Self-sufficiency, in the context of music, refers to a musician’s ability to manage various aspects of their career independently. Today, more than ever, self-sufficiency is crucial for musicians in an increasingly dynamic and competitive music industry. At a most basic

The autocratic conductor is almost a relic of the past. Musicians and music lovers have heard tales of outbursts from Arturo Toscanini, Fritz Reiner, and others. Toscanini can be heard on tape screaming, “You have no ears. You have no

Being great at playing one instrument doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll be great at another. But over the decades, a handful of fabulous concert violinists have proven to be fabulous pianists, too. Today we’re looking at how these five violinists’ gifts

One of the most important Polish composers of the 20th century, Karol Szymanowski (1882-1937) is a reflection of the most relevant currents and trends in music during his life. Initially fascinated by the music of Chopin and Wagner, Szymanowski’s music

Schubert’s song cycle Winterreise has none of the bright optimism of his earlier Die schöne Müllerin. The spring day of ‘Das Wandern’ is now the cold frozen dusk of ‘Gute Nacht’. Our hero starts off isolated, leaving town in the

A blind woman steps on a Viennese stage and makes her way to a strange new instrument called the glass harmonica. The sounds it makes are whistle-like and otherworldly. (Eventually, rumors would circulate that playing it or even hearing it

Lying at home recovering from an illness, the young Jean Sibelius (1865-1957) took the opportunity to reassess his life. In early 1889, he’d played solo violin in Beethoven’s Romance in F with the Academic Orchestra. When he fell ill in

Hector Berlioz (1803-1869) was a master of orchestration and his 1844 book on the subject was the standard not for years, but for decades after his death. He lived his life with his heart on his sleeve and works such