Clinton F. Nieweg

Considered the last notable work of Sir Edward Elgar (1857-1934), his Cello Concerto is a cornerstone of the solo violoncello repertoire. Composed in the aftermath of World War I, it premiered in Octo...

Notre Dame by Franz Schmidt (1874-1939) is a romantic opera, with libretto written by both the composer himself and Leopold Wilk, a professional chemist and amateur poet. Based loosely on the 1831 Vic...

Although it has a four movement formal structure like the German symphonies, Borodin's Second Symphony is purely Russian. No listener can fail to identify its nationality as Russian - for all purposes...

Johannes Brahms (1833-1897) composed his Piano Concerto No. 1 in 1858 and performed the work’s debut in Hanover, Germany, in 1859, to mixed reviews. The work initially began as a sonata for two pianos...

Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune (Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun, L. 86) was composed by Claude Debussy (1862-1918) in 1894. A symphonic poem based on Stéphane Mallarmé’s poem L’après-midi d’un f...

Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune (Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun, L. 86) was composed by Claude Debussy (1862-1918) in 1894. A symphonic poem based on Stéphane Mallarmé’s poem L’après-midi d’un f...

LA MER was the second of Claude Debussy's (1862-1918) three orchestral works in three sections. Although the composition of LA MER took him more than a year and a half, this was unusually quick progre...

Le Chasseur maudit (The Accursed Huntsman) is a symphonic poem by Romantic composer César Franck (1822-1890). Inspired by the ballad Der wilde Jäger (The Wild Hunter) by German poet Gottfried August B...

The Sultan Schariar, convinced of the falseness and faithlessness of women, vowed to kill each of his wives after their bridal night. The Sultana Scheherazade, however, saved her life by interested th...

Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov's (1844-1908) overture Russian Easter Festival was written in 1888, at the same time as the composer's well-known suite for orchestra, Scheherazade. Both works include short vi...

Camille Saint-Saëns' (1835-1921) opera SAMSON ET DALILA, Op. 47 tells the biblical story of Delilah's betrayal of Samson. Originally conceived as an oratorio due to Saint-Saëns' admiration of such wor...

Camille Saint-Saëns' (1835-1921) opera SAMSON ET DALILA, Op. 47 tells the biblical story of Delilah's betrayal of Samson. Originally conceived as an oratorio due to Saint-Saëns' admiration of such wor...

The fourth in a set of tone poems that Richard Strauss (1864-1949) wrote before his career as an opera composer, DEATH AND TRANSFIGURATION (TOD UND VERKLÄRUNG) portrays the death of an artist and the...

TILL EULENSPIEGELS LUSTIGE STREICHE (TILL EULENSPIEGEL'S MERRY PRANKS), is a tone poem written in 1894-95 by Richard Strauss (1864-1949). It chronicles the misadventures and pranks of the German peasa...

TILL EULENSPIEGELS LUSTIGE STREICHE (TILL EULENSPIEGEL'S MERRY PRANKS), is a tone poem written in 1894-95 by Richard Strauss (1864-1949). It chronicles the misadventures and pranks of the German peasa...

Richard Strauss's (1864-1949) tone poem DON JUAN, Op. 20, was composed in 1888. The work is based on Don Juans Ende, a play derived from an unfinished 1844 retelling of the tale by poet Nikolaus Lenau...

Maurice Ravel (1875-1937) completed his first published work for orchestra, RAPSODIE ESPAGNOLE, between 1907 and 1908, dedicating the work to the Belgian violinist Charles de Bériot. The Orchestre des...

Maurice Ravel (1875-1937) completed his first published work for orchestra, RAPSODIE ESPAGNOLE, between 1907 and 1908, dedicating the work to the Belgian violinist Charles de Bériot. The Orchestre des...

Gabriel Fauré, then director of the Conservatoire de Paris, named Claude Debussy (1862-1918) to the Conservatoire's board of directors in 1909, and promptly commissioned two works from Debussy for the...

Gabriel Fauré, then director of the Conservatoire de Paris, named Claude Debussy (1862-1918) to the Conservatoire's board of directors in 1909, and promptly commissioned two works from Debussy for the...

VALSES NOBLES ET SENTIMENTALES is one of several works by Maurice Ravel (1875-1937) which reflect his fascination with the infectious simplicity of the waltz. Using Franz Schubert's collections of wal...

VALSES NOBLES ET SENTIMENTALES is one of several works by Maurice Ravel (1875-1937) which reflect his fascination with the infectious simplicity of the waltz. Using Franz Schubert's collections of wal...

Sergei Rachmaninoff's (1873-1943) "Vocalise" was originally written in 1912 (revised in 1915) as the final movement in his 14 ROMANCES, Op. 34, for high voice with piano accompaniment. The work has be...

Sergei Rachmaninoff's (1873-1943) "Vocalise" was originally written in 1912 (revised in 1915) as the final movement in his 14 ROMANCES, Op. 34, for high voice with piano accompaniment. The work has be...

Writing it between 1914 and 1917, Gustav Holst (1874-1934) was initially inspired to compose THE PLANETS based on a conversation he had about astrology while on holiday in Spain with some friends in 1...