Blogs

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The Motet
One of the most prevalent musical genres for over 500 years, the motet has virtually vanished from the performing repertoire. Throughout history, the motet changed with every new musical period. Beginning around 1220, the motet was a secular polyphonic composition
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The Start of a Nationalist Storm
Vítězslav Novák’s V Tatrach
Czech composer Vítězslav Novák (1870–1949) initially studied law at Prague University before taking up music as a student of Antonín Dvořák (1841–1904) at the Prague Conservatory. His early interest was folk songs, particularly from the Slovak and Moravian areas, and
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Henriëtte Bosmans: How Did This Half-Jewish Composer Survive the Holocaust?
Henriëtte Bosmans has one of the most fascinating biographies in twentieth-century music history. She was a celebrated piano soloist and composer. Her love for great women performers inspired deeply beautiful works for both cello and voice. And when the Nazis
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Why Abel Selaocoe a Dazzling Cellist, Singer, and Composer, is a Revelation
South African cellist, singer, and composer Abel Selaocoe has a remarkable and inventive approach. Taking the cello to places rarely explored, he showcases the tremendous range of expression of the cello from the classics through non-Western musical traditions. His extraordinary
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10 Podcasts about Classical Music and Beyond
Do you listen to podcasts? I enjoy listening to podcasts, especially when I am driving. In this article, I share some podcasts about classical music that our contributors and I listen to. Perhaps there are a few that you might
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The Lyrical Piano
Mendelssohn’s Lieder ohne Worte (Songs without Words)
Felix Mendelssohn is credited with creating a new genre of music for the piano: the short lyrical pieces known as the Lieder ohne Worte, the Songs Without Words. It was common in the Romantic period to have short lyrical piano
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Making Fun of the Master
Richard Wagner in Caricature
Richard Wagner (1813–1883) was a revolutionary in German music and in opera. For opera-goers, the advent of Wagner onto their stages was cause for comment, particularly in the caricature sections. In images, the cartoonists could take aim at all they
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The Enchanting Power of Intimacy: Music in Small Venues
I will never forget a concert I attended in the mid-1980s in a tiny Medieval church in Zadar, a small seaside town in former Yugoslavia. Amidst the ancient stone pillars and arches, a string quartet played music by Beethoven and
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