The regular readers probably remember that every year on these dates, coinciding with the anniversary of Franz Schubert's death, I dedicate the article to the apple of my eye, usually explaining some aspect of his life. Eight years ago, I talked about his circle of friends and, although I dedicated two weeks to it, many names were left out. Among them, Baron von Schönstein.

When asked about the characteristics of a Lied, one of the first things I say, probably the first, is that for a Lied to exist it is necessary that previously a poem existed that moved the composer to write his song. A poem written two days, two years or two centuries before the composer read it. But previously written, this is the key word.

To write this article, I've thought about crimes among consanguineous that I remembered, both fiction and reality. The most common family crimes in thrillers are committed between brothers and sisters; because of jealousy (and often are homicides, rather than murders), or for attaining power. There are also children who kill their parents to come to power or to inherit [...]

Imagine being in a garden in the spring and realizing that the flowers have lost their colour and scent, the sun isn't as warm as expected, and the ground is dry. Imagine that you realize that there's nothing wrong with the spring, it's beautiful, as always. It's your gaze that has changed, it's your sadness that keeps you from seeing beauty.

Heinrich Panofka was best known as a voice teacher. In 1842, he founded an academy with tenor Marco Bordogni in Paris, and in 1855, he published his method, L'art de chanter. He was also renowned as a music critic; for example, he wrote in Schumann's "Neue Zeitschrift für Musik" or "Revue et gazette musicale" (where an article on Schubert in 1838, contributed to the [...]