Bach’s Prelude & Fugue No.2 in C minor - BWV 847 – recording found on Spotify (1722)
This piece is a
good demonstration of the style of counterpoint, allowing the bass and treble
rhythms to work against each other.
However, despite this ‘freedom’ of movement, both clefs seem to in tonal
harmony, demonstrating Bach’s talents.
The effect gained
from this type of melodic movement is a very busy, and slightly overpowering
feeling. The tempo of this piece is
reasonably fast, which although demonstrating the player’s ability, does have a
tendency to allow the rhythms to merge at points, making it very difficult to
follow each melodic line.
Johann Christian Bach’s Keyboard Sonata Op.17 No.1 in
Gmajor (1774) – recording found on Spotify
Although in some
ways there is much more of a virtuoso style of J.C. Bach’s composition that his
father’s work, it is clear to see that J.C. Bach had adopted a simpler style of
composition, allow one melodic line to shine out.
Much like my
studies have so far have revealed, this piece contains a large amount of repetition
of musical themes. To me it seems that the treble clef (right
hand) demonstrated the virtuoso style and introduced the musical motifs. The bass clef (left hand) then becomes the
accompanist; echoing the musical themes and adding simple chord and simple note
accents.
Whilst this piece
remains wholly in G major throughout, with a number of repeating sections, I
found this composition to be slight boring towards the end, as there seems to
be no sense of growing, developing and moving.
Beethoven Symphony No.1 in C major (1801) – recording
found on Spotify
This piece is not
only an excellent representation of the Symphony format during the Classical
period, but it also demonstrates Beethoven’s growing romantic ideas and strong
ideas of heroism. Following the original
published score, whilst a little difficult at times, proved an extremely useful
tool in helping to spot things such as ternary form, etc.
The first movement
of Beethoven’s first Symphony carries a slight wispy, gentle and soothing feel,
mixed with elements of anticipation and melodic growth. There were a number of musical ideas
presented during this section, each given the ability to take on slightly
different personas due to shifting moods and sounds. It was interesting that given the key of
this piece remains entirely in C major, Beethoven has interspersed a number of
the same melodic motions, but altered the key by the use of accidentals.
As was traditional
for the Symphony, the second movement carries a more lyrical and expressive
feel. It was during this section that I
was reminded of some of Beethoven’s later Romantic works. His use of drama and rapidly changes feeling
of hope and grandeur were clearly the beginnings of Beethoven’s passion for
heroism.
Although the third
section is entitles a ‘minuet’, it actually is more similar to a faster
movement of a Scherzo. Once again, the
sense of trepidation and tension which is scored during this section reminded
me more of later more narrative works scored for ballets. However, it was the final section that
provided me with the most intrigue.
Written with a series of repetitive themes, interspersed with new
musical ideas, created a great crescendo to the whole piece. Much like the psychology applied to the
Sonata form, I would imagine that this closing section would have been a
further opportunity for the composer to demonstrate his compositional range and
ability.
Haydn’s String Quartet No.1 in B flat Major Op.1 (1762
- 1764) – recording found on Spotify
Written in 5
parts, Haydn’s string quartet varies slightly from the common 4-part form
during this piece. The opening section
provides quite a regular melodic and rhythmic motion across the quartet, each
closely tonally tied in interval. There
was quite a range of dynamics in this section, yet it carried quite a constant
and steady bright and light feeling.
However, moments of slight tension and dissonance were present towards
the end.
The second part
however, seemed to vary more in its themes.
Based on a minuet rhythm, this piece was much slower than Beethoven’s
interpretation above, giving it a more classical dance feel. I noticed a greater sense of homophony at the
beginning of the piece, with the first violin taking precedence over the other
instruments. This was interrupted by a
section of rising tension which heavily relies on the use of both silence and
the ‘plucking’ of the strings to give a staccato effect. Toward the end of this section we seemed to
return to the earlier motifs suggesting a hint of A-B-A ternary form.
The third section
begins with a sense of melancholy, but ‘opens out’ later in the piece to
reveal, once again, a homophonic nature.
