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

What are the greatest moments in classical music history? The bits that make you immediately rewind and play them again? Simply, the most surprising, shocking, beautiful or weird bits in classical music? Here are 10 moments that will make you say 'OMG'…  1. The top C in Allegri's Miserere There you are, just chilling out with a bit of 17th century choral music like any self-respecting person would do, and then all of a sudden, BAM! High C! Emotional overload! Skip straight to it by pressing play below… 2. The climax of Beethoven's 9th Symphony Everyone sing along! "Freude, schöner Götterfunken, Tochter aus Elysium!" This is such a fist-pumping moment. How fist-pumping? Well, it's supposed to encapsulate the joy of humanity, of being alive, Germanic might, the brotherhood of man and basically all worldly positivity, which is a pretty tall order. Does Beethoven manage it? Take a listen… (the answer's...

Lassus, also known by the Italian form of his name Orlando di Lasso, belonged to the Franco-Flemish school of composers whose work was of supreme international importance in the 16th century. He was born at Mons, in Hainaut, in 1532, and as a boy entered the service of a member of the Gonzaga family (hereditary dukes of Mantua). Employment elsewhere in Italy and a stay in Antwerp was followed by a position in the musical establishment of Duke Albrecht V of Bavaria in Munich, where Lassus remained from 1556 until his death. With Palestrina and Victoria, he is one of the most important composers of the period. Church Music Lassus wrote a considerable quantity of church music, including over 70 settings of the Mass, settings of the Passions from the four evangelists, and a very large number of motets. From this considerable body of high-quality work, selection is invidious; but mention may be made of the Requiem for four voices, the Missa Qual donna , motets suc...

Born in Naples on March 8, 1858, the Italian composer studied at the Naples College of Music and became a private music teacher and touring pianist in between those careers. In 1892, Leoncavallo came out with the opera "I Pagliacci" (The Barber) in two acts. Together with the one act opera "Cavalleria Rusticana" by Pietro Mascagni (1863-1945), "The Barber" constitutes a wonderful one evening stage play in many concert houses and theatres.  I have been blessed to experience several stage performances in different European cities. The barber's part, the cheated comedian, has been holding great attractions for many world known tenors. Unbelievable for me: all other operas of Leoncavallo flopped, even containing wonderful and incredible melodies, who might break your hearts. "Der Roland von Berlin" (1904, dedicated to the last German Emperor II).  Leoncavalo passed away on August 9, 1919 in Montecatini Toscana County/Italy.

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Born on March 19, 1883, the Austrian Josef Matthias Hauer, a simple elementary school teacher who wanted to be treated as the composition inventor of the so-called "12-tones-numbers-technique" or - in Greece - Dodecaphony. Since 1908, Hauer used that technique in all his compositions. Arnold Schoenberg (1874-1951), the "real Dodecaphony inventor never accepted Hauer's theory and work, Hauer calculated 479,001,600 combination possibilities of those sound or tones. 44 main types became the fundaments of Hauer's compositions: "About the colors of sounds" (1919), "Melodies interpretations" (1923, one of my favourite pieces of Hauer), or "From the melody to kettle-drum" (1925). Hauer's opinion has remained till today as "embodiment and portrayal of an impartial melody" such as in the "Transubstantions Oratorio" from 1928 or "Salambo", an opera from 1930. Hauer passed away in Vienna on Sep...

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George Gershwin, born on September 26, 1898 in Brooklyn/New York, passed away on July 11, 1937 in Hollywood, California, U.S.A. Gershwin loved to study music seriously with Rubin Goldmark, a relative of Karl Goldmark (1830-1915). At the age of 16, Gershwin composed his first hits, The co-operation with Paul Whiteman ("King of Jazz", born in Denver/Colorado on March 28, 1890) influenced Gershwin definitely and fruitful. 1924, the "Rhapsody in Blue" became a world hit. 1925, the "Piano Concerto in F" came into being - performed by George Gershwin himself under the baton of Walter D. Damrosch (1862-1950, Poland und USA). More incredible successful compositions followed: "An American in Paris" (1928), "The Cuban Overture" (1932) and the "negro opera" "Porgy and Bess" (1935). Who doesn't know "Summertime" or " I ain't got no shame"? A successful mixture of naivety, wizene...