The love story between Robert and Clara Schumann is often regarded as one of the most romantic in classical music history. Happily for historians, many of their love letters survive. They document their inner thoughts and emotions, as well as
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Johann Sebastian Bach and His Circle of Friends I October 24th, 2021 Carl Philipp Emanuel (1714-1788) described his father’s household in Leipzig as a “pigeon coop.” People were constantly swarming in and out all the time, and he told the Bach biographer Forkel, “with his many activities Bach hardly had time for -
The Pulitzer Prize in Music
1990s and the New Century October 24th, 2021See here for the history of the prize. The 1990s Composer Mel Powell, who founded the music department at the California Institute of the Arts, started his career as a jazz pianist, joining Benny Goodman’s band in 1941. During WWII, -
Chamber Music by Women Composers III
Chaminade, Clarke, Bacewicz, Garcia-Viardot, and Higdon October 23rd, 2021Cécile Chaminade (1857-1944) was the first woman composer ever to be awarded with the legion d‘honneur in 1913. The composer Ambroise Thomas said, “This is not a woman who composes, but a composer who is a woman.” Chaminade was well -
Death Comes at the End: Mahler’s Totenfeier October 23rd, 2021 If Mahler could write a scary movie soundtrack, his symphonic poem Totenfeier (Funeral Rites) would be one of his contributions. This 1888 work, which one writer described as a ‘huge symphonic funeral march,’ comes between his first two symphonies. If -
Paris Does the Ragtime
Debussy, Satie, Antheil and Stravinsky October 22nd, 2021During July 1900, as part of an extended European tour, John Philip Sousa and his band performed at the opening of the Universal Exposition in Paris. Celebrating the 4th of July, they played at the dedication of the American Pavilion -
On This Day
22 October: Franz Liszt Was Born October 22nd, 2021Franz Liszt was born to Marie Anna Lager and Ádám Liszt on 22 October 1811. His father was a gifted amateur singer, pianist and cellist who took part in summer concerts at the Esterházy estates. He personally knew Joseph Haydn, -
In Touch With the Trio Zadig October 21st, 2021 We know the French composer Saint-Saëns for just a few works today, primarily The Carnival of the Animals. The Trio Zadig, however, wants us to know more about the man that critic Harold Schonberg considered “…the most remarkable child prodigy -
First Steps of A Little Artist
In Touch With Dr. Erman Turkili October 21st, 2021This new book from musician and educator Dr Erman Turkili uses an intuitive approach that enables very young beginners of piano and children with special educational needs to start playing the piano right away. Using colours, shapes, stickers and symbols,