Inside the score
Will Work for Ducats: Freelancing in the Classical Era
From Bach’s church contract to Mozart and Beethoven’s unstable incomes, classical music has long balanced genius with financial precarity. The freelance musician, it turns out, was born alongside the modern…
Reading time estimated : 8min read
Interviews
In Conversation with Lucas Debargue: “The Only Reason I Practice Is to Become Free”
Over the years, Lucas Debargue has become a regular guest at the Verbier Festival, returning each time with ambitious projects. This summer, he has been entrusted with one of the…
Reading time estimated : 10min read
Inside the score
See all (102)
Will Work for Ducats: Freelancing in the Classical Era
From Bach’s church contract to Mozart and Beethoven’s unstable incomes, classical music has long balanced genius with financial precarity. The freelance musician, it turns out, was born alongside the modern…
Reading time estimated : 8min read
Patronizing for Power: King Louis XIV and French Baroque Music
At Versailles, music was more than entertainment. Under Louis XIV, it helped define French Baroque style while serving the court’s larger purpose: to glorify the monarch.
Reading time estimated : 9min read
Inside the musical machinery of an epic saga: the Leitmotif in Wagner’s Ring cycle
What makes Wagner’s 16-hour saga so immersive, coherent, and psychologically satisfying? The Leitmotif… This web of recurring musical ideas gives The Ring its elemental force, narrative depth, and extraordinary emotional…
Reading time estimated : 5min read
Wagner: Lord of the Ring
On the 150th anniversary of The Ring’s premiere, Jack Pepper revisits Wagner as revolutionary, dramatist and master of excess. A vivid portrait of the composer whose monumental vision transformed opera forever.
Reading time estimated : 11min read
A Musical Odyssey: Mythology in Classical Music
Christopher Nolan’s epic film The Odyssey has made Greek mythology one of the hottest topics of the summer. Listen to the most epic of…
Reading time estimated : 15min read
A Morning in Verbier: Behind the Scenes of the Recording of Lucas Debargue’s Recital
A pianist improvises unexpectedly, a sound engineer questions what’s happening, and a music consultant realizes what’s going on within seconds. In the medici.tv control room in Verbier, every concert is…
Reading time estimated : 10min read
Statement or Stunt? The Artists Who Destroy Pianos
From memorials to protests, demolishing pianos sparks powerful emotions ranging from awe to disgust. Why is destroying a piano still such a potent act, and why destroy them…
Reading time estimated : 8min read
News
See all (94)
An autograph Mahler score travels to Cleveland, fashion designers turn to ballet, Renée Fleming sings folk songs, and more
August 17: This week in classical music
Reading time estimated : 3min read
Drama at Bayreuth, Lorenzo Da Ponte in America, a rare chord change in Halberstadt, and more
August 10: This week in classical music
Reading time estimated : 4min read
Bach as a feminist, musical performance as an athletic endeavour, opera as the answer to ailing societies, and more
July 27: This week in classical music
Reading time estimated : 4min read
A very Hollywood-centric week: Pedro Pascal plays a cellist, Gustavod Dudamel and the NYPhil at the World Cup final, Anne…
July 20: This week in classical music
Reading time estimated : 3min read
Sir Anthony Hopkins’s classical album, a Wagnerian thought experiment, the Palais Garnier’s five-year renovation project and more
July 13: This week in classical music
Reading time estimated : 3min read
Herbert Blomstedt at 99
At 99, Herbert Blomstedt is still showing the musical world how it’s done — with clarity, humility and an authority that never needs to raise its voice. James Jolly explores…
Reading time estimated : 8min read
Sir Stephen Hough at The Leeds, Hillary Clinton at Carnegie Hall, and more
July 6: This week in classical music
Reading time estimated : 3min read
Staff cuts at the Royal Ballet and Opera, a relaxed dress code at the Waldbühne, 3D printing meets historical instruments,…
June 29: This week in classical music
Reading time estimated : 3min read
New Mozart discovered in Paris, Laufey’s tribute to dissonance, Jon Batiste’s take on Mozart, and more
June 22: This week in classical music
Reading time estimated : 4min read
Inside the score
Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 in D minor
From its oniric opening to its triumphant “Ode to Joy” finale, explore Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 to understand its birth in political unrest, daring orchestration, and legacy as a symbol of musical genius and political power.
