Portal:Music
(Redirected from P:MUS)
The Music Portal
Music is the arrangement of sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm, or otherwise expressive content. Music is generally agreed to be a cultural universal that is present in all human societies. Definitions of music vary widely in substance and approach. While scholars agree that music is defined by a small number of specific elements, there is no consensus as to what these necessary elements are. Music is often characterized as a highly versatile medium for expressing human creativity. Diverse activities are involved in the creation of music, and are often divided into categories of composition, improvisation, and performance. Music may be performed using a wide variety of musical instruments, including the human voice. It can also be composed, sequenced, or otherwise produced to be indirectly played mechanically or electronically, such as via a music box, barrel organ, or digital audio workstation software on a computer.
Music often plays a key role in social events and religious ceremonies. The techniques of making music are often transmitted as part of a cultural tradition. Music is played in public and private contexts, highlighted at events such as festivals and concerts for various different types of ensembles. Music is used in the production of other media, such as in soundtracks to films, TV shows, operas, and video games.
Listening to music is a common means of entertainment. The culture surrounding music extends into areas of academic study, journalism, philosophy, psychology, and therapy. The music industry includes songwriters, performers, sound engineers, producers, tour organizers, distributors of instruments, accessories, and publishers of sheet music and recordings. Technology facilitating the recording and reproduction of music has historically included sheet music, microphones, phonographs, and tape machines, with playback of digital music being a common use for MP3 players, CD players, and smartphones. (Full article...)
General images -
The following are images from various music-related articles on Wikipedia.
Terracotta statue of a Parthian lute player (from History of music)
Circular definition of "musicality" (from Elements of music)
US vinyl sales in units, 1995–2020; while album sales overall declined, those in the vinyl format rose toward the end of the 2010s. (from Album era)
Drawing of the tablet with the Hymn to Nikkal (c. 1400 BCE), the oldest of the Hurrian songs (from History of music)
Stevie Wonder, among the era's innovative artists (from Album era)
The Beatles have been credited by music historians for heralding the album era. (from Album era)
A radio broadcasting system from 1906 (from Music industry)
J. S. Bach (from History of music)
Kanye West (2007) emerged during the decade as an important hip-hop producer and album artist. (from Album era)
A musician in a recording studio (from Music industry)
Pink Floyd (1973) performing The Dark Side of the Moon, a leading commercial success of the LP era (from Album era)
The logo for Apple Inc.'s online iTunes store, which sells digital files of songs and musical pieces–along with a range of other content, such as digital files of TV shows and movies (from Music industry)
The Bull Headed Lyre of Ur, found in the Royal Cemetery at Ur, is the best known of the ancient Lyres of Ur (from History of music)
The Japanese boy band Arashi, who had the world's best-selling album (5x20 All the Best!!) in 2019 (from Album era)
The Rolling Stones in 1967 (from Album era)
As LPs fell out of favor to CDs, hip hop producers repurposed them as sampling sources, contributing to the development of record collecting. (from Album era)
The monumental Bianzhong of Marquis Yi of Zeng, c. 5th century BCE, from Hubei (from History of music)
Sheet music for part of the Missa Papae Marcelli by Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina (from History of music)
A studio engineer working with an audio mixer in a recording studio (from Music industry)
Guillaume Du Fay (left), with Gilles Binchois (right) in a c. 1440 Illuminated manuscript copy of Martin le Franc's Le champion des dames (from History of music)
c. 379 CE Bas relief of Sassanid women playing the chang in Taq-e Bostan, Iran (from History of music)
Notation indicating differing pitch, dynamics, articulation, and instrumentation (from Elements of music)
Platinum records by Elvis Presley, Prince, Madonna, Lynyrd Skynyrd, and Bruce Springsteen, at Julien's Auctions (from Album era)
An example of mechanically printed sheet music (from Music industry)
Frances Densmore at the Smithsonian Institution in 1916 where she was recording Blackfoot chief Mountain Chief for the Bureau of American Ethnology. In this picture, Mountain Chief is listening to a recording. (from Music industry)
Musicians working in a recording studio in 2010 (from Music industry)
Tin Pan Alley plaque on 28th Street between Broadway and Sixth (from Music industry)
Alleluia nativitas by Perotin from the Codex Guelf.1099 (from History of music)
.jpg)
.jpg)
_002.JPG)
Featured articles -
Featured articles are displayed here, which represent some of the best content on English Wikipedia.
