For as long as composers have been writing music, they’ve been inspired by the mystery, mood, and mythology of the night. We’ve gathered ten pieces of classical music about the night that explore themes associated with the hours after dark,
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Premiere at “La Scala”
Verdi, Lavigna and Rossini March 22nd, 2013Giuseppe Verdi was one of the most precocious musical talents of all times. At age three, he was given a spinet and took up studies with Don Pietro Baistrocchi, organist at his home village of Roncale. When Baistrocchi passed away -
How to say, “I do” in style!
Leopold I March 21st, 2013Joseph I Regina coeli Leopold I Sonata piena Laudate Pueri Johann Heinrich Schmelzer Arie per il baletto a cavallo: Corrente per l’intrada di S.M.C. Antonio Bertali Missa Sancti Spiritus Kyrie Gloria Credo Sanctus Agnus Dei Antonio Caldara Te Deum laudamus -
John Dowland March 20th, 2013 Flow my tears! According to various theories of personality differences, regardless whether they are based on a biological, psychological or social analysis, each human being belongs to one of four types of basic temperament, or “humours.” The Sanguine bodily temperament, -
In touch with Dai Bo March 19th, 2013 When none of the primary schools in the northeast Chinese town of Dalian would admit the then seven-year old Dai Bo, his parents bought him a piano. Little did they know that Dai Bo would grow up to be an -
It only happens every 5000 years:
Wagner, Cosima and Judith March 14th, 2013Cosima Liszt was the illegitimate daughter of the Hungarian pianist and composer Franz Liszt and his mistress, Marie, Comtesse d’Agoult. In order to continue his independent lifestyle — he also forbade contact between mother and daughters — Franz placed Cosima, -
Music 101 – A Foray into Understanding Classical Music March 13th, 2013 Introduction to Classical Music I’ve been a professional classical musician for more decades than I care to disclose. By far the most common comment I’ve heard (other than, “Why, that cello is bigger than you are!) is— “I don’t know -
Richard Wagner’s Concept of the ‘Gesamtkunstwerk’ March 12th, 2013 In many of Wagner’s theoretical writings, such as “Die Kunst und die Religion” (Art and Religion – 1849), “Das Kunstwerk der Zukunft” (The Artwork of the Future – 1849) and “Oper und Drama” (Opera and Drama – 1852), the concept -
The Wagner Dilemma March 11th, 2013 Giacomo Meyerbeer followed the tremendous financial and artistic success of Robert le diable with another blockbuster. Les Huguenots, five years in the making, dramatically staged the bloody events of the St. Bartholomew’s Day massacre in Paris in August of 1572,