The piece was written quite quickly during the summer of 1877. While Brahms had struggled for nearly two decades to complete his first symphony, his sunny, happy, second symphony was written within just a few months while he was on summer holiday in the quaint...
Written by the young Strauss for his father, a virtuoso horn player, this concerto is one of the best-known and beloved in the French Horn solo repertoire. While not as musically complex as other Strauss compositions, it contains unmistakable harmonic and musical...
Composed while on the Island of Elba in Italy. Each morning the island was enveloped with mist as the day began. Inspiration brings memories and contemplation on life’s meaning in this composition as we see the changes the new day brings.
The famous opening fanfare and ritornello that sets the stage for Monteverdi's first opera.
Victor Hugo wrote the play "Le Roi S'Amuse" (The King Amuses Himself) in 1832. Loosely based on historical figures, the plot involves a court jester to the king who schemes to help the king obtain a new mistress. The jester's daughter is seduced by the king; upon...
This delightful overture is the precursor to Mozart’s last opera, and indeed one of
his last compositions.
Samuel Barber completed his Violin Concerto, Op. 14, in 1939. It is a work in three movements, lasting about 22 minutes.
One of the last pieces written by Béla Bartók.
This is first of Mozart's last three symphonies, all of which he composed in 1788 in the miraculous span of just six weeks. Each of the three (No. 39 in E-Flat, No. 40 in G minor, and No. 41 in C Major) is a masterwork in its own right. The E-flat Symphony is unique...
This symphony was composed by Dvorak in a short span of several months in 1889. A sunny, cheerful work, it alternates major and minor keys in each of its four movements. Dvorak wrote this work in a new style, transitioning from traditional symphonic structure...