Born in the U.S.A. is the seventh studio album by the American singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen, released on June 4, 1984, through Columbia Records. It was produced by Springsteen, Jon Landau, Steven Van Zandt, and Chuck Plotkin, and recorded in New York City with the E Street Band over two years between January 1982 and March 1984. Some of the songs originated from the demo tape from Springsteen's previous album Nebraska (1982). The recording sessions yielded between 70 and 90 songs; some were released as B-sides, others saw release on compilation albums, while a number remain unreleased.
Born in the U.S.A.'s sound is more pop-influenced than Springsteen's earlier albums. Its production is typical of mainstream 1980s rock music, with heavy use of synthesizers and a prominent snare drum. The lyrics contrast with the album's lively sound and continue the themes explored on previous records, particularly Nebraska. Topics include working-class struggles, disillusionment, patriotism, and personal relationships, although some tracks contain humorous lyrics. The cover photograph of Springsteen from behind against a backdrop of the American flag has appeared on lists of the best album covers. (Full article...)- E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial is an audiobook and soundtrack companion album for the 1982 film directed by Steven Spielberg. Composed by John Williams, the album was narrated by recording artist Michael Jackson, produced by Quincy Jones, and distributed by MCA Records. The audiobook was produced by Williams and Jackson working with Rod Temperton, Freddy DeMann, and Bruce Swedien.
The E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial audiobook was released by MCA on November 15, 1982 – the same month as Jackson's acclaimed sixth studio album Thriller – despite conditions given by Epic Records, Jackson's record label, that it should not be released until after Thriller. As a result, Epic took legal action against MCA which forced the album's withdrawal. During its curtailed release, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial reached number 37 on the Billboard 200 and number 82 on the UK Albums Chart. It was well-received critically and won Jackson a Grammy Award for Best Recording for Children. (Full article...) 
Gustav Mahler, photographed in 1907 by Moritz Nähr at the end of his period as director of the Vienna Hofoper
Gustav Mahler (German: [ˈɡʊstaf ˈmaːlɐ] ⓘ; 7 July 1860 – 18 May 1911) was an Austro-Bohemian Romantic composer, and one of the leading conductors of his generation. As a composer he acted as a bridge between the 19th-century tradition and the modernism of the early 20th century. While in his lifetime his status as a conductor was established beyond question, his own music gained wide popularity only after periods of relative neglect, which included a ban on its performance in much of Europe during the Nazi era. After 1945 his compositions were rediscovered by a new generation of listeners; Mahler then became one of the most frequently performed and recorded of all composers, a position he has sustained into the 21st century.
Born in Bohemia to Jewish parents of humble origins, the German-speaking Mahler displayed his musical gifts at an early age. After graduating from the Vienna Conservatory in 1878, he held a succession of conducting posts of rising importance in the opera houses of Europe, culminating in his appointment in 1897 as director of the Vienna Court Opera (Hofoper). During his ten years in Vienna, Mahler—who had converted to Catholicism to secure the post—experienced regular opposition and hostility from the anti-Semitic press. Nevertheless, his innovative productions and insistence on the highest performance standards ensured his reputation as one of the greatest of opera conductors, particularly as an interpreter of the stage works of Wagner, Mozart, and Tchaikovsky. Late in his life he was briefly director of New York's Metropolitan Opera and the New York Philharmonic. (Full article...)
