For as long as composers have been writing music, they’ve been inspired by the mystery, mood, and mythology of the night. We’ve gathered ten pieces of classical music about the night that explore themes associated with the hours after dark,
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Classical Music and Nature Sounds: Where Music and Mother Earth Meet December 29th, 2023 When nature sounds are combined with human-made classical music, the results can be captivating. From the delightful chirping of birds in a cellist’s English garden to the use of percussion and piano and wind machines to imitate the roar of -
Maurice Ravel’s Trois Chansons December 28th, 2023 At the time of his death on 28 December 1937, Maurice Ravel was the most celebrated composer in France. For a number of scholars, however, the significance of his music and the nature of his artistic legacy remained elusive. And -
Bringing Hope
Xia Guan’s Hope December 28th, 2023Composed in 1999, the second symphony by Chinese composer Xia Guan (b. 1957) carries the title of Hope. Guan sees hope as the ‘driving force in life’ and believes that without hope, he couldn’t even imagine what life would be -
Five Pieces of Musical Advice from the Great Pianists December 27th, 2023 The world of classical music has been graced by a wide variety of truly legendary pianists. In addition to the example set by their astonishing playing, these giants have often shared insights about their art in interviews or in articles, -
Drought December 27th, 2023 The first modern experience many people had with drought was the American Dust Bowl of the 1930s. Decades of poor land management and the destruction of the topsoil meant that the fertile land just blew away in the wind. The -
Playing the Part December 26th, 2023 “…part of an actor’s task is to make the audience forget that they know the plot of a drama and surprise them with each event. The same applies in music: we have to play each piece as if it were -
5 Magnificent Choruses
Bach’s Christmas Oratorio December 25th, 2023Countless scholars, performers, and conductors have asked the almost impossible question of how Bach’s music sounded when it was performed for the first time. This question really caused a great stir some decades ago with Joshua Rifkin suggesting that what -
A 14th-Century Carol of Approaching Death
Coventry Carol December 25th, 2023Not all carols celebrate the birth of Jesus; some commemorate the other actions that resulted from the news of that birth. Starting in the 14th century, the English city of Coventry held annual mystery plays where stories from the Bible