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Latest Classical from NPR Music

Jonathan Biss: Schumann's Culture Of Musical Nostalgia

Credit Joseph Kriehuber / Wikimedia Commons

Robert Schumann may have been the first to infuse a yearning for music of the past in his own compositions.

By editor

Originally published on Thu October 11, 2012 1:38 pm

(In this third and final part of a series, pianist Jonathan Biss explores the idea of musical longing in Robert Schumann's music. Click the audio link above to hear Biss play Schumann and discuss the composer with Performance Today host Fred Child.)

10:40 am

Wed October 10, 2012

Jonathan Biss: Meet The Schumanns (And Their Cryptic Communications)

Credit Lebrecht Music / Corbis

Communication was not a strong suit for Robert and Clara Schumann. But music surely was.

By editor

Originally published on Tue October 16, 2012 3:39 pm

(Pianist Jonathan Biss decodes the unconventional relationship between Robert Schumann and his wife Clara in this second essay for our week dedicated to this composer. Click the audio link above to hear him play Schumann and discuss his work with Performance Today host Fred Child.)

10:19 am

Tue October 9, 2012

Jonathan Biss: Shooting Down The Schumann Detractors

Credit Michael Nicholson / Corbis

Composer Robert Schumann has his share of critics. Pianist Jonathan Biss is out to prove them wrong.

By editor

Originally published on Wed March 27, 2013 11:03 am

(For our week dedicated to Robert Schumann, pianist Jonathan Biss defends this misunderstood composer in the first of three essays. Click the audio link above to hear him play Schumann and discuss the composer with Performance Today host Fred Child.)

12:03 pm

Fri October 5, 2012

#wheresthebeat

Credit Pablo Helguera

By Pablo Helguera

Got an idea for a classical cartoon, or a reaction to this one? Leave your thoughts in the comments section.

Pablo Helguera is a New York-based artist working with sculpture, drawing, photography and performance. You can see more of his work at Artworld Salon and on his own site.

9:30 am

Fri October 5, 2012

(More) Lockouts, Lawsuits And Losses

Credit courtesy of the Musicians of the Minnesota Orchestra

A still from the Minnesota musicians' YouTube campaign.

By editor

Originally published on Wed October 24, 2012 1:24 pm

As we've been anticipating, the Minnesota Orchestra is now in lockout after contract negotiations failed. And the orchestra has now canceled all concerts until November 25.

8:03 am

Tue October 2, 2012

Song Premiere: Beck Remixes Philip Glass With 'NYC: 73-78'

Credit Courtesy of the artists

Philip Glass (left) and Beck.

By Robin Hilton

Originally published on Sat October 6, 2012 12:58 pm

The latest tease from this fall's upcoming collection of remixed Philip Glass tunes comes from Beck. The 20-minute song, "NYC: 73-78," includes snippets from more than 20 Glass songs, which Beck cut together and re-imagined.

7:00 pm

Mon October 1, 2012

L.A. Phil Live: Gustavo Dudamel Conducts 'The Rite Of Spring' In Concert

Next image Previous image

Credit Greg Grudt/Mathew Imaging / courtesy of the Los Angeles Philharmonic

Conductor Gustavo Dudamel leads his forces through a vibrant opening-weekend performance of Stravinsky, Stucky and Ravel on Sept. 30, 2012.

Credit Greg Grudt/Mathew Imaging for NPR

LA Phil president and CEO Deborah Borda, along with composer Steven Stucky, join the KUSC crew backstage.

Credit Greg Grudt/Mathew Imaging for NPR

Dudamel comes back onstage to receive the audience's cheers at the end of The Rite of Spring.

Credit Greg Grudt/Mathew Imaging for NPR

In a recent interview with NPR's Robert Siegel, Dudamel called Rite "amazing...you discover new colors, you discover, 'Oh look, this is a very traditional harmony,' but then you see the details — and then every time it's different."

Credit Greg Grudt/Mathew Imaging for NPR

Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Steven Stucky wrote his first, shimmering Symphony for a joint commission by the Los Angeles Philharmonic and the New York Philharmonic.

Credit Greg Grudt/Mathew Imaging for NPR

2012-13 marks Dudamel's fourth season as music director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic.

Credit Greg Grudt/Mathew Imaging for NPR

Percussionist Joseph Pereira with his array of mallets for the Rite of Spring.

Credit Greg Grudt/Mathew Imaging for NPR

The winds and brass of the Los Angeles Philharmonic play Stravinsky's strange and exciting colors.

Credit Greg Grudt/Mathew Imaging for NPR.

Composer Steven Stucky is warmly greeted by Dudamel after the performance of his newly written Symphony.

Credit Greg Grudt/Mathew Imaging for NPR

This was the opening program of the Los Angeles Philharmonic's ninth season at the spectacular Walt Disney Concert Hall, designed by Frank Gehry.

By editor

Originally published on Thu January 24, 2013 7:52 am

If there were a Guinness World Records entry for "Most Infamous Music Premiere," Igor Stravinsky's The Rite of Spring would almost certainly take the prize. The year was 1913. The Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris was packed to the rafters in anticipation of the next ballet from the team that had produced The Firebird and Petrushka.