"Like I'm Gonna Lose You" is a song by the American singer-songwriter Meghan Trainor from her debut major-label studio album Title (2015), featuring guest vocals from John Legend. Trainor wrote the song with Justin Weaver and Caitlyn Smith, and produced it with Chris Gelbuda. Epic Records released it as the album's fourth single on June 23, 2015. A soul love ballad, "Like I'm Gonna Lose You" is about savoring moments spent with loved ones and not taking them for granted.
Critics praised Trainor's vocals and the song's composition, but some thought its mellow style did not suit her. In the United States, "Like I'm Gonna Lose You" reached number eight on the Billboard Hot 100 and was certified 4× Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. It peaked at number one in Australia, New Zealand, and Poland, in the top ten in Canada and South Africa, and attained an 8× Platinum certification in Australia. (Full article...)- "It's a Wrap" is a song recorded by American singer Mariah Carey for her twelfth studio album Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel (2009). It is a doo wop-inflected R&B breakup song with minimal instrumentation and features lyrics about dismissing a lover. The track samples "I Belong to You" by Love Unlimited, whose writer Barry White is credited on "It's a Wrap" along with Carey. She produced it with Heatmyzer and previous collaborators Christopher "Tricky" Stewart and James "Big Jim" Wright. A remix features additional vocals by American singer Mary J. Blige.
Music critics disagreed on whether to categorize "It's a Wrap" among the best in Carey's discography or classify it as a mediocre effort. Carey performed the song on the television program Lopez Tonight in 2009. She reprised it throughout the Angels Advocate Tour in 2010 and received positive reviews that highlighted her vocals and energy. In early 2023, "It's a Wrap" went viral due to a TikTok dance challenge and was released as a promotional single on February 10 that year as part of a digital extended play. It peaked at number 24 on US Hot R&B Songs and entered charts in the United Kingdom, New Zealand and South Korea. (Full article...) - Yeah Yeah Yeahs is the debut extended play (EP) by the American indie rock band Yeah Yeah Yeahs. It was self-released on July 9, 2001, and reissued in 2002 by Wichita in the United Kingdom and Touch and Go in the United States. It was recorded as a demo over two days in early 2001 with producer Jerry Teel, and developed into their debut EP in an effort to land more shows. Yeah Yeah Yeahs features the band's early garage rock and art punk influences, and lead singer and lyricist Karen O's themes of romance and sex.
Yeah Yeah Yeahs topped the UK Indie Chart and had sold over 71,000 copies by the end of the decade. It was praised by critics for its unique sound and Karen O's performances, and named among the best releases of 2002 by The New York Times and NME. In 2024, Paste placed it among the 100 greatest EPs of all time. (Full article...)
Nikolai Andreyevich Rimsky-Korsakov (18 March 1844 – 21 June 1908) was a Russian composer, a member of the group of composers known as The Five. His best-known orchestral compositions—Capriccio Espagnol, the Russian Easter Festival Overture, and the symphonic suite Scheherazade—are staples of the classical music repertoire, along with suites and excerpts from some of his fifteen operas. Scheherazade is an example of his frequent use of fairy-tale and folk subjects. He was the husband of the composer Nadezhda Rimskaya-Korsakova.
Rimsky-Korsakov believed in developing a nationalistic style of classical music, employing Russian folk song and lore along with exotic harmonic, melodic and rhythmic elements in a practice known as musical orientalism, and eschewing traditional Western compositional methods. Rimsky-Korsakov appreciated Western musical techniques after he became a professor of musical composition, harmony, and orchestration at the Saint Petersburg Conservatory in 1871. He undertook a rigorous three-year program of self-education and became a master of Western methods, incorporating them alongside the influences of Mikhail Glinka and fellow members of The Five. Rimsky-Korsakov's techniques of composition and orchestration were further enriched by his exposure to the works of Richard Wagner. (Full article...)- "We Are the World" is a charity single recorded by the supergroup USA for Africa in 1985. It was written by Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie and produced by Quincy Jones for the album We Are the World to raise money for the 1983–1985 famine in Ethiopia. With sales in excess of 20 million physical copies, it is the eighth-best-selling single of all time.
