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Endgames For End Instruments by Leonard Slatkin
In 2014, American conductor, pianist, and composer Leonard Slatkin wrote Endgames, a work that would focus on the End Instruments, the instruments that sit at the ends of their respective sections in the orchestra, the highs and lows of the
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My Favorite Canons and Other Musical Puzzles IV
The invention of the Gutenberg press set in motion a musical and societal revolution. For one, the demand for music as entertainment and as a social activity for educated amateurs increased with the emergence of a bourgeois class. From this
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Should Composers Be Replaced by AI? Will They Be?
Imagine that you’re a composer. You grew up loving music. Maybe in your childhood you listened to works by giants like Mozart, and Beethoven, and Brahms. You spent decades learning an instrument. You attended elite educational institutions for many years,
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On This Day
25 October: Midori Was Born
Japanese-American violinist Midori has been described as a “visionary artist, activist and educator whose unique career has transcended traditional boundaries through her relentless drive to explore and build connections between music and the human experience.” An astounding child prodigy who
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On This Day
24 October: Tito Gobbi Was Born
The Italian baritone Tito Gobbi (1913-1984) was one of the great operatic figures of his time. Throughout his celebrated career, there were few who could match him as a singing actor, and he distinguished himself in a variety of roles.
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On Polymaths
Polymaths are individuals who have mastered more than one discipline. Some of the most extraordinary polymaths have excelled in a wide range of disciplines, such as science, mathematics, philosophy, literature, arts and music. Whether artistic or not, their lives have
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On This Day
21 October: Georg Solti Was Born
Sir Georg Solti was probably best known for his appearances with opera companies in Munich, Frankfurt, and London, and as a long-serving music director of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. He was also famous for his exuberant and forceful podium personality,
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Charles Ives (1874-1954)
The Violin Sonatas
150 years ago, on 20 October 1874, the leading American composer of art music of the early 20th century, Charles Edward Ives, was born in Danbury, Connecticut. Ives was a unique figure as he remained an amateur throughout his mature,
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