musician. He was an accomplished pianist who performed extensively across Europe, and as a highly sought-after teacher, he influenced generations of future piano virtuosos. 100 years after his passing on

On 6 March 2006, the French minister of Culture and communication Renaud Donnedieu de Vabres, the mayor of Paris Bertrand Delanoë, and the director of the Cité de la Musique, Laurent Bayle, announced the beginning of the construction of the