Specific cities have inspired a huge amount of classical music over the years. Today, we’re looking at a selection of classical works explicitly connected to major cities, examining how each composer responded to each place. Some pieces reflect civic pride
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On This Day
4 May: Haydn’s Symphony in D “London” Was Premiered May 4th, 2022Although Joseph Haydn had a wicked sense of humour, he musically never left anything to chance. When he accepted commissions away from his working place at Eszterháza, he conducted extensive research about the performers, the concert hall, and related matters -
Remembering Radu Lupu May 3rd, 2022 Romanian pianist Radu Lupu, who died in April 2022 at the age of 76, shot to prominence when he won a trio of highly prestigious international piano competitions – the Van Cliburn in Texas in 1966, the George Enescu International -
A Bug’s Life May 3rd, 2022 Heitor Villa-Lobos: The Martyrdom of Insects Brazilian composer Heitor Villa-Lobos (1887-1959) is considered ‘the single most significant creative figure in 20th-century Brazilian art music.’ Immensely prolific, at his death he left some 2,000 works, many of which had gained international -
Walkin’ Round the World May 2nd, 2022 Multicultural Folk Music Traditions From Various Places With all this talk of a globalized society it is easy to forget that we are surrounded by the timeless beauty and grace of countless multicultural folk music traditions. That rich ethnic heritage -
On This Day
2 May: Philippe Herreweghe Was Born May 2nd, 2022The Belgian conductor and chorus director Philippe Herreweghe, born on 2 May 1947, is frequently credited with restoring the freshness and purity of Baroque choral music. As a critic wrote, “Herreweghe crafts intimate performances that try to impress with lean -
Johannes Brahms and His Circle of Friends II May 1st, 2022 Fritz Steinbach (1855-1916), none withstanding Hans von Bülow, was regarded as the foremost conductor of Brahms’ music. We know that they first met when Steinbach attempted to persuade Brahms to take him on as a student in 1875. Brahms declined, -
Bruno Philippe May 1st, 2022 Improving and Serving the Music Young French cellist Bruno Philippe has already performed with some of Europe’s most prestigious orchestras, including the Frankfurt Radio Symphony, Bavarian Radio Symphony, and the Chamber Orchestra of Paris. The 29-year-old is a prize-winner of -
On This Day
May 1: Antonín Dvořák Died May 1st, 2022The Prague-based, Czech language music magazine Dalibor reports on 2 May. “Our nation has received a terrible, terrible blow, Antonín Dvořák is no more. Yesterday, at half past twelve in the afternoon, he died from sudden heart failure, having been