Famous Composers as Subjects of Opera
Recently, I had a chat with a young colleague who suggested that the writing of biographies of great...
Interlude
Orpheus: The First Superstar Musician
Orpheus was not only a legendary hero of Greek mythology; he was also the first superstar musician. But...
The Court Battle Over the Royalties to Ravel’s Boléro
It has been said that a performance of Ravel’s Boléro begins every 10 minutes somewhere in the world. The Russian dancer...
Exploring the Most Relaxing Classical Music Pieces for the Cello
The voice of the cello touches us deeply. Perhaps it speaks to us in a special way as...
Mapping the Musical Genome: The Mason Family
It’s not an exaggeration to declare that the Mason family decidedly and uniquely contributed to American music during...
Mapping the Musical Genome: The Merikanto Family
When a professional musician from Helsinki toured the Finnish countryside in the last years of the 19th century,...
Mapping the Musical Genome: The Stamitz Family
When families migrate across linguistic borders, their names frequently undergo a number of significant changes. Just take the...
The Ferment of Life: Schubert’s Last Piano Sonatas II
Alfred Brendel describes Schubert as “a sleepwalker”, yet in his final three sonatas, we see Schubert’s innate sense...
