Now that we’ve looked at the Classics for Christmas, let’s look at some of the new music for the holiday season. When we get to more modern music, the American songs written in the 1940s and 1950s capture our ear.

I can empathise with Roxanna Panufnik. She, too, is a morning person. ‘Anything difficult that I have to do I schedule for Monday morning; it’s when I’m at my complete and utter freshest!’ I catch her after a stint of

It’s easy to forget that the creation of a new piece usually involves a substantial amount of money changing hands to ensure that the composer is paid fairly. Trusts and foundations, organisations such as the BBC, or private donations have

Lynn Harrell is one of our great musicians. Soloist, chamber musician, recitalist and conductor, the great cellist has performed all over the world in a career spanning over 50 years, with a discography consisting of over 30 recordings. Education has

Wu Han is a pianist – but to say just that would be a disservice to this influential artist, who is widely active as a performer (especially of chamber music), recording artist, educator and director. After a busy autumn, featuring

Let me put it bluntly. I am not fond of musicians who play without taking risks, who either delivers a composition so precisely that a computer could have done the same or blatantly regurgitates a teacher or mentor’s interpretation or

Many famous public figures have written books. Presidents, starlets, sports stars and others who are not generally known for their literary talents have entertained us with publications detailing their personal lives. Of course, very few have actually written a single