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
12 March: Schubert’s “Death and the Maiden” Quartet Was Premiered March 12th, 2022In 1774 the poet Matthias Claudius (1740-1815) published a short poem titled “Death and the Maiden.” The poem is designed as a dialogue, contrasting a young woman’s fear with the reassurance of death. Claudius creates opposites and connections between the -
Beethoven in His Year of Despair
Piano Sonata No. 17 in D Minor, Op. 31, No. 2, “Tempest” March 11th, 2022The year 1802 was a year of despair for Beethoven. His hearing had been declining since 1796 and he had been consulting doctors everywhere. Finally, in mid-1801 he found Professor Johann Schmidt, who became his personal physician until his death -
On This Day
11 March: Katia Labèque Was Born March 11th, 2022I really don’t know how to talk about one without the other, as many consider Katia and Marielle Labèque, “the best and closest piano duo in front of an audience today.” The Labèque sisters are tremendous, exclaims American composer Philip -
In Remembrance of George Crumb March 10th, 2022 George Crumb, one of the most influential American composers of the 20th century, passed away on February 6th. Crumb’s music was an exploration of humanistic art. A winner of the Grammy Award and Pulitzer Prize, He was known as the -
On This Day
10 March: Igor Levit Was Born March 10th, 2022While pianists Yuja Wang and Lang Lang have undoubtedly achieved mass-market appeal, Igor Levit has, at least in German-speaking countries, become a political figure and social advocate. He is not only considered one of the best pianists of the century, -
Defining the American Tragedy
Copland’s Billy the Kid Suite March 9th, 2022The American tragedy these days is gun violence and how it has become a part of the familiar scene. It seems like most films from the US have a gun in the imagery and the news is filled with today’s -
On This Day
9 March: Samuel Barber Was Born March 9th, 2022Samuel Osmond Barber, born in West Chester, Pennsylvania, on 9 March 1910, went on to become one of the most celebrated, honored and most frequently performed American composer of the 20th century. A critic writes, “Probably no other American composer -
Joachim Raff March 8th, 2022 “The Pressure Which Liszt Has Put On My Personality Is Insufferable” In his lifetime the composer and teacher Joachim Raff (1822-1882) was greatly celebrated and admired. His music was valued, with some reservations, by Mendelssohn, Liszt, von Bülow, and Clara