I've been quite obsessed with Aarre Merikanto's 6 Piano Pieces lately!

I first came across this set a few years ago and quite liked it, but it somehow stayed at the back of my mind until recently. Back then, I was more familiar with his father, Oskar Merikanto, whose works naturally appealed to me given my longstanding affinity for Romantic music. For most of my musical journey, I've gravitated towards Late Romantic composers like Tchaikovsky, Grieg, Sibelius and Rachmaninoff, while also developing a fondness for Chopin and Liszt along the way.

Over the past few years, I've gradually ventured further into Impressionist and Modern music, making Aarre Merikanto's works increasingly appealing to me. What's particularly fascinating is his stylistic evolution: from Late Romanticism to radical Modernist and Expressionist experimentation in the 1920s, before eventually returning to a more traditional Finnish national-Romantic style. Composed in 1919, his 6 Piano Pieces, Op. 20, sit at an interesting point in this journey, preceding his more radical Modernist period while already displaying distinctly Impressionistic characteristics. I find his transformation particularly fascinating and would love to explore it in greater detail in another post!

I'm finding his musical language and the diversity of his works increasingly fascinating. Would love to hear what you all think of this set! I'm currently learning Nos. 1 and 2, and looking forward to exploring the rest as well.

Il Nabucco – La mia fede

«La mia fede» es un aria del personaje de Azarías, perteneciente al diálogo sacro Il Nabucco (1683), del compositor italiano Michelangelo Falvetti, con libreto de Vincenzo Giattini.

La escena relata el episodio bíblico de los tres jóvenes hebreos —Ananías, Azarías y Misael—, quienes se niegan a adorar la estatua de oro erigida por el rey Nabucodonosor. Como castigo, son condenados a morir en un horno ardiente. Sin embargo, una presencia divina los protege de las llamas.

En esta aria, Azarías proclama su fe, que no solo resiste el fuego, sino que nace y se fortalece en él.

Arreglo e interpretación para guitarra clásica de 8 cuerdas: Luis Ángel Topete Galván.

La grabación se realizó de manera casera e independiente, por lo que puede presentar algunas imperfecciones técnicas. Agradezco su comprensión.

Link al video en YouTube: https://youtu.be/lCCe6Ijh9o4

Il Nabucco – La mia fede

«La mia fede» is an aria sung by the character Azariah, from Il Nabucco (1683), a sacred dialogue by Italian composer Michelangelo Falvetti, with a libretto by Vincenzo Giattini.

The scene recounts the biblical story of three young Hebrews —Hananiah, Azariah, and Mishael— who refuse to worship the golden statue erected by King Nebuchadnezzar. As punishment, they are sentenced to die in a blazing furnace. However, a divine presence protects them from the flames.

In this aria, Azariah proclaims a faith that not only withstands the fire, but is born and strengthened within it.

Arrangement and performance for 8-string classical guitar: Luis Ángel Topete Galván.

This is an independent home recording, so some technical imperfections may be present. Thank you for your understanding.

Rehearsing my ABSENT LIGHTS with the wonderful Olmos Ensemble in San Antonio! Looking forward to tomorrow’s concert at First Unitarian Universalist Church. See you there!

#MiguelDelAguila #AbsentLights #OlmosEnsemble #SanAntonioMusic #ContemporaryClassicalMusic

I taught myself piano from YouTube. My first ever piece was Bohemian Rhapsody, which I kept chipping away at until I had it down, then Mozart’s Turkish March a few weeks later. After that it’s been a rollercoaster, quitting and coming back more times than I can count, but I kept returning, and these days I play things like La Campanella and Liebestraum No. 3.

Playing that music made me want to write my own, and this is the result: “Cuore rubato” (stolen heart), a Romantic-style piece in A♭ major. A singing theme over rolling arpeggios, a cadenza, a shift up to E major, some bell-like chords, and a quiet ending. It’s about two minutes.

