Posted on by tjphilbrick

Duet #4

Hello all,

To conclude our series on great duets in classical music history, we will be listening to Passacaglia by Halvorsen, based on a theme by George Frederic Handel. The musicians are Julia Fischer and Daniel Muller-Schott.

Johan Halvorsen was a Norwegian violinist and conductor who was widely known through Europe in the early 20th century. He wrote the duet initially for violin and viola, and it has since been transcribed for violin and cello. The theme that Halvorsen used to create this duet was taken from George Frederic Handel’s Harpsichord Suite No. 7 in G Minor. (For those of you who are new to this whole classical music business, Handel is the composer who wrote the Messiah that we so often hear at Christmas-time). A passacaglia is a French dance form that starts with a simple melody and builds on it with a series of increasingly complex variations. This particular piece contains 12 variations in which the violin and the cello take turns carrying the dominant voice. You’ll see the performers plucking the strings (musicians call this pizzicato), playing complex sets of chords, bouncing the bow on the strings (musicians called this ricochet) and flying up and down the fingerboard with amazing dexterity. By the end of the piece, we will have experienced the full breadth of virtuosic capability in both instruments.

Enjoy!

T

Posted on by tjphilbrick

The Duet #3 – Brahms Double Concerto

Hello all,

Our series on famous duets continues with the Double Concerto by Johannes Brahms, performed by Anne-Sophie Mutter* on the violin and Maximilian Hornung on the cello.

In my opinion, the most amazing thing about this concerto is that Brahms didn’t play a single stringed instrument. He was a pianist. While this certainly makes Brahms’ compositional ability even more impressive,** it is helpful to know that he was very strongly motivated to compose a piece that included a violin part. Brahms’ friendship with virtuoso violinist Joseph Joachim (who had premiered Brahms’ monumental violin concerto) had recently become strained after Brahms testified on behalf of Joachim’s wife in a divorce proceeding. Historians believe that Brahms wrote the Double Concerto as a reconciliation gift for his friend.

The Double Concerto is jam-packed with dense and complex melodies. Brahms does a masterful job of balancing the rich colors of the cello with the bright colors of the violin, and the two become, in his hands, a unified voice. There is a certain harmonic glow about this piece that is characteristic of Brahms’ later years. This is particular evident in the lovely second movement, which begins at 18:51 and soars to new heights of color through a unison melody shared by the two solo instruments.

Enjoy!

T

*Those of you who know my unabashed trepidations about the artistry of Anne-Sophie Mutter may be surprised by the choice of this video. However, I must give credit where credit is due. While Mutter may not be my choice for Beethoven or Mozart, her ultra-Romantic style is absolutely perfect for playing Brahms. I think she does an incredible job of capturing the rich core of this powerful violin part.

**Brahms himself was concerned about his lack of experience writing for stringed instruments. He wrote a letter to Clara Schumann expressing doubt about his ability to properly write a double concerto, and it was her encouraging reply that motivated him to continue composing.  

Posted on by tjphilbrick

The Duet #2 – Petite Suite

Hello all,

As we continue our series on the great duets in the classical music repertoire, we turn this week to Claude Debussy’s Petite Suite, performed by Christoph Eschenbach and Lang Lang.

Petite Suite is written for one piano and four hands. Debussy premiered it himself, in collaboration with fellow French musician Jacques Durand. There are four movements (not all of which are present in this performance, unfortunately) that evenly feature both pianists.

You will notice that the piece is quite simple and not technically difficult; Debussy is reported to have intended it for an amateur piano-lesson-type audience. It is particularly interesting to note that he wrote this piece shortly after being told by his Paris Conservatory piano instructor that he should focus on composition because he would never make a good pianist.

One of the things that I find most interesting about this composition is its historically anomalous nature. Debussy was a late Romantic-era composer, closely preceded by colleagues who wrote thundering symphonies (Brahms) and soaring concerti (Tchaikovsky). It is therefore curious to experience the simplicity and – as one critic put it – “delightful plainness” of the Petite Suite.

Enjoy!

T

Posted on by tjphilbrick

New Series – The Duet

Hello all,

Today marks the start of a new series! We will be working through some of the most famous duets in the history of music, starting with Anna Netrebko and Elina Garanca singing the Duo des Fleurs (Flower Duet) by Leo Delibes.

Delibes is best known for this duet, which is part of his 1883 opera Lakme. It is written for soprano and mezzo-soprano and is from the part of the opera in which the main character Lakme and her servant Mallika are picking flowers together by a river. (There is another famous opera in which two female characters sing a duet while picking flowers together – Puccini’s Madame Butterfly – but Delibes never confirmed the possibility of a connection).

It is worth noting the caliber of the singers in the video, both of whom are world-class. In particular, Anna Netrebko is regarded as one of the greatest sopranos of all time. She performs regularly at the Met, Vienna Opera House, Mariinsky Theatre, and Royal Opera House.

The lyrics are as follows:

“Under the thick dome where the white jasmine
With the roses entwined together
On the river bank covered with flowers laughing in the morning
Let us descend together!

Gently floating on its charming risings,
On the river’s current
On the shining waves,
One hand reaches,
Reaches for the bank,
Where the spring sleeps,
And the bird, the bird sings.

Under the thick dome where the white jasmine
Ah! calling us
Together!”

Enjoy!

T

Posted on by tjphilbrick

Tchaikovsky Nocturne

Hello all,

Our music for this week is the Nocturne in F Major for solo piano by Tchaikovsky.