After the British group Band Aid released the charity single "Do They Know It's Christmas?" in 1984, the musician and activist Harry Belafonte decided to create an American single for African famine relief. The agent Ken Kragen enlisted several musicians for the project. Jackson and Richie completed the writing the night before the first recording session on January 28, 1985. The recording brought together some of the era's best-known recording artists, including Bruce Springsteen, Cyndi Lauper, Paul Simon, Stevie Wonder, and Tina Turner. (Full article...) - The Ecstatic is the fourth studio album by American rapper Mos Def, released on June 9, 2009, by the independent record label Downtown Records. After venturing further away from hip-hop with an acting career and two poorly received albums, Mos Def signed a recording contract with Downtown and recorded The Ecstatic primarily at the Record Plant in Los Angeles. He worked with producers such as Preservation, Mr. Flash, Oh No, and Madlib, with the latter two reusing instrumentals they had produced on Stones Throw Records. The work of Stones Throw rapper MF Doom was also cited by Mos Def as an influence, while singer Georgia Anne Muldrow, formerly of the record label, performed as one of the album's few guest vocalists, along with rappers Slick Rick and Talib Kweli.
Described by music journalists as a conscious and alternative hip-hop record, The Ecstatic features an eccentric, internationalist quality. Mos Def's raps about global politics, love, war, spirituality, and social conditions are informed by the zeitgeist of the late 2000s, Black internationalism, and Pan-Islamic ideas, incorporating many Islamic references throughout the album. Its loosely structured, lightly reverbed songs use unconventional time signatures and samples taken from a variety of international musical styles, including Afrobeat, soul, Eurodance, jazz, reggae, Latin, and Middle Eastern music. Mos Def titled the album after one of his favorite novels, Victor LaValle's The Ecstatic (2002), believing its titular phrase evoked his singular musical vision. For the album's front cover, a still from Charles Burnett's 1978 film Killer of Sheep was reproduced in a red tint. (Full article...)
Zenzile Miriam Makeba (/məˈkeɪbə/ mə-KAY-bə, Xhosa: [máˈkʼêːɓà̤] ⓘ; 4 March 1932 – 9 November 2008), nicknamed Mama Africa, was a South African singer, songwriter, actress, and civil rights activist. Associated with musical genres including Afropop, jazz, and world music, she was an advocate against apartheid and white-minority government in South Africa.
Born in Johannesburg to Swazi and Xhosa parents, Makeba was forced to find employment as a child after the death of her father. She had a brief and allegedly abusive first marriage at the age of 17, gave birth to her only child in 1950, and survived breast cancer. Her vocal talent had been recognized when she was a child, and she began singing professionally in the 1950s, with the Cuban Brothers, the Manhattan Brothers, and an all-woman group, the Skylarks, performing a mixture of jazz, traditional African melodies, and Western popular music. In 1959, Makeba had a brief role in the anti-apartheid film Come Back, Africa, which brought her international attention, and led to her performing in Venice, London, and New York City. In London, she met the American singer Harry Belafonte, who became a mentor and colleague. She moved to New York City, where she became immediately popular, and recorded her first solo album in 1960. Her attempt to return to South Africa that year for her mother's funeral was prevented by the country's government. (Full article...)- "La Isla Bonita" (Spanish: [la ˈisla βoˈnita], lit. 'The Beautiful Island') is a song by American singer Madonna from her third studio album, True Blue (1986). Initially composed as an instrumental demo by Patrick Leonard and Bruce Gaitsch for Michael Jackson, it was presented to him but ultimately rejected. The track was later developed by Madonna, who added lyrics and co-produced it with Leonard. Marking her first foray into Latin pop, the song features flamenco guitar, Latin percussion, maracas, and several lines sung in Spanish. The lyrics reference an island called San Pedro, whose location remains ambiguous; Madonna described the song as a tribute to Latin American people.
