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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Friedrich Wilhelm Marpurg January 9th, 2018 “Contesting the rubbish of effeminate song” It might be difficult to believe, but at one time the art of counterpoint was considered “the child of ancient aberration.” Bach’s Art of Fugue was seen as hopelessly out of date, with the -
At the Center of the Musical Universe
George Frideric Handel January 8th, 2018George Frideric Handel (1685-1759) is consistently acknowledged as one of the greatest composers of his age. He contributed to virtually every vocal and instrumental genre in his time, and decisively invented and shaped the evolution of the English oratorio. Handel -
108 Desires of Purcell January 7th, 2018 In his opera King Arthur, the third act starts with a dramatic scene – Emmeline meets Oswald, who is ardently wooing her, but she’s frozen IN terror. Oswald, showing off, whips out his magic wand changes the entirety of England -
The Piano is for Playing January 7th, 2018 Returning to playing seriously after an absence, whether due to injury or stress, or simply a loss of interest in the instrument, can be tough. Lack of regular practise means fingers and limbs may be less than responsive, sluggish or -
Forgotten Cellists: Leonard Rose January 6th, 2018 American cellist Leonard Rose, born in 1918, came by his talent honestly. His father was a cellist, as was his cousin Frank Miller, the legendary principal cello of the Chicago Symphony, with whom Rose studied before he attended Curtis Institute -
Classical Music Apps (Part One) January 5th, 2018 There is a plethora of classical music applications or ‘apps’ (computer software that can be downloaded to your electronic device) for everyone nowadays, from students to professional musicians to music-lovers. In Part One of this series, we look at some -
Music is What I Have to Do – An Interview with Ishay Shaer January 4th, 2018 Israeli pianist Ishay Shaer discovered that he just couldn’t live without music. When he went off to university, dutifully putting music behind him to concentrate on computer studies, his days were filled with the minutiae of school: studies and papers -
Lyricism and Percussionism January 3rd, 2018 We associate John Cage with a number of different sound events – the percussion group that he took on tour around the West Coast in the late 1930s, random radio sounds from his work for 12 radios (Imaginary Landscape No.