Archives

22 Posts
archive-post-image
Death Goes Modern: Bruce Leto, Jr.’s Mood Poems
American pianist Bruce Leto, Jr., took inspiration from his teacher at Haverford College, Curtis Cacioppo in creating his first album, Mood Poems. In working with Cacioppo, Leto says he was able to not only improve his musicality but also how
Read more
archive-post-image
Orchestral Minimalism: Joe Hisaishi as Symphonist
Mamoru Fujisawa (b. 1950), known professionally as Joe Hisaishi, is best known for his film work, having composed the scores for most of the animations created by Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli, including Laputa: Castle in the Sky (1986), My
Read more
archive-post-image
The Winter of Impending Death: Schubert’s Winterreise with Andrè Schuen
The song cycle Winterreise starts in the worst possible way, with our disappointed lover hanging around town heartbroken after he’s been given his congé. Dismissed, he wanders around the village, saying farewell to the beloved places that had been so
Read more
archive-post-image
The Chamber Music of Kenneth Jones
British composer Kenneth Jones (1924–2020) is celebrated in a new release from Lyrita Records. Jones’ Chamber Music, as performed by soloists from the London Mozart Players, brings together his first award-winning works from 1950 to his 1980 work, Quinquifid, for
Read more
archive-post-image
The Large and the Small
Danish Concertos for Recorder and Organ
The combination of one of the largest musical instruments and one of the smallest musical instruments shouldn’t work. The former, the organ, which is large enough in most institutions to require its own building, and the latter, the recorder, which
Read more
archive-post-image
The New and the Old
Steve Elcock’s Violin Concerto and Symphony No. 8
In a new recording coming from Nimbus, South African violinist Zoë Beyers, with the English Symphony Orchestra, takes on English composer Steve Elcock (b. 1957) and his 2006 Violin Concerto. Elcock is quite a discovery. Self-trained as a composer, he
Read more
archive-post-image
A Recital with A Difference: Yuja Wang’s The Vienna Recital
The idea of a recital – a single performer on their own stage, showing the best of themselves – is an old idea. Some Romantic performers, such as Liszt and Paganini, were best known through their recitals. The opportunity to
Read more
archive-post-image
Breath and Breathing: Hera Hyesang Park’s Breathe
Korean soprano Hera Hyesang Park’s new album on Deutsche Grammophon, Breathe, had its roots in the COVID crisis. Ms. Park was confronted with the sudden death of her loved ones and a realization that there were a lot of unexplored
Read more