Released on February 25, 1987, as the fifth and final single from True Blue, "La Isla Bonita" received positive reviews from music critics, who praised its melody, production, and romantic tone. It became a commercial success, reaching number four on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States. Internationally, it reached number one in Austria, Canada, Ecuador, France, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and West Germany, and became Europe's top-charting single of the year. The track has since appeared on several Madonna compilation albums, including The Immaculate Collection (1990) and Celebration (2009), and has been cited as an influence on the work of later artists. (Full article...)
The Symphony No. 4 in G major by Gustav Mahler was composed from 1899 to 1900, though it incorporates a song originally written in 1892. That song, "Das himmlische Leben" ("The Heavenly Life"), presents a child's vision of heaven and is sung by a soprano in the symphony's Finale. Both smaller in orchestration and shorter in length than Mahler's earlier symphonies, the Fourth Symphony was initially planned to be in six movements, alternating between three instrumental and three vocal movements. The symphony's final form—begun in July 1899 at Bad Aussee and completed in August 1900 at Maiernigg—retains only one vocal movement (the Finale) and is in four movements: Bedächtig, nicht eilen (sonata form); In gemächlicher Bewegung, ohne Hast (scherzo and trio); Ruhevoll, poco adagio (double theme and variations); and Sehr behaglich (strophic variations).
The premiere was performed in Munich on 25 November 1901 by the composer and the Kaim Orchestra, but it was met with negative audience and critical reception over the work's confusing intentions and perceived inferiority to the more well-received Second Symphony. The premiere was followed by a German tour, a 1901 Berlin premiere, and a 1902 Vienna premiere, which were met with near-unanimous condemnation of the symphony. Mahler conducted further performances of the symphony, sometimes to warm receptions, and the work received its American and British premieres in 1904 and 1905. The symphony's first edition was published in 1902, but Mahler made several more revisions up until 1911. After Mahler's death, the symphony continued to receive performances under conductors such as Willem Mengelberg and Bruno Walter, and its first recording is a 1930 Japanese rendition conducted by Hidemaro Konoye that is also the first electrical recording of any Mahler symphony. The musicologist Donald Mitchell believed the Fourth and its accessibility were largely responsible for the post-war rise in Mahler's popularity. (Full article...)
Walter Bache
Walter Bache (/ˈbeɪtʃ/; 19 June 1842 – 26 March 1888) was an English pianist and conductor noted for his championing the music of Franz Liszt and other music of the New German School in England. He studied privately with Liszt in Italy from 1863 to 1865, one of the few students allowed to do so, and continued to attend Liszt's master classes in Weimar, Germany regularly until 1885, even after embarking on a solo career. This period of study was unparalleled by any other student of Liszt and led to a particularly close bond between Bache and Liszt. After initial hesitation on the part of English music critics because he was a Liszt pupil, Bache was publicly embraced for his keyboard prowess, even as parts of his repertoire were questioned.
Bache's major accomplishment was the establishment of Liszt's music in England, to which he selflessly devoted himself between 1865 and his death in 1888. This was at the height of the War of the Romantics, when conservative and liberal musical factions openly argued about the future of classical music and the merits of the compositions written in their respective schools. Bache featured several of the orchestral and choral works through an annual series of concerts, which he single-handedly funded, organised and promoted. Likewise, he played an annual series of solo recitals that incorporated Liszt's piano music. (Full article...)
Artemy Lukyanovich Vedel (13 April [O.S. 1 April] 1767 – 26 July [O.S. 14 July] 1808), born Artemy Lukyanovich Vedelsky, was a Ukrainian-born Russian composer of military and liturgical music. He produced works based on Ukrainian folk melodies, and made an important contribution in the music history of Ukraine. Together with Maxim Berezovsky and Dmitry Bortniansky, Vedel is recognised by musicologists as one of the "Golden Three" composers of 18th century Ukrainian classical music, and one of Russia's greatest choral composers.
