Víkingur Ólafsson
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Víkingur Ólafsson
Víkingur Ólafsson (born 14 February 1984) is an Icelandic pianist. He has performed with leading orchestras in Europe and America, including the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Philharmonia Orchestra, Minnesota Orchestra, Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra, Detroit Symphony Orchestra, and the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, and with such conductors as Thomas Adès, Esa-Pekka Salonen, and Santtu-Matias Rouvali. He has won numerous awards, including Album of the Year at the 2019 BBC Music Magazine Awards for ''Johann Sebastian Bach''. Víkingur's album '' Philip Glass Piano Works'' saw him named "Iceland's Glenn Gould" by the ''New York Times'', and a "breathtakingly brilliant pianist" by '' Gramophone''; ''Le Monde'' heralded his "volcanic temperament, great virtuosity, taste for challenges". Early life and education Víkingur Ólafsson grew up in Reykjavík and started playing the piano at an early age under the tutelage of his mother, a piano teacher. He studied at the Juilliar ...
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Reykjavík
Reykjavík ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Iceland. It is located in southwestern Iceland, on the southern shore of Faxaflói bay. Its latitude is 64°08' N, making it the world's northernmost capital of a sovereign state. With a population of around 131,136 (and 233,034 in the Capital Region), it is the centre of Iceland's cultural, economic, and governmental activity, and is a popular tourist destination. Reykjavík is believed to be the location of the first permanent settlement in Iceland, which, according to Landnámabók, was established by Ingólfr Arnarson in 874 CE. Until the 18th century, there was no urban development in the city location. The city was officially founded in 1786 as a trading town and grew steadily over the following decades, as it transformed into a regional and later national centre of commerce, population, and governmental activities. It is among the cleanest, greenest, and safest cities in the world. History According to lege ...
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Juilliard School
The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most elite drama, music, and dance schools in the world. History Early years: 1905-1946 In 1905, the Institute of Musical Art, Juilliard's predecessor institution, was founded by Frank Damrosch, the godson of Franz Liszt and head of music education for New York City's public schools, on the premise that the United States did not have a premier music school and too many students were going to Europe to study music. In 1919, a wealthy textile merchant named Augustus Juilliard died and left the school in his will the largest single bequest for the advancement of music at that time. In 1968, the school's name was changed from the Juilliard School of Music to The Juilliard School to reflect its broadened mission to educate musicians, directors, ...
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Robert Schumann
Robert Schumann (; 8 June 181029 July 1856) was a German composer, pianist, and influential music critic. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest composers of the Romantic era. Schumann left the study of law, intending to pursue a career as a virtuoso pianist. His teacher, Friedrich Wieck, a German pianist, had assured him that he could become the finest pianist in Europe, but a hand injury ended this dream. Schumann then focused his musical energies on composing. In 1840, Schumann married Friedrich Wieck's daughter Clara Wieck, after a long and acrimonious legal battle with Friedrich, who opposed the marriage. A lifelong partnership in music began, as Clara herself was an established pianist and music prodigy. Clara and Robert also maintained a close relationship with German composer Johannes Brahms. Until 1840, Schumann wrote exclusively for the piano. Later, he composed piano and orchestral works, and many Lieder (songs for voice and piano). He composed four symphonies ...
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Konzerthaus Berlin
The Konzerthaus Berlin is a concert hall in Berlin, the home of the Konzerthausorchester Berlin. Situated on the Gendarmenmarkt square in the central Mitte district of the city, it was originally built as a theater. It initially operated from 1818 to 1821 under the name of the Schauspielhaus Berlin, then as the Theater am Gendarmenmarkt and Komödie. It became a concert hall after the Second World War, and its name changed to its present one in 1994. The Konzerthausorchester Berlin is the resident orchestra of the Konzerthaus Berlin. The concert hall also hosts Young Euro Classic every summer, an international festival of youth orchestras. History National-Theater (1802–1817) The building's predecessor, the ''National-Theater'' in the Friedrichstadt suburb, was destroyed by fire in 1817. It had been designed by Carl Gotthard Langhans, and was inaugurated on 1 January 1802. Königliches Schauspielhaus (1817–1870) The new hall was designed by Karl Friedrich Schinkel betw ...
