Through the centuries, there have been exceptional female performers – on the largest stages of the world, and in smaller, more intimate settings. They include Clara Wieck Schumann, Maria Theresia […]
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Georges Bizet was not Jewish, his father-in-law was. Bizet married the daughter of his composition professor, Jacques Halevi. To celebrate Chanukah, we learn about some other Jewish composers of classical […]
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Beethoven was a pianist. During his lifetime, the piano changed quite a bit, and those changes were reflected in the music Beethoven composed for the instrument. William Black, who was […]
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Many pieces of music from Russian operas have become much more famous in the concert hall than on the opera stage. Some of these pieces include Tchaikovsky’s Waltz and Polonaise […]
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„Rhapsody“ is an ancient word that means „songs stitched together“. The Greeks used to write long poems in praise of their heroes, and then take bits and pieces of those […]
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The United States Marine Band is this country’s oldest military band. Each branch of the U.S. Armed Forces has its own band, and song. Captain Don Schofield, associate conductor of […]
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George Gershwin was just one composer who used jazz in music that was written for the classical concert hall. So did Leonard Bernstein, Igor Stravinsky, Dmitri Shostakovich, and others.
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Probably no playwright has had more music based on his work than William Shakespeare. Felix Mendelssohn, Henry Purcell, Hector Berlioz, Giuseppe Verdi are just a few of the composers who’ve […]
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St. Paul’s Girls‘ School in London has a sign that says: „Gustav Holst wrote The Planets and taught here.“ Holst composed his St. Paul’s Suite for the student orchestra at St. Paul’s Girls‘ School. Many other composers wrote music for students to perform.
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Born into a family of composers, Gustav Holst wanted to follow in their footsteps. His career included playing in orchestras and serving as head of music at St. Paul’s Girls‘ School for almost thirty years while also composing. He liked music by earlier English composers, folk music and poetry, especially poetry from ancient India. The success of The Planets thrust him into the spotlight and enabled him to focus more of his time on what he loved, composing.
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