Vedel was born in Kyiv, the son of a wealthy wood carver. He studied at the Kyiv-Mohyla Academy until 1787, after which he was appointed to conduct the academy's choir and orchestra. In 1788, he was sent to Moscow to work for the regional governor, but he returned home in 1791 and resumed his career at the Kyiv-Mohyla Academy. General Andrei Levanidov recruited him to lead Kyiv's regimental chapel and choir—under Levanidov's patronage, Vedel reached the peak of his creativity as a composer. He moved with Levanidov to the Kharkov Governorate, where he organised a new choir and orchestra, and taught at the Kharkiv Collegium. (Full article...)
Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 1809 – 4 November 1847), simply known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic era. Mendelssohn's compositions include symphonies, concertos, piano music, organ music and chamber music. His best-known works include the String Octet, the overture and incidental music for A Midsummer Night's Dream (which includes his "Wedding March"), the Italian and Scottish Symphonies, the oratorios St. Paul and Elijah, the Hebrides Overture, the mature Violin Concerto, and the melody used in the Christmas carol "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing". Mendelssohn's Songs Without Words are his most famous solo piano compositions.
Mendelssohn's grandfather was the Jewish philosopher Moses Mendelssohn, but Felix was initially raised without religion until he was baptised aged seven into the Reformed Christian church. He was recognised early as a musical prodigy, but his parents were cautious and did not seek to capitalise on his talent. His sister Fanny received a similar musical education and was a talented composer and pianist in her own right; some of her early songs were published under her brother's name and her Easter Sonata was for a time mistakenly attributed to him after being lost and rediscovered in the 1970s. (Full article...)
.png)
.jpg)
Selected pictures
Photo: W. J. Mayer; Restoration: Lise BroerA bust of the German composer and pianist Ludwig van Beethoven (1770–1827), made from his death mask. He was a crucial figure in the transitional period between the Classical and Romantic eras in Western classical music, and remains one of the most acclaimed and influential composers of all time. Born in Bonn, of the Electorate of Cologne and a part of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation in present-day Germany, he moved to Vienna in his early twenties and settled there, studying with Joseph Haydn and quickly gaining a reputation as a virtuoso pianist. His hearing began to deteriorate in the late 1790s, yet he continued to compose, conduct, and perform, even after becoming completely deaf.
Poster credit: Alfredo Leonardo Edel; restored by Adam CuerdenLe mage is an opera in five acts by Jules Massenet to a French libretto by Jean Richepin. First performed at the Paris Opera in 1891, it has rarely been performed since its premiere run of 31 performances, and is one of Massenet's least-known operas. A rare complete concert performance took place at the Massenet Festival in Saint-Étienne in 2012. This poster by Alfredo Edel was produced for the opera's premiere on 16 March 1891.
Illustration credit: unknownAriadne auf Naxos ('Ariadne on Naxos'), Op. 60, is an opera by Richard Strauss with a German libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal. Combining slapstick comedy and consummately beautiful music, the opera's theme is the competition between high and low art for the public's attention. The opera was originally conceived as a 30-minute divertissement to be performed at the end of Hofmannsthal's adaptation of Molière's play Le Bourgeois gentilhomme. Besides the opera, Strauss provided incidental music to be performed during the play. In the end, the opera was ninety minutes long, and the performance of the play and opera together totalled over six hours. It was first performed at the Staatsoper Stuttgart on 25 October 1912, directed by Max Reinhardt. The combination of the play and opera proved to be unsatisfactory to the audience: those who had come to hear the opera resented having to wait until the play finished. The work was revised in 1916, with the play being replaced by a prologue, and first performed at the Vienna State Opera on 4 October of that year.
This picture is the cover of a vocal score of the revised edition of Ariadne auf Naxos, published in 1916.
Photograph credit: Carl Van Vechten; restored by Adam CuerdenBessie Smith (April 15, 1894 – September 26, 1937) was an American blues singer widely renowned during the Jazz Age. She is often regarded as one of the greatest singers of her era and was a major influence on fellow blues singers, as well as jazz vocalists.
