Catalonian composer Xavier Montsalvatge began violin lessons at the age of nine, around the same time as his father's death and his move to Barcelona to live with his grandfather. This move later allowed him to attend the Barcelona Conservatory and numerous concerts that greatly influenced him. His teachers at the conservatory were Francisco Costa for violin and Enrique Morera and Jaume Pahissa for composition. He himself became a teacher at the school in 1933. His first important works were the 1934 Tres impromptus for piano, for which he won the Rabell prize from the Patxot Foundation, and the Suite burlesca, for which he won the Pedrell prize in 1936. Rejecting the legacies of Wagner and Richard Strauss that dominated in Spain ……..

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As one of the most unique and respected guitarists in the world, Allan Holdsworth has influenced countless others, including legendary artists like Frank Zappa, Eddie Van Halen, Yngwie Malmsteen, Alex Lifeson and Steve Vai. In this one-of-a-kind DVD, Allan performs seven electrifying tunes with his band, which features keyboardist Steve Hunt, bassist Skuli Sverrisson, and drummer Chad Wackerman. Allan breaks down his creative use of scales and chord voicings in this video, and offers insightful suggestions as to how to go about creating your own unique sounds and chord voicings based on his simple, yet revolutionary, concept for harmonizing scales in intervals other than traditional 3rds. See incredible close-up shots of Allan s amazing technique here, and enjoy the unique opportunity to learn from one of the all-time greats!

Karol Szymanowski spent his early years in Ukraine (where many affluent Polish families still owned land at the time). An injury to the leg forced young Karol into a life of relative inactivity, and, from age seven on, attendance at school was replaced by rigorous musical studies (first under his father's tutelage, and then, from 1892 on, at Gustav Neuhaus' music school in Elisavetgrad). Although early training focused on the piano, Neuhaus was quick to observe his young student's potential as a composer. While in Elisavetgrad, Szymanowski was introduced to the German classics as well as to Chopin and Scriabin. After studies with Noskowski in Warsaw from 1903 to 1905, Szymanowski lived for a time in Berlin, helping to found ……

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