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Samuel Hasselhorn (Born on May 15, 1990): “Urlicht”
Between Darkness and Light
Following his First Prize triumph at the 2018 Queen Elisabeth Competition, baritone Samuel Hasselhorn has established himself as one of the most versatile artists of his generation. He is equally at home on the operatic stage, in art song, and
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Géza Zichy: The First One-Handed Pianist and Pioneer of Left-Hand Piano Music
After losing his right arm in a teenage hunting accident, Géza Zichy became one of the first professional one-handed concert pianists. His international career would take him to the capitals of Europe, earning praise from critics and audiences alike, while
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7 of the Largest Pianos Ever Built
From intimate Classical Era salon instruments to modern concert grands, the piano has continually grown alongside composers’ ambitions and builders’ ingenuity. While most concert halls are designed for instruments around nine feet long, a handful of piano makers have pushed
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Who’s Afraid of the Big, Bad Song Recital?
I am a guest curator at the Sheffield Chamber Music Festival from 15 to 23 May. In discussing what theme we might choose, various ideas have come to mind – Kurtag’s anniversary, The Northern Landscape? Perhaps unsurprisingly – given my
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Nadine Sierra (Born on May 14, 1988) and the Americas in Song
Finding Her Voice
Born in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on 14 May 1988, Nadine Sierra was six when her mother borrowed a video of Zeffirelli’s La bohème from the local library. This experience started a love affair with opera that continued to grow. As
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The Mikado
Love, Lies, and Execution in Titipu
Arthur Sullivan, born on 13 May in London, trained at the Chapel Royal, the Royal Academy of Music, and the Leipzig Conservatoire. He composed in virtually every musical genre, ranging from the oratorio to the symphony, and from chamber and
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7 Classical Masterpieces Composed in Under a Month
We often imagine the great masterpieces of classical music as being the result of years of painstaking labour. But history tells a more complicated story. Some of the most enduring works in the classical repertoire were written at astonishing speed:
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Cage & Feldman
In many respects, Cage and Feldman stand among the most important composers shaping the musical thinking of the twenty-first century. Together, they were central figures of what came to be known as the New York School. If their music is
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