In addition to being one of the most important conductors of the 20th century, Leonard Bernstein was a charismatic individual who cared deeply about telling...
Category - Classical
The reason that Puccini is essentially known by only his last name is different than Bono and Cher. In their cases, it is a matter of fame. In his, it’s about...
CBS Sunday Morning ran a very interesting piece this week on the connection between painter Marc Chagall and music. That reports features an interview with...
I know, I know. You are sick of classical versions of “Purple Haze.” Sorry about offering another. Actually, just as many of today’s...
H/T: Cousin Ed Lindsey Stirling takes the violin in unique directions. Stirling — who also is a performance artist, composer and dancer, according to...
Argentinian Daniel Barenboim is a pianist – he is considered one of the greatest alive — and the general music director of La Scala in Milan, the Berlin...
HT: ES He had a stern visage and chiseled features (or was it stern features and chiseled visage?), invariably was called “Leonard” and generally...
There were two Georg Telemanns: Georg Phillipp and Georg Michael, who was his lesser known grandson. Georg Philipp Telemann, who is featured in this post, was...
The beginning of Blair Johnston’s profile of Pablo Casals at AllMusic offers this quote from the Spanish cellist: [T]he life of a single child is worth more to...
Things sometimes work out in a strange way. Sir Edward Elgar — composer of the graduation standard “Pomp and Circumstance” — is...
Reading Music
The stories of the great bands and musicians are fascinating. Musicians as a group are brilliant, but often troubled. The combination of creativity and drama makes for great reading.
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Here are some books to check out.
Duke Ellington brought class, sophistication and style to jazz which, until that point, was proudly unpolished and raucous. His story is profound. The author, Terry Teachout, also wrote "Pops," the acclaimed bio of Louis Armstrong. Click here or on the image.
What else is there to say? Here is the story behind every song written by The Beatles. Click here or on the image.
The Grateful Dead don't get enough credit for the profound nature of its lyrics. Many of the band's songs are driven by a deep and literate Americana ("I'm Uncle Sam/That's who I am/Been hidin' out/In a rock and roll band" and "Majordomo Billy Bojangles/Sit down and have a drink with me/What's this about Alabama/Keeps comin' back to me?").
David Dodd's exhaustive study tells the story, song by song. Click here or on the image.