Tagged: Classical

One of opera's most comical and telling facts was that Giuseppe Verdi was poised at the height of his middle period -- between "Rigoletto" and "La Traviata"  -- to first tackle nothing less than "King Lear," until finally deciding on "Il Trovatore" (The Troubadour).

Could any two themes be less alike?

Great popular music of America, from Broadway to Hollywood, is featured Saturday night in Kerrville.

Typically, the Symphony of the Hills plays Thursday evenings. Nine times out of ten, they are also playing standard repertory, from baroque to modern masterpieces, but for their first concert of 2013, Symphony Director Jay Dunahoo had a new idea.

"Let's just try some different kinds of music, do it early in the year, and hopefully attract some people who might not normally come to a Symphony of the Hills concert."

While the new year is still fresh, let's take a look in the rearview mirror at some of the noteworthy happenings in the classical music world. Were you listening last year? See if you remember the big, and not-so-big, stories from 2012 in our quiz.

Copyright 2013 National Public Radio. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/.

Jeff Garza solos with the symphony this weekend in Mozart's Fourth Horn Concerto

You often see Jeff Garza at the back of the orchestra, leading the San Antonio Symphony horn section, but this weekend, you'll have the chance to hear Jeff also shine in a concerto, out in front of the orchestra!