Watch the 5 most-viewed videos from Curtis Institute’s musical prodigies

You don’t have to leave your apartment to watch some of the world’s best young musicians perform Bach, Mozart and Rachmaninoff.

Last May, the Curtis Institute of Music, one of the world’s most celebrated classical music programs, launched Curtis Performs, a website featuring more than 40 HD videos of performances by Curtis students. Since its launch, the site’s videos have been viewed more than 35,000 times by people in 130 countries, said spokeswoman Jennifer Kallend.

It’s another effort from the elite Rittenhouse-based music conservatory, called the most selective school in the country, to use technology to widen its reach: the school launched two free online classes this past fall, for which more than 24,000 people signed up.

One of Curtis’s online courses actually used Curtis Performs as part of the curriculum, directing students to watch certain works that were being discussed in the class, Kallend said.

The site was designed and developed by Society Hill web dev firm Night Kitchen Interactive.

Below, a list of the top five most viewed videos, according to Kallend:

1. Bach’s Chaconne from Partita No. 2 in D minor, BWV 1004: 7,840 views (this was one of the videos that students participating in the online course were directed to watch)
2. Stravinsky’s Three Movements from Petrushka: 1. Russian Dance: 3,759 views
3. Barriere’s Sonata No. 4 in G major: 3. Allegro Prestissimo: 3,345 views
4. Rachmaninoff’s Moments musicaux, Op. 16: 4. Presto: 2,236 views
5. Barrios’ Un Sueño en la floresta: 1,432 views