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…
Elena Kats-Chernin: Roses in a Box Context Born in 1957, Elena Kats-Chernin is one of Australia’s leading composers. She was born in Uzbekistan and immigrated to Australia in the 1970s, where she graduated from the New South Wales Conservatory of Music in 1980. She was awarded the DAAD German exchange 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…
Nils Frahm: You Context Composed for solo piano, You features on Nils Frahm’s 2012 album Screws. During 2012, Frahm had broken his thumb and had to subsequently cancel many of his live shows. This gave him an unexpected break from touring, and so he sat at his piano and played Read more…
Gabriel Fauré: Élégie Context Composed in 1880, Gabriel Fauré’s Élégie for solo cello was first performed in 1883. Originally composed for cello and piano, Fauré also orchestrated the work for cello and orchestra. At first, Fauré was looking into writing a cello sonata and it was in his method to Read more…
Samuel Coleridge-Taylor: Deep River Context Born in August 1875 in Holborn, London, Samuel Coleridge-Taylor started learning the violin at a young age. At first it was Coleridge-Taylor’s maternal grandfather that taught him until he saw his obvious abilities and paid for him to have professional lessons. At age 15, Coleridge-Taylor Read more…
Grażyna Bacewicz: Polish Caprice Context Grażyna Bacewicz was Born in Łódź, Poland in 1909, Bacewicz was introduced to music at a young age by her father. She furthered her musical studies by enrolling at the Warsaw Conservatory, where she majored in piano, violin and composition. Afterwards she travelled to Paris, Read more…