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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How to Practise Music
A Pocket-Sized Guide by Andrew Eales April 13th, 2022The expression “small but perfectly formed” is rather over-used, but in the case of this new book How to Practise Music (Hal Leonard) it is entirely apt. Written by Andrew Eales, a highly respected British music educator, piano teacher and -
On This Day
13 April: Handel’s Messiah Was Premiered April 13th, 2022The Fishamble Street Musick Hall in Dublin was abuzz with jittery electricity on 13 April 1742. The musical superstar George Frideric Handel was ready to present his oratorio Messiah to the public, and the audience reached a record 700 listeners. -
10 Greatest Easter Movies April 12th, 2022 Easter is the most important holiday for Christians around the world. But you don’t have to be seriously religious to enjoy that particular time of year, as the coming of Spring, at least in the Northern hemisphere also signals a -
Women Composers You Should Know III April 12th, 2022 More and more women composers come to our attention in the 17th century. Part of this was the increase in the wealthy middle class that required entertainment and the increasing power taken by women over their resources. Francesca Caccini A -
Nine Selected Early Percussion Ensemble Pieces April 11th, 2022 The percussion ensemble is a relatively new performance genre among all classical music ensembles. Even though percussion instruments were used in orchestral works as early as in the Baroque era, music written only for percussion instruments did not come into -
Winning by Giving In
Borys Lyatoshynsky’s Symphony No. 3, “Peace Shall Defeat War” April 10th, 2022Ukrainian composer Borys Mykolayovych Lyatoshynsky (1895-1968) trained with Glière at the Kiev Conservatory and became the most important Ukrainian composer through the mid-20th century. He also taught at the Kiev Conservatory from age 25 through to his death, with occasional -
On This Day
10 April: Yefim Bronfman Was Born April 10th, 2022The American novelist and short story writer Philip Milton Roth is known for fiction that “features intensely autobiographical characters, for philosophically and formally blurring the distinction between reality and fiction, for its sensual, ingenious style and for its provocative explorations -
Films Adapted from Dostoevsky Novels
“The Gambler” April 9th, 2022Gerard Schurmann: The Gambler Suite The Russian novelist, short story writer, essayist, and journalist Fyodor Dostoevsky (1821-1881) had a serious gambling addiction. Like a good many gamblers, he believed that he had found the secret to winning at the tables.