Wednesday, November 19, 2008

The Mouse Tango



I came across this classical website today while referencing a particular piece of music. The name of the site, hardly evokes the kind of dignity, respect and - dare I say it? - pomposity that is often expected in the world of classical music but the results are often hilarious. Check out their clip section for more videos, including a lightning fast performance of Rimsky-Korsakov's "Flight of the Bumblebee by punked up Croatian pianist Maksim Mrvica and what I'm calling the "Salute to David Letterman throwing things off of tall buildings" approach to Tchaikovsky's "1812 Overture." Enjoy!

Friday, November 7, 2008

The Cycle Begins!


Beginning Monday, November 10th you can hear the entire cycle of Beethoven piano sonatas recorded by
Andras Schiff.
Tune into my morning show on Northwest Public Radio as I focus on one sonata per day throughout the months of November and December.

It's a big deal in the classical music world whenever an artist takes on this fulfulling challenge. Music critic Tom Manoff has been eagerly anticipating Schiff's final recording in the series and you can listen to his review here.

Check out this site to listen to Schiff's lectures about each of the sonatas.

Admittedly apropos of nothing but.....

Van Morrison

or Andras Schiff








You decide!