Wolfgang Birtel

The melodies from George Gershwin's (1898-1937) musicals, from 'Porgy and Bess', from orchestral pieces like 'Rhapsody in Blue' or 'An American in Paris', we all know them! But the career of the young...

Who would have thought that ragtime would enjoy another renaissance! But more than 50 years after the death of its main representative, Scott Joplin, the film 'The Sting' has made this once popular st...

The only work still known today by Noack, 'Heinzelmännchens Wachtparade' [Parade of the Brownies] Op. 5 was called a 'character piece' by the composer himself, and this 'marche en miniature' conveys w...

Originally composed for piano solo, Rubinstein's 'Melody' Op. 3/1 is the best-known work written by the Russian composer. Thanks to the simple, yet tender melody and its expressive harmony, the name o...

The reputation of the Bohemian composer Zdenek Fibich (1850-1900) has always been somewhat overshadowed by that of Bedrich Smetana and Antonín Dvorák. This is a pity, for Fibich, though he died young,...

The American composer and pianist Edward MacDowell (1860-1908) is rather unknown around here, even though he had his artistic roots in here: For he was trained as a pianist in Paris, Stuttgart, Wiesba...

The music of small forms and of chamber-music instrumentations was to become the focus of the French composer Gabriel Fauré (1845-1924). In 1874, after many years spent in the 'provinces', the teacher...

Who would have thought that ragtime would enjoy another renaissance! But more than 50 years after the death of its main representative, Scott Joplin, the film 'The Sting' has made this once popular st...

The melodies from George Gershwin's (1898-1937) musicals, from 'Porgy and Bess', from orchestral pieces like 'Rhapsody in Blue' or 'An American in Paris', we all know them! But the career of the young...

The melodies from George Gershwin's (1898-1937) musicals, from 'Porgy and Bess', from orchestral pieces like 'Rhapsody in Blue' or 'An American in Paris', we all know them! But the career of the young...

The music of small forms and of chamber-music instrumentations was to become the focus of the French composer Gabriel Fauré (1845-1924). In 1874, after many years spent in the 'provinces', the teacher...

Originally composed for piano solo, Rubinstein's 'Melody' Op. 3/1 is the best-known work written by the Russian composer. Thanks to the simple, yet tender melody and its expressive harmony, the name o...

The reputation of the Bohemian composer Zdenek Fibich (1850-1900) has always been somewhat overshadowed by that of Bedrich Smetana and Antonín Dvorák. This is a pity, for Fibich, though he died young,...