A colleague of mine absolutely loves Heitor Villa-Lobos. Whatever classical music subgenre you name, he’ll cite a Villa-Lobos composition for it. And then he’ll assert it’s one of the best. The thing is, he’s usually right. From symphonies to string quartets, Villa-Lobos has both quantity and quality. And that quality is present even in his […]
Heitor Villa-Lobos
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#ClassicsaDay #Classical1921 Week 2
What better way to celebrate a new year than with a look back? In this case, the Classics a Day team decided to go back 100 years. For January 2021 the challenge is to post works that were completed in or recordings released in 1921. It turns out there was quite a lot going on […]
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El Canto del Cisne Negro – Latin-American music that merits attention
In the liner notes, the artists write they’re presenting “a collection of largely unknown works for violoncello and piano from Latin America…[These composers] traveled to Europe, where they found themselves torn between their admiration for the culture and their nostalgia for… their own cultural roots. We share their experience, and their music resonated deeply with […]
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#ClassicsaDay #WeWriteSymphonies Week 2
Last month the Classics a Day team made #BlackLivesMatter the theme. Systemic racism in classical music has limited exposure to composers of color. So for August, the team opened up the focus even further. #WeWriteSymphonies is a hashtag used by composers of color, and it seems like a logical extension of #BlackLivesMatter. For my contributions […]
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#ClassicsaDay #ClassicalEleven Week 4
Numbers have meaning. But meaning can depend on context. The Classics a Day team made “eleven” the theme for November, the eleventh month. The challenge is to post performances of classical music that involve the number. I chose a mix. Some pieces involve eleven players. Some are the eleventh type of piece by a composer. […]
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#ClassicsaDay #ClassicalSchool Week 2
Traditionally, September is the back-to-school month. The Classics a Day team decided to mark the occasion. Classical School is the theme for September 2019. To participate, just post a piece of classical music that’s somehow related to education with the appropriate hashtags. What would count? Any classical work about school, or using themes from schools; […]
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Villa-Lobos Symphonic Cycle Ends at Beginning
Naxos completes their cycle of Villa-Lobos symphonies by starting at the beginning. This final installment features Symphonies Nos. 1 and 2. Both are early works, and both are strongly influenced by Vincent d’Indy. Villa-Lobos studied in France and used d’Indy’s book on composition as a guide. His first symphony, completed in 1916 bears a strong […]
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São Paulo Symphony and Karabtchevsky Deliver with Villa-Lobos Symphonies
Volume five of Naxos’ Villa-Lobos Symphonies features three works written for American premieres. Symphony No. 8 was completed in 1950, No. 9 in 1952, and No. 11 in 1955. Despite the five-year span, the three works share several similarities. All three are relatively short works. Villa-Lobos’ motifs are almost epigrams, and yet these are densely-compact […]
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Villa-Lobos War and Victory Symphonies – Compelling Music
This is the second installment of Villa-Lobos symphonic cycle by Karabtchevsky and the Sao Paulo Symphony Orchestra. The two symphonies on this release are the surviving parts of a triptych commissioned by the Brazilian government to celebrate the end of the First World War. Symphony No. 3 “War,” and Symphony No. 4 “Victory” are on […]