Whilst in the last piece Haydn has scored tremolos, possibly for a
sustain effect, in this piece, the tremolos seem much more ornamental. The fourth second provides a second minuet,
which carries a number of similarities to the second movement. However, this time the instruments seem to be
‘blending’ more, with less of a sense of the first violin taking centre
stage.
The final ‘Presto’
section, provides the audience with one last slice of ‘drama’ and possibility
virtuosity on the player’s part.
Throughout this section I could clearly hear a number of the themes
which have appeared earlier in the composition.
Mozart’s Piano Concerto No 21 (1785) – recording found
on Spotify
This piece blends
the strings, woodwind, brass and percussion sections seamlessly to provide a
great backdrop for a virtuoso pianist to ‘showcase’ their talents. The opening section begins with a ‘march’
feel, with the violin taking precedence over the other instruments. It isn’t until around 2 minutes into this
section that piano actually reveals itself as the main instrument. However, at this point, and continuing on,
the piano gives a highly skilled and very virtuosic performance. I found it interesting that at times the
instruments seems to ‘take turns’ in accompanying the piano, before all coming
together to create increasing tension and drama. Towards the end of the first movement there
is a very elaborate cadenza, before a brief reiteration of the primary theme of
the movement.
Moving to F major,
the 2nd movement, Andante, has much slower, lyrical and dream-like
qualities. Much like the first movement,
the piano doesn’t appear until later in this piece, and this time it gives a
much more simple melody, ornamented with trills and gently accompanied by the
orchestra. However, this movement seems
to introduce a number of new musical ideas and directions, leading us to a more
tense and ominous feeling at times.
The final movement
contains more of the virtuoso piano style, but this time the orchestra seem to
be more closely linked to the melody, as opposed to the piano taking the
lead. This section contains a number of
repeating sections, interspersed with new musical ideas and thoughts.
Beethoven Piano Sonata No. 14 in C sharp minor (1801)
Notes of this
piece can be found in the main body of my blog under Exercise: Enjoying Classical Music.
Haydn – London Symphony No. 97 in C major: Adagio -
Vivace (1792) – recording found on Spotify
This piece
demonstrates Haydn’s growing musical style during his visits to London with
Saloman. The blend of instrumentation
during this composition adds a rich texture and varying emotions, which reflect
Haydn’s ever-developing style.
The opening
movement begins very gently with a homophonic style lead by the first
violin. An underpinning oscillation of
the other instruments, teamed by contrasting moments of drama, builds an ebb
and flow of anticipation and slight tension.
As the piece develops, the woodwind echo the strings before the
orchestra ‘bursts’ into a joyous and regal feel. At this time there are very distinct patterns
of repetition, each building slightly in grandeur each time.
This movement
continues to offer dramatic contrast in mood and dynamics, later giving moments
of great tension, sadness and hope. I
also thought that I could detect some folk tones, perhaps echoing Britain’s
historical folk traditions.
Although I may
find it hard to describe how this piece is very British in nature, as a Briton
it instills a certain feeling of patriotism and somehow ‘sums up’ many of our
traditional and historical ideals.
Haydn – Keyboard Concerto in D Major (1780 - 83) –
recording found on Spotify
The first
movement, Vivace, provides quite a
simple composition, heavily built on a homophonic nature, seemingly largely
favouring the piano’s treble clef.
Throughout the composition the piano provides both gentle and simple
solos, large emotional sections backed by the orchestra, and more complicated
virtuoso sections. The blend of these
techniques in the first movement provides an overwhelming feeling of joy,
happiness and perhaps innocence.
I feel that the
second movement holds a greater reflection to the earlier music of the Baroque
period. The blend of instruments,
favouring the violin at points, seems to give the piano a slight ‘break’ from
its solo duties and familiar 17th century motifs become apparent. However, moments of the piano providing a
more lyrical feeling are interlaced, reminding us that this is a keyboard
concerto.
Whilst possibly
still carrying a Baroque feel, the closing section demonstrates a more virtuosic
style of piano playing with fast, complicated arpeggio sections and gentle
melodic movements. In a homophonic
style, the instruments of the orchestra offer a very gentle and quiet
accompaniment, intercepted by large dramatic burst that help to build the
tension. Toward the end of the piece,
I ffelt it became quite frantic and hectic as it builds towards a great
moment. The composition closes with a
crescendo, which in my opinion doesn’t quite ‘live up’ to the tension built
throughout.
