Focusing on the Unusual: Vivaldi’s Concertos for Viola d’amore

 by Maureen Buja  April 27th, 2026

The viola d’amore was not your average viola – instead of the regular 6 strings, it had an additional 6 strings that were not bowed, but which vibrated when the main strings were played. These sympathetic strings, as they were called, added to the depth of sound of the instrument. They made a ‘silvery’ sound and have a clear tone. Leopold Mozart described the viola d’amore as ‘a special kind of violin that sounds especially beautiful in the stillness of the night’.

Viola d’amore with 14 strings made by Johannes Florenus Guidantus, 18th century (Metropolitan Museum of Art)    One of Vivaldi’s star pupils at the Ospedale della Pietà was a violinist named Anna Maria. One visitor to the Pietà described her as ‘the finest violinist in Europe’, and Vivaldi wrote many of his violin concertos for her. We believe that at least two of the 8 viola d’amore concertos were written for her because of Vivaldi hiding her initials in the titles: Concerto per viola d’AMore.

By having 6 strings instead of the usual 5 on a regular violin, the viola d’amore was capable of playing some chords and using some barre effects (where you play two strings in quick alternation, with one of them sounding the melody) that were not possible on the violin. Vivaldi, of course, incorporated these effects into his works.

Concertos on unusual instruments were popular in Vivaldi’s world, and he fulfilled that desire with many different kinds of instruments. Being a specialist on the viola d’amore (he was known to play it himself) meant more money to be earned teaching this unique instrument.

Violas d’amore (top row, 2nd from right, and bottom left) and a viola di bordone (baryton) (bottom right) (Deutsches Museum)

This recording was made in 1950 with Renzo Sabatini as the viola d’amore soloist, playing with Anthony Bernard leading The London Chamber Orchestra.

Renzo Sabatini

Sabatini (1905–1973) studied violin and viola at the Santa Cecilia Conservatory in Rome and toured widely as both a violinist and a viola d’amorist, recording two of Vivaldi’s concertos for Decca. After his concert touring stopped, he became an editor of Baroque Italian music, bringing out works by Ariosti, Asioli, Boccherini, Geminiani, Locatelli, Lorenziti, Pergolesi, Salieri, Tartini, and Vivaldi, as well as writing his own work. He played a Gasparo da Salò viola and a Capicchioni viola d’amore.

Performed by
Renzo Sabatini
Anthony Bernard
The London Chamber Orchestra

Recorded in 1950

Official Website

For more of the best in classical music, sign up for our E-Newsletter

Tags: #Vivaldi

Maria João Pires (Born on July 23, 1944) Chopin’s Inner Music

by Georg Predota  July 23rd, 2026

Born on 23 July 1944 in Lisbon, Portugal, Maria João Pires is one of the most introspective artists of our time. Her playing is a study in poetic refinement that reveals an almost spiritual connection to the music.

Her recordings of Mozart’s piano sonatas balance imagination and spontaneity, while her Schubert interpretations are treasured for their poetic simplicity. If there is one recording, however, that is most closely identified with her artistry, it is surely the 1996 Deutsche Grammophon recording of the complete Chopin Nocturnes.

To celebrate her birthday on 23 July, let us return to this exceptional and award-winning recording, often regarded as one of the finest accounts of Chopin’s Nocturnes ever committed to disc.  

Poetry Before Virtuosity

Distinguishing Chopin’s poetic voice from his virtuosity, Maria João Pires explained that, “Before everything else, Chopin is a poet. It’s very inner music and very deep. I don’t feel at all that it’s for show. Chopin is the deep poet of music. But he also invented this terrible thing called piano recitals. That made me suffer all my life.” (Judd, Poetry of Chopin, 2016)

Maria João Pires

Pires, who has long felt uncomfortable with the performer-centred culture of the concert stage throughout her life, views Chopin’s music as an expression of profound inner emotions and intimate reflection.

Height of Artistic Maturity

Pires signed an exclusive contract with Deutsche Grammophon in the late 1980s. During the 1990s, DG increasingly presented her as one of its leading pianists, and the Chopin Nocturnes released in 1996 coincided with the height of her artistic maturity.

Maria João Pires, Chopin: The Nocturnes (Deutsche Grammophon)

Her interpretation is immediately recognisable for its vocal lyricism and natural rubato. Critics frequently remarked on her ability to sustain long melodic lines and to create an atmosphere of intimacy.

Beyond the Salon

The album was internationally commended, receiving the Record Academy Prize in Tokyo, the CD Compact Award in Barcelona, and the Grand Prix du Disque in 1997. In addition, it was nominated for a Grammy Award and was overwhelmingly admired by critics.

