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
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Musicians and Artists: Musgrave and Turner July 26th, 2022 Thea Musgrave: Turbulent Landscapes In an extraordinary work that is not only based on a number of paintings by JMW Turner (1775–1851) but also uses a particular thematic point to connect them, Scottish composer Thea Musgrave (b. 1928) creates a -
On Conductors—When Musicians Are Asked for Their Opinions July 25th, 2022 How many conductors does it take to change a lightbulb? Nobody knows. Nobody is watching. Gustav Holst: The Planets Op. 32 Mars, the Bringer of War (E. Ormandy) It’s an unprecedented time for symphony orchestras. There are numerous and prestigious -
The Sound Alternative
Alphonse Allais, Erwin Schulhoff and John Cage July 24th, 2022Although his piece is the most famous, 4’33” by John Cage wasn’t the first silent piece to be written. There are at least two earlier works that also take up the sound of silence. Alphonse Allais (1854-1905) wasn’t a composer -
Gustav Klimt (1862-1918)
“All Art Is Erotic” July 24th, 2022In 1903, the Austrian painter and illustrator Gustav Klimt paid a visit to Ravenna, the capital of Byzantine Italy in the 6th century. The proclaimed goal of this visit was to broaden his range of artistic historical references by closely -
On This Day
24 July: Paganini’s Violin Concerto No. 3 Premiered July 24th, 2022Niccolò Paganini gave the world a new kind of musician, the musical superstar with a devoted following. Everything he did in performance, including his love for black clothes, his carefully disheveled hair, and his over-the-top mannerisms, was deliberately planned to -
The Timeless Topicality of Opera July 23rd, 2022 How classical operas can relate to our current life We were looking at a list of opera titles the other day and started noting (with a certain snarkiness) that many of the title could be applicable to today’s news. Just -
Frances Wilson in Conversation With Maxim Vengerov July 23rd, 2022 “I’m the lucky one, who can bring the music alive – and this is the greatest joy” I’ve admired world-renowned violinist Maxim Vengerov ever since I first heard him at the Proms in 1999, when he played a fabulous, varied -
On This Day
23 July: Maria João Pires Was Born July 23rd, 2022Performances by Maria João Pires, born on 23 July 1944 in Lisbon, are “distinguished by her crystalline technique, spontaneous poetry and profound, impassioned musicianship.” A daughter of João Baptista Pires and his wife Alzira dos Santos Alexandre Barbosa, Pires played