Mozart – Serenade for Winds No. 11 in E Flat Major (1781)
– recording found on Spotify
I must admit, I
found this composition extremely boring.
Although I can appreciate that a serenade is based around a central
theme of love, throughout the five movements of this piece I found the
‘movement’ of the music to be very flat and monotone, adopting very little
emotional range.
Whilst it may not
be to my taste, I can however appreciate that throughout this composition
Mozart has adopted techniques of both polyphony and homophony. Much like compositions appearing in the 19th
century, repetition also played a key role in this piece. However unlike these
later compositions, I found the repetition more a deterrent to listening as
opposed to a familiar ‘home point’.
Mozart Symphony No. 6 in F major II: Andante (1767) –
recording found on Spotify
Composed by an
eleven-year old Mozart, this symphony is an excellent example of his natural
gift for music. Written for 2 flutes, 2
oboes, bassoon and strings, the second movement of this piece offers a range of
emotion and melodic movement.
This movement
begins with the instruments growing in volume, repeating and developing a
light, gentle and hopeful melodic flow.
The overlapping of the instruments creates both a homophonic and
polyphonic feel at times, and the gentle oscillations of the violins which
appear later lead the way to a more dramatic and tense central section. At this time, the violin leads and the other
instruments provide a harmonic backing.
This section seems to carry a very lyrical feel that grows and adopts
feelings of joy and excitement. In symphonic
style, the second movement returns to the original ideas heard at the
beginning.
Muzio Clementi – Keyboard Sonata in B flat major Op.
24 (1788) – recording found on Spotify
The opening
section of this piece provides a number of musical themes and ideas in the
usual sonata ‘exposition’ style.
However, unlike other sonatas I have listened to, I found it more
difficult to specifically decipher to the movements of a clear first and second
musical theme. Instead, the themes seem
to be mixed together from the beginning, intertwining and developing
throughout. However, despite not seeing a clear ‘line’ of
change, this section takes the motifs through a range of emotions and feelings
from innocence and joy to tension and dark drama.
Given the varied
development of the motifs in the first section, it was interesting to hear how Clementi
had changed the mood completely at the beginning of this section, portraying
sadness and depression. As the piece
develops we are given a slightly brighter outlook as the melodic movement
speeds up and gives a more playful feel on the treble clef. However, the contrasting deep notes from the
bottom of the piano’s range underpin this playful side.
The third section
adopts a more virtuoso style, with the bass clef offering a dramatic
accompaniment to the complexity of its treble counterpart. The feeling of light ‘skipping’ movements
contrasted with deep, dark and slightly dissonant chords from the bass give the
entire section an unstable feeling.
However, this seems to balance out in the latter half of the closing
section, although this time recalling the earlier motifs clearly in a bright,
yet tense manner.
The ending of the
piece lacks the drama that one might expect from a sonata of this complex
harmonic nature. Although the closing section
provides a growing feeling of anxiety, building together the original motifs,
it closes very quickly with a short cadence based on the triple repetition of a
single bass chord.
Johann Stamitz – Clarinet
Concerto in B flat major (1755) – recording found on Spotify
Although I would consider myself to have a good appreciation of
classical music, I will admit that at times I find it difficult to listen to
entire pieces in one sitting. However,
perhaps due to the blend of instrumentation or musical emotion, I found Stamitz’s
Clarinet Concerto to be an extremely enjoyable piece to listen to
throughout.
As is typical with a concerto, the first movement provides an
introduction to a number of musical themes, broken with a cadenza. From the beginning the mood carries a light,
bright and hopeful feel, with the orchestra supporting the clarinet throughout.
Although I would consider this piece to
be mainly homophonic in nature, the rich blend of harmonic layers provided by
the orchestra gives a sense of depth and complexity. I found the cadenza in this section to be
quite unusual, as it initially provided a darker and more tense feeling,
eventually erupting back into the original theme. However, it is perhaps this contrast that
provides yet another opportunity to hold my attention throughout the
composition.
