The heavy metal band Pantera is known for their hard core edge, flashy metal image, and of course their hit album Cowboys from Hell. Formed in 1981, this 1990 breakout album truly earned the band the notoriety they receive today. Their first album with a major label and still their most well-known work of art, Cowboys from Hell solidified Pantera's status as one of the most influential metal ban…

In 'Tosca' Puccini explored the dark side of human emotion a marked change from the late-Romantic sentimentality of 'La Boheme'. Also in contrast to 'La Bohème' where the villain was fate and so the stage action was minimal both heros and villains are humans who struggle on stage and the clashes are always between single individuals. It is a story of cheating and doubt - nothing seems honest a…

This concert version has been prepared by Donald Mitchell for Soprano Alto Tenor and Baritone soloists 1 or 2 speakers SATB choir and Orchestra. The text has been compiled by R. Ellis Roberts.The first performance ofthis concert version was given on 27th June 1998 in the Snape Maltings Concert Hall as part of the Aldeburgh Festival by Janice Watson (Soprano) Catherine Wyn-Rogers (Mezzo-Sopra…

Par HERCHENRODER MARTIN. 'Toccata and Lament” was composed on commission in 2008 to inaugurate the large new organ in the Christ Church Cathedral, Rochester, NY, USA. This instrument is a detailed reconstruction of a late Baroque organ of 1776 from Vilnius in Lithuania. The point of departure - a clash of contrasting eras and musical cultures on two continents - already bodes excitement. Martin He…

Par HARVEY JONATHAN. Predominantly hushed and serene, Plainsongs for Peace and Light proved to be Jonathan Harvey’s final work. It sees Harvey re-examining the very fundamentals of his craft – superimposing lines of plainsong, relishing the simple clash of note againstnote and creating rich, otherworldly sonorities through an elaborate use of canon. Harvey was a composer who always embraced and so…

Beginning to build a repertoire of songs that you can play comfortably is the first important step in getting started in the Country Blues. But once you've got that repertoire-building process started it can be enormously helpful to become acquainted with the Blues in a more general less song-specific way learning the various stylistic pathways that enable experienced blues players who have nev…

Sofia Asgatovna Gubaidulina (b. 1931) is a Russian composer who for many years struggled to gain recognition for her work as it was seen by the Soviet authorities to be excessively atonal and too overtly spiritual. Her 1999 work Two Paths was commissioned by Kurt Maser and the New York Philharmonic and enjoyed substantial critical acclaim. It employs the unusual combination of two solo viola…

Big Sky Montana contains three pieces that imaginatively depict this western state. 'Land of the Shining Mountains' uses multiple key changes to display the majesty of Montana's various mountain ranges. Challenges for the student include large reaches in the left hand, a few accents, and syncopated rhythms. 'Song of the Sky' portrays birds with many quick melodic ornaments in the upper register. T…