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
Latest article
Spotlight
-
Forgotten Pianists: Vladimir Krainev October 6th, 2021 Little known in the West, Vladimir Krainev (1944 – 2011) was an exceptional yet criminally underrated pianist and pedagogue. Born in Krasnoyarsk, Krainev displayed musical talent at a precocious age and gave his debut performance at 7 with piano concertos -
Music In View: The National Portrait Gallery – London October 5th, 2021 The National Portrait Gallery in London holds images of important and famous British people as drawings, painting, and photographs. We will be ignoring the single portraits of musicians, conductors, composers, and others with a life in music and will examine, -
The Best Performances
“Ombra mai fù” by Handel October 4th, 2021George Frideric Handel premiered his opera Serse on 15 April 1738 at the King’s Theatre, Haymarket in London. The composer had decided on a semi-historical plot involving the hot-blooded Persian tyrant Xerxes. It is a rather complicated plot, typical of -
On This Day
4 October: World Animal Day October 4th, 2021On 4 October, the feast day of Francis of Assisi, we celebrate World Animal Day. Saint Francis was the patron saint of animals, and this international day of action for animal rights and welfare aims “to raise the status of -
More Fugues and Other Musical Charms
From Handel to Bruckner October 3rd, 2021In his seminal study on counterpoint and fugue, Alfred Mann writes, “There is probably no branch of musical composition in which theory is more widely, one might almost say hopelessly, at variance with practice than fugue.” Basically, Mann is telling -
Poetry and Music: Vivaldi’s Four Seasons
Autumn and Winter October 3rd, 2021Although Spring may be the concerto that most people are familiar with, it’s Autumn and its return to a major key that seems to be central to The Four Seasons. The fear and frights of Summer disappear with the appearance -
Cello Music by Women Composers V
Beach, Szymanowska, and Holst October 2nd, 2021Continuing our series, I’d like to focus on the cello music of three additional women composers, artists whom I’ve previously featured. Amy Beach, (1867-1944) is one of the first American woman to be recognized as a composer. Her ‘Gaelic’ Symphony, -
Songs For Murdered Sisters
A Move Towards Ending Gender-Based Violence October 1st, 2021Songs for Murdered Sisters (Margaret Atwood & Jake Heggie) On the morning of 22 September, 2015, a man went on a killing spree in Renfrew County, Ontario, murdering three ex-partners at their separate homes. Nathalie Warmerdam, the sister of baritone