Dobrinka Tabakova: Spinning a Yarn Context Dobrinka Tabakova was born in Plovdiv, Bulgaria to a music-loving family in 1980. At age 11, Tabakova moved to London and has since stayed there. She studied at the Royal Academy of Music Junior Department, specialising in composition, piano and conducting. From there, Tabakova Read more…
Igor Stravinsky: Elegy for Solo Viola Context Composed in 1944 on a commission from Germain Prevost, Igor Stravinsky’s sombre Elegy for Solo Viola was written for the ProArte Quartet. The piece was written in memory of the quartet’s first violinist, Alphonse Onnou, who had died some four years before. The Read more…
David Del Tredici: Farewell Context American composer David Del Tredici has composed a number of works in a range of different genres, from symphonic to chamber and solo. Farewell for solo violin was commissioned by virtuoso Hilary Hahn, which she often uses as her encore work. This serene work is Read more…
Florence Price: Dances in the Canebrakes Context Born in Little Rock, Arkansas in 1887, Florence Beatrice Smith Price received early musical training from her mother. Price went to study at the prestigious New England Conservatory of Music, graduating in 1906 with a Soloist’s Diploma in Organ Performance, and a Teacher’s Read more…
Florence Price: The Deserted Garden Context Born in Little Rock, Arkansas in 1887, Florence Beatrice Smith Price received early musical training from her mother. Price went to study at the prestigious New England Conservatory of Music, graduating in 1906 with a Soloist’s Diploma in Organ Performance, and a Teacher’s Diploma Read more…
Gabriel Fauré: Dolly Suite Context Gabriel Fauré’s set of piano duets, also known as the Dolly Suite, were composed between 1893-96. Each duet marks the birthdays, anniversaries and other occasions in the life of the daughter of Fauré’s mistress, Emma Bardac. The daughter, Régina-Hélène Bardac, was known as Dolly to Read more…
Florence Price: Memory Mist Context Born in Little Rock, Arkansas in 1887, Florence Beatrice Smith Price received early musical training from her mother. Price went to study at the prestigious New England Conservatory of Music, graduating in 1906 with a Soloist’s Diploma in Organ Performance, and a Teacher’s Diploma in Read more…
Francis Poulenc: Cello Sonata Context Francis Poulenc began sketching his Cello Sonata in 1940, but the work was considered complete until 1948. The premiere performance happened in Paris in May 1949, with Poulenc playing the piano and Pierre Fournier, to whom the piece is dedicated, playing the cello. Fournier helped Read more…
Clara Schumann: Three Romances for Violin & Piano Context Clara Josephine Wieck was born on 13th September 1819 in Leipzig. Her mother was a famous singer in the city at the time. When Clara was five, her parents divorced and she stayed with her father. Friedrich Wieck saw the potential Read more…
Rebecca Clarke: Sonata for Viola and Piano Context Remembered today as one of the finest chamber music composers of the twentieth century, Rebecca Clarke’s (1886-1979) Sonata for Viola and Piano is a staple in viola repertoire. Although her compositional output wasn’t large like some of her contemporaries, the works that were composed were Read more…