Anthony Princiotti
@tonyprinciotti.bsky.social
Conductor, Violinist, Teacher; Longtime Producer of Digital Engagement Materials for @BostonSymphony. Juilliard/Yale grad.
E-mail: anthony@opusvivo.com
Newsletter: http://therefuge.substack.com (new editions on Wednesdays and Sundays)
E-mail: anthony@opusvivo.com
Newsletter: http://therefuge.substack.com (new editions on Wednesdays and Sundays)
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In this Week's Edition of "The Refuge":
A Sonic Plague
Exploring the Viola Joke
How Tuning is Like Suburban Sprawl
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A Sonic Plague
Exploring the Viola Joke
How Tuning is Like Suburban Sprawl
therefuge.substack.com
Please Share and Subscribe!
"There are two supreme gods in the art of music: Beethoven and Gluck. These two Jupiters form a single god, and all we can do is to lose ourselves in admiration and respect for him."
- Hector Berlioz
- Hector Berlioz
November 15, 2025 at 4:43 AM
"There are two supreme gods in the art of music: Beethoven and Gluck. These two Jupiters form a single god, and all we can do is to lose ourselves in admiration and respect for him."
- Hector Berlioz
- Hector Berlioz
Even with authoritative editions, close scrutiny of a score is merited. For example, the horns ("Cor.") ostensibly required to play this piece are two different instruments: a "Hunting" horn (Corni da caccia), and a "Crap" horn (Corni da cacca).
Let the games begin...
Let the games begin...
November 15, 2025 at 4:43 AM
Even with authoritative editions, close scrutiny of a score is merited. For example, the horns ("Cor.") ostensibly required to play this piece are two different instruments: a "Hunting" horn (Corni da caccia), and a "Crap" horn (Corni da cacca).
Let the games begin...
Let the games begin...
The artistically uncompromising Gluck could be just as stubborn with regard to his personal affairs. When his doctor told him in 1787 that he'd die if he didn't radically curtail his drinking, the composer steadfastly refused. By the end of the year, he was dead.
November 15, 2025 at 4:36 AM
The artistically uncompromising Gluck could be just as stubborn with regard to his personal affairs. When his doctor told him in 1787 that he'd die if he didn't radically curtail his drinking, the composer steadfastly refused. By the end of the year, he was dead.
After moving to Paris in 1770, Gluck was drafted into rivalry with Niccolò Piccinni, whose operas in the lighter old Italian style were preferred by some. A bitter controversy ensued; the question “are you a Piccinnist or a Gluckist?” ended many friendships.
November 15, 2025 at 4:35 AM
After moving to Paris in 1770, Gluck was drafted into rivalry with Niccolò Piccinni, whose operas in the lighter old Italian style were preferred by some. A bitter controversy ensued; the question “are you a Piccinnist or a Gluckist?” ended many friendships.
On this day in 1787, the celebrated Bohemian-born opera composer Christoph Willibald Gluck died in Vienna. Now largely-overlooked, his belief that text and narrative should determine an opera's content and form would find its fullest expression in the works of Berlioz and Wagner.
November 15, 2025 at 4:34 AM
On this day in 1787, the celebrated Bohemian-born opera composer Christoph Willibald Gluck died in Vienna. Now largely-overlooked, his belief that text and narrative should determine an opera's content and form would find its fullest expression in the works of Berlioz and Wagner.
"I offer these modest songs to my dear wife Olympe as a simple testimony of gratitude for the affectionate, intelligent care which she lavished on me during my overlong and terrible illness."
- Dedication of Rossini's "Musique anodine" (1857).
- Dedication of Rossini's "Musique anodine" (1857).
November 13, 2025 at 5:06 AM
"I offer these modest songs to my dear wife Olympe as a simple testimony of gratitude for the affectionate, intelligent care which she lavished on me during my overlong and terrible illness."
- Dedication of Rossini's "Musique anodine" (1857).
- Dedication of Rossini's "Musique anodine" (1857).
Rossini, listening to someone trying to explain MAGA.
November 13, 2025 at 5:05 AM
Rossini, listening to someone trying to explain MAGA.
Rossini's light-hearted music hardly reflected his interior life. After his early retirement in 1829, he spent his final 39 years eating to dull his emotional pain, leading one critic to comment: “Rossini used to be stuffed with music; now he's stuffed with prosciutto."
