Category Archives: Chamber music

On this day in 1946 – Charles Ives premieres

Posted on by
Reply

by Ben Hogwood. Image courtesy of Wikipedia

On this day, 80 years ago, an important concert featuring premieres by Charles Ives took place at the McMillin Theatre, Columbia University, New York City.

Three works were given their premieres by a group of graduate students from the Juilliard School – two short pieces for orchestra, The Unanswered Question and Central Park In The Dark, and the String Quartet no.2. Listened in sequence they give insight into Ives’s originality as a composer, which shines as brightly today as it did then:

Published post no.2,884 – Monday 11 May 2026

On this day 90 years ago – the first performance of Prokofiev’s ‘Peter and the Wolf’

Posted on by
Reply

by Ben Hogwood. Image courtesy of Wikipedia

On this day in 1936, the first performance took place of Prokofiev’s much-loved Peter and the Wolf. This piece was commissioned by the Central Children’s Theatre in Moscow, and given its first performance on May 2 in the Large Hall of the Moscow Conservatory. Prokofiev dedicated the work to his children.

You can enjoy the witty and touching setting below, in an arrangement for chamber ensemble at the Royal College of Music, narrated by Lucy Hollins and conducted by Sam Scheer:

Published post no.2,875 – Saturday 2 May 2026

Bach at Easter – Easter Oratorio

Posted on by
Reply

by Ben Hogwood

This joyful piece of music was written by Bach in Leipzig, in April 1725. It has four vocal soloists, who take on the parts of Mary Magdalene (alto), the ‘other’ Mary (soprano) and the apostles Simon Peter (tenor) and John (bass).

The brightly scored orchestra consists of trumpets, timpani, wind and strings, and its celebratory air is perfect for the festival as it tells of the events of the first Easter day.

Published post no.2,849 – Monday 6 April 2026

Bach at Easter – Cello Suite no.6

Posted on by
Reply

by Ben Hogwood

Happy Easter! And with it, some more music by Bach for solo cello.

The Cello Suite no.6 in D major, BWV1012, is often paralleled with Easter Sunday and the Resurrection, its Sarabande in particular finding a serenity and light appropriate for the season. You can watch Yo-Yo Ma in the whole suite below:

Published post no.2,848 – Sunday 4 April 2026

Bach at Easter – St. John Passion

Posted on by
Reply

by Ben Hogwood

The second instalment of Bach at Easter is dedicated to one of the great master’s finest sacred pieces, the St. John Passion – telling the story in dramatic tones, as recorded by the Bach Collegium Japan when lockdown was imminent in 2020. You can listen below:

Published post no.2,847 – Saturday 4 April 2026