Category Archives: music

“No one can make or break you, but you:” An interview with Heather Bright of “Bright Lights”

Many of you know I help run a classical music blog and I’m not averse to raving about how awesome, say, Faure is. While looking for new music recently, I encountered “Bright Lights,” which makes excellent electronic, dance and house music: check them out at wearebrightlights. Heather Bright was willing to take time out of

Christmas Meditation: Morten Lauridsen, “O Magnum Mysterium”

“O Magnum Mysterium:” performed by King’s College Cambridge | by UST Alumni Singers Shared this a number of times in a number of places. What strikes me is the composer’s emphasis on “admirabile sacramentum” (wonderful sacrament) and “animalia” (animals). Where is man in the Latin text? It bears repeating the chromatism of this work lends

Mendelssohn, Piano Sextet in D major Op. 110

1. Allegro vivace part 1, part 2 | 2. Adagio | 3. Menuetto | 4. Allegro vivace part 1, part 2 Mendelssohn wrote this extremely accessible, charming work at 15. I’ll let the New York Times critic who alerted me to it tell more: This four-movement piece of nearly 30 minutes is like a concerto

The Weakerthans, “Everything Must Go!”

Everything Must Go! (song | official lyrics) The Weakerthans Garage Sale. Saturday. I need to pay My heart’s outstanding bills. A cracked-up compass and a pocket watch some plastic daffodils The cutlery and coffee cups I stole from all-night restaurants a sense of wonder (only slightly used) a year of two to haunt you in

Krystian Zimerman plays Chopin’s Fantasie Op. 49

Fantasie Op. 49, Pt. 1 | Pt. 2 I can’t say I agree with all of Zimerman’s views (although I’d be pissed as all hell if customs destroyed my piano). But this recording is boss. The opening feels like a case study in picking a precise tempo, one a musician can manage. He plays slow

András Schiff plays Bach’s French Suite No. 5 in G major

Part 1: Allemande | Part 2: Courante, Sarabande, Gavotte, Bourrée I, Bourrée II, Gigue Thanks to leadingtone for bringing this to my attention: he blogged the Gigue, which alone is a short masterpiece. Please give that a listen if you don’t have much time. It goes without saying these recordings have been badly neglected: only

Jascha Heifetz plays Beethoven’s Violin Concerto No. 4, III Scherzo:Trio

Heifetz: Beethoven Violin Concerto No. 4, Op. 31, 3rd movement To say Heifetz was a rare virtuoso is like calling Einstein a genius. Heifetz is probably the greatest violinist ever recorded. You can hear that in the above link. He moves up and down scale-like passages with felicity; the notes sound clearly and distinctly and

Vladimir Horowitz plays Schubert’s Impromptu in G-flat Major, D. 899 No. 3

Horowitz, Schubert Impromptu D. 899 No. 3 I’m used to hearing this played a lot faster; I think it was Nelson Freire’s version I heard first. Horowitz takes this slowly, fusing what Wikipedia calls a “fluttering harp-like broken triad accompaniment” and a “spacious and languid melody” into a texture. The chords emerge delicately out of

Alfred Brendel, Schubert Piano Sonata in B-flat major D. 960

1. Molto moderato – part 1, part 2 | 2. Andante sostenuto | 3. Scherzo | 4. Allegro, ma non troppo – Presto If you’re pressed for time, the third movement is shorter than the rest. It is excited, a bit whimsical, and certainly not lacking in depth. The sheer amount of music in the

Martha Argerich, Ravel Piano Concerto in G, 2nd Movement

Martha Argerich, Ravel Piano Concerto in G, Movement 2 I’m a bit reluctant to recommend this, but I’ve been listening to it quite a bit recently. Certain motifs and parts where the music gets louder will make you think of bad movie music. I prefer saying the music is “meditative” and “challenging.” The theme has