Start date – Monday 1 June 2026
Mozart to Mayhem!
For our next Daily Lockdown theme, we’re diving into the world of CLASSICAL MUSIC… but with absolutely NO rules on how you interpret it.
Choose a classical piece that:
- means something to you
- gives you goosebumps
- tells a story
- is technically brilliant
- reminds you of a movie scene
- melts your brain
- or is simply a masterpiece you absolutely love.
The fun part? It does NOT have to be the original version.
You can choose:
🎬 a movie soundtrack version
🎹 a piano interpretation
🎸 an 80s rock adaptation
🎧 a trance/remix/electronic version
🎻 orchestral metal
🎤 vocal crossover
🔥 literally ANY creative take on a classical masterpiece.
Along with your song choice, please tell us:
- what the piece means to you
- what inspired the composer to write it
- the story behind it
- or why this version stands out for you.
Whether it’s Beethoven, Bach, Mozart, Vivaldi, Tchaikovsky… or a synthwave remix that somehow works ridiculously well — bring us something unforgettable.
Prepare for elegance, drama, chaos, genius… and possibly air-conducting.
Deborah
Max Richter, Elena Urioste, Chineke! Orchestra – Winter 1 – 2022
Max Richter has said that Vivaldi’s Four Seasons became so famous that people almost stopped hearing it.
He said he wanted to rescue the piece from becoming “musical wallpaper”, so he deconstructed the piece and rebuilt it into something fresh.
Richter first created his “recomposed” version in 2012, then returned to it ten years later with violinist Elena Urioste and the Chineke! Orchestra to create a fresh interpretation.
In this 2022 recomposition, Richter retained only fragments of Vivaldi’s material, reshaping them with minimalist patterns, repetition, electronics, and contemporary harmonies.
Paul P
Prokofiev: Romeo and Juliet, No 13 Dance of the Knights (Valery Gergiev, LSO)
We went to the Lyric Theatre 2-3 weeks ago. We watched the show “Dancing Through the Decades”. It took us on a journey through each decade, and showed the music progression, explained the main themes at the time, and all the weird and wacky fashions.
I must say – the Classical music stirred up something in me. At first I thought it was the nice sound system, but when the ballet dancers emerged in their leotards, I just knew what it was – It was the realisation that this was going to be the next theme! (Yes, I know what you were thinking there!!) 😂
“Dance of the Knights” (formally known as “Montagues and Capulets”) is a menacing and iconic orchestral piece from Sergei Prokofiev’s 1935 ballet Romeo and Juliet. It depicts the deep, violent rivalry between the two feuding families and sets the stage for the fateful masquerade ball where the lovers first meet.
The Story and The Scene
In the overarching story, the Montagues and Capulets are two powerful noble families locked in a violent, long-standing feud in Renaissance Verona.
The Arrival:
The music begins with a heavy, menacing, and rhythmic march that conveys immense power, tension, and impending doom. It perfectly captures the grandeur and martial pride of the Capulet knights and nobility as they march into the ball.
The Interlude:
The heavy brass and stomping strings momentarily give way to a lighter, more delicate, and playful middle section. This interlude accompanies the mingling of the party guests and provides a striking contrast to the darker themes.
The Climax:
The heavy, brooding Knight’s theme makes a thundering return. Amidst the powerful displays of the nobles, this is the exact moment that Romeo (a Montague) crashes the Capulets’ ball and sees Juliet for the very first time.
Errol
Charice Pempengco – All By Myself
Sergei Rachmaninoff, who passed away in 1943, was a Russian composer, virtuoso pianist and conductor. He is widely considered one of the finest pianists of his day and, as a composer, one of the last great representatives of romanticism in Russian classical music. He is also my favourite classical composer!
He wrote over 220 compositions during his lifetime, including 3 symphonies and 4 piano concertos, and the beloved Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini. (Paul, you should listen on the big sound).
His second piano concerto was composed between 1900 and 1901and is hauntingly beautiful.
The Opening movement famously begins with a series of pulsing, bell-like piano chords that establish a quiet, dreamlike atmosphere.
The Main Melody: Flute and clarinet introduce one of the most lush, romantic melodies ever written.
Emotional Depth: It perfectly balances deep melancholy, soaring passion, and peaceful resolution, making it deeply relatable and hauntingly beautiful.
The second movement is widely considered one of the most unabashedly beautiful and emotionally moving pieces in all of classical music. (Time to listen on the big sound Paul. Tissues). Its soaring themes are so undeniably gorgeous that they famously inspired the hit pop ballad by Eric Carmen “All by Myself”. This was later made famous by Celine Deon, produced by the great David Foster.
My choice tonight is All by Myself, sung by the 16-year old Charice Pempengco with David Foster at the piano. It is based entirely on the second movement of Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No 2. (Listen on the big sound Paul).
I never listen to this without being overcome by frisson. Enjoy.
Sue
Vanessa-Mae – Toccata and Fugue in D Minor
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750) was a prolific German composer and musician of the Baroque period. Renowned for his supreme mastery of counterpoint, harmony, and musical architecture, he wrote over 1,100 pieces across almost every genre, leaving a legacy as one of the greatest composers in Western music history.
Vanessa-Mae (born October 27, 1978) is a Singaporean-born British violinist and alpine skier. Renowned for her “violin techno-acoustic fusion,” she pioneered crossover pop-classical music, releasing multi-million selling albums like her 1995 breakout, The Violin Player. She notably competed in giant slalom for Thailand at the 2014 Winter Olympics.
Musical Career & Style
* Breakthrough: Her 1995 album The Violin Player brought a high-energy, commercial style to classical music, setting a new standard for instrumental pop crossover.
