In classical music, the Romantic Era lasted from around 1810 to around 1910. That century gave us some of the most famous symphonies in the repertoire. Nineteenth-century composers like Tchaikovsky, Brahms, Dvořák, Schubert, Mahler, Rachmaninoff, and others elevated the symphony
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Thou Lovely Art: Stefan Zweig and Music April 21st, 2017 The Austrian writer Stefan Zweig (1881-1942) was one of the most famous international authors in the 1920s and 1930s, but the advent of National Socialism in Germany caused the author to flee to New York and from there to Brazil, -
Unsung Concertos
Joachim Raff: Cello Concerto No. 1, Op. 193 April 19th, 2017Today, the German-Swiss composer Joachim Raff (1822-1882) is primarily remembered as an assistant to Franz Liszt in Weimar. In fact, he actually lived in the Villa Altenburg, Franz Liszt’s home in Weimar. He was Liszt’s secretary and copyist, and apparently -
Picture This
Using Visualisation Techniques in Playing, Performing and Teaching April 18th, 2017What is Visualisation? Visualisation techniques have been used by sports people and sports psychologists for some time now to enable the tennis player or athlete, the golfer or cyclist to prepare for a match-winning shot or prize-winning sprint. The technique -
Forgotten Pianists: Artur Schnabel April 17th, 2017 Austrian pianist Artur Schnabel (1882-1951) became so famous for his recording of the 32 Beethoven piano sonatas that critic Harold C. Schonberg always referred to him as ‘the man who invented Beethoven.’ His performances of both Beethoven and Schubert had -
Critical Ear with Sharpened Pen
‘Just Write. Write Anywhere.’ Norman Lebrecht April 16th, 2017Norman Lebrecht Writer, broadcaster and blogger Norman Lebrecht draws an impressive 1.5 million monthly readers to his blog Slipped Disc, well-known throughout the classical music world for being the first to report on the most recent goings on. -
Musical Giants of the 20th Century: String Quartet April 16th, 2017 A quick glance at a list of string quartet ensembles active during the 20th century will give you a serious headache! The sheer number and extraordinary quality of a seemingly endless variety of ensembles, repertoires and styles speaks to the -
How Amateur Orchestral Musicians Should Practice April 15th, 2017 The sheer prospect of my first orchestra rehearsal terrified me. To calm myself down, I asked a violinist friend for advice. I thought she’d share something about how to play. Instead she said: Pretend you know what you’re doing. You’ll -
Composers and their Poets: Ravel II April 14th, 2017 Maurice Ravel (1875-1937) set a distinctive poem by Paul Verlaine (1844-1896) in 1895, but it didn’t appear in print until 1953, some 16 years after his death. Un grand sommeil noir from Verlaine’s collection Sagesse, is a remarkably morbid poem