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𝗕𝗥𝗨𝗡𝗢 𝗪𝗔𝗟𝗧𝗘𝗥 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝟭𝟱 𝗚𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗥𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦 Bruno Walter occupies a unique position in the history of conducting. He belonged directly to the final world of late Romanticism, worked closely with Gustav Mahler and…

𝗔𝗥𝗧𝗨𝗥𝗢 𝗧𝗢𝗦𝗖𝗔𝗡𝗜𝗡𝗜 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝟭𝟱 𝗚𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗥𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦 Arturo Toscanini was one of the decisive figures in the creation of modern orchestral performance. His reputation was built upon fidelity to the written score, rhythmic discipline,…

𝗖𝗟𝗔𝗨𝗗𝗜𝗢 𝗔𝗕𝗕𝗔𝗗𝗢 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝟭𝟱 𝗚𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗥𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦 Claudio Abbado’s finest recordings reveal a conductor whose authority rarely depended upon weight, domination or theatrical self-display. His interpretations were founded upon listening, transparency, rhythmic flexibility, instrumental…

𝗟𝗘𝗢𝗡𝗔𝗥𝗗 𝗕𝗘𝗥𝗡𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗜𝗡 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝟭𝟱 𝗚𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗥𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦 Leonard Bernstein left one of the most extensive, varied and immediately recognisable recorded legacies of the twentieth century. He was not only a conductor but also a…

𝗞𝗔𝗥𝗟 𝗕𝗢̈𝗛𝗠 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝟭𝟱 𝗚𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗥𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦 Karl Böhm’s reputation rests above all upon Mozart, Richard Strauss, Wagner, Schubert and Bruckner. He was neither a cultivator of orchestral glamour in the Karajan manner nor…

𝗛𝗘𝗥𝗕𝗘𝗥𝗧 𝗩𝗢𝗡 𝗞𝗔𝗥𝗔𝗝𝗔𝗡 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝟭𝟱 𝗚𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗥𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦 Herbert von Karajan left one of the largest recorded legacies of any conductor. He repeatedly returned to the same compositions, sometimes recording them three or four…

𝗝𝗢𝗛𝗔𝗡𝗡𝗘𝗦 𝗕𝗥𝗔𝗛𝗠𝗦’𝗦 𝗧𝗘𝗡 𝗧𝗥𝗨𝗘 𝗠𝗔𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗣𝗜𝗘𝗖𝗘𝗦 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗚𝗘𝗡𝗜𝗨𝗦 𝗪𝗛𝗢 𝗧𝗨𝗥𝗡𝗘𝗗 𝗠𝗘𝗠𝗢𝗥𝗬 𝗜𝗡𝗧𝗢 𝗙𝗢𝗥𝗠 Johannes Brahms is often portrayed as the great conservative of nineteenth-century music: the guardian of Classical form, the heir of Bach,…

𝗙𝗘𝗟𝗜𝗫 𝗠𝗘𝗡𝗗𝗘𝗟𝗦𝗦𝗢𝗛𝗡’𝗦 𝗧𝗘𝗡 𝗧𝗥𝗨𝗘 𝗠𝗔𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗣𝗜𝗘𝗖𝗘𝗦 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗚𝗘𝗡𝗜𝗨𝗦 𝗢𝗙 𝗟𝗜𝗚𝗛𝗧, 𝗠𝗘𝗠𝗢𝗥𝗬 𝗔𝗡𝗗 𝗣𝗘𝗥𝗙𝗘𝗖𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡 Felix Mendelssohn has often been admired for his elegance and simultaneously underestimated because of it. His music appears so lucid, balanced…

𝗥𝗢𝗕𝗘𝗥𝗧 𝗦𝗖𝗛𝗨𝗠𝗔𝗡𝗡’𝗦 𝗧𝗘𝗡 𝗧𝗥𝗨𝗘 𝗠𝗔𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗣𝗜𝗘𝗖𝗘𝗦 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗠𝗨𝗦𝗜𝗖𝗔𝗟 𝗗𝗜𝗔𝗥𝗬 𝗢𝗙 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗥𝗢𝗠𝗔𝗡𝗧𝗜𝗖 𝗦𝗢𝗨𝗟 Robert Schumann was perhaps the composer who most completely transformed private thought, literary imagination, emotional contradiction and unstable memory into music.…

