Scherzo No.2 in C Minor

The weather has shot up exponentially in Rome in the past week. Heavy rain and humidity has preceded it and the rain has subsided but the humidity remains. In my apartment there's no air conditioning either. I’ll admit, the changing weather has had an effect on my writing habits and left me feeling lethargic! However, I’ve …

Eternal Source of Divine Light

  This was the music that was sung when Meghan Markle entered the church and walked down the aisle prior to marrying Prince Harry. It was sung by Welsh Soprano Elin Manahan-Thomas. The video I’ve attached below was also sung by her. The piece was composed by Handel for Queen Anne’s birthday (February 1665-August 1714) …

Kanneh-Mason’s performance at the Royal Wedding

I’m currently watching the Duke and Duchess of Sussex live on the BBC during their procession through the streets of Windsor whilst writing this. The wedding of Prince Harry to Meghan Markle was absolutely beautiful and on a wonderful Spring day with clear blue skies that made the occasion even more magnificent! I loved every …

Royal Wedding

In this post I’ll be discussing the British Royal family, the importance of mental health, how this relates to the British government’s cutbacks to the arts in recent years, and why musical learning is important for children. I must admit, I do get caught up in Royal wedding fever and it’s not always easy for …

Dido and Aeneas

My first experience of this early opera was by listening to a recording of the final aria sung by the character Dido by Elin Manahan Thomas. Part of the appeal was that it was sung in English so that I could understand it but mostly because of the tender tragedy it expressed. Just to explain …

Year of Wonder – Classical Music for Every Day

I’m posting a few hours after arriving home from work because I received a package from a friend back home in London! I’d left some history books with him last year that I’ve been meaning to collect and earlier this Spring he asked for my address in Rome to send them on to me. However, …

Orchestra Arcus Regalis

Last Saturday night I attended the debut concert of an orchestra composed of students and maestros from the Santa Celia conservatory in Rome. The conductor was Letizia Vennarini. The music itself consisted of interpretations of ‘the most beautiful baroque repertoire’ to quote the information available via the orchestra’s social media account on Facebook. The orchestra …

The New Chamber Singers

Last Sunday I experienced a special performance by The New Chamber Singers to mark their 25th Anniversary. Advertised as a free concert at the All Saints’ Church on Via Babuino, (just off from the Spanish Steps in Rome) I couldn’t miss it! However, I didn’t know which music would appear in the programme. The New …

Dominus Vobiscum

I love music of a profound nature, that somehow makes my mind conjure the mystical, unknown, interconnectness of life. I find it so life-affirming and comforting to listen to but I’m also particular about what I do like, and this piece is another that just has that special something for me. The lyrics, which translated …

Prelude in E Minor (Opus 28. No.4)

Today’s post is for those out there who may be feeling a little adrift and disconnected. Perhaps inauthenticity has crept into your life like a plastic veneer that coats your skin and gives you the illusion of being someone shiny and bright but instead, beneath it all you feel constrained, too hot and craving the …

Stabat Mater

The choral work I’m about to share with you is nothing short of terrifying and truly, this is no exaggeration. I started listening to it and the opening singing was relatively easy listening whilst I reflected on the beauty of the Sistine Chapel but then the music turned completely black and I sat up in …

The Margravial Opera House

I chanced upon an article about this mesmerising opera house located in Bayreuth, Germany and had to share it all with you! It’s been closed to the public for six years for extensive refurbishment and has very recently reopened. What’s incredible about this opera house is its sheer opulence and the fact that the interior …

Arabesque No.1

For quite a few years now I’ve been feeling more and more lost in the crowd and in turn, I’ve been slowly but surely moving away from it. I’ve always been more of an introverted type and as a child I loved reading above all other pleasures. As I got older I came out of …

The Joy of Choral Music

There are certain markers that stand out for me in my classical music learning and my greatest so far has been in discovering choral music. I keep sharing pieces of late because they have such a profound effect on me. This weekend, I watched a video where American conductor and composer Eric Whitacre gave a …

Virtual Choir

https://www.ted.com/talks/eric_whitacre_a_virtual_choir_2_000_voices_strong#t-844998 One of the topics I’ve been really interested in of late is choral music and I’ve touched upon Gregorian Chant and the choral pieces of the Middle Ages (O Rubor Sanguinis). I’ve also written about a piece I’ve loved from the Baroque era that was written for the Catholic Church (O Miserere Mei Deus). …

The Power of Trust

Today, I’m sharing a TED Talks video featuring British conductor Charles Hazlewood along with a performance by the Scottish Ensemble (a professional string orchestra based in Glasgow). I must say, I do love these TED talks videos because they’re inspirational, reach out to the masses and show that classical music, as with any form of …

Why do I get the chills when listening to music?

  It’s something that I never noticed before until I started listening to classical music. I noticed the chills started racing around my scalp, down my spine, along my legs and sometimes even reaching as far as my feet! I was curious as to why this was happening and specifically, with regards to classical music. So, …

Miserere Mei Deus

I’m so fortunate to have stumbled upon a piece of music completely by accident but that has left me transfixed by its beauty! I am not the first and neither will I be the last to be touched by it in this way. ‘Miserere mei Deus’ transcribed from Latin means ‘Have mercy on me, oh …

Gregorian Chant

In my last post I introduced a composer of the Middle Ages of a type of music known as Gregorian Chant that was and continues to be utilised by the Roman Catholic Church. The music at that time was attributed to Pope St. Gregory the Great, although he never actually composed any of the chants …

O Rubor Sanguinis

It’s taken me a little time to get to the illustrious composer Hildegard Von Bingen. She’s remarkable in more ways than one! We’re going to step back in time to around the year 1098, over 900 years ago in the Middle Ages to Böckelheim, West Franconia in Germany where she was born. I’m going to …