The second movement gives a more lyrical melodic movement and more
obvious sense of homophony. Set to an adagio tempo, the slower pace gives the
clarinet a more virtuoso styling and the gently changing harmonies and subtle
dynamic changes create a constant ‘flow’ throughout. Despite picking up on moments of tension
provided by the string section, the clarinet’s slightly muted and melancholic
tones help to balance out the mood of the second movement to provide a more
‘contented’ feeling.
The closing movement of this piece adopts a faster tempo again and is
greatly reminiscent of the themes explored in the opening section. Seemingly written using Rondo form (repeating
sections interspersed with new material), this acts as another aid to holding
the focus of the audience by providing familiar, possibly slight augmented
material. At the close of the piece we
return to the home key of B flat major to provide an overarching feeling of
resolution.
Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment vs. Royal Philharmonic Orchestra playing
Beethoven’s Violin Concerto in E minor Op. 64 (1807) – recordings found of
Spotify
Whilst both of
these pieces provided exactly the same musical composition, I was surprised to
see how wildly they different in terms of mood.
The Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment’s (OAE) version provided what
I would consider to be the most authentic version in terms of the original
performances; I would imagine that the more modern version would have more
accurately matched Beethoven’s initial ideas.
I think this is
mainly be due to the clarity of the instruments that varies widely between
pieces. In the OAE’s performance, the
instruments seemed somehow muted, dulled and lacked a sense of precision. Of course the lead violin stood out clearly
from the other instruments, but the orchestra’s ‘support’ seemed to merge and
blend together lacking instrument distinction.
However, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra’s (RPO) performance allowed me
to pick up on each instruments movement with extreme clarity.
Despite my
preference for the RPO’s performance of this piece, I cannot help but in many
ways favour the ‘merging affect’ of the OAE’s orchestra backing. As a concerto, to me the only instrument that
should ‘stand out’ is the violin; therefore perhaps the more amalgamated sounds
of the traditional instruments provides a more truthful representation of the
18th ideals.
Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach – Viola da Gamba Sonata in G
minor Wq. 88: II: Larghetto (1737) – performed by Florilegium and Rebeka Ruso
& Sebastian Wienand - recordings
found Spotify
This comparison of
a traditional vs. modern orchestra gave an even greater contrast than the OAE
and RPO (see above). However, this time
the main difference was provided by the substitution of the harpsichord for the
piano. The Florilegium version
demonstrates the sharp and staccato tones of the harpsichord and delivers a
more rigid feeling to the piece.
However, the piano’s flowing sound and sustain provides a lighter and
gentler accent to the strings.
It would be
difficult for me to identify which version I prefer, as they each hold such
different properties. Whilst in many
ways the ‘dated’ feel of the Florilegium’s performances makes it harder for me
to relate to the piece, it does provide a much more accurate representation of
the Classical era.
A comparative study of Mozart’s Marriage of Figaro (1786) & Handel’s Julius Caesar (1724) –
recordings found on Spotify
Finding operatic
listening very hard, this exercise was quite challenging for me – possibly due
to my lack of interest in this genre.
However, when listening to these pieces, I was able to detect a distinct
difference in mood between the two genres.
Despite reading a
brief synopsis of both operas, my lack of experience in this genre along with
my monolingualism, meant that I was unable to follow the story unfolding. However, I was able to distinguish between
aria and recitative sections and learn of cavatinas (short song of simple
character), coros (addition of choir), duettinos (emotionally concise duet) and
terzettos (three characters coming together).
In terms of
distinguishing between Opera-buffa (comic) and Opera-seria (Grand), my lack of
experience made quite difficult for me to find specific differences that I can
elaborate upon. However, as a
generalisation, I found the Marriage of
Figaro to carry a slight ‘over the top’ feel in terms of the libretto. At points during the composition, mainly
during the aria section, the power and range demonstrated by the singers
provides a slight feeling of ‘mocking’ of traditional opera style. However, Handel’s opera provided a much more
serious, musically ‘perfect’ performance, heavily respecting the vocalist’s
range.
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