On 4 November 2024, we commemorate the 100th anniversary of the death of Gabriel Fauré. He might well have been the greatest master of French songs, with his settings achieving a beautiful balance of prosody, melody, harmony, and polyphony. In
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No matter how many of us end up moving into towns and cities, human beings are still irresistibly drawn to forests, woodlands, and trees. Classical composers are no exception. In fact, a huge percentage of them were great nature lovers
A piano quintet is generally a composition for piano and four other instruments. Composers throughout the ages have combined a variety of instruments to play along with the piano, but the standardised form of instrumentation features the string quartet. Interestingly,
Concert Overtures proved highly popular with 19th-century audiences. They frequently served, and still do, as musical appetisers for an evening of symphonic splendour. Concert Overtures are self-contained and communicate and carry meanings explained in the titles. As with all program
Composers have always been inspired by trains, and it’s easy to understand why: the rhythmic chugging of steam engines, the sweeping landscapes viewed from a train window, and the sense of adventure and nostalgia associated with rail travel… All of