Célestine Galli-Marié News
French mezzo-soprano (1837–1905)
Commemorations 2025 (Death: Célestine Galli-Marié)
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2024-04-25
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2020-11-29 21:15:45
George Bizet composed his opera, Carmen, in 1874. During the lengthy rehearsals for the first performance, Bizet fought hard against a reluctant management to retain the earthy realism of the story of Carmen, the cigarette-factory girl whose flirtations with an army officer and a toreador lead to her dramatic murder. The composer was constantly revising the score to tighten the action and heighten the tension. The lead singer, Célestine Galli-Marié, instructed Bizet to rewrite the famous Habanera no fewer than 14 times to accommodate her voice. Ironically, this most famous of mezzo-soprano arias was plagiarized by Bizet from El Arreglito, a
2020-05-25 09:51:08
Tracing a youthful relationship: Tony Cooper looks at Britten's links to Norfolk & the city of Norwich
Frank Bridge; Benjamin Britten; Ethel Bridge by Unknown photographersnapshot print NPG x15184 © National Portrait Gallery, London Norfolk-based music writer, Tony Cooper, traces the steps of Benjamin Britten’s youthful links to the county of Norfolk and, in particular, to the fine city of Norwich. Born a Suffolk boy on 22nd November 1913 (which also happens to be St Cecilia’s Day, the patron saint of music) at 21 Kirkley Cliff Road, Lowestoft, Edward Benjamin Britten (he dropped his first name early in life) was the son of a dentist and his mother, an amateur choral singer. But practically forgotten about nowadays is to the fact that he forged his early musical talents in Norfolk and, in particular, in the fine city of Norwich. From the tender age of 10, he regularly visited the city for viola lessons with Mrs Audrey Alston, a good friend of his mother and […]
2020-05-23 09:27:11
Clouds, Clocks and Improvisation: I chat to composer & pianist Karol Beffa about the separate but related acts of improvisation & composition
Karol Beffa performing at Rencontres de Cannes in 2019 (Photo Loic Thebaud) The pianist and composer Karol Beffa was due to be giving a concert in London this month, at the Institut Français' Beyond Words literature festival. In the event, the festival went on-line and Beffa performed remotely [available on YouTube], giving a programme in which he improvised on themes provided in advance by the audience. Beffa is something of a polymath, a distinguished composer and pianist known for his improvisations, he also has degrees in English, History, Mathematics and Musicology, studying in both Paris and at Cambridge. His doctorate in musicology involved a thesis on György Ligeti's Piano Etudes [in 2016 he published a book on the composer], and he now lectures at the Ecole Normale Supérieure in Paris. But intriguingly, from the age of seven to 12 he was a child actor, appearing […]
2020-05-22 08:32:27
Essential listening for anyone interested in Estonian music: Vox Clamantis' profoundly beautiful account of the music of Cyrillus Kreek, 'The suspended harp of Babel'
Cyrillus Kreek The suspended harp of Babel; Vox Clamantis, Jaan-Eik Tulve, Anna-Liisa Eller, Angela Ambrosini, Marco Ambrosini; ECM Records Reviewed by Robert Hugill on 22 May 2020 Star rating: 5.0 (★★★★★) Music at once familiar and unfamiliar, the Estonian choir explores the sacred music of one of the founders of the Estonian choral traditionTo listen to the choral pieces on this disc is to hear music which is somehow familiar. The name of the composer Cyrillus Kreek may well be unfamiliar, but his use of Estonian folk-song as material and his way of treating it musically has had great influence in Estonia. To listen to this music is to hear an essential component of the DNA of much 20th century and contemporary Estonian music. The Suspended Harp of Babel from ECM Records features Vox Clamantis and Jaan-Eik Tulve (conductor), Marco Ambrosini and Angela Ambrosini (nyckleharpa), Anna-Liisa Eller (kannel) […]
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