George Cai

George Cai, a cellist and an enthusiast of classical music, has toured the globe from Carnegie Hall to the Deutsche Oper Berlin. He resides in New York.

Tune in Today: Heroism in Beethoven’s ‘Eroica’ Symphony

Beethoven's hero worship of France's new emperor quickly turned to fury, but did nothing to dampen the enthusiasm ...

Music August 31, 2026
Tune in Today: A Creative Musical Protest by Joseph Haydn

How 'Papa Haydn' used a symphony to lead an 18th-century musicians' strike.

Music August 23, 2026
Tune in Today: Out of the Darkness Comes César Franck’s Violin Sonata

How a legendary 1886 candlelit premiere in Brussels gave us one of classical music’s greatest masterworks.

Music August 16, 2026
Tune in Today: Schubert’s Dance with Mortality in ‘Death and the Maiden’

Schubert dramatizes illness and sorrow through this composition, where the siren song of Death himself calls out to ...

Music August 11, 2026
Tune in Today: Mozart’s Most Intense Symphony

This serious Symphony No. 40 may be seen as part of a musical journey.

Music August 4, 2026
Tune in Today: Brahms Symphony No. 1 Emerges From Beethoven’s Shadow

Brahms took years to compose a Romantic-era masterpiece that plays tribute to Beethoven.

Music July 30, 2026
Tune in Today: Schumann’s ‘Dichterliebe’ Expresses Love Through Memories

Enter Schumann's wildly creative year with this tragic song-story about a poet's unrequited love.

Music July 20, 2026
Tune in Today: The Melody of Alexander Borodin’s Second String Quartet

This full-time Russian chemist managed to become a world-famous composer.

Music July 13, 2026
Tune in Today: The Two Sides of Robert Schumann and His ‘Carnaval’

Schumann generated fame and uproar around his work by critiquing it from two oppositely opinionated pennames.

Music July 6, 2026
Tune in Today: ‘None Shall Sleep’ Before the World Cup

A piece of classical music becomes the anthemic song for millions of sports fans.

Music June 30, 2026
Tune in Today: The Mystery of Bach’s Six Suites for Solo Cello (Part 3)

The lack of a primary source has led to many interpretations of this piece.

Music June 21, 2026
Tune in Today: The Mystery of Bach’s Six Suites for Solo Cello (Part 2)

Great cellist Pablo Casals treasured, performed, and recorded the forgotten suites.

Music June 14, 2026
Tune in Today: The Revival J.S. Bach and His ‘Six Suites’

Part 1 of this series on Bach’s “Six Suites for Unaccompanied Cello" discusses the 19th-century 'Bach Revival."

Music June 7, 2026
Tune in Today: Handel’s Stately ‘Water Music’

The German composer's work, famously performed on the Thames River, symbolized royal grandeur and magnificence.

Music May 30, 2026
Tune in Today: Elgar’s Musical Love Letter

Born as a private love token for Edward Elgar’s fiancée, “Salut d’amour” became an international hit, yet earned ...

Music May 23, 2026
Tune in Today: Giuseppe Verdi’s Unforgettable ‘La donna è mobile’

The highlight of Verdi's 'Rigoletto' is sung by villain, the Duke of Mantua.

Music May 17, 2026
Tune in Today: Mendelssohn’s Exuberant String Octet in E-flat Major

Felix Mendelssohn (1809–1847) was one of the great composers of the early Romantic period. From his “Midsummer Night’s Dream” ...

Music May 6, 2026
Tune in Today: A Guide to Richard Strauss’s Till Eulenspiegel

“Once upon a time, there was a roguish jester, whose name was Till.” So begins Richard Strauss’s masterpiece ...

Music May 5, 2026
Tune in Today: Tchaikovsky Explores Fate, Struggle, and Resilience

The Russian master's Fourth Symphony was written at a turbulent point in the composer's life.

Music May 3, 2026
Tune in Today: Mozart’s Musical Farewell

Mozart’s final masterpiece: the story behind the unfinished “Lacrimosa” and the mystery that surrounds it.

Music April 18, 2026
Tune in Today: Shostakovich’s Joyful ‘Festive Overture’

The Russian composer produces an effervescent work that contrasts with his profession's circumstances.

Music April 13, 2026
Tune in Today: Is Beethoven’s ‘Most Perfect’ Work His String Quartet No. 14?

Even after losing his hearing, Beethoven wrote one of his most powerful and deeply moving works.

Music April 8, 2026
Tune in Today: Sibelius’s Violin Concerto and Ginette Neveu

French prodigy Ginette Neveu helped elevate Jean Sibelius's Violin Concerto—a misunderstood masterpiece—to lasting greatness.

Music March 29, 2026
Tune in Today: Luigi Denza’s ‘Funiculi, Funicula’

From a volcano's devastation to a song's enduring fame, how a lost railway inspired Italy's most infectious melody.

Music March 22, 2026
Tune in Today: How Balakirev’s ‘Islamey’ Captures Orientalism in Virtuosic Fashion

When Mily Balakirev’s “Islamey: Oriental Fantasy” first premiered in 1869, it quickly gained a reputation as one of ...

Music March 14, 2026
Tune in Today: Edward Elgar’s Unsolved ‘Enigma Variations’

The 'Enigma Variations' consists of an 'Enigma' theme followed by 14 variations, each portraying one of Elgar’s close ...

Music March 9, 2026
Tune in Today: Sibelius’s Perfectly Original Symphony

Sibelius’ Symphony No. 7 did not follow symphony conventions of four movements nor did it try to sound ...

Music March 2, 2026