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ARTICLES FOR MUSIC STUDENTS FOR ADVICE AND INSPIRATION

Nikita Lukinov at St Mary’s No pumpkins just the magic of music making at its finest”, Christopher Axworthy, 4-5-2021

Can Arisoy Keyboard Trust New Artists Recital”, Christopher Axworthy, 31-3-2021

“2 Minute Tips—Gershwin”, Linda Ang

“THE PORTRAIT OF A CHILDHOOD PRODIGY” | Documentary film on Idil Biret Directed by Eytan Ipeker

The Etude Magazine online archive

A Survival Guide for Young String Players

Valentina Ciardelli

The Case for Bass!

Well.... it’s not a cello! The development of solo repertoire for the double bass has experiencee ups and downs throughout history, with both musicians and audiences. Most professional musicians and students have only an approximate idea about the potential of double bass and even less of an idea of how to approach and play this instrument, and few of today’s concertgoers are truly able to appreciate the double bass as a solo and chamber music instrument. >> read more

WHY LISTEN TO MUSIC?

by Robert and Linda Stoodley

“Music washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life.” – Berthold Auerbach

Can you imagine a world without music, no bird song, where brooks trickle silently, and where a politician would not whistle a tune having just announced his resignation? Music is intrinsic to life, but why should we listen to music? >> read more

The Music Industry’s “Cold Call” - How independent musicians can make an impact in today’s music industry

by Alexi Musnitsky, master thesis

A musician requires three basic things to be successful enough to earn a living in the industry:
• Talent
• Technology (equipment, studio and expertise to record broadcast quality music)
• Access to market (marketing & distribution)
Each of these three areas are changing dramatically in the current market and will continue to evolve in ways that make it hard to plan a path or predict a future in the business. Yet, this also presents certain opportunities for the independent artist to succeed where they once couldn’t if they exploit certain openings created by cultural shifts, technology and new business models. >> read more

E-mailing opera agents: 5 tips

by theoperastage

As you can imagine, we receive a fair few emails from singers looking for representation, even though The Opera Stage isn’t an agency. Having previously been the co-founder of a very successful agency though, I’d like to give a few pointers to what (in my opinion) will get you noticed, and ensure that your email won’t head straight into the dustbin. >> read more

The Creation Of The Modern Piano Music Language

F. Liszt The Transcendental Études (S.139) complete recording by D.E. Okonsar

The technique of playing the keyboard instruments can be roughly summarized as starting with the use of fingers only, i.e. the early Virginal, harpsichord music, going towards the use of the entire upper body for grasping a larger range of a wider keyboard and a bigger sound volume with the appearance of the modern piano. This evolution which can be seen clearly in the works of Orlando Gibbons; William Byrd; followed by J.S. Bach, specially the Goldberg Variations are a turning point in keyboard playing technique, then the composer sons of Johann Sebastian Bach, specially Johann Christian and Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach radically changed not only the musical style but also, inevitably, the keyboard technique. >> read more

MARKETING FOR THE FAINTHEARTED by Linda Ang

If you are anything like me, I set out on my journey as a classical musician with a blind spot about marketing, secretly nursing the assumption that a fairy-godmother in the shape of a benefactor-agent would spot me somewhere one fine day and do it all for me. Now, some years down that road, I am regularly overwhelmed by a feeling of helplessness about the huge ocean of contacts out there with whom I ought to connect. more >>

THE MUSICIANS BENEVOLENT FUND

Announcing the launch of the Musicians Benevolent Fund of Emerging Excellence Awards: These awards are open to emerging artists working in any genre of music, to fund an important development opportunity, project or programme of activity that will have a lasting impact on your professional career.

They are looking particularly for proposals that demonstrate:

  • long-term vision with clearly defined aims for professional and artistic development
  • a collaborative and entrepreneurial approach
  • innovation within your field
  • a good awareness of the realities of the marketplace

More information from www.helpmusicians.org.uk/eea.

