September composer anniversaries

It's September already. Back to work. Back to school.
Here are the September birthdays and anniversaries of the composers on my 52composers.com website:

• 4/9/1824 - Bruckner born
• 4/9/1907 - Grieg died
• 8/9/1841 - Dvorak born
• 8/9/1949 - Richard Strauss died
• 10/9/1659 - Purcell born
• 20/9/1957 - Sibelius died
• 21/9/1874 - Holst born
• 23/9/1836 - Bellini died
• 25/9/1906 - Shostakovich born
  

Banksy Bristol exhibition closes

Waiting for Banksy
Originally uploaded by stringberd

So tomorrow the Bristol exhibition closes and I didn't manage to see it. I really couldn't face the queues of up to a mile long and at peak times waits of 8 hours and normally about 3 hours according to the reports we heard. More people have visited Bristol Museum in the 10 weeks of the exhibition than normally visit in a whole year.
After such an outstanding success it surely must be put on again at another venue. It really does raise a lot of interesting thoughts on 'what is art?'

Interesting: 20 things you never knew about Banksy's Bristol show

Leoncavallo's 90th anniversary

Today 9th August is the 90th anniversary of the death of the Italian opera composer Ruggero Leoncavallo in Montecatini, Tuscany in 1919.
He is buried in the Cimitero Monumentale delle Porte Sante, Florence.
I hope they have a party up there!

Happy Birthday Leos Janacek

Another birthday this week - this time the Czech composer Leos Janacek, born on 3 July 1854.

Best known for his 9 operas. He was most productive and creative in the last 15 years of his 74 year long life. Credit is often given to his muse Kamila Stösslová, a young married woman 30 years his junior.

For more information click on the title.

Happy Birthday Erik Satie!

July 1 is the birthday of French pianist and composer Erik Satie. I have just set up Satie shops at both Zazzle and at Cafepress using my new portrait of Satie.
There is a good range of giftware.
I am also working on a Satie page on my website 52composers.com with additional content.

Karl Marx in Il Manifesto

Thomas, my 8 year old grandson, spotted my portrait of Karl Marx in my daughter's copy of the Italian Comunist newspaper Il Manifesto. It appeared prominently on the back page with a credit. A thumbnail was printed on the front page.
My first appearance in an Italian newspaper.
Well spotted Thomas!

Albeniz Festival 2009

This year is the centenary of the death of Isaac Albeniz, the Spanish pianist and composer.
Though born in Catalonia his father was Basque and his mother was Andalucian.
The annual Musique en Cote Basque festival is dedicating this year's programme to Albeniz.
They are using my portrait of Albeniz on their website, posters, programmes and publicity material.
If you would like to know more about him see the page I have done on www.52composers.com