All composer articles
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BlogsThe cello is my absolute favourite instrument: composer Justus Rümenapp
Composer Justus Rümenapp speaks to The Strad about how the cello plays a significant role in his work, evident in his latest single for cello and piano, Longing
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Blogs‘New works come to life in such different ways’ - Violinist Fenella Humphreys on working with living composers
Ahead of the release of her album Prism on the Rubicon Label, violinist Fenella Humphreys shares how varied the musical experience can be when working with different composers, and how rewarding the end result can be
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Blogs‘Like "A Soldier’s Tale" on steroids’ - Wang Jie on a new commission
String playing meets spoken word with impeccable timing in Blame the Obituary, as the composer explains ahead of the Music@Menlo premiere
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ReviewBook review: Vaughan Williams
Julian Haylock reviews Eric Saylor’s biography of the English composer, published to mark the 150th anniversary of his birth
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Blogs‘I keep discovering new tones and shades’ - composer Jacob Mühlrad on writing for strings
Ahead of the release of his album of music from the film ’Burn All My Letters’, the composer reflects on the unique sounds stringed instruments contribute to his work
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NewsCellist and conductor Allan Stephenson has died
The musician, conductor and composer was 71 years old
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NewsViolinist and composer Jessie Montgomery appointed to Mannes School faculty
The New Yorker, 39, will take up the post in the autumn
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FocusWhy are female composers still markedly behind in terms of prominence?
Are quotas the solution, or do public attitudes still need to change, asks Peter Somerford
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FocusBrett Dean on his journey from Berlin Phil violist to full-time composer
The Australian violist and composer on taking career risks and the unique insights that came from playing the viola in an world-class orchestra
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NewsComposer Pierre Boulez has died aged 90
The French composer, conductor and pianist was a leading exponent of serialism and electronic music
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NewsHollywood composer James Horner has died in a plane crash
The composer of scores to films including Titanic and Braveheart was piloting the small private jet
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NewsDouble bassist and composer Alvin Brehm has died aged 89
The New York-born musician led an active career as a player, teacher, composer and administrator
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NewsComposer and violist Brett Dean named BBC Symphony Artist in Association
The Australian musician will work with the orchestra as a soloist, conductor and composer for three years
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FocusFrom the archive: how to annoy a great composer
In an extract from his memoirs, published in The Strad, January 1914, orchestral violinist William Quirke recalls Richard Wagner's arrival in London in 1877 for a series of concerts of his own work
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ArticlePioneering jazz cellist Fred Katz dies aged 94
American cellist and composer Fred Katz has died at the age of 94. Classically trained, Katz was credited as the first musician to explore the cello's potential for jazz improvisation.Born in New York in 1919, Katz studied piano and cello as a child, and took lessons with Leif Rosanoff, who ...
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FocusJames Ehnes on Mozart
In an article from August 2006, the Canadian violinist explains how he wrote his own cadenzas for the composer's violin concertos
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ArticleFernando Grillo (1946–2013)
Fernando Grillo, the Italian double bassist, composer and teacher, has died at the age of 67. Closely associated with Italy’s avant-garde movement, he experimented with new forms of sound production and collaborated with composers including Salvatore Sciarrino, Harrison Birtwistle, Iannis Xenakis and Luciano Berio. Karlheinz Stockhausen once dubbed Grillo ‘the ...