Hank ReynoldsCaccini: Amarilli mia bella A new style! A solo voice singing “passionately” over a simple accompaniment. That may not sound so innovative, but it was a radical departure from the complex multi-voiced polyphony of the late Renaissance. Giulio Caccini (1551-1618) helped to chart the path … Read more
Beethoven: String Quartet, Op. 59, No. 1 Perhaps you’re taking our mini-course “7 Days to Beethoven.” If not, you should be, for at least two reasons. First, it’s free. Second, it includes seven video performances of Beethoven’s music that provide a good overview of his … Read more
Ravel: Le Tombeau de Couperin I began learning this piece when I was in the Army. A conductor friend of mine had developed an obsession with Maurice Ravel (1875-1937)–I don’t think that’s overstating it. He played Ravel on the piano and talked on and on about all the things … Read more
Anonymous: Duke of Norfolk (Paul’s Steeple) Anonymous? So who’s the guy in the picture? John Playford (1623-1686/7) was a publisher and a music theorist. (We like music theorists at this site.) He was also a war correspondent and royalist during the English Civil Wars. That … Read more
Prokofiev: Violin Concerto No. 2 (2d movement) Since we focused on Sibelius last week while traveling between Helsinki and St. Petersburg, it seems fitting to focus this week on a Russian composer. Sergei Prokofiev (1891-1953) certainly fills the bill as Russian, but he is not the … Read more
Sibelius: Finlandia (Op. 26) A few weeks ago, I selected a work by Smetana for the simple reason that I was traveling to Prague. It wasn’t a frivolous choice. I would have gotten around to Smetana sooner or later. It was just a convenient reason … Read more
Vivaldi: The Four Seasons It’s summer in Texas. Beneath the blazing sun’s relentless heat, men and flocks are sweltering, pines are scorched. No, that’s not actually my prose. It’s taken from the Sonnet that accompanies Vivaldi’s Concerto “Summer” from The Four Seasons. It’s presumed that … Read more
Rachmaninov: Rhapsody on a Theme by Paganini While we’re on the subject, let’s go ahead and add one more work to finish out this series on Paganini. We started with Paganini’s Caprice No. 24 and then went to Liszt’s Etude based on the same work. … Read more
Liszt: Grandes études de Paganini (No. 6) Why not? We talked last week about Paganini’s Caprice No. 24 that had inspired other composers, so we might as well see how that works. Franz Liszt had been inspired by Paganini’s successful virtuosity on the violin to do much … Read more
Paganini: Caprice No. 24 in A minor Few names are associated more strongly with virtuosity than Niccolò Paganini (1782-1840). He was one of the first performers to rise to fame in the wave of fascination with virtuosity that seized audiences in the early 19th century. … Read more