- April 1st is Sergei Rachmaninoff’s 150th birth anniversary and his legacy is still up for discussion in some circles.
- Mozart died just shy of his 36th birthday in 1791. But in his short life, he wrote a remarkable amount of music that changed the course of music history. Music wasn’t the only thing that was changing in the second half of the 18th century.
- What was is like to walk the streets of Salzburg when Mozart was growing up there? In the old part of the city, it’s remarkably similar. Many of the same buildings remain. You can easily visit many of the places Mozart lived or performed.
- Where did Mozart get his musical talent? History has long pointed to his father, Leopold. Leopold was a violinist and authored an authoritative textbook on violin playing. However, pianist Katie Mahan argues that quite a bit of that prodigious talent likely came from Mozart’s mother, Anna Maria Pertl.
- You probably know all the words to “We Wish You a Merry Christmas,” but have you ever wondered why the same lyrics that “wish you a Merry Christmas” also demand “some figgy pudding”? Or why riding in a “one-horse open sleigh” has anything to do with Christmas? (Hint: it doesn’t).
- Anyone with children living at home can relate to wanting more space as the family grows. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and his sister were born in a modest, five-room home in Salzburg where the family lived for a number of years. It had only one bedroom for all of them.
- Today you can travel from Salzburg to Vienna in under three hours. When the Mozart family undertook that trip, it took three weeks! It may seem like a long trip, but Vienna was one of the closest destinations for young Wolfgang.
- The young Ludwig van Beethoven had every intention of studying with Mozart. In 1787, when Beethoven was 16, he traveled to Vienna to meet and study with Mozart. But then his mother fell ill shortly after his arrival and Beethoven had to return to Bonn, Germany.
- “Tár” is the new psychological thriller from writer-producer-director Todd Field. It stars Cate Blanchett as Lydia Tár, the groundbreaking fictional conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic. Tár is a powerful, pop icon at the height of her career, wielding power over those around her.
- Mozart is a billion-dollar industry in Salzburg, Austria, the composer’s hometown. Tourists line up to see Mozart’s birthplace, to buy Mozart Kugeln chocolate and to attend Mozart dinner balls.
- Mozart's father, Leopold, educated Mozart and his sister, Nannerl, and there's no question that Leopold Mozart taught his children music. But what about reading, writing and math?
- CPR Classical presents Eric Whitacre at the Newman Center with Kantorei and the Lamont Symphony Orchestra Strings on Saturday, October 8th at 7:30 p.m.
- Freemasons, the Illuminati and the mystery of who killed Mozart are all part of the lore surrounding the creation of Mozart’s opera “The Magic Flute.” In this episode of Mozart Snapshots, pianist Katie Mahan takes us to two sources of inspiration for Mozart’s most successful opera.
- In this week’s episode of Mozart Snapshots, pianist Katie Mahan takes us to an off the beaten path hidden gem in Salzburg, the beautiful rococo villa “Robininghof”. The home is named after it’s 18th century owner Georg Joseph Robinig von Rottenfeld, who owned a mining company outside of Salzburg.
- The NYC-based and internationally renowned ensemble visits Colorado for their final performance with the Denver Friends of Chamber Music.
- Mozart’s opera “Don Giovanni” is full of drama, ambiguity, comedy, tragedy and even supernatural elements. Don Giovanni is a scoundrel who lives for pleasure, but he meets his match with the character Il Commendatore, the father of a young woman Don Giovanni tries to seduce.
