Tag Archives: Tone Poem Tuesday

There’s always something fascinating about obscure Beethoven. You can’t help listening to it, trying to find hints of the staggering genius that would craft some of the greatest works of art in human history, and not just musical art. You can hear … Continue reading →

The business of transcription is an interesting one. This is where works that are written for one instrument or group of instruments (or even voices) is rewritten, usually by a different composer than the original, for a different instrument or … Continue reading →

In honor of tomorrow being Valentine’s Day, here’s one of the most famous musical treatments of one of the most famous love stories of all time: Tchaikovsky’s Romeo and Juliet Fantasy Overture. I just listened to this the other day … Continue reading →

I’ve listened to this piece four times tonight in succession, so beautiful did I find it. Karl Goldmark was a Hungarian composer in the Romantic era who lived much of his life in Vienna, and as such his music is … Continue reading →

The words of a truly great President seem apropos tonight, as a truly execrable President takes the stage. Here is Aaron Copland’s A Lincoln Portrait.

It’s always worth remembering that classical music isn’t just about dusty old works by composers long dead. British composer Eric Whitacre is still very much alive, and he is actually only a little less than two years older than me. … Continue reading →

Starting off 2018’s musical selections with a short and lovely setting by Percy Grainger: a familiar folk tune from Scotland, “Ye Banks and Braes O’ Bonnie Doon”. Grainger is always worth returning to, for his sonorous settings and his ability … Continue reading →

A break from the Christmas music! Here we have the Welsh Rhapsody by Sir Edward German, a composer who lived from 1862 to 1936. He is most well-known for several of his light operas, as he was seen during his … Continue reading →

I’ve been exploring with some fascination the American composers of the late Romantic era, the ones whose music is rarely heard these days because none of it really goes beyond the stylings of what was going on musically in Europe … Continue reading →