Music
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Renata Scotto *II 24 1934 –The Life You Give
Renata Scotto’s long and successful operatic career was marked by a rare combination of dramatic intensity and vocal flexibility, which allowed her to traverse a wide variety of styles. She believed strongly in the theatrical elements of performing and always focused her energies on the meaning of a text. She also felt much of the…
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Georg Friedrich Händel *II 23 1685 — The Life You Give
George Frideric Handel, German (until 1715) Georg Friedrich Händel, Händel also spelled Haendel, (born February 23, 1685, Halle, Brandenburg [Germany]—died April 14, 1759, London, England), German-born English composer of the late Baroque era, noted particularly for his operas, oratorios, and instrumental compositions. He wrote the most famous of all oratorios, Messiah (1741), and is also…
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Andrés Segovia *II 21 1893 — La Vida Que Das / The Life You Give
Andrés Segovia, nacido en Linares, España, el 21 de febrero del 1893, es el guitarrista y pedagogo cual, junto a Narciso Yepes, fue el principal responsable de la consolidación de la guitarra como instrumento de concierto, a un nivel comparable al que ocupan el violín y el piano, al menos en cuanto a la calidad…
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Simon Jeffes *II 19 1949 — The Life You Give
Simon Jeffes, born Simon Harry Piers Jeffes, on 19 February 1949, is the classically trained guitarist, composer and arranger who formed, and was the primary performer of, the Penguin Cafe Orchestra. He was the composer of the ballet Still Life at the Penguin Cafe, of the much-recorded piece Music For A Found Harmonium, and other…
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silence — music — silence
Whenever music happens, silence must follow.Not the absolute absence of sound but no other piece of music should be allowed to interject the silence which ought to encompass and protect a piece of music. A short, intricate piece, at times “simple” – Schubert, Chopin, Satie, Liszt, et cetera – interpreted by a mature, talented, seasoned,…
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Renée Lynn Fleming *II 14 1959 / The Life You Give
Renée Fleming, born February 14, 1959, in Indiana, Pennsylvania, U.S.A., is a soprano noted for the beauty and richness of her voice and for the thought and sensitivity she brings to the texts. Fleming’s repertoire is extraordinarily broad, spanning three centuries and ranging from Handel and Mozart through 19th-century bel canto to the works of…
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Peter Gabriel *II 13 1950 — The Life You Give
There is a complex, dotted, and cloudy line that divides or unites an individual in two. I am referring to what seems to be two sources and periods in the life of Peter Gabriel, as I see, hear, and think about his music. One Gabriel is the period during his work as front man to…
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Leopold Godowsky *II 13 1870 — The Life You Give
Leopold Godowsky, born February 13, 1870, in Soshly, near Vilnius, Lithuania, Russian Empire, is the renowned Russian-born American virtuoso pianist and composer, known for his exceptional piano technique. Godowsky entered the Berlin High School for Music at age 14; soon thereafter he went to the United States, where he spent most of the remainder of…
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Michael McDonald *II 12 1952 — The Life You Give
Michael McDonald, born February 12, 1952, in St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.A., is the singer-songwriter best known as the lead vocalist and keyboardist for the rock band the Doobie Brothers. McDonald became a fixture on rock radio with his rich and soulful vocals. He followed up his successful stint with the Doobie Brothers with a durable…
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Bertolt Brecht *II 10 1898 — The Life You Give
Bertolt Brecht, born Eugen Berthold Friedrich Brecht, on February 10 1898, in Augsburg, Germany, is the poet, playwright, and theatrical reformer whose epic theatre departed from the conventions of theatrical illusion and developed the drama as a social and ideological forum for leftist causes. Until 1924 Brecht lived in Bavaria, where he was born, studied…
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Leontyne Price *II 10 1927 — The Life You Give
Metropolitan Opera audiences began an extraordinary love affair with American soprano Leontyne Price immediately upon her debut on January 27, 1961. She was by then an internationally heralded singer and an experienced, refined musician and artist. But more than anything, it was the sheer beauty of her voice that excited her listeners. What they heard…
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Carole King *II 9 1942 — The Life You Give
Carole King, born Carol Joan Klein, on February 9 1942, in New York, New York, U.S.A., is the songwriter and singer (alto) who was one of the most prolific female musicians in the history of pop music. King’s mother was the source of her early music education. While still in high school, King began arranging…
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Alban Berg *II 9 1885 — The Life You Give
Alban Berg, born Alban Maria Johannes Berg, on February 9 1885, in Vienna, Austria, is the composer who wrote atonal and 12-tone compositions that remained true to late 19th-century Romanticism. He composed orchestral music (including Five Orchestral Songs, 1912), chamber music, songs, and two groundbreaking operas, Wozzeck (1925) and Lulu (1937). Apart from a few…
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Claudio Arrau *II 6 1903 — The Life You Give
Claudio Arrau, born February 6 1903, in Chillán, Chile, was one of the most-renowned pianists of the 20th century. Arrau’s father, an eye doctor, died when Arrau—the youngest of three children—was one year old. His mother supported the family by giving piano lessons and must have been gratified when her own son proved to be…
Sila Blume 