In classical music, the Romantic Era lasted from around 1810 to around 1910. That century gave us some of the most famous symphonies in the repertoire. Nineteenth-century composers like Tchaikovsky, Brahms, Dvořák, Schubert, Mahler, Rachmaninoff, and others elevated the symphony
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Musical Dice Games March 31st, 2023 Sometimes, when we listen to music from the Classical Era, we think, we suspect, we believe it might be a little, shall we say, formulaic? When you get involved with the phenomenon of Musical Dice Games, you can see how -
On This Day
29 March: Dvořák’s Symphony No. 3 Was Premiered March 29th, 2023In 1865, Antonín Dvořák decided to write two full-scale symphonies, both nearly an hour in length. Composed within a couple of months, both works are imaginative and arresting, “yet clearly overlong.” At that time, Dvořák was basically unknown as a -
Abandoned by Time: Paul Wranitzky March 29th, 2023 The Czech composer Paul Wranitzky (1756–1808) moved to Vienna at age 20 to find new opportunities. His education combined music (singing, organ, violin, and viola) and then theology in Olomouc. After his move to Vienna, he led the choir at -
Sergei Rachmaninoff March 28th, 2023 “Music is enough for a lifetime, but a lifetime is not enough for music” On 28 March 2023 we commemorate the 80th anniversary of Sergei Rachmaninoff’s death. After a concert career as a pianist that lasted fifty years, Sergei Rachmaninoff -
Musical Prayers for Peace March 27th, 2023 Just over one year ago, Vladimir Putin ordered his armies to invade Ukraine, an independent country with a democratically elected government. Putin’s full-blown criminal invasion has left a trail of devastation, with towns and cities in ashes. Specifically targeting civilian -
Cellists and Their Composers
The Romantic Cello: Richard Strauss and Edvard Grieg March 26th, 2023A number of cello sonatas composed around the time of the Brahms sonatas reveal burgeoning cello writing. I’d like to feature two of my favorite romantic cello sonatas, which I heard my father play when I was growing up. The -
Instrumental Architecture March 26th, 2023 We know that poetry and art inspire music – and we thought we’d look at the question from the other way around. How has music inspired art, in this case, architecture. We’ve found some unusual buildings in the shapes of -
On This Day
26 March: Ludwig van Beethoven Died March 26th, 2023A biographer reports, “A violent thunderstorm struck Vienna in the afternoon of 26 March 1827. At 5:45 pm, a sudden flash of lightning was reported, and the dying man suddenly raised his head, stretched out his own right arm majestically—like