Brahms Third Symphony – a well-kept secret

Brahms wrote his Symphony no.3 in F major in 1883, at the height of his career. Though it was a great hit with nineteenth-century audiences, very little is known about the sources of this mature work today. We do know that the notoriously secretive composer wrote it in Wiesbaden, a picturesque Rhine resort, and that…

Mezzo soprano Paula Murrihy takes a walk on the wild side

On her new recording I Will Walk With Love, Irish mezzo-soprano Paula Murrihy demonstrates a natural talent for singing German lieder, having honed her linguistic skills at the Frankfurt Opera house. She also sensibly combines Brahms, Mahler and Grieg songs with some Debussy. Les chansons de Bilitis  adds a welcome French frisson to the Germanic…