The history of the violin concerto in Russia is inextricably linked to the incredible performing career of Leopold Auer (1845-1930). Spanning two centuries, Auer’s playing was polished and elegant, and although it supposedly lacked fire, “he made up for it

Between 1815 and 24 April 1817, Ludwig van Beethoven resided at quarters in Sailerstätte No. 1055/6. It was a lofty and narrow house, and Beethoven had an apartment on the 3rd flood. Some of his rooms were positioned towards the

The harp as an instrument came to its greatest development in Paris in the 20th century with the development of the chromatic harp by Pleyel. The chromatic harp (also known as cross-strung harp) was the first to have all 12

Most musicians don’t know a lot about Fanny Mendelssohn besides the fact that she was Felix’s uber-talented older sister. But she was a hugely important musical figure in her own right. We look at thirteen facts you (probably) didn’t know

Beethoven’s earliest documented contact with the Countess Anna Maria Erdödy dates from the year 1808, however, it is almost certain that he had become acquainted with her much earlier. The Countess was a competent pianist who had been living in

Apologies to author Henry Miller for lifting the title of his novel, but for countless centuries people have gazed at the stars and studied the movements and positions of celestial objects. This particular study is currently known as astrology, and

“Music is as much a science and craft as it is an art” In his unpublished autobiography, probably dictated to his wife Virginie Enaust, Antoine Reicha summarizes his aesthetic outlook on music. He writes, “As I was both composer and

We still don’t know exactly where the idiom “Swansong” actually originated, but presently we use it to mean a last effort or final production coming from someone in a respective field before retirement, or sometimes, death. It is probably most