The False Myths and True Genius of Erich Wolfgang Korngold

1897 was an eventful year for music in Vienna: Johannes Brahms died and Gustav Mahler took over the Imperial Opera; the anti-Semitic Karl Lueger was elected mayor; the Eleven-year-old Ernst Toch decided to… Continue reading

Where Culture Intersects with History – The Music Estate

This is the modified text of a lecture I recently gave at London Royal College of Music. Click on the photos to enlarge them and to read the documents more easily What’s found… Continue reading

Thomas Hampson’s ‘Mirror of the World’ Broadcast

Thomas Hampson has put together a remarkable series of art-song broadcasts called Mirror of the World. His latest is based on my book Forbidden Music. When I posted the link on Facebook, only… Continue reading

TLS Review of Hans Gál’s Internment Diaries

I’ve been unable to write as much as I would like – but there are interesting items in the pipeline! I promise. Meanwhile, here is my review in the TLS of Hans Gál’s… Continue reading

Richard Stöhr – an important new Website

As composer websites come on-stream, there is little point in constructing ‘virtual exhibitions’ as their websites offer a wealth of biographical information, work-lists, timelines, audio clips and photographs. Richard Stöhr now has a… Continue reading

Reconciliation of Music Developments pre- and post-Hitler

Since my lecture on the subject of Music Restitution – available elsewhere on this blog – I have been forced over the intervening weeks to think more seriously about how we quantify the idea… Continue reading

Kevin Clarke’s excellent article on Operetta on the Orel Website

Kevin Clarke – who despite the English name hails from Berlin – has written a superb article on operetta and how we are still suffering the consequences of Nazi cultural policies. His exhibition… Continue reading

Not Reviews, but observations: ‘Mahagonny’ in London and ‘Die Gezeichneten’ in Lyon

The last thing I wanted to do was to turn this site into me reviewing performances and CDs. As a recording producer, I’ve read too many reviews – good and bad – that… Continue reading

Wilhelm Grosz, 1894 – 1939: From Mahler Successor to the Santa Fe Trail

  (Verflossen ist das Gold der Tage – Washed Away is the Gold of our Days – Rondel op. 11 from 1921) “In comparison with all of these other would-be Mahlerians, Wilhelm Grosz rises… Continue reading

Review in TLS of two new books on Schoenberg

I’ve reviewed two outstanding new books on Schoenberg for the Times Literary Supplement – in fact, they appear to have made my review their headline feature. The books are Julie Brown’s SCHOENBERG AND… Continue reading