Society

archive-post-image
DMA: Doctor of Musical Atrocity
It’s undeniable that higher education has become serious business! Universities across the globe are churning out music graduates in untold numbers. Robert Freeman, former head of the Eastman School of Music, pointedly believes that “we are graduating too many, too
Read more
archive-post-image
Bösendorfer
Carrying the Coat of Arms of Austria
Every pianist knows that the standard grand piano has an 88-key keyboard! And in general, this assumption is certainly correct. However, if you stumble across the Bösendorfer Imperial Model 290 or the Bösendorfer Model 225, you will notice that these
Read more
archive-post-image
More Muzzles for Classical Music!
The connection between classical music and political activism of one sort or another is hardly new. When Beethoven disapproved of Napoleon’s shenanigans, he promptly changed the dedication of his Eroica symphony to “the memory of a great hero.” Verdi’s chorus
Read more
archive-post-image
Musical Orbit
Violinist Nicole Wilson is a representative of a new breed of orchestral musician, for whom performing is just one strand to her bow. She played with the London Symphony Orchestra for ten years, spent five years as Principal 2nd Violin
Read more
archive-post-image
Opinion masquerading as Fact
CNN: Top 10 greatest orchestras in the world Every day we are presented with lists and rankings that purport to be the ultimate authority on a given subject. From establishing credit worthiness for various nations to slugging percentages of somebody
Read more
archive-post-image
Salzburg Mozarteum – the Place to Smell Music
The Mozarteum University, nestled in the Austrian town of Salzburg, forms an inseparable part of the musical fabric of this artistically and historically rich town. Thomas Manhart from the Mozarteum’s press office tells me how the School that dates back
Read more
archive-post-image
Scriabin made me do it!
The power of music is just awesome! Trumpets shattered the walls of Jericho, and when Orpheus tenderly tickled his lute, his dead wife Euridice returned to life. Given such enormous powers, you better be careful because listening to music can
Read more
archive-post-image
Baldwin: The National Piano
What do Béla Bartók, Igor Stravinsky, Aaron Copland, Liberace, Dave Brubeck and various other performers, ensembles and composers have in common? They all preferred the rich sound of the Baldwin Piano. Dwight Hamilton Baldwin (1821-1899) originally hailed from northwestern Pennsylvania,
Read more