The love story between Robert and Clara Schumann is often regarded as one of the most romantic in classical music history. Happily for historians, many of their love letters survive. They document their inner thoughts and emotions, as well as
Latest article
Spotlight
-
The Magnificent Nocturnes of Gabriel Fauré II November 24th, 2024 Marcel Proust wrote to Gabriel Fauré in 1897, “Monsieur, I not only love, admire and venerate your music, I have been, still am, in love with it.” In our first episode on the magnificent nocturnes of Gabriel Fauré we found -
Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
A Piano Duet Tribute November 19th, 2024It might come as a surprise, but Franz Schubert wrote almost as much piano music for four hands as for two. His thirty-four compositions in this medium range from his earliest surviving music, the Fantasie D. 48, to his Rondo -
The 10 Most Beautiful Piano Quintets
Imaginative Scoring November 18th, 2024In previous blogs we listened to a number of beautiful piano quintets scored for piano and a string quartet. Robert Schumann came up with this arrangement in 1842, and it became the standardised scoring for much of the 19th century -
The Magnificent Nocturnes of Gabriel Fauré I November 17th, 2024 A good number of instrumental works, specifically pieces written for piano solo in the 19th and 20th-century, carry the title “Nocturne.” The word comes from the French, meaning “nocturnal” or “night”, and it suggests the magical atmosphere of peace and -
Collaborating With Samuel Dushkin
“Dear Sam” November 15th, 2024The Polish-born American violinist Samuel Dushkin (1891-1976) is widely known for his extensive collaborations with Igor Stravinsky. The two men were compatible friends from the very beginning and eventually embarked on a concert tour through Europe and the United States, -
Six Composers Like Debussy November 13th, 2024 Claude Debussy is one of the most beloved composers in the classical music canon. Several qualities make his work especially unique: Use of colour and texture. Debussy was a master at using unusual combinations of instruments to create unique sounds. -
The Devil is a Woman
Eugene Aynsley Goossens and Rosaleen Norton November 12th, 2024In 1935, the filmmaker Josef von Sternberg directed a romance film starring actress Marlene Dietrich. Titled “The Devil is a Woman,” it was the last of the six Sternberg-Dietrich collaborations for Paramount Pictures. The plot is based on a novel -
10 more Dazzling and Awe-Inspiring Piano Quintets November 10th, 2024 In my initial blog on the 10 most beautiful piano quintets in classical music, I featured incredible masterworks for the combination of the string quartet with the piano. This type of scoring essentially started with Robert Schumann, and from around