Felix Borowski and Adoration

Felix Borowski, composer and teacher, wrote more than 60 pieces in a variety of styles, including 3 symphonies, 3 string quartets, and 3 organ sonatas. But it is neither Borowski's symphonies nor his string quartets that made him famous. His biggest claim-to-fame is a violin piece called Adoration. As I was preparing Adoration for my …

An Intriguing Mozart

Since Mozart's Birthday was on January 27th, I felt a little pressure to post about him this Monday. But I didn't want to write up a biography about him - of which there are gazillions on the WWW. And no, I didn't want to post "10 Interesting Facts about Mozart" - there are already hundreds …

John Field and His Nocturne

John Field. He sounds like a modern American composer, doesn't he? Actually, Field lived in the gap between the end of the Classical Period and the beginning of the Romantic Period. Mozart was 26 when Field was born and Field was 28 when Chopin was born. Field was a musical pioneer and, though a lesser-known …

Vitali and his Chaconne

Parte del Tomaso Vitalino... These are the words found on a manuscript in Dresden, Germany. Was the famous Chaconne in G minor really written by Tomaso Antonio Vitali? We'll never know for certain if this fantastic work was composed by Mr. Vitali, but assuming it was, let's learn more about him and his Chaconne. We don't know …

Friedrich Seitz

Friedrich Seitz is a composer who one does not give much thought to. In fact, most people don't even know he existed. However, Mr. Seitz has most certainly made an impact on the beginning violinist's repertoire. He wrote 8 student violin and orchestra concertos, some of which have made their way into the Suzuki Method …

Igor Stravinsky

Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky, one of the most influential—and controversial—composers of the 20th century, was born exactly 134 years ago today: June 17, 1882. Stravinsky was a pianist and a conductor, but most importantly, a composer. His compositions were and still are famous for their diversity and inspiration. Of course, that doesn't necessarily mean his works were received enthusiastically; …

Friedrich Burgmüller

Today I'll be posting on a composer I think is one of the most tragically neglected - Friedrich Burgmüller. Wikipedia gave him an astonishingly short 3 paragraphs as his bio and I couldn't find much else online, but I kept digging, and here's what I managed to find: Burgmüller was born in Ratisbon, (now Regensburg) Germany, December …

Franz Schubert

Click here for a overview on Schubert's life and details on his compositions! Please "follow" La Musica, if you are so inclined. 🙂

Artur Rubinstein

On this day—January 28th, 1887—Artur Rubinstein was born. One of the greatest musical interpreters who ever lived, Rubinstein attracted multitudes with his beautiful tones, delicate touch, and his utter absorption in the pieces he performed. Rubinstein always played with inspiration; this could be attributed to his belief in not over-practicing. He once said: "I was born very, very lazy …