The prolific and prodigiously talented cellist Yo-Yo Ma is as at home with Brahms and Bach as he is with Astor Piazzolla or Antonio Carlos Jobim. Like many virtuosos, Ma took up the cello early: his father started him at age four. Decades and several degrees later (he was a ... Read More

J.S. Bach may be the most important figure in Western music, with an influence that can be felt in popular and classical music to this day. Largely unnoticed in his time, Bach was in many ways the climax of Baroque polyphonic music, tying together the major styles of his day ... Read More

Austrian composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart has been celebrated as the quintessential Western musical genius, the embodiment of divine creativity whose life story took on the air of romantic tragedy almost immediately upon his death in 1791. Mozart's numerous works span many genres, but he is best known for his ... Read More

Andrew Bocelli (born 1958) sings light pop renditions of romantic Italian opera favorites to often-synthesized accompaniments for a beloved worldwide audience. With Pavarotti's stamp of approval, he took the world by storm in the mid-1990s by singing "Con te partiro" with Sarah Brightman. He became famous in the U.S. for ... Read More

Already an international star, the young Josh Groban brings operatic passion and classical themes to the masses. Doe-eyed, with curling ringlets, Groban is cute and cuddly compared to the swarthy Andrea Bocelli, yet he definitely possesses a true vocal gift to back up his clean-cut marketing appeal. Along with Bocelli, ... Read More

Antonio Vivaldi not only revolutionized the concerto form; by sidelining as a concert master, opera impresario, and ordained priest, he's the quintessential 18th century Renaissance man. Born in Venice on March 4, 1678, Vivaldi was ordained at 25 and nicknamed "The Red Priest" for his shock of red hair. He disliked ... Read More

If there's anything that proves Metallica has become a pop culture institution on par with Led Zeppelin and hula hoops, it's the existence of Finland's Apocalyptica. Coming together in the mid '90s, the cello quartet specialized in the Metallica songbook, including head-banging chestnuts like "Enter Sandman," "Creeping Death" and "Harvester ... Read More

City of Prague Philharmonic is a sort of European Boston Pops but with less brass and more strings. Their polished, crisp renditions of TV and film soundtracks and other things popular are the perfect accompaniment to a long Epsom salt soak. - Henry B. ... Read More

From the poise of "The Moonlight Sonata," to the bombastic euphoria of "Ode To Joy," to the intricate architecture of the late string quartets, few forces in Western music so keenly translated the drama of human experience into sound as well as German-born Ludwig Van Beethoven. Fine praise for the ... Read More

Andrew Lloyd Webber penned smash musicals such as The Phantom of the Opera in order to spotlight the talents of his (now ex) wife Sarah Brightman, who went on to record a series of very successful vocal albums. Brightman dresses like a Goth rocker and she puts a dark spin ... Read More