A dulcimer is a stringed folk instrument which basically comes in two different varieties: the hammered dulcimer – which has strings stretched over a sounding board with a trapezoidal shape, generally ...

Most symphony orchestras nowadays follow the so-called ‘traditional’ seating layout, with the string section forming a semicircle in front of the conductor, cellos and basses on the right-hand side of ...

The influence of W.A. Mozart across all areas of culture has been colossal, from the Baby Mozart Project through to contemporary song. You can hardly pass through a day without encountering the music ...

Extraordinary as it may sound, there have been bagpipes in a vast array of forms for around 3,000 years. The instruments are known to have been used not only in Europe but in Asia too. These ...

With the distance of one hundred and ten years between us now and the premiere of Stravinsky’s ballet The Rite of Spring, it can be difficult to understand what the fuss was all about. Several things ...

Army of Me was released in 1995 on Björk’s second studio album, Post. The song opens with the repeated bass line in the Locrian mode. Although the root note is somewhat ambiguous, it will be revealed ...

It’s maybe an odd thought to consider that once there were no orchestras. That fabulous collection of a hundred or more hard-working musicians ready to perform a symphony or concerto, not existing.

This first extract is taken from a 2015 performance called ‘Bugs Bunny at the Symphony II’. The remarkable achievement here is that the music is performed live to the cartoon that plays on a gigantic ...

As musical history has developed pieces of music written by composers have gradually been increasing in duration. An early symphony by Haydn or Mozart would have lasted around the twenty-minute mark ...

If you have ever seen Baroque architecture and paintings you will have a good idea of how ornate its appearance is. The style emanated from late 16 th Century Italy and was characterized by grandeur, ...

Peace, community and praise are the driving forces of gospel music, igniting every pulse with love for the Lord and the sense of togetherness. From the family you find within your fellow believers, to ...

I hesitate to describe any work by the famous and celebrated polish composer Frederik Chopin as easy, however, it is true to say that some of his piano works are not as challenging as others. What we ...