Classicapedia ES | EN

Stories

Articles, biographies and essays on composers, performers and great recordings, first published in our Facebook groups.

26 September 2026Biography Of Anton BrucknerFor almost two decades, Anton Bruckner had lived with a painful contradiction. He possessed an almost unshakable belief in the spiritual importance of the symphony, yet he repeatedly…25 September 2026Wagner and Bruckner: From Revelation to IndependenceFew relationships in nineteenth-century music have been described more simplistically than that between Richard Wagner (1813–1883) and Anton Bruckner (1824–1896). To call Bruckner merely a…24 September 2026Brahms and Bruckner: Did Brahms's Second Symphony Influence Bruckner's Sixth?The hypothesis is perfectly plausible from a chronological and cultural point of view, but it must be formulated with great caution: there is, as far as the known documentation allows us to…24 September 2026Anton Bruckner — Symphony No. 8 in C MinorVersion: 1890 — Leopold Nowak edition (1955). Recorded: June 1989, Philharmonie, Berlin. Producer: David Groves. Movements: Total time: approximately 1:19:30. This studio recording by Lorin…24 September 2026Liszt: Faust Symphony — Bernstein and the Boston Symphony23 September 2026Anton Bruckner in Caricature: How Vienna Saw HimThe group of caricatures reproduced in the illustration is particularly valuable because it shows something that conventional portraits cannot: how Anton Bruckner was perceived, simplified,…23 September 2026Bruckner As Conductor — A Great Composer But Not A Great Orchestral DirectorBruckner was an extraordinary composer and organist, but he was not a great orchestral conductor. That weakness contributed significantly to the failure of the Third Symphony in 1877. Anton…22 September 2026Johannes Brahms and Adele Strauss in Bad IschlThe photograph shows Johannes Brahms (1833–1897) seated beside Adele Strauss (1856–1930), the third wife of Johann Strauss II (1825–1899). They are on the terrace or balcony of the Strauss…22 September 2026Brahms with the Fellinger Family: An Intimate Celebration in Vienna, 15 June 1896This extraordinary photograph was taken on 15 June 1896, during the celebration of the silver wedding anniversary of Richard Albert and Maria Fellinger at an establishment with a garden.…22 September 2026Rafael Kubelík — Rare Recordings 1963–1974This 8-CD box, published by Deutsche Grammophon within the Original Masters series, gathers recordings made between 1963 and 1974 and totals about 9 hours and 45 minutes. The repertoire…22 September 2026The Death of Giacomo Puccini: A Complete AnalysisThe death of Giacomo Puccini, which occurred in Brussels on 29 November 1924, constitutes one of the most dramatic finales in the entire history of music, because medical tragedy, creative…22 September 2026Verdi’s Last Night — Milan, January 1901The death of Giuseppe Verdi was not merely the end of one of the greatest composers of the nineteenth century. For six days, a hotel room in the centre of Milan became, in effect, the…22 September 2026Verdi at Sant'Agata, 1900: One of His Last Group PhotographsThis photograph has a particularly fascinating history because it belongs to the final months of the life of Giuseppe Verdi. The complete photograph is documented by the Archivio Storico…21 September 2026Vienna at Last: Bruckner's New Life in the Imperial Capital (1868–1871)When Anton Bruckner left Linz for Vienna in the autumn of 1868, he was already forty-four years old and possessed a musical training far more extensive than his outwardly modest manner…21 September 2026Johann Franz von Herbeck and His Decisive Role in Anton Bruckner's Arrival in ViennaA chronological correction is important at the outset: the principal biographical sources give Johann Franz von Herbeck's birth as 25 December 1831 in Vienna, not 1837. He died in the same…21 September 2026From Linz to Vienna: The Great Decision (1867–1868)Based on Werner Wolff, Anton Bruckner: Rustic Genius (New York: E. P. Dutton & Co., 1942) The years 1867–1868 form one of the great dividing lines in the life of Anton Bruckner. At the…21 September 2026Handel's Floridante: The Story of a Forgotten Masterpiece (1721)George Frideric Handel’s Floridante, HWV 14, first performed in London on 9 December 1721, belongs to the fascinating first period of the Royal Academy of Music, the ambitious operatic…20 September 2026Claude Debussy And Erik Satie — A Paris Encounter, C. 1910This remarkable photograph shows Claude Debussy (1862–1918) on the left and Erik Satie (1866–1925) on the right, inside Debussy’s Paris home on the Avenue du Bois de Boulogne. Photographic…20 September 2026Erik Satie: 20 Anecdotes and Curiosities of His Life and Work1. HE WAS BORN “ERIC” — AND TURNED HIMSELF INTO “ERIK” Erik Satie was born in Honfleur on 17 May 1866, the son of a French father and a Scottish mother. His first name was originally…20 September 2026Erik Satie (1866–1925) · FrenchBorn on 17 May 1866 in Honfleur, Normandy, Erik Satie was one of the most original, enigmatic and influential personalities in French music at the turn of the twentieth century. Beneath the…20 September 2026Giacomo Puccini (1858–1924): The Art of Turning Emotion into TheatreGiacomo Puccini was one of opera’s greatest masters and an essential figure in the transition between Italian Romanticism and the musical sensibility of the twentieth century. He was born…20 September 2026Edward Elgar: Enigmas, Friendship And The Man Behind The MusicBehind the ceremonial grandeur associated with Edward Elgar (1857–1934) stood a much more private personality: sensitive, playful, fascinated by puzzles and deeply attached to his friends.