How Classical and Jazz Met at Carnegie Hall (A Duke Ellington Love Story)
The stage is set. It’s January 23rd, 1943, Libya is free of Italian control at last, the classical film known as Casablanca is released across the United States, and the…
The Mighty Handful: How 5 Russian Classical Composers Conquered Europe
Over 150 years ago, a group of Russian classical composers banded together with the goal of promoting what was then Russian contemporary music. Dubbed The Mighty Handful , or simply…
Celebrating Genius: Watch the Best Mozart Operas Online
Picking just a few brilliant works and dubbing them the best Mozart operas is as difficult as picking the top ten songs of all time. But we're making an effort…
The Father of the Rossini Crescendo
Among the many composers who have left their infallible marks in music, the father of the Rossini crescendo rates high. This unique sound was originally created by several musical devices…
From Gershwin to Ghostbusters: A Year in the Life of a YouTube Variety Show
It's been a year since we began production of the Viva Virtuoso YouTube variety show. The first episode, featuring soprano Candace Bogan, first aired on October 5th, 2017, and we've…
The Henry Mancini Songs That Forever Marked a Hollywood Era
Every human with access to cable television has heard at least a dozen Henry Mancini songs over their lifetime. Many of us have heard hundreds of his songs countless times.…
Great Blues Voices: The Endless Trials of Eleanora Fagan, Lady Day
Eleanora Fagan, better known to most as Billie Holiday or simply Lady Day, was a powerful performer. Like many of the great blues voices of her time, she had a…