When it comes to symphonies, orchestra lovers certainly have their favourites. Think Beethoven’s Eroica, or Dvořák’s New World, or Tchaikovsky’s Pathétique. These classics have earned their place in the canon. The downside? They’ve occasionally overshadowed other brilliant works by the

There are 88 keys on a piano, and the number 88 has long been the secret handshake among pianists. So when the calendar flips to November 8, also seen as 8/11 in many places, it’s less of a coincidence and

César Franck’s genius flowered astonishingly late. Until his 50s, he composed mostly sacred choral works, songs, and early orchestral essays that met with indifference. Public acclaim eluded him as even his 1841 Trio dedicated to Franz Liszt faded quickly. Yet

Leonora von Stosch Speyer is a particularly fascinating figure in the history of classical music. Not only was she a celebrated violin soloist, but also a noted patroness of many composers in the early 1900s. She also became a celebrated

In the summer of 1976, the Bayreuth Festspielhaus, the cathedral of sound built by Richard Wagner himself, witnessed something extraordinary. The Green Hill had crowned Germanic sopranos for a century, including Lilli Lehmann, Kirsten Flagstad, and Astrid Varnay. And then

She was the first woman to win a Nobel Prize, the first person to win a Nobel Prize twice, the only person to win a Nobel Prize in two scientific fields, and the first woman to become a professor at

Robert and Clara Schumann were never going to be a normal couple. She was one of the greatest pianists in Europe, and he was one of the greatest composers. From the beginning, their love story was a turbulent one. Clara’s

In addition to writing about classical music for this site and my blog, The Cross-Eyed Pianist, I am a publicist/PR working with a number of musicians and music organisations. I have no formal training for this role, but I spend