Music Education
The audience waits excitedly: some are masterclass veterans and some are new to the experience; some have copies of the music on their laps, some have the music in their heads. There are teachers, parents and other young players; there is an atmosphere of hushed reverence and expectation. The young
Opinion
The fact that music has an impact on humans, plants, and animals is already discovered and proven. However, some people doubt it, although music is a great tool to control your emotions and mood. To do this, it is not at all necessary to have a special music taste or
Know Your Composer
The common image of the struggling artist started with Mr. Ludwig van B. We all know the story of him overcoming his disability to create some of the most uplifting and inspirational masterpieces in music. But we don’t have to be necessarily rich and famous to struggle with adversity;
Opinion
Beethoven has been described as ‘the Face of Western Classical Music’. You may have your favourites—Mozart, Schubert, Brahms, Bach…but you are still unlikely to dispute that statement, so secure is Ludwig van’s position in the pantheon of music. His music is ingrained in our culture: the opening
News
Many musicians dream of making a record with a symphony orchestra, but few can afford to make it a reality. Thanks to an extraordinary ability to compose melodies that take root in his listeners’ minds and because he has, for years, patiently performed these compositions on stage to the point
News
Astor Piazzolla is universally considered the pre-eminent figure in the history of tango and one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century. His compositions, including beloved and widely performed works such as “Libertango”, “Oblivion”, and “Adios Nonino” have become standards of musical repertoire. Together with the Fundación Astor
Music Education
The advent and popularization of historical performance practice in recent years has led to some wonderful innovations in piano performance. In many circles, Mozart’s original and intimate ideas of phrasing are now readily reinstated and re-legitimized over more long-line Romantic approaches; familiarity with Bach’s ornamentation and practices of
Opinion
I begin this piece by acknowledging that I am a Chinese American concert pianist, AB Harvard, MM Juilliard, DMA SUNY at StonyBrook. I’ve been playing Beethoven nearly my whole life, having lived with his music for over half a century. I’ve spent more hours in his presence than
Features
On 9 February 2021 the world of jazz bid a tearful goodbye to iconic jazz composer, keyboardist, bandleader, and occasional percussionist ‘Chick’ Corea (born Armando Anthony Corea), who died at 79 of cancer at his home in the Tampa Bay area of Florida, US. But like so many great musicians
News
Rehearsals have begun this week for one of the major new productions of this summer, Luigi Nono’s “azione scenica” Intolleranza 1960. This key work of the 20th century was originally to be presented this past summer. It is now a central production of the second part of the centenary
It’s great when students get things. That happy moment when the penny drops, the eyes light up and we become enveloped in that warm glow of satisfaction knowing that our teaching has been successful. But then, oh dear. Our students return the following week and that new fingering or
Music Education
In this series of articles, I’ve focused on helping students discover the indications various composers employed to show where they wanted the sustaining pedal engaged and released. What happens when our ears want additional resonance from the instrument, but using the pedal would obscure a melodic line or cover