* Signature Sound: She blends classical training with electronic, techno, and pop influences.
* Instruments: She frequently performs on a 1761 J.B. Guadagnini acoustic violin (valued at nearly $500,000) and a Zeta Jazz Model electric violin.
* Global Success: By 2006, she was the wealthiest entertainer under the age of 30 in the UK, having sold over 10 million albums worldwide.
Geraldine
Charl du Plessis perform Bumble Boogie
Charl du Plessis is truly one of South Africa’s musical treasures. Seeing him perform twice this year was an absolute privilege — first at Artscape with Nataniel and then at the unforgettable RMB evening at Vergelegen Wine Estate. His music has elegance, passion and such emotional depth. The Vergelegen production in particular was simply beautiful and will stay with me for a long time.”
Flight of the Bumblebee” was written between 1899 and 1900 by Russian composer Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov.
Wilfred
Vladimir Cauchemar – Anthropology
My song is probably in violation of the supreme culture we have been experiencing. (With the exception of Arno, and that was my gap, I took it)
“Anthropology” is built on one of the most recognisable pieces in Western music: Johann Sebastian Bach’s “Toccata and Fugue in D Minor,” composed around 1707.
The chap reworking it is Vladimir Cauchemar, a skull-masked French producer who performs as a kind of undead musician. (I know, sorry)
His story is that he once lost a music contest to the god Apollo and has spent the 2,500 years since plotting his revenge. Well, that is his story and he is sticking to it.
It’s a nod to the ancient myth of Marsyas, the satyr who dared to challenge Apollo to a duel of music. Flute against the god’s lyre. He paid a gruesome price for his arrogance.
So when Cauchemar seizes Bach’s thundering organ line and bends it to his own ends, it lands as a slighted musician reaching across the centuries to turn one of the old masters’ own works into an instrument of menace.
I enjoyed this loud, hope you do too.
Paul L
“A LOVERS CONCERTO” by THE TOYS 1965
Toys’ 1965 hit “A Lover’s Concerto” is based on the classical piece “Minuet in G major” (BWV Anh. 114).While it was long mistakenly attributed to Johann Sebastian Bach, musicologists later verified that the piece was actually composed by the 18th-century German organist Christian Petzold. The melody was simply included in the 1725 Notebook for Anna Magdalena Bach, which led to the centuries-long confusion. of the song in Soul Serenade.
Liezel
Il Trovatore Anvil Chorus Met Opera
This song happens to be my third choice. Not because of my esteemed music group, but because of Jayden … who, it turns out, gets veto rights on any song that doesn’t make it past his finely tuned standards and ears.
It started with a beautiful rendition of Mozart’s Lacrimosa (“not strong enough”), followed by a breathtaking performance of Allegri’s Miserere (“boring”). Apparently centuries of musical genius count for very little in this house.
So here we are with the rather more jovial third choice: Vedi! Le fosche notturne spoglie from Verdi’s Il Trovatore (better known as The Anvil Chorus). Written in 1853, it’s practically a toddler compared to some of the pieces already put forward.
What caught my attention is that Verdi somehow managed to make blacksmiths hammering away on anvils into one of the most recognisable pieces of classical music ever written. In a theme full of violins, pianos, choirs and dramatic deaths, I thought it was absolutely cool to be able to choose a piece where one of the featured instruments is an actual anvil. (Watch the video and you will see).
The chorus depicts a group of gypsies working at the forge, singing as they hammer metal in rhythm. It’s loud, energetic, cheerful, and impossible not to smile at. If you’ve ever wondered what would happen if classical music and a workshop had a baby, this is probably it.
So tonight, courtesy of Jayden, Verdi, sword fighting and several anvils, I present my contribution to the mayhem.
Richard
HELLO MUDDAH, HELLO FADDUH! 📀 Allan Sherman
The Italian composer Amilcare Ponchielli released his operatic masterpiece in 1876 which featured the beautiful orchestral ballet interlude ” Dance of the Hours”.
The theme took on a new meaning when ninety years later Allan Sherman added the lyrics(pundits will probably know that the naming of the American band Lynyrd Skynyrd was influenced by the little guy who got ptomaine poisoning)
Chrisna – as proxied by Paul P
André Rieu – The Beautiful Blue Danube
Chrisna has skipped town with Maeatro, they wanted to go visit “Bobby” in Thailand, so I’m posting in her place.
Andre Rieu has a way. Damn that guy is good. He did well with this one too.
The Blue Danube (“An der schönen blauen Donau”), Op. 314, is a famous waltz composed in 1866 by Austrian composer Johann Strauss II.
It was commissioned by the Vienna Men’s Choral Association to boost public morale following Austria’s devastating defeat in the Seven Weeks’ War.
The origins of the waltz’s title and its worldwide fame are rooted in history and poetry:The Title’s Inspiration:
The title comes from a poem by Hungarian-Austrian poet Karl Isidor Beck, in which every stanza ends with the line, “By the Danube, beautiful blue Danube.”
The River Itself: The Danube river does not actually appear blue—it typically runs brown or green. The name was strictly a romantic, poetic motif used to invoke a sense of calm and beauty.
The Initial Reception: When it debuted in February 1867 as a choral piece with satirical lyrics, it was met with only mild success. Strauss reportedly remarked, “The devil take the waltz, my only regret is for the coda—I wish that had been a success!”
The Orchestral Breakthrough: Later that year, Strauss adapted the piece into a purely instrumental, orchestral version for the Paris World’s Fair.
It became a massive international sensation and is now widely considered Austria’s “second national anthem”.