Maria João Pires

Bryce Morrison in Gramophone writes, “Passion rather than insouciance is Pires’ keynote.
Here is an intensity and drama that scorn all complacent salon or drawing-room expectations.
How she relishes Chopin’s central storms, creating a vivid and spectacular yet unhistrionic contrast with all surrounding serenity or embalmed darkness.” (Morrison, Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010)

Critical Responses

Morrison continues to describe her interpretation as reinforcing a sense of Chopin’s stature and creating a new range of possibilities. “Yet moving ahead, one has no hesitation in declaring Maria João Pires to be among the most eloquent master-musicians of our time.” (Morrison, Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010)

Maria João Pires (photo by Felix Broede / DG)

However, Pires also received extensive criticism from advocates of historically informed performance practice. By not returning to the manuscripts, she takes liberties with the dynamics and distorts phrases through fluctuating tempi.  

Beauty Beyond Critique

Pires has also been criticised for mistaking passages which should be played strictly in time for recitative, and for unstylishly over-dramatising the musical text. Despite reservations about her interpretative choices, reviews suggest that Pires’ playing stood above much of the competition within the prevailing traditions of Chopin performance.

Three decades after its release, Pires’ recording remains a work of pianistic beauty. It offers sincerity and poetic insight, and an encounter with what she herself called Chopin’s “very inner music.”

Kara Karayev and His Seven Beauties

 by Maureen Buja  July 23rd, 2026

Azerbaijani composer Kara Karayev (also Gara Garayev) (1918–1982) began his musical education in his home city of Baku and, at age 20, was accepted into the Moscow Conservatory, where he studied composition. He returned to Baku after graduation and began what would be a long and illustrious career as a composer, pedagogue, and critic.

Kara Karayev (Gara Garayev)

At the Moscow Conservatory, he was the top student in the class studying with Dmitri Shostakovich, and much of Shostakovich’s influence is evident in Karayev’s musical style, particularly in instrumentation and harmonic language. He wrote across an enormous range of genres: music for plays and musicals, opera, ballet, symphonic and chamber works, romances, cantatas, children’s music, and film music. He saw himself as a native speaker of Azerbaijani music, and that music of both the east and the west came together in him.

In 1949, Karayev wrote the symphonic suite The Seven Beauties, based on the 12th-century poem by Nizami. In Nizami’s epic poem, completed in 1197, the young warrior Bahram Gur, destined to become ruler of the world, enters a mysterious, locked room to discover the portraits of seven beautiful princesses, each from a different land. When he wins a kingdom and achieves great wealth and power, he remembers the maidens and summons each of them, commissioning the architect Shideh to build seven domed structures – one for each bride. Seven brides and seven days of the week, and each beauty in a separate pavilion in a signature colour, to be visited on ‘her’ day of the week. Each beauty tells the king a story with a moral lesson. Starting the week in the White pavilion, he ends at the black pavilion. Nizami’s mystical poetry illustrates the supremacy of divine love over earthly pleasures.

The poetry of Nizami and the story of Bahram Gur have been illustrated for centuries, and below you will see selections from an early 16th-century manuscript from Herat, in present-day Afghanistan.

In 1953, Karayev converted his symphonic suite into a ballet, the first full-length Azerbaijani ballet, The Seven Beauties. The Seven Beauties Ballet Suite was created from the ballet.

Before any of the beauties are revealed, the ballet opens with a Waltz and Adagio, but not a waltz in the Viennese sense, since the use of percussion and the tonal modulations definitely takes us to the exotic east.

Bahram Gur, 2014 (San Diego Ballet)

The whirling Waltz is calmed in a moderate Adagio.

A comedic Dance of the Clowns follows, giving us the equivalent of a scherzo movement.

Now our hero, Bahram Gur, finds the ruined palace where the portraits of the 7 beauties adorn the walls, which forms an Introduction to the seven beauties.

Each princess is from a different region, starting with the beauty from India. The music is given to a solo flute, with a percussion accompaniment.

Bahram Gur in the White Palace on Friday, Folio 235 from a Khamsa (Quintet) of Nizami of Ganja, 1524–1525 (Metropolitan Museum, 13.228.7.14)

The Byzantine beauty is personified by a fast, fiery dance at her entrance and a more subdued exit.

Bahram Gur in the Dark Palace on Saturday, Folio 207 from a Khamsa (Quintet) of Nizami of Ganja, 1524–1525 (Metropolitan Museum, 13.228.7.8)

Bahram Gur and the Dark Princess, 2014 (San Diego Ballet)

The Khorezmian beauty from the Khwarazmian Empire, now part of present-day Central Asia, Afghanistan, and Iran, is also energetic.

Bahram Gur in the Yellow Palace on Sunday, Folio 213 from a Khamsa (Quintet) of Nizami of Ganja, 1524–1525 (Metropolitan Museum, 13.228.7.9)

Bahram Gur and the Yellow Princess, 2014 (San Diego Ballet)

The Slavonic beauty’s music invokes Russian folksong as its basis.

