Alirio Díaz (12 November 1923 – 5 July 2016) Venezuelan classical guitari

Alirio Díaz was one of the most prominent composer-guitarists of his country. A guitar competition named Concurso Internacional de Guitarra Alirio Díaz has been held in his honor in Caracas and other cities in Venezuela (the April 2006 contest was held in Carora). Many compositions have been dedicated to Díaz including Spanish composer Joaquín Rodrigo's Invocación y Danza. In 1961, Spanish composer Joaquín Rodrigo's piece Invocación y Danza, dedicated to Alirio Díaz, won the First Prize at the Coupe International de Guitare awarded by the Office de Radiodiffusion-Télévision Française (ORTF). In turn, Díaz obliged and the next year performed this very difficult solo piece. It has also been recorded by Díaz. This was the first of many compositions subsequently dedicated to Alirio Díaz. Alirio Díaz performed all over the world combining baroque music with the works of modern Latin American composers, such as Lauro, Sojo and Barrios Mangoré. He teached in Rome and performed in concert with his son Senio. During the European winter, he used to return to Venezuela to his native town, La Candelaria. WIKIPEDIA

Anne Sophie Mutter 35 years performing

To celebrate Anne-Sophie Mutter's 35 magnificent years on stage and her brilliant recording career, this extravagant limited edition box set is filled with her complete discography on Deutsche Grammophon plus 2 additional discs of previously unreleased material.



Also included is a 288-page hardcover book featuring essays by those who inspired Anne-Sophie, an exclusive interview with the icon, and over 150 photos chronicling her life in pictures – all housed in a beautifully designed case as colorful as her music.

Simone Dinnerstein

Simone Dinnerstein (born September 18, 1972) is an American classical pianist who became celebrated, both critically and commercially, for her self-financed recording of Johann Sebastian Bach's Goldberg Variations, released in 2007.

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RAGNA SCHIRMER

Peter Garten photo

Born: 1972 - Hildesheim, Germany


The German pianist, Ragna Schirmer, studied from 1991 at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater Hannover in the class of Professor Karl-Heinz Kämmerling, and from 1993 with Professor Bernard Ringeissen in Paris. In 1995 she graduated with top marks, and in 1999 she completed her education with a solo concert exam. BIO |
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violinist Min-Jin Kym looses instrument

Three people were arrested for stealing a 1.2 million-pound ($1.85 million) antique violin from an internationally acclaimed musician while she stopped for a snack at a London sandwich bar. South Korean violinist Min-Jin Kym was eating inside the sandwich shop outside Euston station on Nov. 29 when she noticed that her black violin case — which contained the 300-year-old Stradivarius as well as two expensive bows...MORE

Philippe Entremont at 75

Philippe Entremont (b. Rheims, 7 June 1934)
Philippe Entremont was born to musical parents, for his mother was a Grand Prix pianist and his father an operatic conductor. Philippe first received piano lessons from his mother at the age of six. His father introduced him to the world of chamber and orchestral music. He studied in Paris with Marguerite Long, and entered the National Conservatoire. He won prizes in sight-reading at age 12, chamber-music aged 14, and piano at 15. He became Laureat at the international Long-Thibaud Competition at the age of 16. In the following year he won a prize in the Brussels competition sponsored by Queen Elizabeth of Belgium, and then began his career of serious concert-giving at the piano.

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Birth centennial soprano Marjorie LAWRENCE

17 FEBRUARY 1909 Birth of Australian operatic soprano Marjorie LAWRENCE in Geelong Victoria. Died 14 Jan 1979 Debut as Elizabeth in Tannhauser (Wagner) 1932 Teachers:- Ivor Boustead, Cecille Gilly Pupil :- Louise Ann Wohlafka.

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Hans Hotter birth centennial

19 JANUARY 1909 Birth of Hans Hotter Bass-Baritone
Born 19 Jan 1909 Offenbach am Main Debut as Speaker in Zauberflote (Mozart) 1929 Teachers:- Rudolf Bockelmann, Matthaus Roemer Pupils :- Marco Bakker, Brian Bannatyne-Scott, Noelle Barker, Alan Oke Cynthia Buchan, Thomas Carey, Victoria Godfrey, Brian Hansford Phillip Joll, Margaret Marshall, James Morris, Patricia Payne Cheryl Studer, David Ward, Kimball Wheeler, Robert Christesen Christine Taylor, Graeme Matheson-Bruce, Helen Walker Catherine Dubosc, Raymond Michalski, Laszlo Polgar Created Commandant in Friedenstag (Strauss R) Jupiter in Liebe der Danae (Strauss R) Olivier in Capriccio (Strauss R) Sang in premiere of Besuch der Alten dame (Von Einem)

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Marilyn Horne at 75

Marilyn Horne (b. January 16, 1934, Bradford, Pennsylvania) is an American mezzo-soprano opera singer who is particularly associated with the music of Rossini and Handel. She began her career as a light lyric soprano however as the years progressed, the voice settled and matured into a mezzo-soprano instrument with a full and rich timbre equipped with extreme flexibility and great size. She specialized in roles requiring a large sound, beauty of tone, excellent breath support, and the ability to execute difficult coloratura passages.

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Cellist Valentin Berlinsky dies at 83

Valentin Berlinsky, for six decades the cellist of the Borodin Quartet, one of the most renowned string quartets in the world and by all accounts the longest continuously playing one, died on 15 December 2008, in Moscow. He was 83 and had lived in Moscow most of his life. The death was announced on the quartet’s Web site, [LINK], which gave no cause.

