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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Christopher Rouse: Kabir Padavali November 26th, 2021 The Indian mystic poet and saint Kabir is believed to have lived between 1398 and 1448. His writings, according to some scholars, are known “for being critical of both Hinduism and Islam.” He suggested, “True God is with the person -
Other Kinds of Wandering
Schubert, Zöllner and Traditional November 25th, 2021The opening song in Franz Schubert’s song cycle Die schöne Müllerin is the lively and distinctive “Das Wandern” where our hero journey-man miller sings as he walks along a stream, appreciating all that he sees and hears. It’s a simple -
Play Always as if in the Presence of a Master November 25th, 2021 The title of this article is a quote from Robert Schumann’s ‘Advice to Young Musicians’, a cornucopia of practical advice and poetic words of wisdom for young people beginning their musical education, which still has plenty of relevance for musicians -
Translated to Another Medium
Vivaldi’s Spring Concerto November 24th, 2021We are so familiar with a work such as Vivaldi’s Spring Concerto from The Four Seasons. As a violin concerto, it provides the violin with the opportunity to show off the player’s virtuoso skills. We’ve heard it and, dare I -
William Powell and William Lintern
Handel’s “Harmonious Blacksmith” November 24th, 2021I am sure you have heard numerous piano students slugging their way through the final movement of George Frideric Handel’s Suite No. 5 in E major. This particular movement has gained notoriety because it carries the imaginative nickname “The Harmonious -
Music in View: Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts (PAFA) November 23rd, 2021 Considered the first and oldest art museum and art school in the United States, the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts (PAFA) was founded in 1805. Known for its collections of 19th and 20th century materials, it also has a strength -
On This Day
23 November: Manuel de Falla Was Born November 23rd, 2021Manuel María de los Dolores Falla y Matheu was born on 23 November 1876 in Cádiz, a city and port in the autonomous community of Andalusia. His father José María Falla came from a family of merchants from Valencia, a -
Guilty Pleasures? November 22nd, 2021 What’s your “guilty pleasure music”? That is, music or a composer that you’d rather keep quiet about in case your highbrow, classical music-loving friends look down on you. Mine is Philip Glass – although I don’t feel remotely embarrassed about