The viola may be the less flashy sibling of the violin, but in the hands of these seven great women composers, the viola truly shines as a solo instrument. From the bold modernism of Marga Richter and Peggy Glanville-Hicks to
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Composers of the Zodiac
Tropic of Scorpio October 23rd, 2020The constellation of Scorpio is associated with a number of myths. In one version rooted in Greek mythology, the legendary hunter Orion boasted to the goddess Artemis that he would kill every animal on Earth. Insulted by Orion’s excessive pride, -
Pavel Kolesnikov at Wigmore Hall October 22nd, 2020 26 October 2020: ‘The Tempest’ This concert will be live streamed on the Wigmore Hall website in HD, and all concerts in the Autumn Series will be available on demand for 30 days after the date of the concert. This -
Finding the “Essence of Bach” October 22nd, 2020 How a lifelong love of Bach led this pianist to transcribe the complete solo cello suites “Bach first became my beacon when I was about 10 years old. I remember sneaking a peek at my piano teacher’s notebook and seeing -
Max Bruch and Clara Tuczek October 21st, 2020 “My Domain Is Vocal Music” During his long career as a teacher, conductor and composer Max Bruch (1838-1920) almost constantly moved among various musical posts in Germany. He found employment in Mannheim (1862–1864), Koblenz (1865–1867), Sondershausen (1867–1870), Berlin (1870–1872), and -
Ludwig van Beethoven and His Fellow Musicians II October 20th, 2020 Ludwig van B. and Franz Schubert resided in the same city for 31 years, but we don’t really have conclusive evidence that they ever met. We do know that they moved in different social circles, and that Schubert admired Beethoven -
My Journey Through Classical Music October 19th, 2020 I have to say, it is rather uncommon for people of my age to be classical music aficionados. I was not born into a musical family and neither of my parents learnt classical music. There wasn’t much music in my -
The Music of Poetry
Alfred de Musset “Contes d’Espagne et d’Italie” October 18th, 2020Alfred de Musset published his first collection of poems, Contes d’Espagne et d’Italie (Tales of Spain and Italy) in 1829. He strongly believed that the inspiration of the poet was intricately connected to personal emotions. Poetry was highly personal and -
When Music May Not Be Your “First” Profession October 18th, 2020 At the risk of sounded clichéd, the coronavirus pandemic has thrown into sharp focus the precarious nature of most professional musicians’ lives. With concert and opera venues closed – and only now beginning to reopen cautiously – many musicians are