Open Writing

...Books for children came out in the 1600’s but calling them “dour” is putting it mildly. For instance, James Janeway's "Token for Children" (1672) described itself as "being an exact account of the holy lives and joyful deaths of several young children."...

Greg Hill, who runs the library service in Fairbanks, Alaska, tells of literature down the centuries for younger readers.

For more of Greg’s wonderfully literate and entertaining columns please click on Alaskan Range in the menu on this page.

Continue reading "Catching The Reading Bug" »

Posted by Greg Hill at 12:01 PM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a potted biography of the Yorkshire-born composer Haydn Wood.

Continue reading "Haydn Wood" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill tells of the composer Hugo Wolf, who wrote 300 songs.

Continue reading "Hugo Wolf" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill outlines the life of Malcolm Williamson, a former Master of the Queen's Music.

Continue reading "Malcolm Williamson" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 09:12 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill tells something of John Wilbye, a composer of madrigals.

Continue reading "John Wilbye" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill summarises the life of Samuel Sebastian Wesley, the composer of church music.

Continue reading "Samuel Sebastian Wesley" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill tells us something of Anton Webern, the Viennese composer who wrote music in the atonal style.

Continue reading "Anton Webern" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill paints a brief word portrait of Carl Maria Von Weber, the first operatic composer in the romantic nationalistic tradition.

Continue reading "Carl Maria Von Weber" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill tells us something of the Oldham-born composer, William Walton.

Continue reading "William Walton" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a word portrait of one of the most influential of all composers, Richard Wagner.

Continue reading "Richard Wagner" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill summarises the life of Tomás Luis de Victoria, a Spaniard who composed church music.

Continue reading "Tomás Luis de Victoria" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 09:12 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill summarises the life of Antonio Vivaldi, who composed more than 400 concertos.

Continue reading "Antonio Vivaldi" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:52 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill tells of Heitor Villa-Lobos, the Brazillian composer.

Continue reading "Heitor Villa-Lobos" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a pen-portrait of the great Guiseppe Verdi, composer of some of the best-loved of all operas.

Continue reading "Giuseppe Verdi" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersill introduces us to the English composer Ralph Vaughan Williams who wrote his first piano piece when he was six.

Continue reading "Ralph Vaughan Williams" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill tells of an early Welsh composer.

Continue reading "Thomas Tomkins" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 09:12 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces us to the celebrated English composer, Michael Tippett.

Continue reading "Michael Tippett" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces us to the composer Virgil Thomson who was chief music critic of the New York Herald Tribune.

Continue reading "Virgil Thomson" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a pen portrait of George Philippe Telemann who, as a child prodigy, could play four instruments and also compose when he was 10 years old.

Continue reading "George Philippe Telemann" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents an outline of the life and career of Russia's best-know composer, Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky.

Continue reading "Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents an outline of the life of Thomas Tallis, the Father of English cathedral music.

Continue reading "Thomas Tallis" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a word portrait of Karol Szymanowski, a Polish aristocrat.

Continue reading "Karol Szymanowski" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill tells of Jan Sweelinck, the most famous Dutch music teacher of his day.

Continue reading "Jan Sweelinck" »

Posted by PeterWintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a summary of the life of Arthur Seymor Sullivan, who wrote an anthem when he was eight years old.

Continue reading "Arthur Seymor Sullivan" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:58 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces us to Igor Stravinksy, composer of the revolutionary ballets, Firebird, Petrushka and Rite Of Spring.

Continue reading "Igor Stravinsky" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 09:12 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a word portrait of Richard Strauss, the German composer who wrote his first symphony at the age of 16.

Continue reading "Richard Strauss" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces us to Johann Strauss II, composer of The Blue Danube.

Continue reading "Johann Strauss II" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces is to the German composer Karlheinz Stockhausen who devoted his life to experimenting with sound.

Continue reading "Karlheinz Stockhausen" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces the prolific composer Charles Villiers Stanford.

Continue reading "Charles Villiers Stanford" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 09:12 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces us to John Stainer who was a Professor of Music at Oxford.