November 13, 2025 at 5:04 AM
Rossini's light-hearted music hardly reflected his interior life. After his early retirement in 1829, he spent his final 39 years eating to dull his emotional pain, leading one critic to comment: “Rossini used to be stuffed with music; now he's stuffed with prosciutto."
After writing 39 operas between 1806 and 1829 (incredibly, 34 of them were written during one 13 year-stretch), Rossini simply stopped composing. Why? 1) he was burnt out; 2) a looming, unexplainable sense of despair; 3) advancing arthritis due to a gonorrheal infection.
November 13, 2025 at 5:03 AM
After writing 39 operas between 1806 and 1829 (incredibly, 34 of them were written during one 13 year-stretch), Rossini simply stopped composing. Why? 1) he was burnt out; 2) a looming, unexplainable sense of despair; 3) advancing arthritis due to a gonorrheal infection.
On this date in 1868, the Italian composer Gioachino Rossini died in Paris of cancer at the age of 76. His 39 operas (many of which remain staples the repertoire) brought him astonishing wealth and fame. In the 1820s, he even overshadowed Beethoven in Vienna.
November 13, 2025 at 5:02 AM
On this date in 1868, the Italian composer Gioachino Rossini died in Paris of cancer at the age of 76. His 39 operas (many of which remain staples the repertoire) brought him astonishing wealth and fame. In the 1820s, he even overshadowed Beethoven in Vienna.
“The luck of having talent is not enough; one must also have a talent for luck.”
- Hector Berlioz
- Hector Berlioz
November 12, 2025 at 4:41 AM
“The luck of having talent is not enough; one must also have a talent for luck.”
- Hector Berlioz
- Hector Berlioz
Ralph Vaughan Williams, waiting for you to screw up that difficult 16th-note passage again.
November 12, 2025 at 4:40 AM
Ralph Vaughan Williams, waiting for you to screw up that difficult 16th-note passage again.
The opening of Brahms' Op. 111 String Quintet is considered problematic, as the cellist often struggles to make the theme heard through a sonorous wall of sextuplets played by the violins and violas above. But the struggle is the POINT; it amplifies the tune's heroic character.
November 12, 2025 at 4:38 AM
The opening of Brahms' Op. 111 String Quintet is considered problematic, as the cellist often struggles to make the theme heard through a sonorous wall of sextuplets played by the violins and violas above. But the struggle is the POINT; it amplifies the tune's heroic character.
Brahms, a die-hard bachelor, once confessed that Alice Barbi was the only woman he’d ever wished to marry. It appears that the relationship foundered over his lack of interest in fatherhood. Nonetheless, they would always hold each other in high esteem.
November 12, 2025 at 4:37 AM
Brahms, a die-hard bachelor, once confessed that Alice Barbi was the only woman he’d ever wished to marry. It appears that the relationship foundered over his lack of interest in fatherhood. Nonetheless, they would always hold each other in high esteem.
135 years ago today, Brahms' 2nd String Quintet was premiered in Vienna. Composed at a point when he believed he was "written-out", this ebullient piece was inspired by a new friend: an attractive mezzo-soprano with extraordinary artistic gifts named Alice Barbi.
November 12, 2025 at 4:35 AM
135 years ago today, Brahms' 2nd String Quintet was premiered in Vienna. Composed at a point when he believed he was "written-out", this ebullient piece was inspired by a new friend: an attractive mezzo-soprano with extraordinary artistic gifts named Alice Barbi.
"Hands that are capable of executing that which is fastest are not always those which succeed in the tender and sentimental pieces, and I would acknowledge in good faith that I like better what touches me than what surprises me."
- François Couperin.
- François Couperin.
November 10, 2025 at 4:42 AM
"Hands that are capable of executing that which is fastest are not always those which succeed in the tender and sentimental pieces, and I would acknowledge in good faith that I like better what touches me than what surprises me."
- François Couperin.
- François Couperin.
Francois Couperin, seen here waiting for the leadership of the Democratic Party to grow a freakin' spine.
November 10, 2025 at 4:41 AM
Francois Couperin, seen here waiting for the leadership of the Democratic Party to grow a freakin' spine.
Both Debussy and Ravel celebrated Couperin, although for different reasons. Debussy, a cultural warrior, saw him as a symbol French musical prestige in an era before German music achieved hegemonic status. Ravel simply loved the exquisite lucidity of Couperin's aesthetic.
