Archives: Composers

Roussel, Albert

Albert Roussel (5 April 1869 – 23 August 1937) initially embarked on a Naval career, but later changed direction in 1896 after meeting Vincent D’Indy and became one of the first pupils at the newly formed Schola Cantorum. He was a prolific composer, writing in many genres, and gradually became one of the leading figures…
Schlemuller, Hugo

Hugo Schlemüller (1872-1918) was a German cellist, composer and teacher. From 1902 he taught at the Hoch Conservatory in Frankfurt and in 1910 founded his own publishing company. He composed many works for cello and several pieces in ‘Bass for beginners’ were adapted from his ‘The Very First Performance Pieces for the Young Cellist’.
Schwabe, Oswald

German bassist Oswald Schwabe (1846 -1909) was Professor of Double Bass at Leipzig Royal Conservatoire and Principal Bass of the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra. He studied with Emanuel Storch and was a successful teacher in his own right. Schwabe’s works for double bass include a book of Technical Studies alongside three short pieces for double bass…
Rutter, John

(b.1945) John Rutter studied music at Clare College, Cambridge and first came to notice as a composer and arranger of Christmas carols and other choral pieces during those early years; today his compositions, including such concert-length works as Requiem, Magnificat, Mass of the Children, The Gift of Life, and Visions are performed around the world. John edits the Oxford Choral Classics…
Scarlatti, Alessandro

Alessandro Scarlatti was an Italian Baroque composer, born on May 2, 1660, in Palermo or Trapani, Sicily. He is renowned for his operas and chamber cantatas and is considered the most important representative of the Neapolitan school of opera1. Scarlatti’s career spanned both Naples and Rome, where he received his training. He is often credited…
Skryabin, Alexander

Alexander Scriabin was a Russian composer and pianist, born on January 6, 1872, in Moscow1. He is known for his innovative and influential contributions to music, particularly in the late Romantic period. Scriabin’s early works were influenced by the music of Frédéric Chopin and composed in a relatively tonal, late-Romantic idiom1. However, Scriabin later developed…
Russell, Armand

Armand Russell was born in Seattle, Washington in 1932. He received the Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts degrees from the University of Washington, with a major in music composition, and a Doctorate in music composition from the Eastman School of Music. He studied double bass with Leslie Martin, who played in the Seattle…
Salieri, Antonio

Antonio Salieri was an Italian composer and teacher of the classical period, born on August 18, 1750, in Legnago, south of Verona, in the Republic of Venice. He is known for his significant contributions to the development of late 18th-century opera and was a pivotal figure in the Viennese classical music scene. Salieri’s career was…
Mascagni, Pietro

Pietro Mascagni was an influential Italian composer born on December 7, 1863, in Livorno, Italy, and he passed away on August 2, 1945, in Rome, Italy. He is best known for his operas and is particularly celebrated for his 1890 masterpiece Cavalleria rusticana, which caused a sensation in opera history and initiated the Verismo movement…
Prokofiev, Serge

Sergey Prokofiev was a 20th-century Russian (and Soviet) composer, born on April 23 (April 11, Old Style), 1891, in Sontsovka, Ukraine, then part of the Russian Empire. He passed away on March 5, 1953, in Moscow, Russia, U.S.S.R. Prokofiev was a prolific composer who wrote in a wide range of musical genres, including symphonies, concerti,…