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My name is Sarah Jeffery, and I recently released My Favourite Melodies for soprano/tenor recorder and piano, published by Schott. I thought I’d take you with me on the process of creating a book of sheet music like this, and what goes into it. Let’s go…

A journey into the psyche of 500 years ago: Australian composer Mary Finsterer embarks on an extraordinary search for clues in her opera Biographica. The work will be premiered in Melbourne on September 21. Here at Theare Works, it will be directed by Heather Fairbairn and conducted by Patrick Burns.

Shipwreck at the airport: Hans Werner Henze's oratorio Das Floß der Medusa (‘The Raft of the Medusa’) opens the new season at the Komische Oper Berlin. In Hangar 1 of Tempelhof Airport, Tobias Kratzer stages the great question of humanity, which revolves around the calculated drowning of underprivileged people on the high seas. The premiere will take place on September 16, 2023 under the musical direction of Titus Engel.

Valentin Silvestrov is widely regarded as a significant contemporary Ukrainian composer. His compositions have garnered considerable attention since the Russian invasion. The composer had to flee and seek asylum in Berlin. Silvestrov's music relates the story of his homeland and advocates for peace and solidarity. On September 6, 2023, his Symphony No. 7 will have its Finnish premiere at Musiikkitalo Helsinki. The Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra  will perform it on occasion of its season opening under the direction of Olari Elts.

A sequel to Verdi's opera: The Niederrheinische Sinfoniker will perform the world premiere of the chamber opera Aida - The Fifth Act by Stefan Heucke on September 03 2023 in Mönchengladbach with the conductor Giovanni Conti. The libretto is by Ralph Köhnen with a production by Dennis Krauß.

A Belated Birthday Celebration: On 25 August 2023, as part of the Composer’s birthday celebrations, the Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra will present the world premiere of Joji Yuasa’s, Locus of the Orchestra, with Yoichi Sugiyama once more at the musical helm in Tokyo.

A powerful start to the day: Dawning by Huw Watkins receives its UK premiere with the Ulster Orchestra on August 16 2023 in Belfast  during the BBC Summer Invitation Concerts. Angus Webster will be the conductor.

Can classical music and jazz harmonise simultaneously? Nikolai Kapustin's Concerto No. 5 proves it's possible. The piece is set for its German debut, performed by the Junge Norddeutsche Philharmonie under the baton of Kiril Stankow. This remarkable event took place on August 6, 2023, in Bunderhee as a part of the Tidal Concerts, with Frank Dupree gracing the solo piano.

The best-selling diary returns for 2024 with a user-friendly portrait format, extra space for weekend appointments, and birthdays of hundreds of famous people in the world of music.

Classical Highlights presents the best-known and most popular performance pieces of the classical repertoire in arrangements for violoncello.