sideNotes: The problem with policing joy
It was Friday, 11 April 1958, the final round of the first International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow. Rachmaninov’s Third Piano Concerto was the final work … Read more
sideNotes: Mariah Carey in the blue
The song Italy lent to the world. It is 7 February 2026, and the opening ceremony of the Milano Cortina Winter Olympics is under way … Read more
sideNotes: Returning home
Returning home – the last journey of Isang Yun This past November marked the 30th anniversary of the death of German–Korean composer Isang Yun. A … Read more
sideNotes: October 2025
The Blue Danube:A study in persistent inappropriateness It is 6:30 a.m. The gate for flight OS 370 to Vienna crackles to life. In the pallid … Read more
Embracing the legacy of Ferruccio Busoni
sideNotes: Gestures of Freedom: Embracing the legacy of Ferruccio Busoni Sunday morning at 10 a.m. is an unconventional time for the Grand Final of a … Read more
sideNotes: Jessye Norman
One Diva, no Pool: managing the impossible in Tokyo Tokyo, as the largest city in the world, has no shortage of hotels. From tiny capsule … Read more
A stroke of fate
sideNotes: International careers often come at a very high price for the artists: endless hours of travelling around the world; getting up in the middle … Read more
Side Notes
Freed from the jaws of the lion By Florian Riem Among the thousands of great compositions in classical music literature, there are some that are … Read more
sideNotes: Four Last Songs
Sergiu Celibidache, for those of you who knew him personally, was not exactly what we would call an “easy-going” character. There was an unmistakable finality, … Read more
Shifting gears through Winterreise
Sometimes, you can’t help but wonder what’s going through an artist’s mind while they’re performing. Are they solely focused on their music, the composer or … Read more