Michael AllenSep 12, 2017Limoges - The Big NewsSadly, only a few of the sketches by Victor Hartmann that inspired Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition have survived. We must rely on...
Michael AllenSep 8, 2017Mussorgsky's PicturesI'm always surprised that some still believe that Maurice Ravel's orchestration of Pictures at an Exhibition is the 'original
Michael AllenAug 28, 2017Musical thievery and 12 stepsAfter Bach, the composer I’ve spent the most time with is Claude Debussy. In fact, the first two arrangements I made for large brass...
Michael AllenAug 26, 2017Willow, WillowMany years ago, I was walking past Bill Stanley’s trombone studio at CU Boulder and heard a most remarkable thing. I stuck my head in the...
Michael AllenAug 25, 2017Huzzah! to the Queen's ChapelRenaissance keyboard music is really fun to arrange. The simplicity of the music (well, at least some of it) lends itself to crafty...
Michael AllenAug 5, 2017Four Dimensional TextureThis blog is a way to collect my thoughts and 'ship em.' This is modeled after the blogging philosophy of Seth Godin (one of my daily...