40 for 40

Prelude to the Afternoon of a FaunPremiered in Paris in December of 1894, Debussy's Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun was inspired by L'Apres-midi d'un…

The Moldau, My CountryBedrich Smetana used the 19th century popular form of a symphonic tone poem to musically demonstrate his love of country, and the…

Spiegel im Spiegel (Mirror in the Mirror)This music written in 1978 has a beautiful simplicity that instantly captures the attention. Pärt calls this…

Messiah"When he chooses, he strikes like a thunderbolt.” - Mozart on HandelDespite opera being frowned upon during Lent, people still found a way to enjoy…

Canon and Gigue in DCould German baroque composer Johann Pachelbel have realized that such a simple little piece, one of hundreds that he wrote, would…

Symphony No. 3 in E-Flat, EroicaIn Italian it means,”Heroic.” Beethoven was serious. It was the longest, most sweeping and confrontational symphony of its…

1812 Overture?You’ve heard it on the Fourth of July with canons and fireworks. Tchaikovsky worked on his famous overture in the fall 1880 on commission to…

Boléro ?Boléro is a one-movement orchestral piece by Maurice Ravel that’s remarkable for many reasons. There’s not a single written crescendo or tempo…

Symphony No. 40 in g minor, K 550One of three symphonies composed by Mozart in 1788, No. 40 was written at a dark time in Mozart’s life, when the…

Finlandia, Op. 26Finlandia is probably one of the most widely known of all of the works by Jean Sibelius. The original music was part of a larger work,…