Alma Rosé, a top-class artist – violinist, conductor, ensemble leader and actress, is most remembered today for her amazing courage. She was the conductor and founder of the celebrated women’s orchestra Wiener Walzermädeln–but she is primarily remembered as the conductor of

Sergei Prokofiev, the Russian composer whose innovative and vibrant works revolutionised 20th-century music, holds a special place in the hearts of classical music enthusiasts. Known for his bold harmonies, rhythmic vitality, and a unique blend of lyricism and irony, Prokofiev’s

British composer Christopher Gunning (1944–2023) wrote concert music but is probably most widely known for his music for films and television. But, at the same time, do we really look out for the names of the composers of film and

Alexander Siloti was many things: a virtuoso pianist, beloved teacher, connector of musicians…and Sergei Rachmaninoff’s cousin! He studied with Liszt, edited Tchaikovsky, conducted the premiere of Rachmaninoff’s second piano concerto, and introduced audiences to music that would go on to

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky was born into a large and close-knit Russian family in 1840. Every composer’s family has a major impact on his life, but Tchaikovsky’s family had an especially major impact on his. One brother became an early biographer

Violinist Joseph Joachim was one of the greatest violinists of the nineteenth century, and a dear friend of composer Johannes Brahms for decades. But in 1884, while he was going through a brutal divorce, Joachim was blindsided by what he

December is packed with some of the most famous (and infamous) anniversaries in classical music history. It’s the month when Beethoven’s Fifth and Sixth Symphonies were heard for the first time in a freezing Viennese hall – the month when

The French cantata, emerging in the late 17th century and flourishing through the early 18th century, represents a distinctive musical form that blended Italianate influences with the expressive and refined aesthetic of French Baroque music. Originating around 1700, the French