In classical music, the Romantic Era lasted from around 1810 to around 1910. That century gave us some of the most famous symphonies in the repertoire. Nineteenth-century composers like Tchaikovsky, Brahms, Dvořák, Schubert, Mahler, Rachmaninoff, and others elevated the symphony
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Peter Cornelius: The Barber of Bagdad January 4th, 2022 When the writer, critic, poet, translator, and composer Peter Cornelius (1824-1874) approached his close friend and patron Franz Liszt with the idea of writing an opera based on a story from “The Arabian Nights,” Liszt strongly disapproved. Cornelius had written -
Why D-Flat Major Should Be One of Our Favorite Keys January 3rd, 2022 “What? D-Flat Major?” Most string players wail, “that’s a key signature with FIVE FLATS!” I don’t blame them. It’s so much more difficult to play in tune on string instruments without the resonance of the open strings. Pianists, though, will -
Looking Forward to 2022 January 3rd, 2022 After reviewing the less-than-brilliant 2021, we can now go to the optimism side for looking forward to 2022! Concert! Travel! So much to look forward to! Opera seasons are opening! I think the first opera we would all like to -
Lang Lang: Goldberg Variations January 3rd, 2022 The plethora of Goldberg Variations recordings, since pioneered by Wanda Landowska in 1933, has garnered many different, if not conflicting, views. Even the great pianist Glenn Gould who recorded them twice, first in 1955 then later in 1981, crystallises opposite -
4 Piano Suites From Latin America in the 20th Century January 2nd, 2022 Since the turn of the 20th century, the piano suite has become a popular genre among Latin American composers. From Baroque dance suites (such as French and English suites by J.S. Bach) to suites written in the Romantic era (Kreisleriana -
Time of Day: Dawn
Mussorgsky, Pigovat, Sviridov, Eller, Harris and Qin January 2nd, 2022How do you take the morning, musically? Bright and brassy alarm bells, a gentle reminder from the buzzer, the shock of morning radio? We decided to survey music for the earliest time of day: Dawn. We’ll start with Mussorgsky’s music -
On My Music Desk……
Drei Klavierstücke, D946 – Franz Schubert January 2nd, 2022Impromptus in all but name, the three “piano pieces” D946, were completed in May 1828, the year Schubert died, and follow the far more well-known and popular Impromptus D899 and D935, which Schubert composed the previous year. Like the Impromptus, -
On This Day
1 January: Johann Christian Bach Died January 1st, 2022In April 1782, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart famously wrote to his father, “I suppose that you have heard that the English Bach is dead? What a loss to the musical world!” Johann Christian Bach, known in London circles as John Bach,