𝗝𝗢𝗦𝗘𝗣𝗛 𝗛𝗔𝗬𝗗𝗡’𝗦 𝗧𝗘𝗡 𝗧𝗥𝗨𝗘 𝗠𝗔𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗣𝗜𝗘𝗖𝗘𝗦 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗚𝗘𝗡𝗜𝗨𝗦 𝗪𝗛𝗢 𝗧𝗥𝗔𝗡𝗦𝗙𝗢𝗥𝗠𝗘𝗗 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗦𝗬𝗠𝗣𝗛𝗢𝗡𝗬, 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗤𝗨𝗔𝗥𝗧𝗘𝗧 𝗔𝗡𝗗 𝗦𝗔𝗖𝗥𝗘𝗗 𝗠𝗨𝗦𝗜𝗖 Joseph Haydn is often introduced through a series of familiar labels: “father of the symphony,” “father of…

𝗦𝗖𝗛𝗨𝗠𝗔𝗡𝗡 — 𝗘𝗥𝗜𝗖 𝗙𝗥𝗘𝗗𝗘𝗥𝗜𝗖𝗞 𝗝𝗘𝗡𝗦𝗘𝗡 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗠𝗔𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗥 𝗠𝗨𝗦𝗜𝗖𝗜𝗔𝗡𝗦 — 𝗢𝗫𝗙𝗢𝗥𝗗 𝗨𝗡𝗜𝗩𝗘𝗥𝗦𝗜𝗧𝗬 𝗣𝗥𝗘𝗦𝗦 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗣𝗧𝗘𝗥 𝟭𝟭 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗬𝗘𝗔𝗥𝗦 𝗜𝗡 𝗗𝗥𝗘𝗦𝗗𝗘𝗡 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗖𝗜𝗧𝗬 𝗧𝗛𝗔𝗧 𝗪𝗔𝗦 𝗡𝗢𝗧 𝗔 𝗛𝗢𝗠𝗘 When Robert and Clara Schumann left Leipzig for…

𝗦𝗔𝗜𝗡𝗧-𝗦𝗔𝗘𝗡𝗦’𝗦 𝗧𝗘𝗡 𝗧𝗥𝗨𝗘 𝗠𝗔𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗣𝗜𝗘𝗖𝗘𝗦 — 𝗙𝗔𝗥 𝗕𝗘𝗬𝗢𝗡𝗗 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗦𝗪𝗔𝗡 𝗔𝗡𝗗 𝗧𝗛𝗘 “𝗢𝗥𝗚𝗔𝗡” 𝗦𝗬𝗠𝗣𝗛𝗢𝗡𝗬 Camille Saint-Saëns has often suffered from the very qualities that made him extraordinary. His technique seemed effortless, his craftsmanship was impeccable,…

𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗧𝗘𝗡 𝗠𝗢𝗦𝗧 𝗨𝗡𝗝𝗨𝗦𝗧𝗟𝗬 𝗨𝗡𝗗𝗘𝗥𝗩𝗔𝗟𝗨𝗘𝗗 𝗦𝗬𝗠𝗣𝗛𝗢𝗡𝗜𝗖 𝗪𝗢𝗥𝗞𝗦 𝗜𝗡 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗖𝗟𝗔𝗦𝗦𝗜𝗖𝗔𝗟 𝗥𝗘𝗣𝗘𝗥𝗧𝗢𝗜𝗥𝗘 The symphonic canon is far narrower than the actual history of orchestral music. Beethoven, Brahms, Bruckner, Mahler, Tchaikovsky, Sibelius and Shostakovich occupy their…

