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
Latest article
Spotlight
-
The Morbid Compulsion of Anton Bruckner August 11th, 2014 Having been born, raised and educated in rural Austria ill prepared Anton Bruckner (1824-1896) for the acidic and highly competitive musical environment of imperial Vienna. Retaining his shy and unassuming demeanor throughout his life, Bruckner presented a wide target for -
Fighting About Music in 1913 August 10th, 2014 Now, the most famous fight about music in 1913, occurred at the première of The Rite of Spring. Audience in an uproar, fights in the audience, the dancers can’t hear the music for the noise in the hall, Nijinsky futilely -
Dull Classical Musicians – NOT August 9th, 2014 Orchestral musicians like to have fun just like everyone else. We may appear dignified but fooling around is a requirement; pranks are ingenious. Sometimes the joke is on the conductor. There was once a conductor who was not, shall we -
Boneless Preludes and Greetings to the Goat
Erik Satie and Suzanne Valadon August 8th, 2014Recently, I came across a composition entitled Three Boneless Preludes for a Dog. With a name like that, it was instantly clear that it could only have come from the pen of Erik Satie. But it was still rather surprising -
Mazeppa: Endless Battles for Ukraine August 6th, 2014 “It is forbidden to kill; therefore all murderers are punished unless they kill in large numbers and to the sound of trumpets.” Voltaire was certainly right on the money about warfare and humanity. And he was also right about the -
Songs from a Century Ago August 5th, 2014 We went to a concert the other day of songs from WWI – popular tunes for a war that started a hundred years ago. What surprised us was how familiar some of the tunes were. Songs such as George M. -
Alexander Grechaninov
Russian Devotion and Spirituality August 4th, 2014Grechaninov’s most enduring and influential musical gift to posterity is surely found in his liturgical music. Breaking entirely new ground, he returned to the old Slavonic traditional chants of the Russian Greek Orthodox Church. Folk-like harmonies and motivic counterpoint provide -
Audition Tips August 3rd, 2014 What’s the scariest monster in the closet for musicians? (I must whisper here) THE AUDITION. Any job interview inspires some trepidation, of course, but THE AUDITION— so brief, so dicey, so seemingly random— brings on tremendous doubt, misgivings and even