The Prelude and Fugue in C major, BWV 846, is a keyboard composition written by German composer and musician of the late Baroque period Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750).
It is the first prelude and fugue in the first book of The Well-Tempered Clavier, a series of 48 preludes and fugues by the composer.
An early version of the prelude, BWV 846A, is found in the Klavierbüchlein für Wilhelm Friedemann Bach.
Francis Sydney Muschamp (British, 1851-1929) | A musical interlude
The Dying Swan (originally The Swan) is a solo dance choreographed by Mikhail Fokine to Camille Saint-Saëns's Le Cygne from Le Carnaval des animaux as a pièce d'occasion for the ballerina Anna Pavlova, who performed it about 4,000 times.
The short ballet (four minutes) follows the last moments in the life of a swan, and was first presented in St. Petersburg, Russia in 1905.
The ballet has since influenced modern interpretations of Odette, heroine of Tchaikovsky's ballet Swan Lake, and has inspired non-traditional interpretations as well as various adaptations.
Antoon van Welie | Anna Pavlova as the Dying Swan, 1938
Louis Léopold Robert (1794-1835) was a Swiss painter.
He was born at La Chaux-de-Fonds (Neuchâtel) in Switzerland, but left his native place with the engraver Jean Girardet at the age of sixteen for Paris.
He was on the eve of obtaining the grand prix for engraving when the events of 1815 blasted his hopes, for Neuchâtel was restored to Prussia, and Robert was struck off the list of competitors as a foreigner.
This style is characterised by its exciting effects of light and unpolished naturalism.
Rubens did not make this painting to be sold; instead he retained possession of it. He probably used it as study material for the pupils in his studio.
Peter Paul Rubens | Old Woman and Boy with Candles, 1616-1617 | Museum Mauritshuis The Hague
The "Radetzky March", Op. 228, is a march composed by Johann Strauss (Senior) which was first performed on 31 August 1848 in Vienna to celebrate the victory of the Austrian Empire under Field Marshal Joseph Radetzky von Radetz (the piece's namesake) over the Italian forces at the Battle of Custoza, during the First Italian War of Independence.
Francesca (Fanny) Carlini (Venezia, 1859-1944), figlia del ritrattista Giulio Carlini (Venezia, 1826-1887), segue con buon successo la strada del padre.
E’ una delle prime donne a diplomarsi all’Accademia di Belle Arti di Venezia, intraprendendo poi una carriera che la vedrà vincitrice nel 1884 della Medaglia d’argento del Crystal Palace a Londra.
"La campanella" (Italian for "The little bell") is the subtitle given to the third of Franz Liszt's six Grandes études de Paganini, S. 141 (1851). It is in the key of G-sharp minor.
"La campanella" is a revision of an earlier version from 1838, the Études d'exécution transcendante d'après Paganini, S. 140.
Its melody comes from the final movement of Niccolò Paganini'sViolin Concerto No. 2 in B minor, where the tune was reinforced by a "little handbell".
Mozart wrote the "Concerto for Flute, Harp, and Orchestra in C major" in April 1778, during his seven-month sojourn in Paris.
It was commissioned by Adrien-Louis de Bonnières, duc de Guînes (1735-1806), a flutist, for his use and for that of his eldest daughter, Marie-Louise-Philippine (1759-1796), a harpist, who was taking composition lessons from the composer, at the duke's home, the Hôtel de Castries.
Mozart stated in a letter to his father that he thought the duke played the flute "extremely well" and that Marie's playing of the harp was "magnifique".
Louis-Ernest Barrias (1841-1905) | Mozart child with a violin, 1887 | Musée Fabre
Descending from peasant class, Nikolai Bogdanov-Belsky dedicated a significant portion of his work to rural schoolchildren.
His heroes hover indecisively at the classroom door, solve problems at the blackboard, read books or converse with the teacher.
The master's idealistic paintings upheld the notion that education was capable of improving public morality and overcoming the backwardness of the Russian countryside.
This lovingly painted and slightly sentimental canvas was possibly inspired by the personal memories of the artist, who attended Sergei Rachinsky's village school in Tatevo, Smolensk Province.
Ilya Yefimovich Repin / Илья́ Ефи́мович Ре́пин, (1844-1930), Russian painter of historical subjects known for the power and drama of his works.
Born to a poor family near Kharkov, Repin learned his trade from a painter of icons named Bunakov and in 1864 became a student at the Academy of Fine Arts at St. Petersburg.
Vittorio Matteo Corcos returned in 1886 to Florence, where he painted the prominent and the fashionable portrait of a modern girl, Elena Vecchi, which has become the most emblematic image of the so-called Belle Epoque.
His most notorious portrait, however, was that of his mistress, Elena Vecchi, the daughter of a naval officer who carned his fame as Jack La Bolina, the author of popular adventure stories.
"Ellens dritter Gesang" ("Ellens Gesang III", D. 839, Op. 52, No. 6, 1825), in English: "Ellen's Third Song", was composed by Franz Schubert in 1825 as part of his Op. 52, a setting of seven songs from Walter Scott's 1810 popular narrative poem The Lady of the Lake, loosely translated into German.
Giovanni Battista Salvi called Sassoferrato (1609-1685) | The Madonna in prayer | Christie's
For London-based artist James Cook, drawing portraits used to be a struggle. But that all changed when he discovered his now-signature tool: the typewriter.
From his office in London, Cook creates incredible drawings using his collection of more than 40 typewriters, many of which were donated to him by fans of his work.
His artworks range from images of buildings and landscapes to portraits of animals and celebrities, such as Tom Hanks.
He uses a random assortment of letters, numbers and punctuation marks to form his masterpieces.
From small commissions to drawings made of more than 500,000 characters, James has produced close to 300 pieces of work on his growing collection of more than 60 typewriters.
James describes his artwork as "a picture worth a thousand words" and has produced artwork for celebrities, public figures and musicians.
In just over a decade, James has produced more than 350 typewritten drawings.
To produce his stunning artwork, James has acquired more than 100 typewriters which have mostly been generously donated by fans of his work.
Using the typewriters, he has produced artwork for celebrities, television presenters, musicians and famous businesses.
The scale of James Cook’s work ranges from the size of a postcard and the antithesis of this being rolls-upon-rolls of paper.
Larger drawings are constructed in section and hot-pressed together thereby allowing for creations larger than the limitations of a typewriter’s traditional paper-feed.
Concealed in most drawings are hidden type-written messages or words inspired by the backstory of a particular project that the artist is working on.
Typewriter artist James Cook at the work
Per l'artista londinese James Cook, disegnare ritratti era un tempo una vera e propria lotta.
Ma tutto è cambiato quando ha scoperto il suo strumento di lavoro, oggi diventato il suo cavallo di battaglia: la macchina da scrivere.
Dal suo ufficio di Londra, Cook crea disegni incredibili utilizzando la sua collezione di oltre 40 macchine da scrivere, molte delle quali gli sono state donate da fan delle sue opere.
Le sue opere spaziano da immagini di edifici e paesaggi a ritratti di animali e celebrità, come Tom Hanks.
Utilizza un assortimento casuale di lettere, numeri e segni di punteggiatura per creare i suoi capolavori.