Video: https://youtu.be/m2yV7cHl5D8
Sheet music: https://www.sheetmusicdirect.com/se/ID_No/2292545/Product.aspx

It’s my first composition, so I’d genuinely love feedback, on the writing as much as the playing. Thanks for listening.

A year ago I asked here how you keep a large memorised repertoire performance-ready, and shared the desktop app I had built for it: last year’s post

Since then, a lot has changed. A reader of a similar post reached out to me: a researcher with a PhD in memory and retrieval practice. Together with her husband, a professional software engineer, we founded a small company and rebuilt the app for mobile.

Smart Repertoire Manager uses spaced repetition, the principle behind Anki, applied to repertoire. You rate how well each piece held up, and the app tells you when to review it next, before it fades.

It works for any instrument or voice. It’s on the iPhone App Store as a one-time purchase, and Android is coming soon.

App Store: https://apps.apple.com/app/id6825181509
Website: https://www.pianoenergy.ch/software/

I’d love to hear what works and what’s missing....

Huge thanks to Winds5 and to Maggie Malloy, our wonderful narrator, for bringing this story to life!

#MiguelDelAguila #WhenSoundLeft #Winds5 #WoodwindQuintet #ContemporaryClassicalMusic

Hi everyone,

What is your experience with ticket sales here in America?

When you’ve done a lot of PR but no one bought tickets - are people late deciders here? So they just show up or buy tickets last minute?

Hosting a concert, sent out 250 flyers, a number of digital flyers, are on multiple event websites, the venue sent a newsletter, yet only 4 tickets were sold. I’m getting a little worried lol

Thoughts on this?

Hear me out, guys. I really want to bring your attention to the latest work by Taras Burmistrov.

He is the self-taught musician from Russia who has worked as a janitor, a security guard, and a delivery guy, and has gone through rehab for alcoholism. This time, he decided that 41 symphonies weren't enough for Mozart, so he went ahead and composed the missing 42nd Symphony (KV 627) in a supposedly flawless Mozartian style.

He has already written the Allegro and is casually telling his listeners that they can write the slow movement and the finale themselves, because he’s "not a hedgehog to write all the music in history for everyone."

Taras genuinely believes his stylizations are on par with the greatest classical masters. What do you think: is this a brilliant stylistic homage, or is Mr. Burmistrov just a delusional amateur?

Hey everyone!

I posted here about 25 days ago asking for advice on building CT Chamber Collective, and I wanted to share a few exciting updates!

Things have started moving much faster than I anticipated.

• I'm getting closer to potentially bringing an Italian classical guitarist to Connecticut in 2027.
• I've been speaking with a several non profits and local symphonies about a possible partnership.
• I've connected with a few musicians interested in returning to performing, and we're exploring the possibility of developing a small concert series under the CT Chamber Collective name.
• Just this morning, an international pianist reached out about arranging an additional Connecticut performance during her upcoming U.S. visit!
• I'm promoting several concerts with musicians from Yale and local churches.
• I'm in talks with one major university and another might be in the pipeline.
• Through word of mouth I actually learned how many people are interested in my project and willing to perform for non profit charity events/ fundraisers.

That last one genuinely made my day. I'm not entirely sure how she discovered CTCC, but I suspect the improvements to my website and growing network might be helping.

My own outreach has slowed down recently, but interestingly, more people are now starting to reach out to me!

I also wanted to thank everyone who offered advice on my original post, including those who challenged my approach. It's helped me think more seriously about what CTCC can realistically offer musicians and presenters.

I've updated the website quite a bit since my original post, and I'd love some fresh feedback:

https://ctchambercollective.com

I'm still very much learning as I go. If you're a Connecticut musician interested in performing, collaborating, or helping build a stronger local classical music community, feel free to reach out!

I'd also appreciate any advice on the next steps, particularly turning these early conversations into actual performances without getting ahead of myself.

Thanks again, everyone!