Born in Chattanooga, Tennessee, her parents died when Smith was young, and she and her sister survived by performing on the streets of Chattanooga, Tennessee. She began touring and performed in a group that included Ma Rainey, and then went out on her own. Her successful recording career began in the 1920s, until an automobile accident ended her life at age 43.
Manuscript: Alessandro ScarlattiGriselda is an opera seria in three acts by the Italian composer Alessandro Scarlatti. First performed in 1721, it is based on the story of Patient Griselda from Giovanni Boccaccio's Decameron. The libretto is by Apostolo Zeno, with revisions by an anonymous author. This manuscript copy by Scarlatti, held at the British Library, is of act one, scene one.
Photograph credit: Eugène Pirou; restored by Adam CuerdenJules Massenet (12 May 1842 – 13 August 1912) was a French composer of the Romantic era, best known for his operas. Between 1867 and his death, he wrote more than forty stage works in a wide variety of styles, from opéra comique to grand depictions of classical myths, romantic comedies and lyric dramas, as well as oratorios, cantatas and ballets. Massenet had a good sense of the theatre and of what would succeed with the Parisian public. Despite some miscalculations, he produced a series of successes that made him the leading opera composer in France in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. By the time of his death, he was regarded as old-fashioned; his works, however, began to be favourably reassessed during the mid-20th century, and many have since been staged and recorded. This photograph of Massenet was taken by French photographer Eugène Pirou in 1875.
Photograph credit: Carl Van Vechten; restored by Adam CuerdenWilliam Grant Still (1895–1978) was an American composer of nearly 200 works, including five symphonies and nine operas. Often referred to as the "Dean of Afro-American Composers", Still was the first American composer to have an opera produced by the New York City Opera. His first symphony, entitled Afro-American Symphony, was until 1950 the most widely performed symphony composed by an American. Born in Mississippi, he grew up in Little Rock, Arkansas, attended Wilberforce University and Oberlin Conservatory of Music, and was a student of George Whitefield Chadwick and later Edgard Varèse. Still was the first African American to conduct a major American symphony orchestra and the first to have an opera performed on national television. Due to his close association and collaboration with prominent African-American literary and cultural figures, he is considered to be part of the Harlem Renaissance movement.
This picture of Still was taken by Carl Van Vechten in 1949; the photograph is in the collection of the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C.
Photograph: AiluraNina Sublatti (b. 1995) is a Georgian singer, songwriter, and model. Having previously won the 2013 Georgian edition of Idol, she achieved international attention when she represented her country in Eurovision Song Contest 2015 with her song "Warrior". She has since served as a judge on X Factor Georgia and Idols.
Photo credit: New York World-Telegram and SunLouis Armstrong, nicknamed "Satchmo" or "Pops", was an American jazz trumpeter and singer. Armstrong was a foundational influence on jazz, shifting the music's focus from collective improvisation to solo performers. With his distinctive gravelly voice, Armstrong was also an influential singer, demonstrating great dexterity as an improviser and as a scat singer.
Photograph: Achim RaschkaSimon Neil (b. 1979) is a Scottish vocalist, guitarist, and songwriter. Born in Irvine, he established the band Biffy Clyro in 1995 with James and Ben Johnston. He has also played with JP Reid of Sucioperro in Marmaduke Duke, using the pseudonym "The Atmosphere", and started a solo career.
Photograph: Georg Lindstrøm; restoration: Adam CuerdenCarl Nielsen (1865–1931) was a Danish musician, conductor and violinist, widely recognized as his country's most prominent composer. Initially playing in a military band before attending the Royal Danish Academy of Music in Copenhagen, he premiered his Op. 1, Suite for Strings, in 1888, at the age of 23. His early music was inspired by composers such as Brahms and Grieg, but he soon developed his own style. By the time of his death, he had produced 419 known works; some of these, such as his opera Maskarade (1906), have become integral to Denmark's national heritage.
