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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A Hong Kong Tragedy November 24th, 2019 High in the skyscrapers of Hong Kong, a tragedy is being played out involving the father, the mother, the child, and between them all is the domestic helper, Mila. She’s the observer of the family dynamics and how the father -
Satie’s Gnossiennes November 24th, 2019 French composer Erik Satie was a curious, eccentric man. He had a penchant for grey corduroy suits (he had seven identical ones) and umbrellas, and apparently only ate white food. His response to a critic who said his music lacked -
Challenges for the Aging Musician November 23rd, 2019 Playing a musical instrument is an amazing endeavor. It’s thrilling when a performance is everything we want it to be and the audience erupts in applause. If we’ve conveyed the beauty, meaning, and emotion of the music, and not the -
Music Can Heal You November 22nd, 2019 Music fulfils a variety of functions today. It is used to communicate with and entertain audiences across the world. It is used as a means of social interaction, an instrument of instruction, artists use it to build inspiration for other -
Art in the Embattled City November 21st, 2019 The international news is full of reports of the battle of Hong Kong – students battling the government, destroying facilities, battling police, taking control of the streets – and yet, at the same time there’s another side. The streets may -
Napoleon Bonaparte: “Do Not Shriek Like You Usually Do” November 20th, 2019 The French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte was a brilliant military strategist, but the ability to hold a tune eluded him completely. Betsy Balcombe, a friend during his exile at Saint Helena writes in her Recollections. “In fact, Napoleon’s voice was most - Expanding Hong Kong’s Musical Possibilities
An Interview With Rumiko Hasegawa November 19th, 2019After first shaking up our entire concept of opera by taking the audience out of its comfortable chairs and putting on a La Traviata that was more like modern life, Rumiko Hasegawa and More than Musical are looking to improving -
Reich/Richter November 18th, 2019 As far as living legends of music go, for me, Steve Reich is pretty up there. A pioneer of minimalism, this New Yorker’s hypnotically enthralling music has been captivating people since his early days in the 1960s, and he shows
