In 1962, pianist Harriet Cohen told a story about composer Jean Sibelius on the radio. Harriet Cohen interview from 1962 “I saw him a lot in Helsinki. I got awfully friendly with him. I used to tease him a lot,

Throughout his career, Giuseppe Verdi considered numerous novels and plays by French, Italian, Spanish, and German writers as possible sources for operatic projects. He did contemplate setting several Shakespearean plays, including Hamlet, Cymbeline, Antony and Cleopatra, The Tempest, Romeo and

Charles-Marie Widor (1844-1937) left behind a substantial number of meticulously crafted compositions for various instrumental and vocal combinations. However, he is primarily remembered for his ten organ symphonies. Inspired by the magnificent Cavaillé-Coll organ at Saint-Sulpice in Paris, these works

This, for me, is Schubert’s most genial piano sonata and one of his most popular. Like much of Schubert’s work, it reflects the Romantic spirit of the early 19th century, characterized by its lyrical beauty, harmonic daring, and emotional qualities,

Johann Pachelbel, famed composer of the even more famous canon, died in Nuremberg at the age of fifty-two on 9 March 1706. While his music enjoyed extraordinary popularity in Central Germany immediately after his death, 19th-century historians considered him a

Simon Barere was one of the great pianists of his generation. However, it is possible he is most famous for his sudden death, which occurred in the middle of a concert at Carnegie Hall in 1951. Today, we’re looking at

1685 was a particularly stellar year for classical music, as it saw the births of Johann Sebastian Bach, Georg Frideric Handel, and Domenico Scarlatti. However, there is at least one more composer born in 1685 who played a highly significant

Sometimes, it’s tempting to think of Ludwig van Beethoven as someone who just emerged from a god’s forehead, a la Athena. But in reality, Beethoven came from a very human family, just like everyone else – and a deeply dysfunctional