Classical Music Choice
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Mozart – A summer Performance
Mozart: Piano Concerto No 15 in B Flat Major This will surely rank as one of the most pleasing of all Mozart’s many and varied works, quite sublime and wholly appropriate for a summers evening of relaxation! Oft quoted from Mozart the composer to his father, “both (Nos 15 and 16) are bound to make […]
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Classical Music Choice, Spring
Bach Keyboard Concertos Nos 1, 2 and 4, with Murray Perahia and Academy of St. Martin in the Field I am certain that few amongst the throng of classical music lovers would shy away from the musical achievements of Johann Sebastian Bach. He can be justifiably proud of moving the Keyboard to centre stage. Amongst […]
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Classical Music for the Summer
Johann Baptist Georg Neruda Trumpet Concerto in E flat It is disappointing that relatively little is known about the classical Czech composer Neruda. It is recognised (Wikipedia) that he lived from c. 1708 to 1780. He was born in Bohemia to a well-respected music family. Following his early years as a violinist and conductor in […]
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Classical Music Choice – Spring
Rossini – The Six String Sonatas The Italian composer Gioachino Rossini lived from 1792 to 1868, born in Pesaro and is of course best known for his operas, including The Barber of Seville. In 1806, at the age of fourteen, Rossini was given the opportunity to study Counterpoint (the simultaneous combination of two or more […]
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Classical Music – Autumn 2013
William Boyce 8 Symphonies Whilst I openly admit to routinely listening to non-English composers by choice, I often return to some favourite native composers, most notably from the Baroque era. My current choice and recommendation of music is composed by William Boyce (1711-1779) and while fresh, bears the influence of his great contemporary Handel. When listening […]
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Classical Music – Summer 2013
Mozart Clarinet Quintet in A major, K. 581 [iframe style=”float:right;margin:0 10px 5px 0;” src=”http://www.youtube.com/embed/HcAU51tdJV0″ width=”300″ height=”169″ ] As we enjoy another splendid season of Promenade concerts at the Albert Hall amidst some glorious summer weather and the very special news of the birth of a baby boy to the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, it […]
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Classical Music – Spring 2013
Classical Music Choice for Spring 2013 Johannes Brahms Piano Concerto No 2 in B-flat major This masterful piece of music is one of my favourites and is one of his best known works. I am intrigued that this concerto is separated by a gap of 22 years from his first piano concerto. The premiere of […]
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Classical Music October/Nov
Chopin – Prelude Op 28 No 15 in D Flat, Sostenuto (Raindrop) Etudes Op 10 Nos 1 and 2 Notes kindly prepared by Dr. Helmut Frehse Frederick François Chopin (1810 – 1849) Tourists spending their holidays on the isle of Mallorca should not fail to pay a visit to Valldemossa. This picturesque village is famous […]
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Classical Music July/August
Hummel Piano Concerto in A minor Op. 85 I often lament at the lack of recognition the composer Hummel is given. Notable comments referring to my chosen Concerto as “very respectable” do little to assign this mighty work to its justified position. Let’s note a bit about the man’s pedigree: his teachers included Haydn, Clementi […]
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Classical Music May/June
Beethoven Symphony No 6 in F major “Pastoral” Surely this is one of the best-loved of Beethoven’s symphonies. It is well documented just how much the great composer was passionately fond of nature and much of his music was an interpretation of Nature’s moods. Beethoven composed both his 5th and 6th symphonies in the years […]