Frédéric Chopin: Nocturne in Eb Major, Op.9, No.2 Context Frédéric Chopin composed the three nocturnes of Opus. 9 in 1832 and dedicated them to Madame Marie Pleyel. Although all three nocturnes are popular in solo piano repertory, number two is considered to be Chopin’s most famous and most performed work. Read more…
Modest Mussorgsky: Pictures at an Exhibition Context Modest Mussorgsky was born in 1839 in Karevo (south of Saint Petersburg). His family owned lots of land, which made them incredibly wealthy. His mother was a self-taught pianist, who began teaching him the piano at age 6. Mussorgsky thrived learning the piano, and he soon Read more…
George Walker: Concerto for Trombone Context Composed in 1957, George Walker’s Trombone Concerto was one of the earliest of its kind for the modern trombone. The premiere took place in 1957 at a concert conducted by American composer, Howard Hanson. The concerto shows off Walker’s wide-range of inspirations, from Beethoven Read more…
Max Reger: Cello Sonata No.1 Context German composer Max Reger composed his First Cello Sonata in 1892 whilst in Wiesbaden. The piece was dedicated to cellist Oskar Brückner who also premiered the work a year later in 1893 in Wiesbaden, with the composer at the piano. The sonata has been Read more…
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov: Serbian Fantasy Context Composed and premiered in 1867, Nikolai Rimsly-Korsakov’s Serbian Fantasy was pursued after the idea came from peer, Mily Balakirev. Balakirev had requested a concert piece of pan-Slavonic music for a themed concert he had planned in 1867. Rimsky-Korsakov was asked to write this work late Read more…
Vítězslav Novák: Slovak Suite Context Composed in 1903 after Czech composer, Vítězslav Novák, visited bordering country Moravia in the early 1900s. Inspired by the Slovak folk tunes and the Moravian countryside, Novák began work on his orchestral suite. The music takes the listener through the lens of Novák’s travels as Read more…
Joseph Haydn: Symphony No.3 Context Often known as the ‘Father of the Symphony’, Joseph Hadyn’s legacy as a symphonist stays strong today. Haydn composed 104 symphonies over the course of his long and fruitful life, and we at Classicalexburns want to help you discover the stories and music behind all Read more…
Frédéric Chopin: Fantasie-Impromptu Context Composed in 1834, but not published until after Frédéric Chopin’s death in 1855, Fantasie-Impromptu has remained one of the composer’s most popular works. It is not explicitly known why Chopin did not want any of his works to be posthumously published, especially with the popularity of Read more…
Georg Philipp Telemann: Wassermusik Suite Context Georg Philipp Telemann composed his Wassermusik suite (full title Hamburger Ebb’ und Fluth) c. 1722 to celebrate the centennial anniversary of the Hamburg Admiralty. The suite, which is split into 10 movements, represents Hamburg’s geographical location and uses water deities to represent Telemann’s desired Read more…
Tera de Marez Oyens: String Quartet Contrafactus Context Born in August 1932, Tera de Marez Oyens was a talented Dutch pianist composer who studied at the Amsterdam Conservatoire under Jan Odé. Oyens wrote a catalogue of over 200 works which mainly focused on song cycles and chamber music. However, during Read more…