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The first performance was not a success - perhaps due to the rushed circumstances of its creation. The concerto soon gained recognition however, becoming enormously popular. One contemporary critic dismissed it, saying it “begins with Bach and ends with Offenbach”. youtu.be/tkBY79--MGA?...

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Saint-Saëns - Klavierkonzert Nr. 2 | Liya Wang | Sasha Scolnik-Brower | BRSO

YouTube video by ARD Klassik

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 23h

The result is one of his most popular works. It begins with a solemn, quasi-improvisatory piano solo reminiscent of a grand fantasia by Bach. It then moves through a playful scherzo and ends in a whirling tarantella.

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 23h

His Second Piano Concerto dates from 1868, when Saint-Saëns was 32. Anton Rubinstein had asked him for a new work for a Paris concert, with Rubinstein conducting and Saint-Saëns as soloist. There was a slight difficulty: Saint-Saëns had only seventeen days in which to write it.

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 23h

He entered the Paris Conservatoire at 13, already composing seriously as a teenager. He became organist at the Madeleine in Paris in 1858, where his playing attracted the respect of no-less a musician than Liszt. He remained a formidable pianist, performing internationally throughout his life.

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 23h

Camille Saint-Saëns was born otd, 9 October 1835, in Paris. He was one of those phenomenally gifted people who seemed able to do almost everything. A musical child prodigy, he became a composer, pianist, organist, conductor, teacher and writer, with interests extending well beyond music.

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Do join us - it’ll be a small group with the opportunity to listen to excerpts together and discuss our reactions and share thoughts. Here’s how to book: www.charlottenewstead.co.uk/product/expl...

charlottenewstead.co.uk

Explore Britten’s War Requiem (re-run) | Charlotte Newstead

Charlotte Newstead is a concert soprano, singing teacher, choral coach and music appreciation teacher, based in the south west of England.

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

It’s a colossal work of art - by turns thrilling, moving, beautiful & terrifying. I’m timing the session to mark both Remembrance Sunday and 50 years since Britten died.

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

There are still a few places left for my online class on Britten’s War Requiem on Nov 4th. This event is for anyone - you don’t need to know the piece, or read music, or be a Britten expert. Just someone who’d like to discover something new or go deeper with one of the 20thC’s great masterpieces

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Requiem is a short piece, but the sound world is distinctive: dark, slow-moving strings and a careful sensitivity to timbre and texture. Perhaps we can glimpse what Takemitsu meant when he said: “after the war, music was the only thing left.” youtu.be/KJyQtjtWfGM?...

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Requiem for Strings

YouTube video by Paavo Järvi - Topic

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Stravinsky publicly praised Takemitsu for his musical sincerity and passionate writing and arranged a meeting. The encounter helped launch Takemitsu’s international career with Stravinsky drawing attention to his work in the US.

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Shortly after it was written, Igor Stravinsky visited Japan and heard the Requiem - but by accident. The wrong recording was set playing but Stravinsky was intrigued and insisted that the piece be played to the end.

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

His Requiem for Strings was written in 1957, when Takemitsu was seriously ill. Following a period of war-time conscription from the age of just 14, Takemitsu worked for the US forces before falling ill with tuberculosis. The Requiem honours the memory of his friend and mentor Fumio Hayasaka.

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Tōru Takemitsu was born otd, 8 October 1930, in Tokyo. He was largely self-taught and became one of Japan’s most important composers of contemporary classical music, writing both concert pieces and film scores.

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

There’s something truly magnificent about this anthem. From the first important-sounding chords on the organ, to the soaring trebles’ high B flat on the final page, Parry knew exactly how to heighten our emotional response to the occasion. youtu.be/oh4EeA2IylQ?...

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"I was glad" Hubert Parry | Music at the Coronation of HM King Charles III

YouTube video by CHOR GESANG - Das Musikmagazin

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

It has since become part of the sound of sacred British royal occasions. It has been sung at the coronations of six monarchs now, including Elizabeth II and Charles III.

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

Parry had to produce something suitably grand for the occasion. The opening is ceremonial and stately, and the music builds towards the great acclamations of “Vivat Regina!” and “Vivat Rex!,” before the mood becomes more reflective with “O pray for the peace of Jerusalem”.