…20 September 2026Edward Elgar (1857–1934): Between Grandeur and MelancholyEdward Elgar was a central figure in the British musical renaissance and one of the great European composers of the late Romantic era. He was born on 2 June 1857 in Lower Broadheath, near…20 September 2026Leoš Janáček: The Man Who Heard Music in Everyday LifeLeoš Janáček (1854–1928) found musical possibilities in ordinary conversations, newspaper stories, childhood memories and deeply personal attachments. These eighteen episodes reveal some of…20 September 2026Leoš Janáček (1854–1928): A Unique Voice Between Speech and MusicLeoš Janáček was one of the most original personalities in European music between the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. He was born on 3 July 1854 in Hukvaldy, a Moravian…15 September 2026Bruno Walter And Wilhelm Furtwängler: The Music That United Them, The History That Divided ThemThe relationship between Bruno Walter (1876–1962) and Wilhelm Furtwängler (1886–1954) belongs to a more complex story than that of two great conductors at odds because of their…15 September 2026Pierre Monteux and Igor Stravinsky: A Relationship That Shaped Music HistoryThe relationship between Pierre Monteux (1875–1964) and Igor Stravinsky (1882–1971) combined artistic collaboration, respect and moments of tension. Monteux was a crucial interpreter during…14 September 2026Franz Schubert and Antonio Salieri: Master and DiscipleThe relationship between Franz Schubert (1797–1828) and Antonio Salieri (1750–1825) occupies an essential place in Schubert’s formative years and is far more important than a superficial…14 September 2026Franz Schubert and Ludwig van Beethoven: Admiration, Encounters and LegacyThe relationship between Franz Schubert (1797–1828) and Ludwig van Beethoven (1770–1827) constitutes one of the most fascinating and, at the same time, most difficult episodes to…13 September 2026Franz Liszt — Famous QuotesFranz Liszt (1811–1886) was one of the most extraordinary personalities in the history of music: a pianist of legendary virtuosity, composer, conductor, teacher, and a decisive figure of…11 September 2026Psychological Profile of the Music Lover Anton BrucknerThere is, naturally, no single psychological profile of someone who deeply loves the music of Anton Bruckner. Very different people may be drawn to it for equally different reasons.…11 September 2026Arthur Rubinstein - The Complete Album Collection - Box Set 142 CDsCD 15 — Rachmaninoff — Piano Concerto No. 2 ~ Rubinstein • NBC Symphony Orchestra • Golschmann CD 16 — Grieg — Piano Concerto • Liszt — Piano Concerto No. 1 ~ Rubinstein • RCA Victor S. O.…11 September 2026George Frideric Handel (1685–1759)Among the great English oratorios of George Frideric Handel (1685–1759), Samson, HWV 57, occupies a particularly important place. Monumental yet intensely human, it combines the public…11 September 2026Esa-Pekka Salonen: Brief Biography, 15 Anecdotes and CuriositiesEsa-Pekka Salonen was born in Helsinki on 30 June 1958. He studied horn, conducting and composition at the Sibelius Academy, and from the beginning his career developed along two parallel…11 September 2026Psychological Portrait Of Haydn Lovers — And A Guide To Haydn’s Works For Every Emotional StateLovers of Joseph Haydn tend to be drawn to a form of beauty that combines order, wit, clarity, balance, and intelligent joy. Haydn rarely seeks to overwhelm. His music persuades through…10 September 2026Fifteen Famous Quotes of Johannes BrahmsThe following quotations have identifiable documentary sources: Brahms's correspondence—particularly his letters to Clara Schumann—and the contemporary recollections of people who knew him…9 September 2026Mischa Elman — A Brief Biography, 15 Anecdotes And CuriositiesMischa Elman (20 January 1891 – 5 April 1967) was one of the great representatives of the Romantic school of violin playing. Born Mikhail Saulovich Elman in Talnoye, then part of the…9 September 2026Zino Francescatti — A Brief Biography, 15 Anecdotes And CuriositiesZino Francescatti (9 August 1902 – 17 September 1991) was one of the most elegant and naturally gifted French violinists of the twentieth century. Born René-Charles Francescatti in…9 September 2026Ginette Neveu: Brief Biography, Anecdotes and CuriositiesGinette Neveu (11 August 1919 – 28 October 1949) was one of the most extraordinary violinists of the twentieth century, a musician whose career lasted barely fifteen years yet left a…♪9 September 2026The Violin ProdigiesThere is something especially moving about the careers of Boris Goldstein (1922–1987) and Michael Rabin (1936–1972). Both emerged as astonishingly gifted young violinists, both seemed…