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Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra
The Radio Filharmonisch Orkest (''Radio Philharmonic Orchestra''; Dutch abbreviation RFO) is a Dutch radio orchestra, based in Hilversum. The RFO performs under the aegis of the ''Muziekcentrum van de Omroep'' (Broadcasting Music Centre; NMBC), an umbrella organization bringing together the music departments of the various broadcasting associations affiliated to Nederlandse Publieke Omroep (''Dutch Public Broadcasting''). The RFO performs on NPO Radio 4 and gives public concerts in Amsterdam and Utrecht. It has also served as the orchestra for productions at De Nederlandse Opera. The RFO's programmes are decided by the above-mentioned Muziekcentrum, rather than directly by the orchestra's management and chief conductor. The current manager of the RFO is Wouter den Hond. History Albert van Raalte founded the orchestra in 1945 and served as its first chief conductor. Past chief conductors have included Paul van Kempen, Bernard Haitink, Jean Fournet, Willem van Otterloo, Ha ...
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Orchestre Philharmonique De Radio France
The Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France is a French radio orchestra, affiliated with Radio France. The orchestra performs principally at the auditorium of the Maison de la Radio in Paris, along with several concerts at the Philharmonie de Paris. History ''Radiodiffusion Française'' established the orchestra in Paris in June 1937 under the name of the ''Orchestre Radio-Symphonique'', under the auspices of ''Les Postes, Télégraphes et Téléphones'' (PTT) and its minister, Robert Jardillier. The orchestra was initially under the direction of Rhené-Baton, who guided the orchestra until his death in 1940. Eugène Bigot subsequently directed the orchestra musicians through the 1944 Liberation. Following World War II, Henry Barraud became director of music for the ORTF, and reorganised the orchestra, appointing Bigot as its music director in 1947. The orchestra performed regularly at the Salle Érard, and later the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in the 1950s. The orchestra ...
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Must The Devil Have All The Good Tunes?
''Must the Devil Have All the Good Tunes?'' is a piano concerto by the American composer John Adams. Its title is taken from a saying attributed to Martin Luther. The work was premiered on March 7, 2019 by Yuja Wang and the Los Angeles Philharmonic, conducted by Gustavo Dudamel. A recording, made by Wang, Dudamel, and the Los Angeles Philharmonic in November 2019, was released digitally by Deutsche Grammophon on April 17, 2020. The piece is Adams' third piano concerto, after '' Eros Piano'' (1989) and ''Century Rolls'' (1997). Composition Movements The piece is in three movements, played without pauses between them: All three movements in total last about 28 minutes. Instrumentation The piece is scored for the following orchestra: Woodwinds :Piccolo :2 Flutes (1st doubling piccolo 2) :2 Oboes :English horn :2 Clarinets in B♭ and A (2nd doubling basset horn) :Bass clarinet :2 Bassoons :Contrabassoon (doubling bassoon 3) Brass :4 Horns in F :2 Trumpets in C : ...
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John Adams (composer)
John Coolidge Adams (born February 15, 1947) is an American composer and conductor whose music is rooted in minimalism. Among the most regularly performed composers of contemporary classical music, he is particularly noted for his operas, which are often centered around recent historical events. Apart from opera, his ''oeuvre'' includes orchestral, concertante, vocal, choral, chamber, electroacoustic and piano music. Born in Worcester, Massachusetts, Adams grew up in a musical family, being regularly exposed to classical music, jazz, musical theatre and rock music. He attended Harvard University, studying with Kirchner, Sessions and Del Tredici among others. Though his earliest work was aligned with modernist music, he began to disagree with its tenets upon reading John Cage's '' Silence: Lectures and Writings''. Teaching at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, Adams developed his own minimalist aesthetic, which was first fully realized in ''Phrygian Gates'' (1977) a ...
