Klaus Mäkelä is a sudden superstar in the classical music world. Born in 1996, he is the most successful twentysomething conductor in the world today…and accordingly, one of the most controversial. Everyone in the field is asking: is he at

Friedrich Wieck (1785-1873) is best-known as Clara Wieck Schumann’s litigious father, the man who did everything he could to keep his daughter from marrying Robert Schumann. However, he was also a well-respected piano teacher. Despite the fact that he only

Classical musicians often put music into boxes. Sonatas and symphonies are considered Serious with a capital S, whereas waltzes and dance music are often dismissed as mere light trifles. So it may come as a surprise to find out that

Composer Dmitri Shostakovich had a tumultuous professional life, surviving discouragement and denunciation by the Soviet government over a period of decades. He also had a tumultuous personal life. He was married three times to three very different women: Nina Varzar,

First aired on 24 May 2024, the Arte Concert “Jean-Jacques and Alexandre Kantorow interpret Brahms,” performed with the Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne, showcases a remarkable father-son collaboration. The father sets the tone conducting Camille Saint-Saëns’ Symphony No. 2, and

It’s Social Media Day on June 30, so everybody gets ready to pop the digital champagne! In its short life, social media has redefined how people interact, communicate, and share with family, friends, and the world. This is the day

Robert Schumann’s solo piano music is primarily remembered and celebrated for its shorter character pieces. Carnaval and Kreisleriana beautifully encapsulate his gift for miniature forms and programmatic imagery. While revered by musicologists and pianists for their emotional depth and innovative

Stage fright: it’s the bane of most every performing musicians’ existence. And when we say most every, we really do mean most every. In fact, many of the greatest figures in classical music history struggled with stage fright in one