Popular stories on MusicTales

1. 

   Collaboration

   Nordic folk fiddle reshapes polished classical sound in the music of Gjermund Larsen

   Gjermund Larsen is a Norwegian musician and composer who dedicated his career to the music of his native land. His work…

   December 18, 2018

2. 

   Orchestra

   Classic textbook by great Austrian composer eclipsed his talent

   Johann Joseph Fux was an Austrian composer, music theorist, and teacher of the late Baroque era. He is most famous as…

   September 8, 2018

3. 

   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

4. 

   Orchestra

   The vital source of Lutheran music by Andreas Hammerschmidt

   Andreas Hammerschmidt was a German composer and organist of Bohemian birth whose works played an important part in the…

   January 15, 2019

5. 

   Songwriter

   Cum On Feel the Noize: Slade's instant hit recipe

   Cum On Feel the Noize is a 1973 single by the English glam rock band Slade that topped the charts a week after its…

   May 24, 2021

6. 

   Trumpet

   Chet Baker: the divine voice of the West Coast jazz

   Chesney Henry "Chet" Baker Jr. was born in 1929 in Yale, Oklahoma. The son of musically inclined parents, he sang in…

   March 11, 2018

7. 

   Songwriter

   Misirlou: from Ottoman melody to surf-rock lightning

   Misirlou is one of those melodies that seems to belong to several worlds at once. Long before Dick Dale turned it into…

   June 1, 2026

8. 

   Male Vocal

   Breadfan: an anthem of money and greed

   Breadfan is an iconic song by the Welsh heavy metal band Budgie featured on their 1973 album Never Turn Your Back on a…

   June 10, 2023

9. 

   Choir

   Traditional music of Gourara archipelago of oases features the poetry of endangered languages

   Located in southwest Algeria, Gourara is one of the most picturesque areas of the Sahara desert. This unique region is…

   November 6, 2019

10. 

    Fiddle

    Fresh take on the The Isle of Man folk tradition

    The Isle of Man, or Mann, is an island in the Irish Sea which small but proud nation can boast a vast cultural heritage…

    July 17, 2018

11. 

    Orchestra

    Beethoven's Romances uncover his staggering violin skills

    Beethoven was a very skillful violinist. Although not a proficient musician, he possessed a deep passion for and…

    March 27, 2018

12. 

    Orchestra

    Mother of film score genre learned music through BBC radio broadcasts

    Doreen Mary Carwithen, also known as Mary Alwyn, was the first student to be selected from the Royal Academy to join an…

    June 23, 2018

13. 

    Orchestra

    Amsterdam's free spirit for the Italian virtuoso

    Pietro Locatelli (1695—1764), Italian violinist and composer, was one of the first great violinists who practiced…

    October 10, 2018

14. 

    Nature Sounds

    Spring soundscapes featuring a song thrush

    Of all the songbirds in the northern hemisphere, the nightingale clearly stands out for its deep vocal overtones and…

    February 15, 2022

15. 

    Nature Sounds

    Relaxing magic of a spring thunderstorm recorded in the woods

    It is no secret that regular listening to records with sounds of pristine nature contributes to relaxation and stress…

    December 7, 2021

16. 

    Classical Guitar

    Bacheler's unusually bright lute music depicts Queen Anne of Denmark

    Daniel Bacheler (1572-1619) was an English lutenist and composer. Details of his life were obscure until Anne Batchelor…

    May 2, 2018

17. 

    Orchestra

    Brandenburg Concerto dedicated to the king's brother was never played at Brandenburg court

    The Brandenburg Concertos of Johann Sebastian Bach are considered an example from the new era of masterful…

    March 24, 2018

18. 

    Classical Guitar

    The voice that carried guitar over the barriers of Cultural Revolution

    Born in Beijing following the Cultural Revolution—during which Western music and instruments were banned—Xuefei Yang…

    August 7, 2018

19. 

    Piano

    Choosing career in music got Rameau expelled from school

    Jean-Philippe Rameau (1683–1764) was one of the truly multifaceted French composers and theorists, with his theoretical…

    August 12, 2018

20. 

    Orchestra

    Bernini's famous fountains are filled with Respighi's music

    Fontane di Roma is a symphonic poem written by the Italian composer Ottorino Respighi in 1916. It depicts Rome’s…

    May 6, 2018

21. 

    Songwriter

    Bungle in the Jungle: early prog-rock hit vs the greatest boxing match

    Bungle in the Jungle is the best-known track from the critically derided War Child album released by the English prog…

    August 28, 2021

22. 

    Classical Guitar

    The scent of magnolia permeating Joaquin Rodrigo's concerto

    It may come as a revelation that Joaquin Rodrigo wasn’t a guitarist, despite his contributions to the guitar repertoire…

    April 19, 2018

23. 

    Cello

    The Catalan virtuoso was discovered by Albéniz in a cafe band

    Pablo Casals (1876—1973) was a Catalan cellist, composer, and conductor, known for his virtuosic technique, and skilled…

    June 22, 2018

24. 

    Contemporary Composer

    Glassworks by Philip Glass is flavored with Bach and Bowie

    Philip Glass is an American composer, widely considered to be one of the most influential musicians of the late 20th…

    March 6, 2018

25. 

    Saenghwang

    Modern jazz meets traditional Korean music in Park Jiha's Communion

    Both somehow minimalist and carrying the richness of jazz improvisation, Park Jiha's debut album Communion borders on…

    March 19, 2018

26. 

    Male Vocal

    First musical steps of Bhimsen Joshi

    Bhimsen Joshi was a highly regarded vocalist who organically combined all aspects of Indian classical music, be it…

    December 10, 2020

27. 

    Saxophone

    Take Five: the jazz standard built in five

    Take Five became the signature piece of the Dave Brubeck Quartet after appearing on the 1959 album Time Out. Written by…

    July 17, 2026

28. 

    Male Vocal

    Persiana Americana: meaning behind Soda Stereo's hidden gaze

    Persiana Americana became one of the essential songs in the repertoire of the Argentine band Soda Stereo after…

    June 10, 2026

29. 

    Film

    Vintage synthesizers alleviate the Blade Runner sequel

    Blade Runner 2049 is the long-anticipated sequel to Ridley Scott's 1982 iconic film which defined a whole generation of…

    June 28, 2018

30. 

    Violin

    Belated appreciation for the history-making Florence Price

    The modern rediscovery of the little-known African-American composer Florence Price only began in 2009, when a large…

    July 22, 2018