Classical

In Horowitz, fire sings through metal, glass, water and ice. The Carolina Philharmonic has the story “Zen and the Art of Piano | Vladimir Horowitz”, by David Michael Wolff. It’s about the artistic style of pianist Horowitz and his inspirational friendship with Rachmaninoff. The time was around the beginning of the 20th century—artists flee from the war and revolution in Russia to arrive in US: The young Horowitz had just landed off the boat in NYC and with all the sights the New World had to offer, his first stop was Rachmaninoff’s Manhattan apartment. The next day they met at the now famed basement of Steinway Hall so that Rachmaninoff could hear what the young artist could do with his colossal Third Concerto. They played through the entire work at two pianos. Can you imagine what that must have sounded like - these twin giants of 20th century pianism - their languages blending and playing off each other! ...

Andante Cantabile, generally means “singing and walking”, is a musical term—a descriptive marker atop a score to delineate the mood or tempo intended by the composer. It . This trend is particularly poignant in compositions of grand scale, where each movement, each phrase, carries its own distinct direction. Among the luminaries of the Andante Cantabile, Tchaikovsky’s String Quartet No. 1 in D Major resonates profoundly, a masterpiece that I’ve previously explored in an older post. Yet, even this pales in comparison to what may be the zenith of this expression: ...