A series of events had pianist Valentina Lisitsa questioning her desire to have a performance career. When her manager died, she began to look at herself as, in her words, “just another blonde Russian pianist.” Sheer determination, and YouTube, has changed all that.

Many publications took a retrospective look at the 20th Century leading up to January 1st, 2000.  There were so many, that I’d like to bring one in particular, which is both thought provoking and entertaining, to your attention. Rob Deemer at New Music Box gets credit for reminding me about NPR’s look at the 1900s [...]

Last Night at the Proms Attracts Record Crowd; How Do You Get to Carnegie Hall? Take I-64 East to the Lewisburg Exit and Turn Left;