November 2018

César Antonovich Cui (Jan. 18, 1835 - March 13, 1918) was a Russian composer and music critic, and also an army officer, and military academic. He's widely known for being a part of the "The Five" (also known as the Mighty Five, or the New Russian School), along with Mily Balakirev, Modest Mussorgsky, Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov, and Alexander Borodin.  Continue reading →

Toivo Ilmari Hannikainen (Oct. 19, 1892 - July 25, 1955) was a Finnish composer, born in to a musical family. His father Pekka Junani Hannikainen was a composer, as was his  brother Väinö Hannikainen. His brother Tauno Hannikainen was a conductor. Ilmari studied music at the University of Helsinki, and went on to study in Vienna, St. Petersburg, and Paris. He taught piano at the Helsinki Conservatory, and was later a professor at the Sibelius Academy.  Continue reading →

Isaac Manuel Francisco Albéniz y Pascual (May 29, 1860 - May 18, 1909) was a Spanish conductor, composer, and pianist. He was a child prodigy, and was performing at only four years old.  Continue reading →

Sir Arnold Trevor Bax (Nov. 8, 1883 - October 3, 1953) was an English author, poet, and composer. Born in a suburb of London to a wealthy family, his parents encouraged him to study music. As he had a private income,  he followed his own whims when it came to composition. He attended the Hampstead Conservatoire, and the Royal Academy of Music. While at the academy, he became an admirer of the music of Richard Wagner, Richard Strauss, and Claude Debussy (the latter two were frowned upon by the faculty). Bax became highly interested in Ireland and Celtic culture, and lived in Dublin for a time, and grew an interest in Nordic culture as well. Later on Bax would travel to Russia, and some of his works were influenced by his travels there. Continue reading →