English Touring Opera maintains an reputation not only for high-quality productions both of core and rarely performed repertoire, but also for a wide-ranging education programme. That programme includes collaborative work with dementia sufferers (see Interlude’s previous feature on this Turtle

Now that your little grey cells are all warmed up, are you ready for a more complicated puzzle canon from Bach’s Musical Offering? If so, the 4th canon will probably give you a very good workout, indeed. Bach inscribed this

I always approach a music/text collaboration with caution. So often neither are made for each other; they exist perfectly happily by themselves, and risk losing something of their intrinsic value when joined together, an artistic Odd Couple at each other’s

Young composer Ruben Naeff made a big move in 2011 when he packed his bags, left Amsterdam and settled in New York, where he became a full-time musician and moved in with his now-wife. That significant year became the inspiration

At the bottom of the string section stands the mighty Double Bass. With a body 45.5 inches (115 cm) and overall length of 74.8 inches (189 cm) the double bass both towers above and supports from below the string section

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto No. 1 in B-flat minor, Op. 23 (1875) Even at the best of times, the relationship between Russia and the Ukraine has been somewhat troubled. Although they share much of their early history, the Mongol

Aldo Ciccolini (15 August 1925, Naples, Italy; 1 February 2015, Asnières-sur-Seine, France) brought the world of Satie out of obscurity and showed his quirky qualities to a new generation of listeners. Ciccolini, who was born in Italy but made his

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was the undisputed rock star of the 18th century! Incredibly gifted as a musician yet nevertheless prone to long periods of self-doubt and professional jealousy, he made a lot of money but spent it just as quickly.