In essence

1705 Posts
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Zodiac
We know the animals and figures of the Zodiac, but how did composers take these on? Mystic composer John Tavener used the birth of his second daughter as inspiration for his work for solo piano, Zodiac (1997). The overtones of
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Pursuing Protein in Classical Music
Evolution has given human beings four types of teeth, each with a specific function. Incisors cut the food, canines tear the food and molar and premolars crush the food. Given that kind of evolutionary structure, it seems rather reasonable to
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Destination Brazil
Brazil and its main city, Rio de Janeiro, came to life for many people in the film that showed the many facets of the city: Black Orpheus (Orpheu Negro) and its retelling of the Orpheus myth through the medium of
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At the Center of the Musical Universe
Robert and Clara Schumann II
Robert Schumann spent the last two-and-a-half years of his life in a private psychiatric hospital in Endenich. His medical records were discovered in 1991, and first published in 2006. They contain daily entries documenting treatment—including shielding from stimuli, physical procedures,
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Destination Rome
The city of Rome is a city of ancient forums and modern traffic, fabulous fountains and busy markets, solemn churches and resonant spaces. It’s a walking city and all of history seems to have happened here.
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Honey and Rue
The American soprano Kathleen Battle read the words of the poet Toni Morrison and commissioned Morrison and the composer André Previn for a song cycle. Seeing the names of those three people in one sentence tells you from the beginning
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At the Center of the Musical Universe
Robert and Clara Schumann
Robert Schumann, Clara Schumann, and Johannes Brahms are surely the most famous love triangle in the history of Western music. Details of the courtship, ensuing legal troubles and the eventual marriage between Robert and Clara are well known.
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Flower Waltzes
Dancing and flowers seem to go together – the beautiful flowers moving gently in the breeze and the dancers weaving their way around the floor.
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