𝗦𝗖𝗛𝗨𝗠𝗔𝗡𝗡 — 𝗘𝗥𝗜𝗖 𝗙𝗥𝗘𝗗𝗘𝗥𝗜𝗖𝗞 𝗝𝗘𝗡𝗦𝗘𝗡 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗠𝗔𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗥 𝗠𝗨𝗦𝗜𝗖𝗜𝗔𝗡𝗦 — 𝗢𝗫𝗙𝗢𝗥𝗗 𝗨𝗡𝗜𝗩𝗘𝗥𝗦𝗜𝗧𝗬 𝗣𝗥𝗘𝗦𝗦 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗣𝗧𝗘𝗥 𝟭𝟬 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗖𝗢𝗠𝗣𝗢𝗦𝗜𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡𝗦, 𝟭𝟴𝟰𝟬–𝟰𝟰 𝗔𝗙𝗧𝗘𝗥 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗣𝗜𝗔𝗡𝗢, 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗪𝗢𝗥𝗟𝗗 The marriage to Clara did not merely change Robert Schumann’s private…

𝗗𝗩𝗢𝗥𝗔𝗞’𝗦 𝗧𝗘𝗡 𝗧𝗥𝗨𝗘 𝗠𝗔𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗣𝗜𝗘𝗖𝗘𝗦 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗪𝗢𝗥𝗞𝗦 𝗧𝗛𝗔𝗧 𝗥𝗘𝗩𝗘𝗔𝗟 𝗛𝗜𝗦 𝗙𝗨𝗟𝗟 𝗚𝗘𝗡𝗜𝗨𝗦 Antonin Dvorak is sometimes reduced to three familiar emblems: the New World Symphony, the Cello Concerto and the Slavonic Dances. Yet his…

𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗧𝗘𝗡 𝗧𝗥𝗨𝗘 𝗠𝗢𝗭𝗔𝗥𝗧 𝗠𝗔𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗣𝗜𝗘𝗖𝗘𝗦: 𝗪𝗛𝗘𝗥𝗘 𝗕𝗘𝗔𝗨𝗧𝗬 𝗕𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗠𝗘𝗦 𝗔𝗕𝗦𝗢𝗟𝗨𝗧𝗘 To choose Mozart’s ten “true” masterpieces is not to choose merely the most famous works, nor even the most immediately seductive. Mozart wrote too much…

𝗦𝗖𝗛𝗨𝗠𝗔𝗡𝗡 — 𝗘𝗥𝗜𝗖 𝗙𝗥𝗘𝗗𝗘𝗥𝗜𝗖𝗞 𝗝𝗘𝗡𝗦𝗘𝗡 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗠𝗔𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗥 𝗠𝗨𝗦𝗜𝗖𝗜𝗔𝗡𝗦 — 𝗢𝗫𝗙𝗢𝗥𝗗 𝗨𝗡𝗜𝗩𝗘𝗥𝗦𝗜𝗧𝗬 𝗣𝗥𝗘𝗦𝗦 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗣𝗧𝗘𝗥 𝟳 — 𝗖𝗢𝗨𝗥𝗧𝗦𝗛𝗜𝗣 𝗔𝗡𝗗 𝗠𝗔𝗥𝗥𝗜𝗔𝗚𝗘 𝗔 𝗟𝗢𝗩𝗘 𝗦𝗧𝗢𝗥𝗬 𝗧𝗛𝗔𝗧 𝗕𝗘𝗖𝗔𝗠𝗘 𝗔 𝗧𝗥𝗜𝗔𝗟 𝗢𝗙 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗥𝗔𝗖𝗧𝗘𝗥 The courtship of 𝗥𝗼𝗯𝗲𝗿𝘁 𝗦𝗰𝗵𝘂𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗻 and 𝗖𝗹𝗮𝗿𝗮…

𝗖𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗠𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗰 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗗𝗿𝗶𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴: 𝗕𝗲𝘁𝘄𝗲𝗲𝗻 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻, 𝗣𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗵𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗺 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗝𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗲𝘆 Listening to classical music while driving is not the same as listening to it at home, in a concert hall, or…

