Klaus Döring's Classical Music/Klaus Döring's Klassische Musik

by  Emily E. Hogsta Everyone approaches the winter holidays differently: some people feel excitement, while others feel dread. It can be a season of celebration, crushing loneliness, and everything in between. The great composers also experienced a wide variety of Christmas celebrations. Today, we’re looking at five memorable Christmases from the lives of five great composers. (Read Part 1 here: The Most Memorable Composer Christmases: Chopin, Schumann, and More) Mahler’s Devastating Breakup – 1884 Gustav Mahler In mid-1883, 23-year-old  Gustav Mahler  took a job conducting opera at the Königliches Theater in Kassel, Germany. While there, he began working with 25-year-old coloratura soprano Johanna Richter and fell in love with her. It was his first intense love affair. We are not sure if Richter reciprocated Mahler’s feelings quite as intensely; only one letter from her survives. In 1884, he began composing for her, writing lyrics based on folksongs and setting them...

by Emily   E. Hogstad   If you’re a classical music fan drawn to sad, slow movements in piano concertos, this is the list you’ve been looking for. Whether it’s  Chopin ’s gentle melancholy,  Ravel ’s elegant wistfulness, or  Rachmaninoff ’s romantic despair, each of these slow movements paints a picture of a particular kind of sadness. © chopinacademy.com Although every ranking having to do with classical music is subjective, we numbered our picks anyway, from least sad to saddest. Find out which concerto we’ve dubbed the saddest at the end. 8. Chopin: Piano Concerto No. 1, Mov. 2   Chopin wrote this concerto in 1830 when he was just twenty years old. The inspiration behind this piece is unclear…but we know there was one. Frédéric Chopin in 1849 In a letter, Chopin wrote a cryptic observation to his best friend (and potential crush or even lover)  Tytus Woyciechowski : “Here you doubtless observe my tendency to do wrong against my will. As somethi...

by Emily E. Hogstad YouTube is full of brilliant piano concerto performances, but a handful have attracted truly massive global audiences. From  Rachmaninoff  (lots and lots of Rachmaninoff…) to Mozart to Chopin, here are the seven most viewed piano concerto performances on YouTube, along with our commentary about each, in reverse countdown order. And not to sound like a YouTube title cliche, but the most popular one might surprise you! 7. Frédéric Chopin: Piano Concerto No. 1 by Olga Scheps Olga Scheps is a German pianist born in 1984, who is especially passionate about the works of Chopin. This performance of his first piano concerto was recorded in 2014 with the Chamber Orchestra of Polish Radio. Scheps brings an elegant, lyrical touch to this repertoire. Every phrase conjures some new gradation of emotion. She concentrates hard while still being clearly delighted by the music she’s playing, and that combination is irresistible. The performance’s intimat...

451,780 views Premiered Mar 12, 2023 Enjoy this video showing the evolution of Rachmaninoff's music from age 11 to 67 years old. 0:00 11 Years Old: Piano Piece in D Minor, 1884 0:26 12 Years Old: Romance in A Minor For Violin and Piano, 1885 1:07 15 Years Old: 4 Pieces, IV. Gavotte, 1888 1:44 17 Years Old: 2 Pieces for 6 Hands, I. Waltz, 1890 2:09 18 Years Old: Canon in E Minor, 1891 2:33 19 Years Old: Morceaux de fantaisie, Op.3, II. Prélude, 1892 3:15 20 Years Old: Suite No.1, Op.5, IV. Easter, 1893 3:46 21 Years Old: Romance in G Major, 1894 4:24 22 Years Old: Symphony No.1, Op.13, I. Allegro ma non troppo, 1895 4:56 23 Years Old: Moments musicaux, Op.16, VI. Maestoso, 1896 5:30 26 Years Old: 2 Pieces, II. Fughetta, 1899 6:15 27 Years Old: Piano Concerto No.2, Op.18, I. Moderato, 1900 7:02 29 Years Old: 12 Romances, Op.21, V. Lilacs, 1902 7:36 30 Years Old: 10 Preludes, Op.23, IV. Andante cantabile, 1903 8:22 33 Years Old: Polka italienne, 1906 8:43 34 Years...

by Emily E. Hogstadt, Interlude For generations, mothers have been a source of inspiration for classical composers. © friendsofchambermusic.ca Today we’re looking at twenty pieces of classical music that pay tribute to motherhood, from song cycles written from a mother’s point of view to references to the Virgin Mary and Mother Goose, to the laments of mothers who have lost their children, to bittersweet musical tributes of children who have lost their mothers. Frauen-Liebe und Leben by Robert Schumann (1840)  In 1840 Robert Schumann was preoccupied by domestic thoughts. In September he was able to marry his longtime love, Clara Wieck Schumann. Her father had done everything he could to discourage their union but was ultimately unsuccessful in preventing the marriage.  The Schumann children It was against this backdrop that he wrote  Frauen-Liebe und Leben  (“A Woman’s Life and Love”). It’s a cycle of eight songs that follows a narrator’s journey of f...