Suzanne Bona

For today’s offering of Beautiful Music in Difficult Times, please meet Elizabeth-Claude Jacquet de la Guerre. She was a child prodigy who impressed France’s King Louis, and grew up to have a successful career as a musician. This is her tragic opera CEPHALE ET PROCRIS, which debuted in 1773 at the Palace of Versailles.   […]

Today I’m sharing something especially fun! Georg Philipp Telemann was a much more talented and clever composer than he gets credit for being. His Canonic Sonatas are great examples of Telemann’s genius. They are simple, yet brilliant. First: what is a “canon”? Well probably the most familiar example of a Canon is “Row, Row, Row

Today’s offering of Beautiful Music in Difficult times is a get well card for violinist Anne Sophie Mutter. The violinist recently tested positive for COVID-19 and while reports seem to indicate she is not suffering the most severe effects, we wish her a speedy and complete recovery. This is Anne Sophie Mutter’s performance of Antonio

Since live musical performances are on hold, I thought you’d enjoyed hearing (and seeing) this live performance for today’s installment of Beautiful Music in Difficult Times. Look at the interplay between the singer and the trumpeter and, most of all, look at the look on Nicholas McGegan’s face as he conducts!! I have had the

For today’s installment of Beautiful Music in Difficult Times, I’m pleased to share with you one of my all-time favorite recordings. The title — OSTINATO — is a musical term. The Harvard Dictionary of Music (Second Edition) defines OSTINATO as: “A clearly defined phrase that is repeated persistently, usually in immediate succession, throughout a composition

If there’s one thing we can ALL use, it’s a reason to smile. So today’s installment of Beautiful Music in Difficult Times features a terrific ensemble playing interesting music by composers whose names you may not know. The Harmonious Society of Tickle-Fiddle Gentlemen (yes, that’s really the name of the group!) is committed to exploring

Beautiful Italy — the source of so much beautiful music — has been hit particularly hard. Out of solidarity, I share a performance by one of my favorite musical ensembles: Il Giardino Armonico. The Milan-based period instrument group offers an interesting variety of composers, combined with up close and personal video of their exciting performance

My choice for today’s offering of Beautiful Music in Difficult Times is Johann Sebastian Bach’s THE ART OF FUGUE.  A “fugue” is defined by the Harvard Dictionary of Music as “… a form of imitative counterpoint, developed in the 17th century and brought to perfection by J.S. Bach.”  His gift was taking a short melody,