When it comes to religious eroticism, nothing beats Jules Massenet’s Thaïs, composed to a libretto by Louis Gallet and based on a novel by Anatole France. The action takes place in Alexandria and the Thebaid desert in Egypt in the

Mykola Lysenko: String Quartet in D minor, “1st Movement” The political conditions in 19th century Europe spawned a rapid growth of Nationalism and Patriotism across the continent. “The pride of conquering nations and the struggle for freedom of suppressed ones

From his earliest days, the legendary pianist Vladimir Horowitz wanted to be a composer/performer in the great tradition of Franz Liszt and Sergei Rachmaninoff. In fact, despite his early successes as a pianist, Horowitz always claimed “he wanted to be

How is it that we don’t know more about the astonishing talents Marie Jaëll (1846-1925) and Dora Pejačević (1885–1923)? Jaëll, a French pianist, composer, and teacher, composed works in several genres—solo piano, concertos, and quartets. Attuned to music from her

In 1774 the poet Matthias Claudius (1740-1815) published a short poem titled “Death and the Maiden.” The poem is designed as a dialogue, contrasting a young woman’s fear with the reassurance of death. Claudius creates opposites and connections between the

I really don’t know how to talk about one without the other, as many consider Katia and Marielle Labèque, “the best and closest piano duo in front of an audience today.” The Labèque sisters are tremendous, exclaims American composer Philip

George Crumb, one of the most influential American composers of the 20th century, passed away on February 6th. Crumb’s music was an exploration of humanistic art. A winner of the Grammy Award and Pulitzer Prize, He was known as the

While pianists Yuja Wang and Lang Lang have undoubtedly achieved mass-market appeal, Igor Levit has, at least in German-speaking countries, become a political figure and social advocate. He is not only considered one of the best pianists of the century,