Believe me, I know how hard it was. Our last music email was downright _____________ (insert descriptive phrase that best describes your agony after listening to the random guy’s first piece). As far as I know we haven’t lost anyone, but there were a couple close calls. Since then, I’ve stuck up for all of you. I tried to convince That Random Guy to let us live in peace and not subject us to another ear-splitting performance, but he would have none of it. So we’re still here, and we’re going to have to band together and rely on our collective strength to make it through another week. In the interest of our survival, here are a few recommendations that might make your listening experience less painful:

– utilize 3 pairs of ear plugs. In each ear.

– execute whatever leg stretch is most physically painful to you to get your mind off of the painful music.

– play death metal rock and roll in the background at a decibel level sufficient to break the glass in your neighbor’s living room windows.

– purchase a pack of rabid hyenas and let them loose on each other as soon as the piece starts.

– imitate Louis Zamperini in Unbroken and hold a 200-lb log over your head in order to distract yourself from the carnage.

The piece you’ll be listening to this week is the first movement of the Concerto No. 3 in G Major by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. It was the second piece on the program I played on June 4th. I’ll keep the description brief and simply mention a few nuances for you to listen for. Mozart’s music, characterized by delicacy, tastefulness, and lightness, is at is best in his violin concerti. Listeners are treated to a lovely display of Mozart’s amazing ability to create action and serenity at the same time. Delicate turns, intricate phraseology, and lines that sing like a songbird are all regular occurrences in the violin works of Mozart. When I am playing any of Mozart’s violin concerti, I like to emphasize the interaction between the two as a sort of chamber ensemble rather than the supremacy of the violin solo line (as I might do if playing Brahms or Tchaikovsky’s concerti). There is a lively and quite entertaining conversation happening between the violin and the orchestra that is a delight to follow.

Enjoy!

T