Continue reading "John Stainer" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces us to the almost-forgotten composer, Louis Spohr.

Continue reading "Louis Spohr" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a word portrait of the Bohemian composer Bedrich Smetana.

Continue reading "Bedrich Smetana" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill summarises the life of Jean Sibelius, the great Finnish composer.

Continue reading "Jean Sibelius" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a potted biography of Dimitry Shostakovich, who some consider to be the greatest Twentieth Century composer.

Continue reading "Dimitry Shostakovich" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a potted biography of the Russian composer, Alexander Scriabin.

Continue reading "Alexander Scriabin" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces us to Heinrich Schutz who composed church music.

Continue reading "Heinrich Schutz" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a word portrait of the troubled composer Robert Schumann.

Continue reading "Robert Schumann" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill tells something of the life of Franz Peter Schubert, the man who some consider to have been the greatest of all composers.

Continue reading "Franz Peter Schubert" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 08:22 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a portrait of Arnold Schoenberg, the composer of"new'' music.

Continue reading "Arnold Schoenberg" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill tells us something of the life of Domenico Scarlatti who, as his father had done before him, wrote operas.

Continue reading "Domenico Scarlatti" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill summarises the life of Alessandro Scarlatti who composed 115 operas.

Continue reading "Alessandro Scarlatti" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a brief word portrait of Camille Saint-Saens, said to be the greatest composer who wasn't a genius.

Continue reading "Camille Saint-Saens" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces us to the English composer Emund Rubbra, who worked as a railway clerk at the age of 14.

Continue reading "Edmund Rubbra" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a brief account of the life of Italian composer Gioachino Antonio Rossini who wrote his first opera when he was a teenager.

Continue reading "Gioachino Antonio Rossini" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a portrait of the Russian composer, Nicholas Andreivitch Rimsky-Korsakov, who served for a time as a naval officer.

Continue reading "Nicholas Andreivitch Rimsky-Korsakov" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill summarises the life of the prolific French composer Maurice Ravel.

Continue reading "Maurice Ravel" »

Posted by Maurice Ravel at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces us to Jean Philippe Rameau who composed more than 20 operas.

Continue reading "Jean Philippe Rameau" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 09:24 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill tells us something of the life of the prolific and popular Russian composer Serge
Vassilyevitch Rachmaninov.

Continue reading "Serge Vassilyevitch Rachmaninov" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a portrait of Henry Purcell who had already started composing music when he entered the Chapel Royal as a chorister at the age of 10.

Continue reading "Henry Purcell" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a portrait of Giacomo Puccini, composer of some of the best-loved operas, who was descended from five generations of musicians.

Continue reading "Giacomo Puccini" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill outlines the career of one of Russia's leading 20th Century composers.

Continue reading "Serge Prokofiev" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a portrait of the French composer Francis Poulenc, whose composing career began when he was seven.

Continue reading "Francis Poulenc" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces us to Giovani Battista Pergolesi, the composer of comic operas and religious music.

Continue reading "Giovani Battista Pergolesi" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a portrait of the Polish composer Krystof Penderecki.

Continue reading "Krystof Penderecki" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 09:22 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a brief portrait of Charles Hubert Parry, composer of choral works and Director of the Royal College of Music.

Continue reading "Charles Hubert Parry" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a pen portrait of Yorkshire-born Walter Parratt who was organist to the Queen and chief professor of organ at the Royal College of Music.

Continue reading "Walter Parratt" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:58 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill outlines the life of Giovanni da Palestrina, organist at Capella Giulia in Rome, where he wrote his first book of masses, and from which he was sacked for being married.

Continue reading "Giovanni da Palestrina" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:58 AM | Permalink

"Many people thought he was in league with the Devil, partly from his sinister appearance, partly from his skill, which they thought no ordinary mortal could possess. His fingers were abnormally flexible...''

Peter Wintersgill presents a potted biography of Nicolo Paganini.

Continue reading "Nicolo Paganini" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 09:12 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a potted biography of Ignacy Jan Paderewski who began composing at the age of six.

Continue reading "Ignacy Jan Paderewski" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 09:48 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces us to the celebrated English composer, Michael Tippett.