Reading time estimated : 14min read
Interviews
See all (51)
Gábor Takács-Nagy: “The conductor’s mission is to inspire the orchestra”
At Verbier, Gábor Takács-Nagy reflects on his fondest memories from the festival, his relationship with the orchestra from rehearsals to the stage, and the importance of conducting with…
Reading time estimated : 4min read
Mao Fujita: “My Sound Expresses What Words Cannot”
For Mao Fujita, music says what words cannot. At Verbier, he speaks about memory, form, practice, exhaustion and the importance of making space to concentrate fully on music.
Reading time estimated : 4min read
Daniel Lozakovich: “Music Makes Us Believe in Other Worlds”
At Verbier, violinist Daniel Lozakovich reflects on the power of collaboration, the music that shaped him, and the sense of wonder that great teachers awaken. From Tchaikovsky and…
Reading time estimated : 7min read
Timothy Chooi: “Brahms Challenges Me the Most Emotionally”
From sunset in Verbier to the intimacy of Brahms, Timothy Chooi shares a personal view of performance, audience connection and the non-musical experiences that have shaped his artistic philosophy.
Reading time estimated : 3min read
In Conversation with Lucas Debargue: “The Only Reason I Practice Is to Become Free”
Over the years, Lucas Debargue has become a regular guest at the Verbier Festival, returning each time with ambitious projects. This summer, he has been entrusted with one of the…
Reading time estimated : 10min read
“My Goal Is Always to Try to Disappear” — Denis Kozhukhin in Évian
At the 2026 Rencontres Musicales d’Évian, Denis Kozhukhin reflects on Brahms, the mystery of performance, and the performer’s task: to bring the score to life while allowing the…
Reading time estimated : 7min read
“I Imagine Brahms as a Symphony” — Maria Dueñas in Évian
At the 2026 Rencontres Musicales d’Évian, violinist Maria Dueñas reflects on Brahms, sound, and the need to seek inspiration beyond music. On the occasion of her performance with Denis Kozhukhin,…
Reading time estimated : 4min read
Portrait of a Modern Music Listener: Gilbert Guicheney, the Opera-Loving Engineer
What does it mean to love classical music in 2026? In this new series, Page Turner meets listeners from all walks of life to discover how music accompanies…
Reading time estimated : 5min read
The Musician’s Physiotherapist: Meet Performer and Health Professional Michael Ingle
Musicians face unique physical demands, yet their pain is often misunderstood or ignored. Physiotherapist and musician Michael Ingle explains why specialized care is essential to prevent injury, support recovery, and…
Reading time estimated : 12min read
medici.tv picks
See all (55)
Seventeen Minutes to Fall in Love with Gershwin
From its iconic clarinet opening to its full-orchestra surges, Rhapsody in Blue remains a thrilling feat of musical imagination. Gustavo Dudamel and Yuja Wang bring Gershwin’s restless, exuberant vision to life with…
Reading time estimated : 5min read
“All Blues” all ways: How to make a Miles Davis jazz classic your own
Since it was recorded in 1959, “All Blues” from Miles Davis’s Kind of Blue has been reinterpreted countless times by jazz and funk musicians…
Reading time estimated : 5min read
An American Summer Dream: Barber’s “Knoxville: Summer of 1915”
Before summer fully arrives, Samuel Barber’s Knoxville: Summer of 1915 invites us into its dreamlike world—an intimate, nostalgic love letter to warm evenings, family, and memory.
Reading time estimated : 3min read
Natalia Osipova: A Force of Nature On and Off Stage
A must-see portrait of Natalia Osipova, an artist whose virtuosity and emotional intensity transcend ballet’s boundaries.
Reading time estimated : 3min read
Champagne, Irony, and Illusion: Inside Kosky’s Die Fledermaus
Barrie Kosky reinvents Die Fledermaus in a vibrant, ironic staging where humor and spectacle meet a subtle undercurrent of melancholy, revealing new emotional depth beneath Strauss’s…
Reading time estimated : 2min read
Top Piano Social Media Accounts You Need to Follow in 2026
Our social media team spends their days tracking trends in the classical music world. Here’s their curated list of the top accounts to follow if you live and…
Reading time estimated : 3min read
Hollywood in Vienna: A Tribute to Randy Newman
In anticipation of the Oscars this Sunday, take a look at this fantastic movie music program that just joined our catalogue, in which the Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra…
Reading time estimated : 2min read
Gabriela Montero’s Latin-infused piano magic: improv genius meets cultural pride
Through breathtaking improvisations and her vibrant Piano Concerto, the Venezuelan pianist-composer dazzles with a powerfully personal display of Latin-American pride and staggering virtuosity.
Reading time estimated : 5min read
Explore our content by categories