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

Parry is perhaps best remembered for the hymn, Jerusalem. But a favourite for many choral singers is the anthem “I Was Glad.” It was written for the coronation of Edward VII in 1902, setting words from Psalm 122: “I was glad when they said unto me: We will go into the house of the Lord.”

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

Hubert Parry died otd, 7 Oct 1918. He was Prof of Composition and later, Director of the Royal College of Music where his students included Vaughan Williams & Holst. In addition, Elgar - who was largely self-taught - relied heavily on Parry’s articles in Grove’s Dictionary to acquire his craft.

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

The work acquired the name Eroica when published. It means “heroic”, but it’s a matter of conjecture as to how to interpret that title. Who is the hero now? Could it even be Beethoven himself? youtu.be/fhHcty9OM-0?...

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Beethoven: 3. Sinfonie (»Eroica«) ∙ hr-Sinfonieorchester ∙ Andrés Orozco-Estrada

YouTube video by hr-Sinfonieorchester – Frankfurt Radio Symphony

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

Beethoven admired Napoleon as a champion of revolutionary ideals. When Napoleon declared himself Emperor, Beethoven’s admiration turned to fury. He famously crossed out the dedication with such force that the surviving title page still bears the mark.

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

It was a turning point in his life, and from here on, he began to change his musical language. He spoke of finding a “new path” in his composing, and the Third Symphony, Eroica, would emerge from this period of transformation. The symphony was originally intended as a homage to Napoleon Bonaparte.

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

Yet the document also records his determination to continue living despite the dark thoughts that had tormented him. He wrote that his art had held him back from ending his life, and that he still had more that he needed to bring into the world.

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

Otd, 6 Oct 1802, Beethoven wrote one of the most famous documents in musical history: the Heiligenstadt Testament. He was 31, increasingly deaf, and in despair about what the future held. He wrote to his brothers of his isolation, his humiliation and his fear that his hearing might never improve.

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

One further historical curiosity - Sergei Rachmaninov was in the audience for the premiere having played his own second piano concerto earlier in the programme. He was moved to tears by the new piece. youtu.be/tq8sczVU5o8?...

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1st recording - Vaughan Williams: Serenade to Music

YouTube video by 2ndviolinist

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

The text comes from Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice, beginning “How sweet the moonlight sleeps upon this bank.” The solo voices sing together and separately, forming ever changing textures and exquisite combinations of sound.

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

It made use of remarkable forces, involving sixteen of Britain’s leading singers of the time, plus orchestra, and the result is spine-tinglingly beautiful.

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

On this day, 5 October 1938, Vaughan Williams’s Serenade to Music was performed for the first time at the Royal Albert Hall. It was written to celebrate Sir Henry Wood’s 50th anniversary as a conductor.

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

One other thing for which Bruckner is renowned is his genuine and deep-seated Catholic faith. There is no doubt whatsoever in my mind that every note of this piece is meant with conviction and humility. youtu.be/r1cMUUASYAM?...

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Bruckner | Messe Nr. 2 in e-Moll

YouTube video by Südtirol in concert

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

I love the distinctive sonority of it – the opening is almost bare and archaic, but then it becomes unmistakably Bruckner, with those huge harmonic shifts and weighty choral climaxes.

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

It’s an unusual piece. There are no soloists and no huge orchestra: instead, an eight-part choir is accompanied by a small ensemble of wind instruments. Bruckner combines the floating sound of Renaissance church music with his own much more Romantic harmonic language.

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

Bruckner had originally written the Mass in 1866, for the dedication of the Votive Chapel of the new Linz Cathedral. He revised it several times, eventually producing the version heard in 1885.

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

On this day, 4 Oct 1885, Bruckner’s revised version of his Mass in E minor was performed for the first time in Linz. If you know anything about Bruckner, you’ll know revisions are a big deal. The “Bruckner problem” lies in discerning what’s the final version that he wanted preserved & performed.

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

Different Trains is a piece that, for me, epitomises the power of music and art to speak where ordinary speech fails. It was premiered by the Kronos Quartet and I’m incredibly excited to be hearing them play the work live, very soon. youtu.be/D_2PwYmmbXI?...

