Popular stories on MusicTales

1. 

   Violin

   Vintage performance of Vivaldi's concerto for four violins

   Antonio Vivaldi wrote many concerts for violin, but only a few for four violin soloists. Concerto for Four Violins was…

   March 6, 2018

2. 

   Film

   Dammit Janet: the playful proposal song

   Dammit Janet is a memorable song from the original 1973 The Rocky Horror Show British musical stage production as well…

   July 28, 2023

3. 

   Orchestra

   Ravel's La Valse and the duel that wasn't

   Completed by Maurice Ravel in 1920, La Valse stands as a remarkable composition distinguished by its innovative waltz…

   August 11, 2023

4. 

   Songwriter

   Four continents come together for Manu Chao's Clandestino

   In Latin America and Europe, this guy is virtually an icon who seems to have taken the role of Bob Marley. Manu Chao is…

   April 30, 2018

5. 

   Songwriter

   Pancho and Lefty: gangster song that saved Townes Van Zandt from a speeding ticket

   Pancho and Lefty is perhaps the best-known song of American songwriter Townes Van Zandt released on his sixth studio…

   March 10, 2021

6. 

   Orchestra

   The true soul behind Elgar's Enigma Variations

   Edward Elgar's Enigma Variations, originally titled Variations on an Original Theme, is famous for its mysterious name,…

   June 17, 2018

7. 

   Film

   Full-method approach to the score for Shakespeare's play

   The classic Shakespeare play The Merchant of Venice had seen many adaptations, one of them a 2004 venture for the big…

   July 12, 2018

8. 

   Songwriter

   Quizás, Quizás, Quizás: the Cuban bolero of endless maybe

   Written by Cuban songwriter Osvaldo Farrés in 1947, Quizás, Quizás, Quizás became one of the most durable Spanish…

   July 15, 2026

9. 

   Songwriter

   Traditions of Malian music spread worldwide through Afel Bocoum and Damon Albarn collaboration

   The famous Malian songwriter Afel Bocoum began his musical career in the 1960s at the age of thirteen when he joined…

   January 5, 2020

10. 

    Clarinet

    National holiday as a birthday gift for Denmark's biggest composer

    Carl August Nielsen (1865-1931) was one of the major symphonists of the postromantic epoch and Denmark's most eminent…

    September 12, 2018

11. 

    Film

    [H]ouse playlist is a remedy for everyone

    American medical drama House, M.D. is not just an excellent guide to understanding actual diseases, but it also…

    May 28, 2018

12. 

    Male Vocal

    Parchman Farm: the story behind Bukka White's blues

    Parchman Farm stands as one of the best-known song by Bukka White, a singer and guitarist who wholeheartedly embraced…

    September 1, 2023

13. 

    Orchestra

    Comic 'Italienische Serenade' was the end of Hugo Wolf

    The inspiration for the Italian Serenade came to Hugo Wolf from the novella Leben eines Taugenichts by the German…

    June 2, 2018

14. 

    Kora

    African bard Foday Musa Suso represents griot culture by mixing kora music with Western minimalism and jazz

    The most important role in the preservation of tradition in the culture of West Africa has been played by griots…

    April 10, 2019

15. 

    Meditation

    Progressive rhythms and sacred themes of Shyama Shastri songs

    Syama Sastri was one of the most influential Indian composers of the 18th century whose extensive contributions to the…

    June 7, 2021

16. 

    Orchestra

    Gustav Holst's famous folk suite was dedicated to his students

    Gustavus Theodore von Holst, a highly original and inventive composer, was born in England in 1874. Holst was appointed…

    April 22, 2018

17. 

    Swarmandal

    Kishori Amonkar reclaimed her lost voice with Ayurveda

    Kishori Amonkar was one of the most respected classical vocalists of the Hindustani tradition who intensively developed…

    January 14, 2021

18. 

    Electric Guitar

    Monnette Sudler: the first lady of jazz guitar

    Grammy-nominated jazz guitarist Monnette Sudler is known as the “First Lady of Jazz Guitar,” among other titles. Her…

    October 30, 2018

19. 

    Traditional

    Majestic heart of the ancient Gamelan orchestra

    Gamelan is the term used for a traditional musical ensemble in Indonesia, typically refering to a percussion orchestra…

    August 28, 2018

20. 

    Trumpet

    Nameless trumpet sonata credited to Purcell after years of debate

    Henry Purcell, the most prominent English figure of the Baroque era, covered a wide field of genres, producing music…

    June 24, 2018

21. 

    Songwriter

    Historia de un Amor: meaning behind the famous bolero standard

    Composed by Panamanian musician Carlos Eleta Almarán, Historia de un Amor became one of the best-known Latin boleros of…

    June 28, 2026

22. 

    Trumpet

    First solo trumpet piece in history belongs to German multi-instrumentalist

    The Concerto in D major for trumpet, violins, and basso continuo, is a shiny eight-minute work composed by Georg…

    April 1, 2018

23. 

    Choir

    Ave verum corpus: influential Mozart score for the crucial Catholic chant

    Ave verum corpus is one of the best-known sacramental chants that originated in the Medieval period and has since been…

    January 18, 2022

24. 

    Kayamba

    Traditional maloya music meets French chanson in swaying songs of Maya Kamaty

    Maya Kamaty is a new generation singer and songwriter from the Réunion island located in the Indian Ocean east of…

    March 1, 2020

25. 

    Technologies

    Swingtown: the signature song with Hammond Guitar Synthesizer

    Swingtown stands out as one of the best-known tracks by the American rock group Steve Miller Band. This song served as…

    September 22, 2023

26. 

    Piano

    Chick Corea's Spanish pulse in the masterful jazz standard

    The son of a trumpeter, the genius pianist Chick Corea is referenced as one of the lead specialists in the fusion of…

    March 22, 2018

27. 

    Songwriter

    Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out: nonsensical song title that reveals Springsteen's band origin story

    Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out was first released on Bruce Springsteen's breakthrough album Born to Run and remains one of his…

    May 10, 2022

28. 

    Film

    Symphonic scores by Erich Wolfgang Korngold established new standards in the film industry

    Erich Wolfgang Korngold was an Austrian pianist and composer whose contribution to film music has actually set the…

    January 1, 2020

29. 

    Electric Guitar

    Swedish Rhapsody variations for electric guitar

    The painting Midsummer Eve bonfire on Skagen’s beach is a tribute to the artist colony in Skagen by Peder Severin…

    September 28, 2018

30. 

    Film

    Sirtaki: folk dances arranged by Mikis Theodorakis

    The Sirtaki dance—a lively and energetic expression of Greek culture—has become an iconic image associated with the…

    July 14, 2023