QOTD

'Anniversarising can be the most obvious yet most scattergun approach to programming in classical music, but all those round numbers ought to give programmers the excuse and audiences the chance to programme less familiar music as well as the symphonic Scandiwegians. So in 2015 let’s hear it for Aulis Sallinen (80) and Frank Zappa (who would have been 75 this year). Muzio Clementi, by the way and since you ask, would have been 263; which although not round, is a satisfyingly big prime number. Here’s a thought: why can’t we use primes rather than round numbers as excuses for anniversaries? Here’s to Beethoven’s 251st anniversary (his next available prime) in 2021!' (Tom Service, "This year's classical music anniversaries – and some less usual suspects")