𝗔𝗡𝗧𝗢𝗡 𝗥𝗘𝗜𝗖𝗛𝗔: 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗙𝗥𝗜𝗘𝗡𝗗 𝗢𝗙 𝗕𝗘𝗘𝗧𝗛𝗢𝗩𝗘𝗡 𝗪𝗛𝗢 𝗕𝗘𝗖𝗔𝗠𝗘 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗔𝗥𝗖𝗛𝗜𝗧𝗘𝗖𝗧 𝗢𝗙 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗪𝗜𝗡𝗗 𝗤𝗨𝗜𝗡𝗧𝗘𝗧 𝗔𝗻𝘁𝗼𝗻 𝗥𝗲𝗶𝗰𝗵𝗮 𝗕𝗼𝗿𝗻: 𝟮𝟲 𝗙𝗲𝗯𝗿𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝟭𝟳𝟳𝟬, 𝗣𝗿𝗮𝗴𝘂𝗲, 𝗕𝗼𝗵𝗲𝗺𝗶𝗮 𝗗𝗶𝗲𝗱: 𝟮𝟴 𝗠𝗮𝘆 𝟭𝟴𝟯𝟲, 𝗣𝗮𝗿𝗶𝘀, 𝗙𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗔𝗻𝘁𝗼𝗻 𝗥𝗲𝗶𝗰𝗵𝗮 was one of the…

𝗚𝗜𝗢𝗩𝗔𝗡𝗡𝗜 𝗕𝗔𝗧𝗧𝗜𝗦𝗧𝗔 𝗦𝗔𝗠𝗠𝗔𝗥𝗧𝗜𝗡𝗜: 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗠𝗜𝗟𝗔𝗡𝗘𝗦𝗘 𝗣𝗜𝗢𝗡𝗘𝗘𝗥 𝗪𝗛𝗢 𝗛𝗘𝗟𝗣𝗘𝗗 𝗖𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗘 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗦𝗬𝗠𝗣𝗛𝗢𝗡𝗬 𝗚𝗶𝗼𝘃𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗶 𝗕𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗮 𝗦𝗮𝗺𝗺𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗶 𝗕𝗼𝗿𝗻: 𝗰. 𝟭𝟳𝟬𝟬/𝟭𝟳𝟬𝟭, 𝗠𝗶𝗹𝗮𝗻, 𝗜𝘁𝗮𝗹𝘆 𝗗𝗶𝗲𝗱: 𝟭𝟱 𝗝𝗮𝗻𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝟭𝟳𝟳𝟱, 𝗠𝗶𝗹𝗮𝗻, 𝗜𝘁𝗮𝗹𝘆 𝗚𝗶𝗼𝘃𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗶 𝗕𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗮 𝗦𝗮𝗺𝗺𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗶 was one of the essential creators…

𝗚𝗘𝗢𝗥𝗚 𝗖𝗛𝗥𝗜𝗦𝗧𝗢𝗣𝗛 𝗪𝗔𝗚𝗘𝗡𝗦𝗘𝗜𝗟: 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗩𝗜𝗘𝗡𝗡𝗘𝗦𝗘 𝗣𝗜𝗢𝗡𝗘𝗘𝗥 𝗪𝗛𝗢 𝗣𝗥𝗘𝗣𝗔𝗥𝗘𝗗 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗪𝗔𝗬 𝗙𝗢𝗥 𝗛𝗔𝗬𝗗𝗡 𝗔𝗡𝗗 𝗠𝗢𝗭𝗔𝗥𝗧 𝗚𝗲𝗼𝗿𝗴 𝗖𝗵𝗿𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗽𝗵 𝗪𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗲𝗶𝗹 𝗕𝗼𝗿𝗻: 𝟮𝟵 𝗝𝗮𝗻𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝟭𝟳𝟭𝟱, 𝗩𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗻𝗮, 𝗔𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗮 𝗗𝗶𝗲𝗱: 𝟭 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵 𝟭𝟳𝟳𝟳, 𝗩𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗻𝗮, 𝗔𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗮 𝗚𝗲𝗼𝗿𝗴 𝗖𝗵𝗿𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗽𝗵 𝗪𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗲𝗶𝗹 was one…