Continue reading "Michael Tippett" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces us to the celebrated English composer, Michael Tippett.

Continue reading "Michael Tippett" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a potted biography of Carl Orff, the composer of Carmina Burana.

Continue reading "Carl Orff" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces us to Jacques Offenbach, composer of Orphee aux Enfers (Orpheus in the Underworld ), with its popular can-can.

...After getting thinner and weaker for some time, he finally died in Paris on October 5th, 1880, aged 61. A gentleman came to his house to be told by the maid "M. Offenbach died without realising it," to which the man replied, "He will be surprised when he finds out."...

Continue reading "Jacques Offenbach" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:58 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a brief biography of Ivor Novell, the composer of popular songs and musical comedies.

Continue reading "Ivor Novello" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 09:06 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill outlines the life of Modest Mussorgsky, the composer of the opera Boris Godunov.

Continue reading "Modest Mussorgsky" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 09:06 AM | Permalink

Today Peter Wintersgill outlines the life of the man that many consider the greatest of all composers, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.

Continue reading "Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 10:02 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a brief portrait of the composer Thomas Morley, who was one of Shakespeare’s friends.

Continue reading "Thomas Morley" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 09:10 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces us to Claudio Monteverdi, who composed a number of operas and took holy orders when he was 65.

Continue reading "Claudio Monteverdi" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces us to the French composer Darius Milhaud, who spent some time in both South and North America.

Continue reading "Darius Milhaud" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a portrait of Olivier Messiaen, who was imprisoned by the Germans for two years in World War II, then later became a professor at the Paris Conservatoire.

Continue reading "Olivier Messiaen" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a brief biography of the great musician and composer, Felix Mendlessohn-Bartholdy.

To read more portraits of the great masters of musical composition please click on Classical Composers A-Z in the menu on this page.

Continue reading "Felix Mendlessohn" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces us to Jules Massanet, composer of operas and Professor of Composition at the Conservatoire in Paris.

Continue reading "Jules Massanet" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill tells us something of Pietro Mascagni, composer of the ever-popular opera Cavalleria Rusticana.

Continue reading "Pietro Mascagni" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 09:36 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a portrait of Bohuslav Martinu, a prolific composer of all kinds of music.

Continue reading "Bohuslav Martinu" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:58 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a potted biography of the meticulous, demanding and highly strung composer Gustav Mahler.

Continue reading "Gustav Mahler" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 09:22 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a brief portrait of Edward MacDowell, the composer of choral works and piano music.

Continue reading "Edward MacDowell" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 09:12 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces us to Jean-Baptiste Lully, court composer to Louis XIV of France.

Continue reading "Jean-Baptiste Lully" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill brings us a potted biography of Franz Liszt, who was known as the second Mozart.

Continue reading "Franz (Ferencz) Liszt" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces us to Ruggiero Leoncavalla, composer and librettist of the famous opera Pagliacci.

Continue reading "Ruggiero Leoncavalla" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:58 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a potted biography of Franz Lehar, composer of The Merry Widow, The Count of Luxembourg and The Land of Smiles.

Continue reading "Franz Lehar" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces us to Constant Lambert, a brilliant composer and conductor who was only 46 when he died.

Continue reading "Constant Lambert" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:58 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a brief biography of Fritz Kreisler, recongised as the finest violinist of the 20th Century.

Continue reading "Fritz Kreisler" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a portrait of Zoltan Kodaly, who worked with Bella Bartok for ten years, collecting Hungariaan folk songs which had a great influence on his own compositions.

Continue reading "Zoltan Kodaly" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:58 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill summarises the life of the composer Leos Janacek, the composer of a number of successful operas which include Jenufa and The Cunning Little Vixen.

Continue reading "Leos Janacek" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:54 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a potted biography of the American composer Charles Ives.

Continue reading "Charles Ives" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill tells of the composer John Ireland, who set a number of famous English poems to music.

Continue reading "John Ireland" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a brief portrait of Herbert Howells, a professor of music and composer of the well-known work Hymnus Paradisi.

