Search Results for: beethoven
F, the keynote of nature
In The voice of the silence (1889), Helena Blavatsky (above) designated the pitch F as the keynote of nature. Blavatsky’s authority was Benjamin Silliman, a Professor of chemistry at Harvard; his source was probably The music of nature (1832) … Continue reading
Filed under Curiosities, Theory
C.L. Junker: Keyboard concerto in B-flat major
In 2017 A-R Editions issued a new critical edition of Carl Ludwig Junker’s only surviving concerto, edited by Mark Kroll. Junker, a pastor, critic, and writer by profession, is far better known today for his books, articles, and published letters … Continue reading
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Filed under Classic era, New editions
Toscanini’s annotations
Critics, scholars, and performers have long noted that Arturo Toscanini’s reputation for absolute fidelity to the printed score was little more than a public relations myth. Now that the legendary conductor’s annotated scores are available for study, three types … Continue reading
Filed under Performance practice, Performers
Viola jokes
Some viola jokes disparage the instrument itself. (The difference between a viola and a trampoline: You take your shoes off to jump on a trampoline.) More often, they disparage the player. (What do violists use for birth control? Their personalities.) … Continue reading
Filed under Humor, Instruments
Peter Maxwell Davies and sonata form
Throughout much of his career, Peter Maxwell Davies has had a preoccupation with sonata form. He has exploited the tension between this form and his other conflicting musical preoccupations, such as a penchant for continuous development and an abhorrence of … Continue reading
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Filed under 20th- and 21st-century music
Miroirs
Libreria Musicale Italiana launched the series Miroirs in early 2014 with Prassi esecutive nella musica pianistica dell´epoca classica: Principi teorici ed applicazioni pratiche, a translation of Sandra P. Rosenblum’s Performance practices in Classic piano music: Their principles and applications (Bloomington: … Continue reading
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Filed under Classic era, New series
Marquis Yi’s instrumentarium
Dating from the 5th century B.C.E., the tomb of Marquis Yi of Zeng in Suizhou, Hubei, furnished some of China’s oldest musical instruments and earliest reliable musicological writings. The instruments, found in two separate rooms, appear to represent two separate … Continue reading
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Filed under Antiquity, Asia, Instruments
Rahmaninov and Tolstoj
In January 1900 Rahmaninov and the bass Fëdor Ivanovič Šalâpin were invited to perform for a gathering at Tolstoj’s home; they were both 26 years old. Their excitement was tempered with no little trepidation about meeting the revered author, but … Continue reading
Filed under Curiosities, Literature, Romantic era
Analyze this!
Analysis of compositions has long been one of the mainstays of Western musicology. What, in turn, are the mainstays of analysis? We recently checked RILM’s database to see which works have inspired the largest numbers of analytical studies. The hands-down … Continue reading