Richard morrison

Is there a special sorcery in Seoul? Cunning creativity in Canada? Preternatural pizzazz in Paris? Oh, why do so many great pianists come from this or that country? We even have some in Britain; is th

Music cannot work a magic spell. It can, however, do wonderful things. In recent issues of BBC Music Magazine, we have explored the benefits to mental health of listening and playing music, not least

Among the many remarkable aspects of Clara Schumann’s life was the fact that she gave birth to eight children – seven of whom lived to adulthood. Given she lived in the 19th century, it is astonishing

My 16-year-old self wasn’t confident. I wasn’t sure of myself. I was quite a quiet child, and I’d been an only child until I was 10, when my sister came along. And so I was used to my own company. But

Patterns, says Clare Hammond. Learning a new piece, especially if you’re committing it to memory, and the clock is against you, is all about finding patterns. ‘If you can find patterns in a piece of m

Everything We Do Is Music – How 20th-Century Classical Music Shaped Pop Elizabeth Alker Faber 304pp (hb) £20 The concept behind Elizabeth’s Alker’s book is spelled out in the subtitle: ‘How 20th-Centu