Continue reading "Herbert Howells" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:54 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill sketches the life of Arthur Honneger, composer of the dramatic psalm King David.

Continue reading "Arthur Honneger" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill outlines the life of Gustav Holst, composer of the well-known work The Planets.

Continue reading "Gustav Holst" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:58 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill tells of the life of the composer Paul Hindemth, whose music was banned by the Nazis in 1933.

Continue reading "Paul Hindemith" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 09:10 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill outlines the life of the modern German composer Hans Werner Henze.

Continue reading "Hans Werner Henze" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:58 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a potted biography of Franz Joseph Haydn, sometimes called the Father of the Symphony.

Continue reading "Franz Joseph Haydn" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:54 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a “pocket’’ biography of George Frederick Handel, the prolific composer whose works included the timeless, immensely famous oratorio Messiah,

Continue reading "George Frederick Handel" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:58 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces the Norwegian composer Edward Greig.

Continue reading "Edward Greig" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill outlines the life of the Australian composer Percy Grainger - a sado-masochist and a keep-fit enthusiast, a very odd character.

Continue reading "Percy Grainger" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill sketches the life of Charles Francois Gounod, composer of operas and the exquisite St Cecilia Mass.

Continue reading "Charles Francois Gounod" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill gives details of the life of Christoph Willibald Gluck, composer of operas such as Orfeo et Eurydice and Alceste.

Continue reading "Christoph Willibald Gluck" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:48 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill sketches the career details of the composer Mikhail Glinka, who led a life of luxury, playing and singing in the aristocratic drawing rooms of St Petersburg.

Continue reading "Mikhail Glinka" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A} at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill tell us of Orlando Gibbons, who became the organist in the Chapel Royal when he was 22.

Continue reading "Orlando Gibbons" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill outlines the life of George Gershwin, perhaps the best-loved of all American composers.

Continue reading "George Gershwin" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 09:20 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill summarises the life of Edward German, who, among other compositions, wrote incidental music for plays.

Continue reading "Edward German" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:48 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill features the Belgian-born composer, Cesar Frank, whose best works were composed towards the end of his life
.

Continue reading "Cesar Franck" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:58 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill tells us of John Field, an Irishman who spent most of his life in Russia and originated the term nocturne.

Continue reading "John Field" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 09:10 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill tells us something of Gabriel Faure, composer of the well-known Requiem and a great music teacher.

Continue reading "Gabriel Faure" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:58 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill provides us with details of the life of Edward Elgar, the quintessential English composer.

Continue reading "Edward Elgar" »

Posted by Edward Elgar at 07:58 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces us to the great Antonin Dvorak who had an astonishingly productive musical life.

Continue reading "Antonin Dvorak" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:58 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces us to Paul Dukas, composer of The Sorcerer’s Apprentice.

Continue reading "Paul Dukas" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:54 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill tells us something of the Italian composer Gaetano Donizette who wrote dozens of operas.

Continue reading "Gaetano Donizette" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 09:02 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces us to Vincent D’Indy, composer of five operas and numerous other works.

Continue reading "Vincent D'Indy" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:54 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces us to Manuel De Falla, whose compositions included the well-known Ritual Fire Dance.

Continue reading "Manuel De Falla" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 10:18 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill tells us something of the life of Frederick Delius, the Yorkshire-born composer.

Continue reading "(Fritz) Frederick Delius" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:54 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill tell us something of Leo Delibes, composer of the ballets Coppelia and Sylvia.

Continue reading "Leo Delibes" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 09:02 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces us to the French composer, Claude Debussy, the most important composer in the first half of the 20th Century.

Continue reading "Claude Debussy" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:58 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces us to “Le Grand’’ Couperin, the keyboard composer and organist.

Continue reading "Francis Couperin" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:48 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a potted biography of the 17th Century composer Archangelo Corelli, who lived in the palace of a cardinal.

Continue reading "Archangelo Corelli" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:48 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill summarises the life of Aaron Copland, one of the best-known American composers.

Continue reading "Aaron Copland" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:54 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces us to Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, the composer of Hiawatha’s Wedding Feast.