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Vladimir Ashkenazy
Vladimir Davidovich Ashkenazy (russian: Влади́мир Дави́дович Ашкена́зи, ''Vladimir Davidovich Ashkenazi''; born 6 July 1937) is an internationally recognized solo pianist, chamber music performer, and conductor. He is originally from Russia and has held Icelandic citizenship since 1972. He has lived in Switzerland since 1978. Ashkenazy has collaborated with well-known orchestras and soloists. In addition, he has recorded a large repertoire of classical and romantic works. His recordings have earned him five Grammy awards and Iceland's Order of the Falcon. Early life Vladimir Ashkenazy was born in Gorky, Soviet Union (now Nizhny Novgorod, Russia), to pianist and composer David Ashkenazi and to actress Yevstolia Grigorievna (born Plotnova). His father was Jewish and his mother came from a Russian Orthodox family. Ashkenazy was christened in a Russian Orthodox church.
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Iceland Symphony Orchestra
Sinfóníuhljómsveit Íslands (Iceland Symphony Orchestra) (ISO) is an Icelandic orchestra based in Reykjavík, Iceland. Its primary concert venue is the Harpa Concert Hall. The Iceland Symphony is an autonomous public institution under the auspices of the Icelandic Ministry of Education. Iceland Symphony Orchestra made its home in Háskólabíó (University Cinema) from 1961 to 2011, but moved into the new 1800-seat Harpa Concert Hall in spring 2011. The orchestra gives approximately sixty concerts each season. Per a 1982 law (changed in 2007), the Iceland Symphony's primary financial sources are the Icelandic treasury (82%) and the City of Reykjavik (18%). Eva Ollikainen took in September 2020 over as the chief conductor and artistic director of the Iceland Symphony, Osmo Vänskä is the orchestra's honorary conductor and Vladimir Ashkenazy holds the post of Conductor Laureate. As of the season 2021/22 Daníel Bjarnason is the orchestras artist in association but had been prin ...
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Piano Concerto (Grieg)
The Piano Concerto in A minor, Op. 16, composed by Edvard Grieg in 1868, was the only concerto Grieg completed. It is one of his most popular works and is among the most popular of the genre. Structure The concerto is in three movements: Performance time of the whole concerto is usually about 30 minutes. Instrumentation Grieg scored the concerto for solo piano, 2 flutes, 2 oboes, 2 clarinets (in A and B), 2 bassoons, 2 horns in E and E, 2 trumpets in C and B, 2 trombones, tuba, timpani and strings (violins, violas, cellos and double basses). He later added 2 horns and changed the tuba to a third trombone. History and influences The work is among Grieg's earliest important works, written by the 24-year-old composer in 1868 in Søllerød, Denmark, during one of his visits there to benefit from the climate. The concerto is often compared to the Piano Concerto of Robert Schumann: it is in the same key; the opening descending flourish on the piano is similar; the overall st ...
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Edvard Grieg
Edvard Hagerup Grieg ( , ; 15 June 18434 September 1907) was a Norwegian composer and pianist. He is widely considered one of the foremost Romantic era composers, and his music is part of the standard classical repertoire worldwide. His use of Norwegian folk music in his own compositions brought the music of Norway to fame, as well as helping to develop a national identity, much as Jean Sibelius did in Finland and Bedřich Smetana in Bohemia. Grieg is the most celebrated person from the city of Bergen, with numerous statues which depict his image, and many cultural entities named after him: the city's largest concert building (Grieg Hall), its most advanced music school (Grieg Academy) and its professional choir (Edvard Grieg Kor). The Edvard Grieg Museum at Grieg's former home Troldhaugen is dedicated to his legacy. Background Edvard Hagerup Grieg was born in Bergen, Norway (then part of Sweden–Norway). His parents were Alexander Grieg (1806–1875), a merchant and the B ...
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