We were speaking the other day with Eli Marshall, whose latest work just saw international release. His movie soundtrack for Ann Hui’s The Golden Era is an integral part of the film. His score has been nominated for Best Original

Once we get out of the string section, we enter the wonderful world of the woodwinds. Later we’ll explore the brass winds and then the loudest section, the percussion. The flute has a long history, going back to pre-time when

The energy with which Balkan folk music is infused is infectious, driving, compelling. Couple this with the fireworks of a world-class saxophone quartet, accordionist, and drummer, and you have the recipe for a band bubbling and brimming with an inimitable

Alex Cobbe’s piano collection at Hatchlands Park has one massive square piano that was immensely practical to its two composer owners. How do composers compose? We’re familiar with the images from movies, the composer with one hand on the keyboard

“Jan Ladislav Dussek and Sophia Giustina Corri” As soon as the pianist and composer Jan Ladislav Dussek (1760-1812) left his native Bohemia for Paris, his fortunes increased manifold. He performed for Marie Antoinette and was a regular guest at the

The Mozarteum University, nestled in the Austrian town of Salzburg, forms an inseparable part of the musical fabric of this artistically and historically rich town. Thomas Manhart from the Mozarteum’s press office tells me how the School that dates back

The Alex Cobbe Collection of composer’s pianos is a collection that can give us a feeling for how pianos developed, often in response to the demands of composers. The square piano, called that despite the fact that they’re actually rectangles,

For Erik Satie, dance, theatre and cabaret music run as virtually continuous threads throughout his life. And every single composition adheres to the virtues of his musical craft; simplicity, brevity and precision. Many of Satie’s early compositional efforts rely on