Meeting his boss’s insatiable desire for new content ‘forced’ [his word] Joseph Haydn to write original, inventive music that sounds as fresh and full of life today as when it was written. And he wrote so much great music that I only heard this piano trio for the first time this week – and it’s wonderful stuff. Listening time 19 mins.… Listen
110 years ago in Paris, Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring caused a furore and changed music forever. Did the police have to be called? It’s still a piece that shocks and stuns and is filled with something amazing every second.
Listening time c45 mins … Listen
A rarity from Wales (a Welsh rare-bit?), Grace Williams’s orchestral piece Penillion surprises, delights and has an epic grandeur. It’s terrific stuff and I think you’ll love it! (25 mins)… Listen
Often on the edge, in life and music, Beethoven goes to extremes on the piano to show us the extreme depth of his feelings. His Appassionata Sonata is every bit as intense as its name suggests! Listening time 33 mins (podcast 10′, music 23′)… Listen
Lost for 150 years and then, because it was so good, presumed to have been written by her brother, Fanny Mendelssohn’s Easter Sonata for piano is passionate, intense, lyrical and dramatic… and the story of its rediscovery is no less compelling. Listening time c36 mins… Listen
English folk music is often typically nostalgic and melancholy. Cacophony goes in search of happiness with Malcolm Arnold’s English Dances – pretty, witty and bright! (24mins)… Listen
Haunting and melancholy music from my hometown, Vaughan Williams’s Norfolk Rhapsody No.1 features the old songs of fisherman and the last days of a way of life. Like the local landscape it’s bleak but beautiful!
Total listening time 18 mins (podcast 7′, music 11′)… Listen
Packed with memorable Czech songs about pigeons, nightingales, love, life and unploughed fields, Vítěslava Kaprálová’s Rustic Suite mixes countryside charm with the confident orchestral swagger of a 23 year old receiving acclaim in Paris and London. Music full of life and good tunes! Listening time 21mins… Listen
Small but perfectly formed, Germaine Tailleferre’s Little Suite is seven minutes of innocent delight from a composer looking to escape from the trials of a difficult life. It may be short, but it’s packed with memorable tunes and a joyous spirit. Irresistible!
Listening time c14 minutes … Listen