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Ten Excerpts from Robert Schumann’s Love Letters to Clara
The love story between Robert and Clara Schumann is often regarded as one of the most romantic in classical music history. Happily for historians, many of their love letters survive. They document their inner thoughts and emotions, as well as
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  • Melba at Your Table Melba at Your Table
    Georg Predota already alerted us to the delights of Tournedos à la Rossini, a tribute to a heroic trencherman. On the distaff side, some lovely dishes were inspired by a very famous soprano who was active a century ago, or,
  • Bach and Beethoven – a legal comparison Bach and Beethoven – a legal comparison
    Hans von Bülow famously said that in piano music “Bach is the Old Testament and Beethoven, the New Testament”. With all respect to the great man, I would content that a better framework to compare the two is not a
  • Night’s Daughter: Bradley meets Mozart Night’s Daughter: Bradley meets Mozart
    Tamino: Zu Hilfe! Papageno: Der Vogelfänger bin ich ja Tamimo: Dies Bildnis sind bezaubernd schön Queen: Der Hölle Rache kocht in meinem Herzen Monostatos, Queen, Ladies: Nur stille, stille, stille, stille (Monostatos, Queen of the Night, 3 Ladies-in-Waiting) Although we
  • Bechstein Hall at 36 Wigmore Street Bechstein Hall at 36 Wigmore Street
    Following the example set by piano builders Pleyel&Cie, rival manufacturers quickly established competing showrooms and concert halls to display and demonstrate their wares to the general public. Érard provided immediate competition in Paris, with the Steinway Hall opening in New
  • Bach is the Father, we are the Children! Bach is the Father, we are the Children!
    Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart famously told Gottfried van Swieten, a diplomat, librarian and esteemed patron of music, “Bach is the father. We are the children!” Interestingly, Mozart did not have Johann Sebastian in mind, but referred to Carl Philipp Emanuel instead.
  • The Speed of Sound I The Speed of Sound I
    As Einstein noted, time is relative, and for music this is especially true. Tempo, the speed at which music is performed, is not something that is set in stone. Every Allegro movement doesn’t move at the same speed, but is