Opera singer Florence Hinton wasn’t expecting to be paid with squirrels. As the story goes, a young boy wanted to attend one of her performances but couldn’t afford a ticket. Rather than turning him away, Hinton invited him in anyway, and the grateful boy thanked her with the only thing he had to offer: two…

Like many classical music compositions, John Cage’s ORGAN²/ASLSP has a tempo marking for its title. What’s unusual is that the title stands for “As Slow as Possible.” Cage is known for exploring silence in music, and the first note of As Slow as Possible is silent – a rest. The current performance of As Slow…

One episode of Peacock’s Cold War spies Ponies features an Elton John concert in Moscow.  US Embassy employees are excited when they are told that in addition to performing at the concert, Elton John will be attending their private party. It’s obvious to the TV audience that the show features an actor playing Elton John,…

Beethoven’s late string quartets now are viewed as a pinnacle of chamber music, but that wasn’t always the case. The quartets were commissioned by Prince Nikolai Galitzin in 1822 at a time when Beethoven was facing severe hearing loss. Beethoven had recently been focused on composing larger works, including his Ninth Symphony and Missa Solemnis…

During a recent performance of Bruch’s Violin Concerto in Finland, conductor Matthew Halls accidentally knocked soloist Elina Vähälä’s 18th-century Guadagnini violin out of her hands. The audience gasped. Time seemed to stop as the violin worth millions flew through the air and landed on the stage.Vähälä inspected the instrument and, after a few minutes, tuned…

Henri Casadesus was an early 20th-century violist, composer, and music publisher. As co-founder of the Society of Ancient Instruments along with Camille Saint-Saëns, Casadesus helped to bring attention to early music and promote historical instruments and performing styles. One of Casadesus’s major accomplishments was the introduction of what he presented as previously unknown works by…