In June 1933, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra performed a symphony by an American woman for the first time in its history. The composer was Florence Price – a Black woman from Little Rock, Arkansas, who had spent years navigating an

Alexander Glazunov, born on 10 August 1865, was Russia’s greatest symphonist in the generation immediately following Tchaikovsky, and he subsequently passed down his legacy to his most famous student, Dmitri Shostakovich. A prodigious musical talent, Glazunov began his studies with

Reynaldo Hahn, born on 9 August 1874 (1874–1947), is widely known for his beautiful art songs that capture emotion with elegance and subtlety. It is hard to believe, but his French mélodies were initially dismissed as merely evocative of the

In our inaugural episode on forgotten Romantic piano concertos, we discovered unexpected and wonderful music by Bortkiewicz, Scharwenka, Beach, Potter and Widor. These much-neglected nineteenth- and early twentieth-century piano concertos and concertante works have been brought to light in 87

Ludwig van Beethoven is one of the most famous composers who ever lived – but how much do you really know about him? Beyond his iconic symphonies and the legendary deafness, he lived a life full of mystery, heartbreak, and

Stradivari violins may be the most thoroughly analysed musical instruments ever made. We have taken photographs and videos of them. We have put them into CT scanners and under electron microscopes. We have scientifically analysed the wood cell by cell,

In the world of string-instrument making, the 17th-century masters from Cremona, Stradivari and Guarneri, top the list. They made not just violins but also violas, cellos, and guitars, which have become legacy instruments passed down from generation to generation. To

In July 2020, a Japanese pianist named Hayato Sumino sat down at his piano to record a video for his YouTube channel, Cateen. In it, he performs “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” seven times in a row. Each time he ups