Bahram Gur in the Green Palace on Monday, Folio 224 from a Khamsa (Quintet) of Nizami of Ganja, 1524–1525 (Metropolitan Museum, 13.228.7.12)

The Maghrebian beauty brings us a bolero song style with castanets and Spanish harmonies.

Bahram Gur in the Red Palace on Tuesday, Folio 220 from a Khamsa (Quintet) of Nizami of Ganja, 1524–1525 (Metropolitan Museum, 13.228.7.11)

The Chinese beauty brings back the flutes, now in a lively dance.

Bahram Gur in the Turquoise Palace on Wednesday, Folio 216 from a Khamsa (Quintet) of Nizami of Ganja, 1524–1525 (Metropolitan Museum, 13.228.7.10)

Bahram Gur and the Turquoise Princess, 2014 (San Diego Ballet)

The final portrait, called by Karayev The Beauty of Beauties, uses harps and clarinets and places a unique melody in the oboe. The ostinato accompaniment gives the music an almost hypnotic feel. At the same time, there’s a triumphal feel, as though all the beauties in the world have come together as a brightly shining light.

Bahram Gur in the Sandal Palace on Thursday, Folio 230 from a Khamsa (Quintet) of Nizami of Ganja, 1524–1525 (Metropolitan Museum, 13.228.7.13)

The ballet closes with The Procession, in a march that opens in the woodwinds and continues using harmonies and rhythms in the style of Prokofiev.

Bahram Gur and his 7 beauties, 2014 (San Diego Ballet)

Throughout the work, Karayev’s research into music of the Arab-influenced world and his ventures into Albanian, Vietnamese, Turkish, Bulgarian, and African musics all have a place to show in the international beauty brought together by Bahram Gur. As a ballet, it allows the choreographer to use musical styles from across the region for each princess, each reinforced by their individual colours.

Toronto Pianist Luke Welch Releases Herstory: Solo Piano Works from Composers of Colour

Toronto-based pianist Luke Welch is celebrating the release of his sixth album, Herstory: Solo Piano Works from Composers of Colour, a project that reflects both his artistic curiosity and his commitment to championing overlooked voices in classical music. The album-release concert features piano works by Black women composers, including Florence Price, Amanda Aldridge (who composed under the pseudonym Montague Ring), Chiquinha Gonzaga, L. Viola Kinney, and Estella Ricketts.

Luke Welch

In conversation, Welch reflected on the musical experiences that first led him to the piano. Growing up in Canada, he attended a public elementary school where an unusually dedicated music teacher introduced students to choir singing, recorder, steel pan, saxophone, and keyboard. Welch recalled that his teacher quickly noticed his natural ability at the piano. “When I started playing the keyboard, I was immediately able to play some of the songs that he had been teaching us,” Welch said. “He said, ‘Where did you learn this?’ and I said, ‘This is my first time.’ That’s when he thought maybe there was something there.”

As both a pianist and educator, Welch credits two major mentors for shaping his musical life. While his elementary school teacher inspired him as a performer, it was his university professor, John-Paul Bracey, who deeply influenced his approach to teaching and interpretation. Welch admired Bracey’s ability to constantly rethink musical ideas. “Every week he would come up with new ways of interpreting the music,” he explained. “One week he’d say, ‘Play it this way,’ and the next week he’d say, ‘Why are you playing it that way? You should do it like this.'”

Welch’s path to becoming a professional pianist was far from easy. During his university years, intense practising led to serious repetitive strain injuries, including tendonitis, carpal tunnel syndrome, and pinched nerves in both arms. Unable to play piano for nearly three years, he temporarily left music behind and worked at a bank while searching for treatment and answers.

“It was very humbling,” Welch admitted. “All my friends were still playing concerts and practising, and I physically couldn’t play.” He described the emotional difficulty of watching others continue their careers while he struggled simply to sit at the piano without pain.

A turning point came when Welch moved to the Netherlands on a full scholarship to relearn piano technique through a radically different European approach. There, he encountered a style of playing focused on relaxation, gravity, body weight, and efficient movement rather than muscular force. “They said, ‘You don’t even touch the piano unless you play from a high bench,'” Welch recalled with a laugh. “They use the full body weight, so you’re not putting pressure on your arms.”

The experience ultimately allowed him to rebuild his technique and return to performing professionally. “I’m very lucky,” he said. “Some people need surgeries or have to stop forever.”

The origins of Herstory can be traced back to the COVID-19 pandemic, when cancelled concerts pushed Welch to create monthly livestream performances from his home. Each program explored a different theme, and after several months, he began searching for less familiar repertoire.

