The solo violin has long been acknowledged as the perfect instrument to express emotions like love, longing, heartbreak, rapture, and romance. The Romantic era lasted from the early nineteenth century to the early twentieth century and produced numerous works that
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Tōru Takemitsu November 4th, 2020 “My Music Is Like a Garden” Tōru Takemitsu (1930-1996), who was born in Tokyo 90 years ago, once likened his music to a walk through a garden. “I am the gardener,” he writes, “who experiences the changes in light, pattern -
My Beethoven by Rob November 3rd, 2020 Is there anyone who does not know the name of Beethoven? Beethoven might just be the universal word for classical music. His contemporaries thought so much of him that in 1877, Dr. Ludwig Nohl published a book titled Beethoven Depicted -
Composers in the Court Room
Satie versus Poueigh November 2nd, 2020The premiere of the ballet Parade at the Théâtre du Châtelet in May 1917 turned into a veritable riot. Jean Cocteau, the author of the story claimed, “I have heard the cries of a bayonet charge in Flanders, but it -
The Best Performances
“O mio babbino caro” by Giacomo Puccini November 1st, 2020Without doubt, Giacomo Puccini scored an all-time hit with his aria “O mio babbino caro.” Just about everybody knows this famous melody, and it has been performed by some of the most illustrious singers of our time, not to mention -
Jacquelyn Wagner November 1st, 2020 Heart and Home American soprano Jacquelyn Wagner is getting ready for her first opera appearance since the Coronavirus pandemic, singing Alice in Verdi’s Falstaff in Malmö, Sweden. After a long enforced break she is excited to be back, and talks -
The Curious Pleasures of LPs November 1st, 2020 My son (22) amused me when he told me recently that one of the reasons why he liked LPs was “because of the crackles”. For someone who has grown up in the digital age, with almost unlimited access to superb-quality -
17th-Century Music Making in the World of Samuel Pepys October 31st, 2020 Samuel Pepys, FRS (1633-1703), is best known to us through his 10-year private diary, kept between 1 January 1660, when he was just ending his 26th year, and 31 May 1669. He lived for another 34 years but complains at -
Democracy and Music October 30th, 2020 Looking at the history of music, it hasn’t always been the most democratic art form in the world. Religion and royalty held sway over music-making and music performance for a long time. Joseph Haydn had his employer, Prince Esterhazy. Beethoven