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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Unsung Concertos
Dmitri Kabalevsky: Cello Concerto No. 1, Op. 49 December 28th, 2016For primarily political reasons, the music of Dmitri Kabalevsky never really enjoyed great popularity in the West. Despite writing in a readily accessible musical style that was primarily rooted in folk music, his name was listed in the infamous 1948 -
Minors of the Majors
Aram Khachaturian: Othello Suite December 26th, 2016“Minors of the Majors” invites you to discover compositions by the great classical composers that for one reason or another have not reached the musical mainstream. Please enjoy, and keep listening! -
X’Mas with Johann Sebastian Bach December 25th, 2016 He wrote some of the most beautiful and inspiring Christmas music ever! Yet as a practicing church musician Johann Sebastian Bach had very little time to celebrate the Christmas season. When Bach signed the contract for the post at St. -
X’Mas with Felix Mendelssohn December 25th, 2016 Everybody in the Mendelssohn Berlin household was interested in arts and humanities. The home served as a center for intellectual socializing, political discussions, but also for making music. Felix’s compositions were routinely performed during the “Sunday Music,” and it soon -
X’Mas with Johannes Brahms December 24th, 2016 In his later years, Johannes Brahms looked like a veritable Santa Claus! With his flowing full beard and mischievous blue eyes, he’d be the star of any Christmas parade! With Christmas just around the corner, let’s have a look at -
Composers and Their Poets: Wolf I December 23rd, 2016 If Schumann had his song year of 1840, then Hugo Wolf (1860-1903) had his song year of 1888. He had been a song composer long before this, and, as were most song composers in the years between 1855 and 1880, -
V is for Virtuoso December 22nd, 2016 Going beyond the notes …a virtuoso was, originally, a highly accomplished musician, but by the nineteenth century the term had become restricted to performers, both vocal and instrumental, whose technical accomplishments were so pronounced as to dazzle the public. ‘Music -
Unsung Concertos
Robert Schumann: Violin Concerto, WoO 23 December 21st, 2016One might reasonably assume that anything written by Robert Schumann for the concerto stage would be played the world over. But that simply is not the case, as onstage performances of his Violin Concerto remain a rarity. So, what actually