THE MAGAZINE
Are Orchestras in Need of an Update?
Is the symphony orchestra a doomed relic—or is it simply overdue for reinvention? As classical institutions across the UK grapple with funding crises and dwindling audiences, ensembles like the Aurora Orchestra and Manchester Collective are challenging the old rules and reimagining what a concert can be. With more young people engaging with classical music than ever before, the future may lie not in clinging to tradition, but in breaking it—just as Leonard Bernstein suggested decades ago.
Sargent’s Madame X: The Portrait That Hurled Painter and Sitter into Scandal
John Singer Sargent’s Portrait of Madame X didn’t just scandalize the 1884 Paris Salon—it rewrote the rules of modern portraiture. In addition to depicting Paris’ “it girl,” Madame Gautreau, it rendered quiet power struggles: between artist and subject, authenticity and artifice, tradition and ambition. Read more to learn about the portrait’s reception and long-term cultural influence.
From London With Love: A Night with Vivaldi
Last night at St James’ Church, Vivaldi’s Four Seasons filled the space with something magnetic—urgent, aching, tense, and frenzied. It wasn’t Rachmaninov, but it pulled me in all the same. Don’t you want to know more? Check out our new article for another unforgettable night in London, experienced from any corner of the globe…
Taking the Scenic Route: A Timeline of Landscape Painting
Landscape painting is nothing new. It’s one of the most beautiful genres of painting to gaze at and artists have been painting their surroundings for as long as we have been experiencing it. How, though, has it changed throughout time, and what does our stylistic representation of the world say about how we view it?
Encrypting Secret Messages in Music: Mercury, or, the Secret and Swift Messenger
Imagine that you are a musician in a royal European court in the 1600s–but you’re also a secret agent for a different government’s intelligence services. How will you transmit sensitive information to your contacts without getting caught? All you need is a musical cipher: a system for turning text into music. Find out more.
Ballet Across the Globe: Bournonville and the Danes
Contrary to popular belief, classical ballet isn’t just one style of dance that functions the same way across the globe. The art form is comprised of many schools of technique that vary in style, choreographic emphasis, and pedagogical frameworks. Read on to find out about Bournonville and the Danes.
From New York With Love: The Frick Collection
The limestone mansion of The Frick Museum stands on New York’s Fifth Avenue grand and quiet, as if anchored in another century. But of course, even memories require pruning. The museum reopened just weeks ago, in April 2025. Step back into New York’s Gilded Age with our latest city letter from New York.
Grounds for Rebellion: Bach’s Coffee Cantata
“If I can’t drink my bowl of coffee three times daily, then in my torment I will shrivel up like a piece of roast goat.” Brewing up a storm, J. S. Bach’s “Coffee Cantata” - a tale of one woman’s undying love for coffee - reveals how cups of coffee became the center of bold feminist rebellion in 1730s Leipzig.
A Tale of Two Portraits: Degas and the Anatomy of Family Life
In The Bellelli Family and Henri Degas and His Niece, Lucie, Edgar Degas transforms the domestic interior into a stage for private drama. Through such haunting portraits, Degas reveals the psychological weight of family: its silent tensions, coded gestures, and the emotional anatomy of modern life.
Guest Artist: Kazuto Muraki, Tokyo University of the Arts
Contemplate the tension between external perception and your sense of self with guest artist Kazuto Muraki, Tokyo University of the Arts.
Lea Brückner, Violinist and Climate Activist: “You can drive social change through culture.”
Lea Brückner is a violinist, moderator and climate ambassador who has carved out a unique career for herself, combining her passion for music with her commitment to sustainability. TWoA talked to Lea about the role culture can play in the battle against climate change, and about the specific steps cultural organisations can take towards becoming more sustainable.
Helene Schjerfbeck: Painting the Soul
“As a Finnish person, when I think of Finnish art, I think of Helene Schjerfbeck. Exhibited at the Finnish National Gallery, the presence of her art punctuated my every visit there. I would always go to her and take a moment to stare at her striking self-portraits.”
Pointe Shoe Rewind: A Brief History of Ballet’s Signature Shoe
In the fashion world, pointe shoes have been having a moment. But pointe shoes are anything but a recent phenomenon; despite their current aesthetic popularity, their origins date back as early as the 1730s.
From London With Love: A Night at the Moulin Rouge
The spirit of Soho is indescribable - but this letter from London attempts to capture and expose it. From the countless restaurants scattered around the area to the shows happening every night, we spill the tea on what it means to experience a night out in Soho. And, as always, we give you all the deets.
Whispers in the Wings: Meet Josephine Baker, Dancer and Spy
Josephine Baker (1906-1975), an icon of the Jazz Age, was a woman of many talents. In addition to being a groundbreaking dancer, singer, and actress—even being the first Black woman to star in a motion picture—Baker was a World War II spy and a civil rights activist.
The Swing of the Affair: Fragonard, Infidelity, and the Art of Heedlessness
The Swing, explained. Fragonard’s brush captures the rush of infidelity—before the fall, before the consequence.
The Mathemagical Music of Michael Maier
If you’ve ever heard a piece of music and thought, “That’s magical!” you probably just meant that the music made you feel a sense of wonder. But what if sound actually had special powers? What if you could use music as a key for learning ancient secrets about the cosmos?
From New York With Love: The New York Philharmonic
Find out what awaits our New York correspondent as she walks from Hell’s Kitchen to Lincoln Centre.
Chun-Wing Lam, Paris Opera Ballet: “I never danced so well before I had my wealth management firm.”
Paris Opera Ballet’s Chun-Wing Lam is probably the only dancer in the world to combine a successful dance career with running his own wealth management firm. TWoA talked to Chun about moving from Hong Kong to Paris when he was fourteen, about the unique promotion system at the Paris Opera Ballet, and about the artistic and mental benefits of having two careers at the same time.
Death in Springtime: The Uncanny Power of Stravinsky’s “Rite of Spring”
Perhaps you notice patterns within yourself that stir as the winter colours into spring or the summer burns into autumn. Russian avant-garde composer Igor Stravinsky captures this most masterfully in The Rite of Spring.