Photo: ChrisHamburgOceana (born 1982) is a German singer of German/Martiniquen descent. She is shown here performing at the Radio Hamburg Top 820.
Photograph credit: Fritz Luckhardt; restored by Adam CuerdenJohann Strauss II (25 October 1825 – 3 June 1899) was an Austrian composer of light music, particularly dance music and operettas. Part of the Strauss dynasty, his father demanded that none of his sons pursue music as a career, despite their display of musical talent. It was only after his father had abandoned the family for a mistress that the younger Strauss was able to develop his skills as a composer, with the encouragement of his mother. He eventually attained greater fame than his father, and became one of the most popular waltz composers of the era, conducting extensive tours of Austria, Poland and Germany with his orchestra.
Photo credit: Louis-Auguste BissonThe only known photograph of Frédéric Chopin, often incorrectly described as a daguerreotype. It is believed to have been taken in 1849 during the degenerative stages of his tuberculosis, shortly before his death. Chopin, a Polish pianist and composer of the Romantic era, is widely regarded as one of the most famous, influential, admired and prolific composers for the piano. He moved to Paris at the age of twenty, adopting the French variant of his name, "Frédéric-François", by which he is now known.
_by_Carl_Van_Vechten.jpg)
_crop.jpg)
Related portals
Did you know (auto-generated)
- ... that a brewery was responsible for commissioning Philadelphia's Grand Opera House?
- ... that the Cook Opera House transitioned from opera to vaudeville to cinema before ending as a venue for strippers and dirty comics?
- ... that teenage vocalist Alda Risma won Best Pop Female Solo Artist at the Indonesian Music Awards for her debut album?
- ... that the Cook Opera House transitioned from opera to vaudeville to cinema before ending as a venue for strippers and dirty comics?
- ... that John Wilkes Booth gave a thrilling performance at the Cleveland Academy of Music while bleeding heavily from an accidental sword wound?
- ... that Yamada's Choreographic Symphony "Maria Magdalena" is based on a ballet that couldn't be set due to religious concerns?
Today's Birthdays
- Birthdays in Music: August 8
- Connie Stevens, American actress and singer, turns 88.
- Ali Score, Brit drummer for synthpop group, A Flock of Seagulls, turns 70.
- Dennis Drew, American keyboardist for 10,000 Maniacs, turns 69.
- Chris Foreman, guitarist for the ska band known as Madness, turns 68.
- The Edge, (nee David Evans) Brit lead guitarist of U2 fame, turns 65.
- Rikki Rockett, (born Richard Allan Ream) American drummer for glam metal rock band, Poison, turns 65.
- Kool Moe Dee, American rapper, turns 64.
- Scott Stapp, American singer of Creed fame, turns 53.
- JC Chasez, of 'N Sync, an American boy band , turns 50.
- Drew Lachey, member of the American boy band known as 98 Degrees, turns 50.
- Crystal Evans, American vocalist for Girl Authority, turns 32.
Categories
Select [►] to view subcategories
Explore
Connections
WikiProjects connected with music: WikiProject Music – Songs – Albums – Alternative music - Classical music – Composers – Contemporary Christian music – Contemporary music – Electronic music – Emo music – Hip-hop – Instruments – Led Zeppelin - Metal music – Jazz – Musicians – Opera – Panic at the Disco – Powderfinger (band) – Punk music – Record Labels – Record Production – Rock music – R&B and Soul Music – Terminology – The Beatles
Create a requested article: See the list of Requested articles.
Improve an article: See the Music Noticeboard for a list of tasks.
Start a music course: School of Music at Wikiversity
Associated Wikimedia
The following Wikimedia Foundation sister projects provide more on this subject:
-
Commons
Free media repository -
Wikidata
Free knowledge base -
Wikiquote
Collection of quotations -
Wikisource
Free-content library -
Wikispecies
Directory of species -
Wikiversity
Free learning tools -
Wikivoyage
Free travel guide -
Wiktionary
Dictionary and thesaurus
Discover Wikipedia using portals
