Classical Memoirs

Seeking to depose his brother Artaxerxes and take his place upon the Persian throne, Cyrus the Younger leads the 10,000 mercenaries on a dangerous campaign deep into the heart of Persia. There, Cyrus is killed and his generals overthrown, leaving a young Xenophon to lead the army on its treacherous journey home. Snowy mountains, wide rivers, violent blizzards, and hostile tribes obstruct their way, testing Xenophon's leadership and his soldiers' perseverance to the extreme.

Meditations is former U.S. President Bill Clinton's favorite book. This audio consists of a series of personal writings by Marcus Aurelius, Roman Emperor 161-180 AD, setting forth his ideas on Stoic philosophy.

How to think clearly, act purposefully, overcome any obstacle, and find peace and happiness along the way. The Meditations is a collection of Marcus' personal journal entries. They were not intended for publication but to remind Marcus himself of his principles and priorities. As a result, they are intimate, direct, and extremely useful. This new edition is rendered in contemporary English, with a foreword by Sam Torode.

In clear and entertaining prose, Plotkin explores a thousand years of music, introduces listeners to more than 100 great works, and profiles in depth many significant composers, including Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Berlioz, Tchaikovsky, Dvoxak, and Mahler. He describes all the musical instruments in the orchestra, defines major musical terms, and makes music theory comprehensible for the uninitiated. There are also conversations with important musicians who offer fascinating insights about their art.

Johannes Wirix-Speetjens realiseerde zich dat de kunstgeschiedenis vol queer iconen zit - van Leonard Bernstein tot Freddie Mercury. Deze ontdekkingen inspireerden hem eerst tot een serie podcasts voor de Vlaamse radiozender Klara, maar al snel groeide het idee: dit onderwerp verdient een boek. Met 'Classical Queers' brengt Johannes levens en passies samen in een kleurrijk portret van de kunstgeschiedenis die we dachten te kennen. De geschiedenis wordt vaak verteld vanuit een beperkt, mannelijk en heteroseksueel perspectief. Maar het verleden is zoveel kleurrijker dan dat!

“Number One” was a phrase my father—and, for that matter, my mother—repeated time and time again. It was a phrase spoken by my parents’ friends and by their friends’ children. Whenever adults discussed the great Chinese painters and sculptors from the ancient dynasties, there was...

'We come for the glitter, but instead we get the grit, in stories told with insight, tenderness and joy.' - Russell T Davies With a foreword by Steph McGovern 'I never thought I'd write a memoir. I never thought I'd do a lot of the things I have done in my thirty-four years, but life has a...

Toni Bentley, a dancer for George Balanchine, the greatest ballet maker of the 20th century, tells the story of Serenade, his iconic masterpiece, and what it was like to dance—and live—in his world at New York City Ballet during its legendary era. "Reading Bentley's Serenade made me feel...

The lives and music of the great composers of classical music unfold in this entertaining account, introduced by the conductor and musical personality Marin Alsop. In 1200 years, classical music grew from the chanting of medieval monks through the symphonies of Beethoven and the grand operas of Wagner to the huge orchestral sound-world of the 21st century, with its electronics and its film music.

The extant letters of Pliny, written between AD 97 and 112, give us a unique insight into Imperial Rome under the early Antonine emperors. Organised into 10 books, the letters reflect a wide range of topics, mirroring Pliny’s own public and private interests. Among many other subjects, the letters also include an eye-witness account of the eruption of Vesuvius in AD 79, with the final book containing the exchange of letters between the writer (whose career culminated as Governor of Bithynia) and the emperor Trajan.

Contained here is Julius Caesar's own account of his military adventures in Gaul at the head of the Roman army, uniquely presented in Caesar's first-person perspective (rather than as a third-person narrative as in the original Latin). Included are seven sections ("books") of the Gallic War, each encompassing one year of Caesar's battles and intrigues; though there is an eighth book, it is generally accepted to have been written by another general, shortly after Caesar's death in 44 BCE.

John Denver said, “I have a producer who looks like an accountant, and an accountant who looks like a producer”. Soberly dressed, unflashy, and a trained classical musician, in the golden age of the music business, Milt Okun stood out by not standing out. His legacy does that for him. He discovered and launched John Denver, and mentored him throughout his career. He created arrangements for Peter, Paul and Mary that the trio performed for half a century. He brought Placido Domingo a crossover career that made him an international star beyond the world of opera.

In a book that inspired the Amazon original series starring Gael Garcia Bernal and Malcolm McDowell, oboist Blair Tindall recounts her decades-long professional career as a classical musician, from the recitals and Broadway orchestra performances to the secret life of musicians who survive hand to mouth in the backbiting New York classical music scene, trading sexual favors for plum jobs and assignments in orchestras across the city.

In the world of opera, no figure in modern times loomed larger than the late Luciano Pavarotti, especially in his triumphant collaborations with Placido Domingo and Jose Carreras as the Three Tenors. Pavarotti captured the imagination of audiences around the world. In this memoir, the Grammy-award winning legend shares both the fortunate and the regrettable events that marked his life, including his forays into popular music, his performances in China, and the boos he endured at La Scala.

The unresolved and ambiguous details of Robert Schumann’s psychological decline and death have tended to dominate his biography. Yet in his time Schumann was lauded as a protean Romantic literary genius whose writings, as a music critic, poet, novelist and dramatist, eclipsed his musical creativity. How did Schumann reconcile these elements? Does his music suggest he suffered from bipolar disorder? How did his pianist wife, Clara, influence his compositions?

Is there any music more instantly recognizable and beautifully scored than Tchaikovsky’s wildly popular ballet Swan Lake? These and other works have become enduring classics, yet they were not uncontroversial in Tchaikovsky’s day, and there are those that still wonder if his style is fundamentally European or ardently Russian. Find out more about Tchaikovsky’s childhood obsession with music, his turbulent relationships with friends and colleagues, and how he overcame the deepest of personal crises to transcend all with an ambition that has left us with some of the greatest music ever written.

This is the poignant and compelling story of perhaps the most naturally gifted musical genius of all time. Copiously illustrated with examples of his music, it tells of Mozart's extraordinary childhood travelling the courts of Europe, and of how, after a brief period of fame in Vienna, his fortunes declined until his early death and last resting place in a pauper's grave.

Johann Sebastian Bach, baroque music's finest composer: Life and works in a short biography! Everything you need to know, brief and concise. Infotainment, education and entertainment at its best!

Chi è più sapiente? Colui che dice di sapere o colui che sa di non sapere? Su questo bivio del pensiero Socrate ha fondato la sua vita e imposta ora la sua autodifesa: stringente, appassionante, inoppugnabile. La fine è nota. E tuttavia Socrate non perde la sua forza: perché anche la morte può essere un’avventura, di silenzio o di conversazione.

This original hour-long audio documentary will take you in the footsteps of the 19th century’s most beloved and most played piano composer in the world: Frederic Chopin. So here we are going to discuss a relatively undocumented musical event (rich in anecdotes): Frederic Chopin's concert at the Hotel de Ville in Rouen on the evening of March 12, 1838. Whether you are a music lover, passionate about history or simply of a curious temperament, I invite you to immerse yourself in this fascinating story, alone or with your family.