There are few individuals who truly change the course of history. Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) is one of those individuals. There is music before Beethoven and music after Beethoven; the revolution wrought by his works continues to resonate through music made today. From later classical composers to Hollywood film scores and even rock ’n’ roll, … Continued
Principal Clarinet Mark Nuccio makes his solo debut with the Houston Symphony playing Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto. In this post he explains what makes this piece such a joy and a challenge to play. When I was asked which concerto I would like to present as my first to the Houston audience, I chose the Mozart … Continued
Though Mozart likely began composing his last piano concerto sometime in 1788, he would not complete it until January 1791; after composing the first two movements and 39 measures of the finale, he likely realized that his other recently written concertos would suffice for his upcoming performances and saved the unfinished work for later. The … Continued
On February 2, 1865, Johannes Brahms received an urgent telegram from his brother Fritz: “If you want to see our mother once again, come immediately.” At age 76 their mother, Christiane Brahms, had had a stroke. Brahms hastened to her from Vienna, but she had already passed away by the time he arrived in Hamburg. … Continued
Though he published it second, Chopin’s Piano Concerto in F minor was actually the first concerto he composed. After a surprisingly successful impromptu solo debut in Vienna, the nineteen-year-old composer returned home to Warsaw to compose a concerto that he could play on tours in the future. Chopin completed it during the fall of 1829 … Continued
According to his novelist friend Romain Rolland, Richard Strauss once quipped that “In music one can say everything. People won’t understand you.” Strauss’ characteristically humorous remark seems particularly applicable to Also sprach Zarathustra (Thus Spake Zarathustra), one of his best known yet most misunderstood works. Ever since Stanley Kubrick used it to score a cosmic … Continued