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David Oistrakh birth centennial

30 SEP 1908 Birth of Russian violinst David OISTRAKH in Odessa. Died in Amsterdam, 24 OCT 1974

David Fyodorovich Oistrakh (Russian: Давид Фёдорович Ойстрах), David Fiodorovič Ojstrah; September 30 [O.S. September 17] 1908 – October 24, 1974) was a Soviet violin virtuoso who made many recordings and was the dedicatee of numerous violin works. His recordings and performances of Shostakovich's concerti are particularly well known, but he was also a performer of classical concerti. He worked with orchestras in Russia, and also with musicians in Europe and the United States. The violin concerto of Aram Khachaturian is dedicated to him, as are the two violin concerti by Dmitri Shostakovich.

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1908 Death of Spanish violinist Pablo de Sarasate in Biarritz.

Pablo de Sarasate was born in Pampalona, Spain on 10 MAR 1844. He died 20 SEP 1908
He was the son of an artillery bandmaster. He began studying the violin with his father at the age of five and later took lessons from a local teacher but his musical talent became evident early on and he appeared in his first public concert in La Coruña at the age of eight. His performance was well-received, and caught the attention of a wealthy patron who provided the funding for Sarasate to study under Manuel Rodríguez Saez in Madrid where he gained the favor of Queen Isabel II. Later, as his abilities developed, he was sent to study under Jean-Delphin Alard at the Paris Conservatoire at the age of twelve. There, at seventeen, Sarasate entered a competition for the Premier Prix and won his first prize, the Conservatoire's highest honour...MORE WIKI BIO.

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Daniel Abrams about “Opera For Piano”

DANIEL ABRAMS, who has been hailed throughout Europe and the Americas (Alan Rich wrote of his Town Hall debut in 1957: he must henceforth be taken into account when lists of pianists most likely to succeed are being compiled) will be presenting a concert of music from his “Opera For Piano” series in New York City on Wednesday, Oct. 15th. Included will be the American premier of his Musical Portraits from Wagner’s ’Ring’ (a 45-minute work). He feels that in his lifetime of music making, this is his most important contribution to music, and that “Opera For Piano” (please see Abrams’ statement below) will be a great addition to the performing pianist’s repertoire. Marta Argerich recently heard some of Abrams’ music performed in Europe and requested its inclusion in her Lugano Piano Festival.
To give you some idea of Abrams‘ rare abilities as a musician and pianist, the following is from a review he received from “The NY Herald Tribune” when he presented the complete cycle of Mozart piano sonatas at the Kaufman Y:
Mr. Abrams, as has been noted before, is born to the piano; he cannot help but make beautiful sounds and he brings to whatever he tackles not only musicianship, technique and interpretative prowess, but a very special kind of intellectual radiance that quite sets him apart. In short, the five sonatas heard contained a veritable galaxy of refinements -- indeed, the sort of refinements that seem slowly to be creeping out of contemporary piano playing.
The concert, at the Mannes College of Music, 150 West 85th St (between Columbus & Amsterdam Avenues) is on Wednesday, October 15th at 8 pm. There is no charge and seating begins at 7:30 pm.
It promises to be a glorious evening of music making and the re-discovery of a truly great pianist!

The following is by Daniel Abrams about “Opera For Piano”:
All the music in the series “Opera For Piano” was written because I love opera and wanted to play some of this wonderful music on the piano. It is written in the styles of the various composers to preserve the passions and styles of the operas, perhaps as if the music had been written for the piano, but not as virtuoso pieces as was Liszt’s goal.
In the first three works - variations on arias - the story is not of paramount importance. However, in the “Portraits on Wagner’s ‘Ring,’” because Wagner used musical motifs for each character and dramatic “happening,” some knowledge of the storyline of this nearly sixteen hour series of four operas is certainly helpful, but not essential in listening to the music on its own.

Alexander Slobodyanik dies

Mr. Slobodyanik was a Ukrainian-born pianist who earned stardom in the former Soviet Union with his virtuosity and emotional interpretations of Romantic composers...

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Martha Argerich

Martha Argerich, who for almost two decades gave very few solo recitals, has always felt uneasy in the spotlight offstage as well. But Ms. Argerich, a brilliant musician whose playing combines prodigious technique with uncanny musicality, overcame her shyness and granted Georges Gachot a three-hour interview...MORE

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Pianist Watts cancels SPAC appearances

Pianist André Watts, who was scheduled to perform Tuesday at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center’s Chamber Music Festival and then on Wednesday with The Philadelphia Orchestra, has had to cancel his performances because of tendinitis in his left forearm...MORE

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Philippe Entremont

In the 1950s, when the French pianist Philippe Entremont emerged on the international scene, he was hailed as a distinctive artist who combined Old World French refinement and youthful virtuosity. His recordings of concertos by Rachmaninoff, Saint-Saëns and Ravel were big sellers.

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Inon Barnatan

Israeli pianist Inon Barnatan, still in his twenties, has already proved himself an exceptional musician with a flourishing international reputation through his orchestral, recital and chamber music performances worldwide.Trained at the Royal Academy of Music in London, Inon now resides in New York City. He is an artist of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center as a member of Chamber Music Society Two.

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Leon Fleisher at 80

Leon Fleisher will celebrate his 80th birthday this week doing two of his favorite things - playing the piano and conducting. Joining him onstage for an all-Mozart program will be the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, which shares with Fleisher a long, strong history.

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Lang Lang

[photo, Lang Lang, left with your editor]
LISTEN LINK: All Things Considered, July 16, 2008 - Chinese pianist Lang Lang, at age 26, is one of the most visible, in-demand classical musicians in the world today. His concerts usually sell out (he recently played to an audience of 63,000 in New York's Central Park) and he's sold more than a million copies of his CDs and videos.
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