In mid-nineteenth century England, whistling was a common source of entertainment and as part of the general reception to a piece of music. An article in March 1854 in The Musical Times reported: We were sorry to hear the vile practice of whistling again carried on to some extent at the concert; were the well-meaning […]

Widmann, a Swiss poet, describes Brahms’ performing at the piano: The broad leonine chest, the Herculean shoulders, the mighty head which the player sometimes threw back with an energetic jerk, the pensive, handsome brow that seemed to radiate an inner illumination, and the Germanic eyes which scintillated with a wondrous fire between their fair lashes […]

When Mozart was in Naples, he so impressed his audience that they suspected “musical sorcery”. They ordered him to play without wearing his ring, the apparent source of his “magic”. Source: Marek, George (1969) Beethoven: Biography of a Genius. London: William Kimber, p.20.

Transform audio into a notated score.  Music transcription can be particularly useful to composers and performers that incorporate elements improvisation into live performances or composition method. From cadenzas, improvised solos, to whole pieces of music; Emotemuse Music Services can provide music transcription services that suit your needs: – Direct transcriptions: the exact ensemble performing is […]

“Nothing can be more useful to a man than the determination not to be hurried.” – Henry David Thoreau

Title: Behind the Screen (silent film soundtrack) Composer: Greg Smith Instrumentation: Piano Product medium: PDF score (45 pages) Background: Written by: Vincent Bryan, Charlie Chaplin, Maverick Terrell Starring: Eric Campbell, Charles Chaplin, Edna Purviance Film released: 1916 Sample:

I was about eleven years old when my respected teacher Czerny took me to see Beethoven.  Already a long time before, he had told Beethoven about me and asked him to give me a hearing some day.  However, Beethoven had such an aversion to infant prodigies that he persistently refused to see me.  At last […]

Haydn reached London in the opening days of 1791. He passed his first night at the house of Bland, the music publisher, at 45 High Holborn, which now, rebuilt, forms part of the First Avenue Hotel. Bland, it should have been mentioned before, had been sent over to Vienna by Salomon to coax Haydn into […]

“Set me a task in which I can put something of my very self, and it is a task no longer. It is joy and art.” -Carman Bliss, Canadian Poet Cited at QuotationsBook  

Title: The Ruffled Knights Composer: Greg Smith Instrumentation: Piano Product medium: PDF score