We couldn’t let the season go by without having some kind of summer-related theme. For this August, the Classics a Day team chose to catch some rays. And, to find out how many classical composers did so with their music. Of course, any summer-related topic is fair game, too. Here are my posts for the […]
Franz Joseph Haydn
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#ClassicsaDay #Summerof78s Week 2
Classical music performers have been recording for over a century. The Classics a Day team declares July the Summer of 78. Or rather, the summer of 78s. For July, post recordings that were originally issued on 78 rpm discs. Many legendary performances have been captured on 78 rpm. And more than a few 20th Century […]
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Charlottesville Symphony’s Triumphal Season Closer
The final concert of the Charlottesville Symphony’s 2021-2022 season was also the first. The first concert that the full orchestra appeared onstage. COVID protocols severely limited the participation of the wind instruments throughout the season. The symphony responded with some imaginative programming that didn’t require a full orchestra. It was good to have the ensemble reunited, […]
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#ClassicsaDay #SymYesNo Week 4
For the month of September, the Classics a Day team chose a controversial theme. There is a small subset of symphonic works within the classical repertoire that appear misnamed. Most composers choose their titles carefully. But when the title runs counter to expectations, disagreements arise. What does the title “symphony” mean? Can a composition be […]
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#ClassicsaDay #ClassicalTimeMachine Week 4
Last month the Classics a Day team chose vintage recordings as the theme. Specifically, recordings made before the LP era. This month, the focus moves forward in time a little, to the early LP era. This runs from 1948 to about 1958, with the advent of stereo recording. In that era (as with other eras […]
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#ClassicsaDay #ClassicalBubble Week 5
This month’s Classics a Day theme follows a trend. In May 2020 we were sheltering in place. The theme was #ClassicalDistancing — music for unusual solo instruments best played at home. In June, social bubbles were allowed, and so the theme #ClassicalBubble called for duos. Again, for unusual instruments best played at home. This month […]
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#ClassicsaDay #ClassicalBubble Week 1
This month’s Classics a Day theme follows a trend. In May 2020 we were sheltering in place. The theme was #ClassicalDistancing — music for unusual solo instruments best played at home. In June, social bubbles were allowed, and so the theme #ClassicalBubble called for duos. Again, for unusual instruments best played at home. This month […]
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Solomiya Ivakhiv Double Concerto Project spans labels
This is something unusual — a recording series spread across different labels. Violinist Solmiya Ivakhiv and pianist Antonio Pompa-Baldi wanted to record the double concertos of Haydn and Mendelssohn. While preparing, they discovered two other neglected works. Johann Nepomuk Hummel, a contemporary of Haydn, had also written a double concerto for violin and piano. And […]
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Johann Simon Mayr piano concertos on par with Haydn’s
The German composer Johann Simon Mayr dominated the music scene in northern Italy in the early 1800s. He was the maestro di cappella at the Cathedral of Bergamo and wrote a prodigious amount of music: over 70 operas, 18 masses, and 57 symphonies. Today, he’s best known (if at all) as Gaetano Donizetti’s teacher. This […]