November 10, 2025 at 4:39 AM
Both Debussy and Ravel celebrated Couperin, although for different reasons. Debussy, a cultural warrior, saw him as a symbol French musical prestige in an era before German music achieved hegemonic status. Ravel simply loved the exquisite lucidity of Couperin's aesthetic.
Couperin became the organist at the court of Louis XIV, giving him access to the most influential music patrons in Europe. In 1713, Louis granted him a 20-year publishing privilege, which he would use to issue 4 Volumes of keyboard works and a keyboard-playing treatise.
November 10, 2025 at 4:39 AM
Couperin became the organist at the court of Louis XIV, giving him access to the most influential music patrons in Europe. In 1713, Louis granted him a 20-year publishing privilege, which he would use to issue 4 Volumes of keyboard works and a keyboard-playing treatise.
On this date in 1668, the French composer, harpsichordist and organist Francois Couperin was born. The product of a family of highly-skilled musicians, he was known as "Couperin the Great", a distinguishing nickname that reflected his status as a giant of French Baroque music.
November 10, 2025 at 4:22 AM
On this date in 1668, the French composer, harpsichordist and organist Francois Couperin was born. The product of a family of highly-skilled musicians, he was known as "Couperin the Great", a distinguishing nickname that reflected his status as a giant of French Baroque music.
Beethoven, on Goethe:
"He delights in the court atmosphere far more than is becoming to a poet."
Goethe, on Beethoven:
"He isn't altogether wrong in finding the world detestable; but that doesn't make it more enjoyable for himself or others."
"He delights in the court atmosphere far more than is becoming to a poet."
Goethe, on Beethoven:
"He isn't altogether wrong in finding the world detestable; but that doesn't make it more enjoyable for himself or others."
November 9, 2025 at 4:16 AM
Beethoven, on Goethe:
"He delights in the court atmosphere far more than is becoming to a poet."
Goethe, on Beethoven:
"He isn't altogether wrong in finding the world detestable; but that doesn't make it more enjoyable for himself or others."
"He delights in the court atmosphere far more than is becoming to a poet."
Goethe, on Beethoven:
"He isn't altogether wrong in finding the world detestable; but that doesn't make it more enjoyable for himself or others."
Beethoven's sketches reveal his ruthlessly-critical intellect. Although he became a hero to the Romantic generation of composers who followed him, his art was firmly rooted in the principles of the Enlightenment; his music expresses a Romantic spirit through Classical means.
November 9, 2025 at 4:15 AM
Beethoven's sketches reveal his ruthlessly-critical intellect. Although he became a hero to the Romantic generation of composers who followed him, his art was firmly rooted in the principles of the Enlightenment; his music expresses a Romantic spirit through Classical means.
Beethoven's Symphonies were a poisoned chalice to his successors. He'd made the genre so prestigious that they were desperate to emulate him. But the greater chromaticism of their music undermined the harmonic architecture upon which the Beethovenian symphonic form was based.
November 9, 2025 at 4:12 AM
Beethoven's Symphonies were a poisoned chalice to his successors. He'd made the genre so prestigious that they were desperate to emulate him. But the greater chromaticism of their music undermined the harmonic architecture upon which the Beethovenian symphonic form was based.
The contradictory nature of Beethoven's character could stun his contemporaries. After the triumphant premiere of his 9th, he sat down for dinner with friends who'd arranged the concert. He started complaining about the ticket sales, then falsely accused them of theft. They fled.
November 9, 2025 at 4:10 AM
The contradictory nature of Beethoven's character could stun his contemporaries. After the triumphant premiere of his 9th, he sat down for dinner with friends who'd arranged the concert. He started complaining about the ticket sales, then falsely accused them of theft. They fled.
"The Incident at Teplitz" by Carl Rohling (1887). It depicts the likely-mythical story of Beethoven and Goethe encountering the Imperial family while on a walk, and their disparate reactions.
Goethe was 21 when Beethoven was born; he outlived the composer by 5 years.
Goethe was 21 when Beethoven was born; he outlived the composer by 5 years.
November 9, 2025 at 4:08 AM
"The Incident at Teplitz" by Carl Rohling (1887). It depicts the likely-mythical story of Beethoven and Goethe encountering the Imperial family while on a walk, and their disparate reactions.
Goethe was 21 when Beethoven was born; he outlived the composer by 5 years.
Goethe was 21 when Beethoven was born; he outlived the composer by 5 years.