During his early compositional career, Johannes Brahms (1833-1897) exhibited a heightened sense of musical insecurity. He self-consciously responded to criticism, even when leveled by his closest personal friends, by ruthlessly destroying or severely reshaping his compositions. His Piano Quintet in

With his widely recognised achievements as a pianist, composer and conductor, Brahms had succeeded in amassing a considerable fortune: 4000.000 marks from his compositions, earnings wisely invested by his publisher. It was also due to a frugal life: he dined

We had already talked about the young Johannes’ performances around the city in the last sharing. As a handsome and energetic youth, he was already composing his first piano concerto (after a short stint as an arranger for opera-potpourris).

Hamburg, a Hanseatic city of 1.8 million inhabitants, previously a free city-state. It is part of the Hanseatic chain of ports, sitting on the Baltic Sea. (along with Lübeck, Antwerp, Bergen, Novgorod and London by extension)

Do you still remember Condi Rice? Actually, that is Dr. Condoleezza Rice, and she was Secretary of State for the administration of George W. Bush. Night after night she stood in front of eager television cameras and lied about weapons

Drei Quartette, Op. 92/3: Abendlied From Brahms: Choral Works (2014) Released by Harmonia Mundi Brahms: Drei Quartette, Op. 92/3: AbendliedThe famous German Requiem must not be allowed to overshadow the wide variety of choral music Brahms wrote throughout his career.

Buying a piano for home use is a highly personal choice. It depends on a number of variables, including instrument style, brand, color and shape. Generally speaking, however, we look for instruments within a certain budget range, and one that

I always thought that my grandfather was the luckiest person on earth! No matter how dull the conversations, boring the sermon or uncomfortable the journey, he always managed to nod off. At first I thought he was just pretending, but