Giacomo Puccini’s opera La Bohème is about struggling artists in Paris. Its title means “the bohemian lifestyle.” But Bohemia isn't in France; it's in the Czech Republic. Other composers such […]

Around the year 1600, Italian composers started writing theater pieces that use music all the way through them. Instead of speaking, characters in operas sing their lines. From Claudio Monteverdi, […]

By the time Italian composer Giacomo Puccini was born in 1858, there had already been four generations of musicians in his hometown of Lucca. Most were church musicians, but Giacomo […]

The last movement of Claude Debussy's Children's Corner is a cakewalk -- a dance done by African-American slaves on plantations. But Debussy didn't intend for anyone to dance to his cakewalk. Lots of other composers wrote music that wasn't meant for dancing, even though it was based on dances.

The last movement of Claude Debussy's Children's Corner is a cakewalk -- a dance done by African-American slaves on plantations. But Debussy didn't intend for anyone to dance to his cakewalk. Lots of other composers wrote music that wasn't meant for dancing, even though it was based on dances.

A lot of classical music was written just for kids. Peter and the Wolf is just the beginning -- there are also pieces based on children's books, toys, games, and more.

A lot of classical music was written just for kids. Peter and the Wolf is just the beginning -- there are also pieces based on children's books, toys, games, and more.

Claude Debussy had a daughter named Emma-Claude, but everyone called her Chouchou, a French pet name that means "darling." When Chouchou was three years old, she started taking piano lessons. Her proud father composed the Children's Corner as a present for her, even though it was much too hard for her to play at the time. The suite was meant to entertain Chouchou, since it starred her favorite toys.

Claude Debussy had a daughter named Emma-Claude, but everyone called her Chouchou, a French pet name that means "darling." When Chouchou was three years old, she started taking piano lessons. Her proud father composed the Children's Corner as a present for her, even though it was much too hard for her to play at the time. The suite was meant to entertain Chouchou, since it starred her favorite toys.

Even when he was young, Claude Debussy loved to experiment with new sounds. That got him into trouble when he was a student at the Paris Conservatory, but it turned out to be a good thing when he grew up. Inspired by Impressionist poets and visual artists around him, Debussy created Impressionism in music.