June 1, 2017
And maybe wish you didn’t. Like the fact that Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, one of the most prolific and influential composers of the Classical era, enjoyed toilet humour. Beyond the beautiful music he composed, Mozart is an intriguing fellow we just couldn’t help digging up some gossip on. 10. He was baptised Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus … Continue reading 10 Things You Didn’t Know About Mozart
April 27, 2017
Gabriel-Urbain Fauré (1845 – 1924) is considered to be one of the foremost French composers of his time. While also an organist, pianist and teacher, his refined and gentle style influenced 20th century French music. Fauré found particular joy in infusing the traditional forms he so respected with a medley of bold harmonic progressions and … Continue reading Composer Spotlight: French Composer Gabriel Fauré
November 21, 2016
The musical revolutionary pioneered Romanticism and composed 240 works which included symphonies, piano concertos, string quartets and an opera. Ludwig van Beethoven was a perfectionist with vision: posterity. The third Ludwig van Beethoven and second musician in his family, he more than attained that goal on a global level. Over 200 years since his passing … Continue reading 5 Things You May Not Know About Beethoven
May 17, 2016
A favourite of the many talented quartets who’ve graced the Friends of Chamber Music stage, Antonín Leopold Dvořák’s output of chamber music included more than 40 works for string ensembles. This prolific collection is in addition to his numerous symphonies, operas, and concerti. The first of 14 children, Dvořák’s early years with his family in … Continue reading Composer Spotlight: Antonín Dvořák
March 25, 2016
German composer Richard Georg Strauss was born into a family of musicians, ensuring a relationship with the musical art form at a very young age. By six, Strauss composed his first piece. By eighteen years of age, he had 140 compositions to his name. Moving on to become a music director first at Meiningen, and … Continue reading Composer Spotlight: Richard Strauss
January 11, 2016
The beautiful fluidity inherent to music allows for an open interpretation by both the musician and listener alike. There is intended tone, laid out by the key it was composed in and the instruments it was written for, but in the end, a piece of music can exude as many tones as people that play … Continue reading Composer Spotlight: Dmitri Shostakovich
September 11, 2015
Unexpected. Intense. Sweeping. Not unlike the man himself. Composer-pianist Sergei Prokofiev’s Quartet No 1 in B Minor, Opus 50 is distinctive from the haunting opening notes to the very last consuming melody. Components such as its B Minor key, a semitone below the limits of the viola and cello range, and unexpected reversal in the … Continue reading October Concert Series Spotlight: Composer Sergei Prokofiev
