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
-
Understanding Performance Anxiety II April 12th, 2020 Managing the physical symptoms “Each time, before I went on stage, I began to think, ‘How can I go on playing the piano, if this is what it’s going to be like?’” – Steven Osborne, concert pianist The physical symptoms -
Raphael (1483-1520)
Seraphic Renaissance Genius April 11th, 2020500 years ago, on 6 April 1520, one of the greatest painters and architects of the High Renaissance died suddenly at the age of 37. Raffaello Santi, better known simply as Raphael, hailed from the Italian town of Urbino, a -
Naughty Musicians
Crazy Stunts, Jokes, and Toilet Paper Playing During Covid-19 April 11th, 2020Times are tough. We all need a laugh and many musicians are among those who are lightening the mood with crazy jokes, and stunts. For eons viola players have been the brunt of classical music jokes. Here’s one—Why do violists -
The World of Fabergé
Imperial Easter Eggs April 10th, 2020In pre-Christian celebrations of spring, the egg was seen as a symbol of rebirth. Symbolizing the resurrection of Jesus, it was subsequently defined as an Easter egg by early Christians, “likening the egg symbol to the tomb from which Christ -
The Self-Isolating Musician April 10th, 2020 The coronavirus is forcing us to practice social distancing and self-isolation. As I joked on Twitter the other day, musicians, and especially pianists, have been self-isolating for years! The musician’s life is, by necessity, lonely for in that sequestered time -
Doctors’ Orchestras April 10th, 2020 In a previous article on Medical Musicians, I looked at the question of why people in the medical fraternity are drawn to making music in groups much more than other professional bodies. This article highlights many of the doctors’ orchestras -
Music Under Quarantine
Lower Your Cortisol April 9th, 2020“Music for a little while, shall all your cares beguile,” wrote the English playwright Nathaniel Lee at the end of the 17th century. As we all know, music has the power to lift your mood, combat depression, improve blood flow -
Ole Bull’s Desperate Gamble April 9th, 2020 If we can trust Robert Schumann’s assessment, the Norwegian violin virtuoso Ole Bull (1810-1880) was an “equal to Paganini for the speed and the clarity of his playing.” However, Bull’s path to fame and fortune was not an easy one.