“Mozart has the classic purity of light and the blue ocean; Beethoven the romantic grandeur which belongs to the storms of air and sea, and while the soul of Mozart seems to dwell on the ethereal peaks of Olympus, that of Beethoven climbs shuddering the storm-beaten sides of a Sinai. Blessed be they both! Each […]

‘The following is an account of the conductor Hans von Bülow: Young composers whom Bülow decided to feature in the concerts were encouraged to present themselves at the rehearsals, and even to direct the orchestra themselves, whenever it was deemed to be helpful.  We can only admire the resourcefulness of the budding symphonist who, in […]

Cyril Smith recounts Rachmaninoff’s stage presence: Those who were fortunate enough to hear him play will almost certainly remember this very tall, melancholy figure, with his graying hair in a crew cut and his deeply-lined face set in a somber expression, walking unwillingly to the piano as though he hated the very sight of  it.  […]

The Hungarian mathematician, Paul von Jankó developed an alternate layout to the traditional piano keyboard. In July 1888, upon seeing a performance in London by John Carlowitz Ames, The Musical Times reported: The clever idea, which suggested itself to the inventor as a means for overcoming the difficulty of stretching long intervals on the pianoforte […]

Title: Give thanks to the Lord Text: Psalm 105 (106) Composer: Greg Smith Instrumentation: SATB and piano/organ Product medium: PDF score and parts SAMPLE:    

"I try to put the pulse of my times into my music and do it in a lasting way." – George Gerswhin Cited in: Greenberg, Rodney (2008) George Gerswhin.  New York: Phaidon Press, p.216.   '

Title: Golliwog’s Cakewalk (from Children’s Corner Suite) Composer: Claude Debussy Arranger: Greg Smith Instrumentation: Cello quartet Product medium: PDF score and parts Sample:

“Quiet minds cannot be perplexed or frightened, but go on in fortune or misfortune at their own private pace, like a clock during a thunderstorm.” Robert Louis Stevenson, author  

“If you would hit the mark, you must aim a little above it; Every arrow that flies feels the attraction of earth.” Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882), American poet.

In 1796, the piano maker Johann Andreas Streicher sent Beethoven one of his pianos as a gift.  Beethoven's reply sheds some interesting light on the tone of the piano at this time: There is no doubt that so far as the manner of playing is concerned, the pianoforte is still the least studied and developed […]