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

  Research finds A level music in schools could ‘disappear’ in little more than a decade.  Picture: Alamy By Maddy Shaw Roberts, ClassicFM London   “The opportunity to study A-level music seems likely to end first for those children who are at a disadvantage,” researchers claim. A level music  in schools is at risk of disappearing in just over a decade, researchers have warned. Alarming new  research  by Birmingham City University revealed the qualification could have zero entries by 2033, following years of cuts to local and central government funding. In the report, it was confirmed that a rapid decline in access to A level music in state schools, means the subject is increasingly available only to pupils with an independent school education. Lead researchers Dr Adam Whittaker and Professor Martin Fautley’s study is now galvanising music academics and industry bodies to call for urgent action and improved policy and funding, to support music provisions in...

...  instead of the Russian National Anthem. Here’s why. By Kyle Macdonald, ClassicFM London The nation of Russia is officially banned from the Olympics. So, Russian athletes are hearing Tchaikovsky’s piano concerto when they win. Have you been catching a great Russian symphonic epic at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics? It would appear that Tchaikovsky is the latest musical star of the world’s biggest sporting event. In 2019, Russia was banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency from all international sporting competitions, including the Olympics. The ban lasts four years and will remain in place throughout the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing. After the ban, and so as not to punish individuals, the International Olympic Committee is allowing the Russian athletes to take part in Tokyo in a different way. Together they compete under the banner of the ‘Russian Olympic Committee’. Though athletes still wear the Russian colours of white, blue and red, they are prohibited from other displays of natio...

 -  as chosen by the nation’s leading youth orchestra (I) Hopeful pieces of classical music, as chosen by Classic FM’s Orchestra of Teenagers.  Picture: NYO By Maddy Shaw Roberts, ClassicFM London   These are unequivocally music’s most hopeful melodies, according to Classic FM’s Orchestra of Teenagers... Throughout the uncertainty of the pandemic, the brilliant teenage musicians of the  National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain  (NYO) have embraced music as an essential tool for escape, motivation and hope for the days ahead. And so, this summer, the world-leading orchestra will finally return to great UK stages with their  ‘Hope Exchange’ project , a series of hope-filled concerts at Saffron Hall (28 July), Southbank Centre (31 July), Birmingham Symphony Hall (6 August) and Leeds Town Hall (8 August), featuring star soloists from saxophonist Jess Gillam to violinists Nicola Benedetti and Francesca Dego. All concerts are free for those under ...

Published by StringOvation Team on March 10, 2021 Composer Camille Saint-Saëns (1835-1921) composed Le Carnaval des Animaux (Carnival of the Animals) in 1886 while taking a vacation in a small, beautiful Austrian village. The whimsical suite features 14 different movements, each one featuring an animal or group of animals.  In the past century and a half, the work has become one of the romantic-era composer’s most famous works, which is ironic because he was a bit embarrassed about it being published at all. From the Serious Spawns the Whimsical At the time, Camille Saint-Saëns at the height of his musical and compositional career. By the year 1886, he had garnered widespread public acclaim and was known as a serious and mature composer. Saint-Saëns was already well-admired by the public for previous piano and violin concertos as well as other orchestral pieces. The pianist, organist, and composer had also published and performed several operas by that time. Although his operas did...

  By Maddy Shaw Roberts, ClassicFM London Iconic preserved moments of history’s most esteemed maestros, doing very normal stuff. Photography is vital to our world. It gives us a deep connection to the past, preserving memories and moments of historic importance, and telling truths if ever sinister attempts are made to mask reality. And as photography became increasingly widespread during the 19th century, classical composers began to enjoy their own moments under the flash-and-powder. Now, from Gustav Mahler to Leonard Bernstein, we often hail these musicians’ art as so influential, so unrivalled, that we can forget they are just human beings like all the rest of us. Human beings, with really mundane hobbies outside of the recording studio. Seeing is believing, as these great maestros show an interest in falconry, sledging and, well, swinging. Of the playground sort, mind you… Claude Debussy having a nap (1900) Claude Debussy having a nap.  Picture: ad...

They are just beautiful! By Kyle Macdonald, ClassicFM London   Incredible cat and dog portraits in music, from a musician who specializes in striking animal scores. Furry friends, cats, dogs, bunny rabbits and more are being set to music, and they sound as lovely as they look. After graduating from his music studies, Jerusalem-based composer Noam Oxman wanted to find a way to apply his talents. He thought about his three loves: animals, music and drawing. Could there be an ingenious way to combine all three? This was how ‘Sympawnies’ came to be: creating bespoke compositions and graphic scores that illustrate much-loved pets. Pets set to music by composer Noam Oxman.  Picture: Noam Oxman Oxman says he was fascinated by J.S. Bach’s unique, stylized handwriting style. Bach’s musical hand was flamboyant, contoured and sometimes contained hidden symbols or meanings. Combining his compositional skills and his penmanship, Oxman created graphic shapes made out of musical notes, ...