𝗖𝗛𝗥𝗜𝗦𝗧𝗜𝗔𝗡 𝗖𝗔𝗡𝗡𝗔𝗕𝗜𝗖𝗛: 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗠𝗔𝗡𝗡𝗛𝗘𝗜𝗠 𝗠𝗔𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗥 𝗪𝗛𝗢 𝗧𝗔𝗨𝗚𝗛𝗧 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗢𝗥𝗖𝗛𝗘𝗦𝗧𝗥𝗔 𝗧𝗢 𝗕𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗖𝗵𝗿𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗻 𝗖𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗰𝗵 𝗕𝗼𝗿𝗻: 𝟮𝟴 𝗗𝗲𝗰𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝟭𝟳𝟯𝟭, 𝗠𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗺, 𝗚𝗲𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗗𝗶𝗲𝗱: 𝟮𝟬 𝗝𝗮𝗻𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝟭𝟳𝟵𝟴, 𝗙𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗸𝗳𝘂𝗿𝘁 𝗮𝗺 𝗠𝗮𝗶𝗻, 𝗚𝗲𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗖𝗵𝗿𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗻 𝗖𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗰𝗵 was one of the central…

𝗡𝗜𝗖𝗖𝗢𝗟𝗢̀ 𝗝𝗢𝗠𝗠𝗘𝗟𝗟𝗜: 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗢𝗣𝗘𝗥𝗔 𝗦𝗘𝗥𝗜𝗔 𝗥𝗘𝗙𝗢𝗥𝗠𝗘𝗥 𝗪𝗛𝗢 𝗣𝗥𝗘𝗣𝗔𝗥𝗘𝗗 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗥𝗢𝗔𝗗 𝗧𝗢 𝗚𝗟𝗨𝗖𝗞 𝗡𝗶𝗰𝗰𝗼𝗹𝗼̀ 𝗝𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗶 𝗕𝗼𝗿𝗻: 𝟭𝟬 𝗦𝗲𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝟭𝟳𝟭𝟰, 𝗔𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗮, 𝗜𝘁𝗮𝗹𝘆 𝗗𝗶𝗲𝗱: 𝟮𝟱 𝗔𝘂𝗴𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝟭𝟳𝟳𝟰, 𝗡𝗮𝗽𝗹𝗲𝘀, 𝗜𝘁𝗮𝗹𝘆 Among the great reforming figures of eighteenth-century opera,…

𝗡𝗜𝗖𝗖𝗢𝗟𝗢̀ 𝗣𝗜𝗖𝗖𝗜𝗡𝗡𝗜: 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗜𝗧𝗔𝗟𝗜𝗔𝗡 𝗟𝗬𝗥𝗜𝗖 𝗠𝗔𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗥 𝗪𝗛𝗢 𝗦𝗧𝗢𝗢𝗗 𝗢𝗣𝗣𝗢𝗦𝗜𝗧𝗘 𝗚𝗟𝗨𝗖𝗞 𝗜𝗡 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗚𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗧 𝗣𝗔𝗥𝗜𝗦𝗜𝗔𝗡 𝗢𝗣𝗘𝗥𝗔 𝗪𝗔𝗥 𝗡𝗶𝗰𝗰𝗼𝗹𝗼̀ 𝗣𝗶𝗰𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗶 𝗕𝗼𝗿𝗻: 𝟭𝟲 𝗝𝗮𝗻𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝟭𝟳𝟮𝟴, 𝗕𝗮𝗿𝗶, 𝗜𝘁𝗮𝗹𝘆 𝗗𝗶𝗲𝗱: 𝟳 𝗠𝗮𝘆 𝟭𝟴𝟬𝟬, 𝗣𝗮𝘀𝘀𝘆, 𝗙𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 Among the great Italian…