Continue reading "Samuel Coleridge-Taylor" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 09:04 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill outlines the life of Frederick Chopin, who was already composing significant works for the piano when he was ten years old.

Continue reading "Frederick Chopin" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:52 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a potted biography of Luigi Cherubini, who wrote a quantity of church music.

Continue reading "Luigi Cherubini" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 09:02 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces Marc Antoine Charpentier, music master to the Jesuits in the 17th Century.

Continue reading "Marc Antoine Charpentier" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 09:02 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces us to the French composer Emmanuel Chabrier, a man with a great sense of humour which showed through in his music.

Continue reading "Emmanuel Chabrier" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 09:02 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces us to William Byrd, one of the greatest figures, along with William Shakespeare, of the English Renaissance.

Continue reading "William Byrd" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 08:58 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces us to the organist and composer Dietrich Buxtehude.

Continue reading "Dietrich Buxtehude" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:58 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill tells of the life of Anton Bruckner, the composer of monumental symphonies.

Continue reading "Anton Bruckner" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 09:16 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill summerises the life of Max Bruch, who was born in Cologne.

Continue reading "Max Bruch" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:54 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces Benjamin Britten, perhaps the greatest Twentieth Century British composer.

Continue reading "Benjamin Britten" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces us to the great German composer Johannes Brahms.

Continue reading "Johannes Brahms" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill tells something of Pierre Boulez, one of the leaders of the European avant garde musical scene.

Continue reading "Pierre Boulez" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:58 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill outlines the life of the Russian composer Alexander Borodin,

Continue reading "Alexander Borodin" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:58 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill outlines the life of Luigi Bocherini, a prolific composer who worked in Madrid.

Continue reading "Luigi Bocherini" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:58 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces us to George Bizet, composer of the operas The Pearl Fishers and Carmen.

Continue reading "George Bizet" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:58 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces us to Franz Berwald, a Swedish composer whose works were not internationally recognised until long after his death.

Continue reading "Franz Berwald" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 09:04 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a word sketch of Leonard Bernstein, the American conductor and composer.

Continue reading "Leonard Bernstein" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:58 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill continues his series of "potted'' biographies of clasical composers with this word portrait of a giant of the French musical scene.

Continue reading "Hector Berlioz" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:56 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill outlines the life of English-born composer Lennox Berkley.

Continue reading "Lennox Berkley" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill at 09:04 AM | Permalink

Continuing his guide to the great classical composers Peter Wintersgill summarises the life of Alban Berg, whose most famous work was the opera Lulu.

Continue reading "Alban Berg" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 07:58 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill presents a resume of the life of Ludwig Van Beethoven (1770-1827), one of the greatest of the great classical composers.

Continue reading "Beethoven" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 08:01 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill, continuing his series on the great classical composers, introduces us to Arnold Bax.

Continue reading "Arnold Bax" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 09:16 AM | Permalink

Continuing his series in which he introduces us to the great classical composers, Peter Wintersgill outlines the life of the Hungarian composer, Bela Bartok.

Continue reading "Bela Bartok" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 08:01 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces us to two more classical composers whose music lives on down the decades.

Continue reading "Bairstow And Balakirev" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 09:16 AM | Permalink

Peter Wintersgill introduces the four sons of the great Johann Sebastian Bach - all of them considerable composers in their own right.

Continue reading "The Bach Family" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill at 08:01 AM | Permalink

Retired doctor Peter Wintersgill, continuing his series on classical composers, presents a moving portrait of the great Johann Sebastian Bach.

Continue reading "Johann Sebastian Bach" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill at 09:02 AM | Permalink

When he retired after a lengthy career as a family doctor Peter Wintersgill decided to learn all he could about the lives of the great classical composers. His researches produced a series of talks to a University of the Third Age study group. Those talks eventually resulted in an informative book, Music Makers - Maladies and Melodies.

Week by week, Open Writing will feature extracts from Peter's book. He, and we, hope that after you have learned something of the lives of these gifted composers you will be inspired to listen to their music.

Continue reading "Albinoni And Arne" »

Posted by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) at 10:32 AM | Permalink