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Steve Reich - Different Trains (1988)

YouTube video by Sohan Kalirai

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

The three movements are called: 1) America – Before the War 2) Europe – During the War 3) After the War. The sound is unmistakably Reich – repetitive, rhythmic and hypnotic – but here the machinery of the music is carrying a crucial commentary on human tragedy.

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

That thought led to Different Trains, written in 1988 for string quartet & tape. Reich uses recordings of trains and voices, including his former governess and a Pullman porter, alongside the voices of Holocaust survivors. He then turns the rhythms and pitches of their speech into musical material.

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

As a child, Reich travelled by train between New York & Los Angeles, visiting his parents between 1939 & 1942. Years later he reflected that, as a Jewish child, had he been born in Europe rather than America, he might have been travelling on very different trains, bound for the concentration camps.

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

Steve Reich was born otd, 3 October 1936 - he turns 90 today. What a remarkable artist he is. He is one of the most influential American composers of the last 60 years, and I struggled to choose just one work. In the end, I have decided to share Different Trains - one of his most important works.

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

There really is something remarkable in the way the cello seems to convey deep emotions and thoughts to us. It always stops me in my tracks when I hear it. youtu.be/m8TnRzCjSoc?...

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Bruch: Kol Nidrei ∙ hr-Sinfonieorchester ∙ Ivan Karizna ∙ Christoph Eschenbach

YouTube video by hr-Sinfonieorchester – Frankfurt Radio Symphony

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

The second melody comes from Isaac Nathan’s setting of Byron’s Hebrew Melodies. Bruch brings the two melodies together in an intensely lyrical piece that moves between mourning and consolation.

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

The first melody comes from the Kol Nidrei prayer, traditionally sung at the beginning of the Yom Kippur evening service. Bruch gives it to the cello, which takes on the role of cantor.

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

Bruch was not himself Jewish, but became interested in Jewish music, explaining: “Even though I am a Protestant, as an artist I deeply felt the outstanding beauty of these melodies.”

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

Max Bruch died otd, 2 October 1920, aged 82. He’s probably remembered best for his First Violin Concerto, but a close second might be Kol Nidrei, written in 1880, which is one of my favourites.

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Dukas’s impact on the world of music extended beyond his composition work. He was an important teacher and his students included Messiaen, Rodrigo and Duruflé. But it really is the sorcerer’s reckless apprentice that has kept his name alive. Enjoy! youtu.be/J4vs0TFrGDU?...

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Dukas: The Sorcerer's Apprentice – London Philharmonic Orchestra & Edward Gardner

YouTube video by London Philharmonic Orchestra

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Dukas has enormous fun with the resulting chaos, giving the broom its relentlessly repeated theme while the orchestra piles up the panic around it. The piece became even more famous when Disney used it in Fantasia in 1940, with Mickey Mouse taking the role of the unfortunate apprentice.

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

It was written in 1897 and inspired by Goethe’s poem about a young apprentice who tries to use his master’s magic without really knowing what he’s doing. He mischievously enchants a broom to fetch water. Not so clever, it turns out, as he hasn’t yet learnt how to stop it.

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Paul Dukas was born otd, 1 October 1865, in Paris. As a composer, his surviving output is rather small – he was notoriously self-critical and destroyed a number of his scores. His most famous piece, by a country mile, is The Sorcerer’s Apprentice.

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

He used simplicity to create an American sound which influenced other composers, including Copland. That the latter achieved greater success was probably a source of resentment for the rest of Thomson’s life. youtu.be/SGxRynHG0OA?...

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Virgil Thomson (Symphony on a Hymn Tune)

YouTube video by Mosaic Classics

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

The symphony is tonal and readily accessible to audiences. There’s perhaps a slightly naive quality to his evident love of the old hymn tunes.

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Thomson’s Symphony on a Hymn Tune was written in Paris between 1926 and 1928 while he was studying with Nadia Boulanger. The music looks back to his childhood in Missouri and the Protestant hymns he knew there.

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Lotti @lottinewstead.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Here’s a good one: “Whatever deceptions life may have in store for you, music itself is not going to let you down.” Less generous was a comment on Sibelius’s 2nd Symphony which Thomson dismissed as "vulgar, self-indulgent, and provincial beyond all description."

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