Modest Mussorgsky: Pictures at an Exhibition
performed by Nicolas Economou or below by Mikhail Pletnev (much more on recordings below) Here we are in October, and with the first piano piece of the month’s piano-focused series, with a small tip of the hat to what we’ll … Continue reading Modest Mussorgsky: Pictures at an Exhibition
Podcast: Haydn Seek, pt. 2
featuring Mike McCaffrey. Listen here or in iTunes. This episode comes at a pretty cool time that I hadn’t planned. I’d planned for it to be uploaded this week (pretty low-fi operation here, so it depends largely on my spare … Continue reading Podcast: Haydn Seek, pt. 2
Wagner’s Das Rheingold
Is there any other? with Taiwan’s National Symphony Orchestra (國家交響樂團) under Maestro Shao-Chia Lü (呂紹嘉), stage director Carlus Padrissa, a co-production of Palau de les Arts Reina Sofia and Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, with full credits shown below This performance on … Continue reading Wagner’s Das Rheingold
Tchaikovsky String Quartet No. 1 in D, op. 11
performed by the Borodin Quartet …Tolstoy, sitting next to me and listening to the Andante of my First Quartet, burst into tears… The composer, from here or here Hello, old friend! It’s been a while since we did anything Tchaikovsky…. … Continue reading Tchaikovsky String Quartet No. 1 in D, op. 11
Russian Piano 2016: a series
It has been a good long while since we’ve done any piano stuff, but it’s actually been longer since last year’s Russian Symphony 2015 series that lasted three whole months. Granted, in those three months, we covered 20 symphonies, but at … Continue reading Russian Piano 2016: a series
The Swedish Series: a wrap-up
So much Swedish music! There were a few challenges in preparing this series. At the beginning, as I said in the introduction, there were a few names that were responsible for deciding to do this series to begin with. I’d … Continue reading The Swedish Series: a wrap-up
Pettersson Symphony no. 7
performed by the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra under Sergiu Comissiona No one in the 1950s noticed, that I am always breaking up the structures, that I was creating a whole new symphonic form. Pettersson, from Paul Rapoport’s Allan Pettersson, p. 21 … Continue reading Pettersson Symphony no. 7
2016 Innovation Series: Klassic Kindheit Concert
with the Ensemble Quatrain Cologne and 陳必先 (Chen Pi-Hsien) Connections are a good thing to have. It took me some time to get into the system, to figure out how the ticket buying and membership-ing all works, but once you … Continue reading 2016 Innovation Series: Klassic Kindheit Concert
Karl-Birger Blomdahl: Symphony no. 3, Facetter
performed by the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra under Leif Segerstam (this piece is featured on a list of pieces I heartily recommend to music directors for inclusion on their season programs. Check out the article here.) Karl-Birger Blomdahl was born … Continue reading Karl-Birger Blomdahl: Symphony no. 3, Facetter
Gustav Allan Pettersson: Violin Concerto no. 1 for violin and string quartet
performed by Yamei Yu and the Leipziger Streichquartett, available here or in iTunes Gustav Allan Pettersson was born on 19 September 1911, “the youngest of four children of a violent, alcoholic blacksmith… at the manor of Granhammar in Västra Ryd parish in … Continue reading Gustav Allan Pettersson: Violin Concerto no. 1 for violin and string quartet
Dag Wirén: Serenade for Strings, op. 11
performed by the English Chamber Orchestra under Johannes Somary I wanted to share a quote here of the composer expressing his desire to write music “to entertain and please, and compose listener-friendly ‘modern’ music,” as paraphrased in his Wikipedia article, but … Continue reading Dag Wirén: Serenade for Strings, op. 11
Hilding Rosenberg: Symphony no. 3 ‘The Four Ages of Man’
performed by the Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra under Herbert Blomstedt One creates out of what has been before, out of the experiences of others, as well as those of oneself, out of everything one knows, has read, or been acquainted with … Continue reading Hilding Rosenberg: Symphony no. 3 ‘The Four Ages of Man’
NSO’s A Hero’s Life
30th Anniversary Season Opener, featuring Leonidas Kavakos Well, I’m a bit late in coming with this. The concert was almost a week ago, and came at the end of an extremely long day (and weekend, involving a national holiday, two typhoons, a … Continue reading NSO’s A Hero’s Life
Edvin Kallstenius: Symphony no. 2 in Fm, op. 20
performed by the Sveriges Radios Symfoniorkester under B. Tommy Andersson This is a piece I had to make room for in the schedule, because I came across the Kallstenius name very late in my research, and he seems completely unrelated to … Continue reading Edvin Kallstenius: Symphony no. 2 in Fm, op. 20
Ture Rangström: Symphony no. 3, ‘Sång under stjärnorna’
performed by the Helsingborg Symphony Orchestra under Janos Fürst, or below by the Nörrkoping Symphony Orchestra under Michail Jurowski Anders Johan Ture Rangström was born 30 November, 1884, to a leather merchant in Stockholm, and began writing songs in his … Continue reading Ture Rangström: Symphony no. 3, ‘Sång under stjärnorna’
Podcast: Illuminating Ištvan
with Dr. Katelyn Bouska | Listen here or in iTunes Have you ever had that experience of having a connection with music that you discovered, so that it seemed like yours? Disregard the fact that hundreds (of thousands) of other people … Continue reading Podcast: Illuminating Ištvan
Wilhelm Stenhammar: Serenade in F, op. 31
performed by the Uppsala Chamber Orchestra under Paul Magi, or below by the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic under Michael Schonwandt Carl Wilhelm Eugene Stenhammar was born on 7 February, 1871 in Stockholm, where he began studying music. At some point he … Continue reading Wilhelm Stenhammar: Serenade in F, op. 31
Quatuor Diotima in Taipei
It was almost six months ago to the day that I first knew that the Quatuor Diotima would be visiting Taiwan, and that was the same week I posted an article I spent a lot of time preparing for, only to share … Continue reading Quatuor Diotima in Taipei
Wilhelm Peterson-Berger: Symphony no. 3 in Fm ‘Same-Ätnam’
performed by the Norrköping Symphony Orchestra under Michail Jurowski or below by the Sveriges Radios Symfoniorkester under Stig Westerberg Olof Wilhelm Peterson-Berger was born 27 February, 1867 in Ullånger (or just not Stockholm), the oldest child of a surveyor, Olof Peterson, and Sophia Wilhelmina, nee Berger. He, too, … Continue reading Wilhelm Peterson-Berger: Symphony no. 3 in Fm ‘Same-Ätnam’
Kurt Atterberg: Symphony no. 2 in F, op. 6
performed by the Radio-Sinfonie-Orchester Frankfurt under Ari Rasilainen The video above is of the second and fifth symphonies back to back. The second symphony ends about 41 minutes in, but this is the recording to listen to. As much as I … Continue reading Kurt Atterberg: Symphony no. 2 in F, op. 6
Atterberg String Quartet no. 2 in B minor, op. 11
performed by the Stenhammar Quartet (no YouTube this time, but a review of the album is on MusicWeb, and it’s rather frank and more negative than I was inclined to be. Also, if you’re determined to listen to something today and … Continue reading Atterberg String Quartet no. 2 in B minor, op. 11
Fugue for Thought 