Fairy tales normally start with “Once upon a Time,” and generally end with “and they lived happily ever after.” But some of the supposed musical fairy tales I’ve been reading about are not nice stories at all. I am talking

Enclosed in a wooden box lies a magical mechanism: things whirl, a pinned cylinder turns, a little tuned comb is plucked, and music comes out. We looked earlier at all the different ways composers played with Johann Strauss II’s Blue

The violins of the great violinists are fascinating works of art. They’ve been coveted for centuries, heard by audiences around the world, and inspired countless musical masterpieces. Some have been stolen; others have been copied; all have been loved. Today,

We still don’t know for certain, but Henry Purcell, the most original English composer of his time, was probably born on 10 September 1659. We do know, however, that during his life, he composed music for a wide variety of

Recently, I embarked on a river cruise with an exclusive focus on Mozart. It was one of the most gratifying and stimulating yet serene journeys I have ever encountered. Credit goes to the tour company, which was meticulous in curating

This year, in 2024, we are celebrating the 200th birthday of an inventive and revered composer of the late 19th century, Anton Bruckner. Having performed his symphonies many times, what better way to honor the composer than to make a

C.P.E. Bach composed a number of character pieces for solo keyboard between 1754 and 1758. He used a French model, the pièce de caractère, and called his works Petites Pièces. The works were named after Bach’s friends and acquaintances. Although

The violin and the cello are two of the most beloved members of the string family. Composers, performers, and audiences have adored them both for centuries. They share a common shape and ancestry, but each is very different, too, in