“I thought, ‘Maybe this is a chance to do something different,'” he explained. Earlier projects devoted to composers such as Samuel Coleridge-Taylor and Robert Nathaniel Dett were well received, encouraging him to continue exploring neglected repertoire. Eventually, the idea for an album devoted to Black women composers emerged.

“I thought people who appreciated where I was going with Black composers would also love Black women composers,” Welch said. “Women need their spot as well, and they need to have their recognition.”

Welch emphasised that much of the music on the album was entirely new to him. “I’m learning as much as everybody else is learning at the same time,” he said. “It’s kind of fun to educate myself about these composers and then present them to the public so they can learn about them too.”

The pianist also reflected on the broader historical neglect faced by Black composers in classical music. Discussing the rediscovery of Florence Price’s manuscripts decades after her death, Welch noted, “They literally just didn’t care. Her music was left behind.” He added that Canada still has significant work to do in recognising Black composers within its own musical history. “We’re still at the starting line,” he observed.

Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges

Alongside Herstory, Welch is already preparing another ambitious recording project devoted to Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges, often referred to as the “Black Mozart.” Recently published piano manuscripts by Saint-Georges have opened new possibilities for performers and scholars alike.

“What’s exciting is that there are no recordings,” Welch explained. “There’s no tradition telling you how fast it should go or how it should sound. You have to make your own choices and trust that they follow the composer’s intentions.”

While Welch continues to explore newly rediscovered repertoire, Herstory represents an important milestone in that journey. Bringing together music by Florence Price, Amanda Aldridge, Chiquinha Gonzaga, L. Viola Kinney, and Estella Ricketts, the album highlights composers whose contributions have too often been overlooked. In doing so, Welch invites listeners to discover a rich body of music that is only beginning to receive the recognition it deserves.

Luke Welch — Herstory: Solo Piano Works from Composers of Colour

Herstory: Solo Piano Works from Composers of Colour

𝐅𝐈𝐋𝐈𝐏𝐈𝐍𝐎 𝐎𝐏𝐄𝐑𝐀 𝐒𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐎 𝐏𝐄𝐑𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐌 𝐈𝐍 𝐀𝐔𝐒𝐓𝐑𝐈𝐀

Philippine Embassy in Austria 

The Philippine Embassy in Vienna invites everyone to support Filipino baritone Cipriano De Guzman Jr. as he performs the role of Giorgio Germont in Giuseppe Verdi's La Traviata in Bürmoos, Salzburg.

La Traviata

Opera in Three Acts

Libretto by Francesco Maria Piave

Date and time:

25 July 2026, 19:30

Venue:

Bürmoos Community Center,

Ignaz Glaser Straße 59,

5111 Bürmoos, Austria

Tickets are available through the following link:

https://ticketscharf.de/m.php?item=284679

For more information, please visit: https://www.watzmann-operastudio.de/

About the Artist

Cipriano De Guzmán Jr. is an opera singer and music educator based in Luxembourg. He has won prizes in international vocal competitions in New York, London, Rome, Tokyo, Osaka, Yokohama, and Lugano.

He is the first Filipino to win twice at the 2016 and 2017 American Protégé International Music Competition at the Weill Recital Hall in Carnegie Hall, New York City.

https://ciprianodeguzman.com/about/

Photo credits: Watzmann Opera Studio Instagram page and Bürmoos website

—-----------------------------------

Die Philippinische Botschaft in Wien lädt herzlich dazu ein, den philippinischen Bariton Cipriano De Guzman Jr. zu unterstützen, der in Giuseppe Verdis Oper La Traviata die Rolle des Giorgio Germont im Salzburger Bürmoos übernimmt.

La Traviata

Oper in drei Akten

Libretto von Francesco Maria Piave

Datum und Uhrzeit:

25. Juli 2026, 19:30 Uhr

Veranstaltungsort:

Bürmoos Community Center

Ignaz-Glaser-Straße 59

5111 Bürmoos, Österreich

Tickets:

https://ticketscharf.de/m.php?item=284679

Weitere Informationen:

https://www.watzmann-operastudio.de/

Über den Künstler:

Cipriano De Guzmán Jr. ist Opernsänger und Musikpädagoge mit Wohnsitz im Luxemburg. Er wurde bei internationalen Gesangswettbewerben in bedeutenden Städten wie New York, London, Rom, Tokio, Osaka, Yokohama und Lugano ausgezeichnet.

Als erster Filipino gewann er zweimal den American Protégé International Music Competition (2016 und 2017) und trat anschließend im Weill Recital Hall der Carnegie Hall in New York auf.

Weitere Informationen über den Künstler:

https://ciprianodeguzman.com/about/

Bildnachweise: Instagram-Seite des Watzmann Opera Studios und Website von Bürmoos