CHAMBER STUDIO AT KINGS PLACE - OPEN TO ALL ASPIRING CHAMBER ENSEMBLES

ChamberStudio is particularly aimed at post-college groups which are no longer being supported by an institution, but it is open to all aspiring and dedicated chamber ensembles.

These sessions take place on Sunday afternoons at Kings place. It is run by the violinist Richard Ireland who arranges for post graduate chamber groups to be coached by eminent musicians. You can read more about it at - more >>

Article in Turkish about Talent Unlimited by Abdullah Nihat Yılmaz more >>

Ever wondered what it would feel like to be part of a 132 piece Orchestra? For 6 weeks this summer the Science Museum is hosting a major new digital installation by the Philharmonia Orchestra – Universe of Sound: The Planets. >> read more

THE THEREMIN

The theremin originally known as the ætherphone/etherphone, thereminophone or termenvox/thereminvox is an early electronic musical instrument controlled without discernible physical contact from the player. It is named after its Russian inventor, Professor Léon Theremin, who patented the device in 1928. The controlling section usually consists of two metal antennas which sense the position of the player’s hands and control oscillators for frequency with one hand, and amplitude (volume) with the other, so it can be played without being touched. The electric signals from the theremin are amplified and sent to a loudspeaker... >> read more

THE MESOPOTAMIA SYMPHONY

The Mesopotamia Symphony is the second of the two symphonies composed by Fazıl Say. It was premièred on 23 July 2012 at the Haliç Congress Centre in Istanbul by the Borusan Philharmonic Orchestra, featuring 120-130 musicians, and conducted by Gürer Aykal. >> read more

PERFORMING IN PUBLIC - ANGELA BROWNRIDGE B. Mus. LRAM ARCM

This article is written for performers at the start of their professional lives, facing recitals or concerto performances in major venues as well as smaller ones. I have concentrated on the piano, since that is my instrument, but some points I have made can apply to performers on any intrument. >> read more

BETWEEN TRADITION AND INNOVATION:

A Critique on the Interpretation of Bach’s Fugues - Donat Bayer

One of the crucial problematizations of musicology, regarding performance studies, is the relationship between a musical score and the music we hear. Although as Bowen argues ‘a score is a spatial representation of only some of the elements of the temporal phenomena we call music’, it should be regarded as the primary source of reference for the entire repertoire of Western music. However, as also debated by Bowen and Howat, this could not lead to the conclusion that a score is the only constitutive factor in interpretation. By the interpretation of the performer, a musical work comes into existence independently of its score. At this stage, what comes into the picture is the significance of the performer who has the power to give to a musical work its own character by considering indications of its composer as a reference point. >> read more

JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH’S GOLDBERG VARIATIONS By Mehmet Okonsar

The Goldberg Variations is often cited as an unsurpassed model for contrapuntal composition.

While the perfection of the canons is often emphasized by music theorists, the most important aspect of the work, in my mind, is the instrumental extravaganza. >> read more

SINGING IL TROVATORE’S TENAOR ARIA “AH SI, BEN MIO COLL’ESSERE..”S By Aida Baligh

How does one look at such an aria and begin to study it? Where does one start? The answer is one starts with rhythm and ends with words. In the text one will find that the best clues are in the rhythm and in the dynamics. Actually singing the notes along with the words comes only at the last stage; most of the work is done in stages and one layers his understanding bit by bit. And the best way to start is by trying to figure out what the composer needs to say through his choice of rhythm. Many times the markings are blatant clues regarding what’s happening in an aria. >> read more

Daniel Barenboim calls for ‘music once more to be taught in schools on a par with literature, mathematics or biology’

From the co-founder of the East-Western Divan Orchestra

Rehersal room option

http://chiswickrehearsalroom.com/

Interviewing Alice Somer Herz, the 108 year old woman survivor of a Nazi concentration camp