The friendship of Frédéric Chopin and Tytus Woyciechowski has been a source of fascination for generations. Despite rarely meeting, these two men shared a deep and unique emotional intimacy. Chopin’s letters to Woyciechowski are so passionate, and his devotion to

Be forewarned: Three is an excellent score Recently, I heard a superb premiere of music by an 87-year-old composer. I wondered how many composers in their 80s have maintained similar creativity. To my surprise—and delight, as I’m in my 70s—I

Denis Bédard (b. 1950) is a Canadian organist, pedagogue, and composer celebrated for his prolific output of organ and choral music. Born in Québec, Bédard was educated at the Conservatoire de musique de Québec, where he graduated with premier prix

Imagine being a piano prodigy who became the toast of Paris during the Roaring Twenties. Imagine surviving the Nazi occupation of France. Imagine making your Carnegie Hall debut in your eighties. This is the life that forgotten pianist Youra Guller

When the Skallsjö Sommarorkester was founded in 2013, all the members were between 15 and 18 years old. They loved classical music and believed that classical music had been given an undeservedly bad reputation for being boring and was dying.

World Smile Day is the one day of the year when your face gets to flex its happiest muscles and flash those pearly whites like you’re auditioning for a toothpaste commercial. A smile, after all, is contagious and a good

Benny Goodman, born on 30 May 1909 in Chicago, is often hailed as the “King of Swing.” A clarinettist and bandleader whose innovative music and charismatic performances helped to define the Swing Era of the 1930s and 1940s. His virtuosic

We often forget how great composers were also great improvisers. In fact, when the rules of Western classical music started being defined better, there was not much difference in the creative approach the musicians would have. They were both composers