This composition is part of a set of two pieces that Tchaikovsky wrote while on vacation in Nice, France in 1872. The other piece is a Humoresque that has since been transcribed for violin and cello, among other instruments.  

It would be difficult to find a more charming piece of music than this Nocturne. Sensual melodic lines in the right hand flow seamlessly over tumbling waters in the left hand, creating an atmosphere of delicacy and relaxation.  Unlike much of Tchaikovsky’s music, there is no “moment of tension” in this piece that must be resolved; it is content to simply enjoy the ride. For an example of this, listen for the way that Tchaikovsky brings the melody back at around 2:20. Rather than create harmonic tension by entering the world of dissonance or dynamic pressure, he simply lets the development section drop off by itself. I think this creates a wonderful effect, since it enables the original melody to appear out of a moment of complete silence.

Enjoy!

T

P.S. Some of you may remember our recent series on the great Russian pianist Sviatoslav Richter. I would encourage you to check out his recording of this piece, which also includes its Humoresque companion.

Posted on by tjphilbrick

Baba-who?

Hello all,

We’re taking a break from our series on Bach’s Brandenburg concerti to listen to the incredibly powerful “Poem for Piano” by Babajanyan, performed by Armen Babakhanian.

Babajanyan was born in Armenia in 1921 to a very musical family that recognized his musical guest at a very young age. After studying in Moscow for several years an establishing himself as a pianist and composer, he returned to his native Armenia to teach and compose.

One of his favorite things to do was to compose music based on poetry and literature. Many of his compositions are rooted in folk lore from Armenia and Russia, and this one is no exception. He was also fearless when incorporating other styles of music into his compositions. There are traces of jazz, rock’n roll, and blues music in many of his compositions. I would encourage you to listen for the jazz-like harmonies that are present throughout the music.

It is fitting to have this piece be performed by Armen Babakhanian, who is one of the most highly revered Armenian musicians of all time. He studied with pianists who were students of Babajanyan himself and has built his career around the music of Armenia. His performance of this brief little composition is one of the most compact and intense displays of virtuosity you will ever see, so I would highly encourage you to take the just a few minutes to watch the video. Notice the ways that his body language reflects the mood and atmosphere of music. He is not aimlessly throwing himself around the instrument like many musicians unfortunately do; he is using his movements to meaningfully accentuate the contours of the music. As far as his technical prowess is concerned, I’m not sure I can adequately describe it (at least not in a way that does it justice). You’ll see what I mean 🙂

Posted on by tjphilbrick · 1 Comment

Just For Fun

Hello all,

I thought we would take a break from our series on the Brandenburg concerti and enjoy a lighthearted encore by the Finish violinist Pekka Kuusisto. The performance itself needs very little explanation, so I thought I would provide you with a bit of background on the artist himself. As you’ll see, this performance showcases an unbelievable combination of instrumental and vocal talent.

Mr. Kuusisto is a jack-of-all-trades when it comes to musical performance. One night he will play a concerto that has only existed for a few days, and the next night he can perform 16th-century compositions just as well. While this ability may be hard to appreciate without doing it, suffice it to say that this is somewhat similar to having the ability to dance a ballet one day and play in the NFL the next. As the video showcases, he is also a gifted improviser and singer. One fact about Kuusisto that I thought was particularly interesting in light of our recent study of the Brandenburg concerti is his fascination with the music of J.S. Bach. This is reflected in many ways, most notably in his composition of a series of rock and roll concerti based on several Bach sonatas.

Enjoy!

T

Posted on by tjphilbrick

Brahms on the Cello

Hello all,

Our music for this week is the Sonata No. 1 for cello and piano by Johannes Brahms, performed by Jean-Guihen Queyras on the cello and Alexandre Tharaud on the piano.

If you have been with us for a while now, you have probably picked up on the importance of J.S. Bach in the world of classical music. Many consider him to be the father of Western music, and almost every single composer has written at least one composition in homage to him. Brahms is no exception. This cello sonata was written in honor of J.S. Bach, and we can see very tangible evidence of this in the fugue that Brahms includes in the first movement.

Brahms, however, also did his fair share of trailblazing. As an accomplished pianist, he was not a fan of the accompaniment role so often given to the piano in sonatas. He therefore wrote in the front of the manuscript that the piano “should be a partner – often a leading, often a watchful and considerate partner – but it should under no circumstances assume a purely accompanying role.” He also titled the work, “Sonata for Piano and Cello,” which, by listing the piano first, implies that the cello is the accompanying voice. It is also telling that the sonata was written for a man named Joseph Gansbacher, an amateur cellist who reportedly lacked the ability to project an adequately robust sound into a concert hall. During the first rehearsal, with Brahms at the piano and Gansbacher at the cello, Gansbacher had to stop mid-phrase because the piano was so loud he couldn’t even hear himself play. When he complained to Brahms about this predicament, the composer growled, “Lucky for you,” and thundered on.

A few things for you to listen for:

  • The first movement is where you will hear the fugal structure that is reminiscent of Bach’s music. It can be a bit difficult to pick out the cello line at times because of the deep and dark colors that Brahms assigns it.
  • Listen for a Baroque dance in the second movement, another reference to Bach.
  • The fugue returns in the third movement, but this time it is assigned to both instruments. Again, however, Brahms makes sure that the piano is the dominant voice; in fact, it carries three out of the four voices in the fugue.
Posted on by tjphilbrick

Zoltan Kodaly – Sonata for solo cello

Our music for this week is the Sonata for solo cello by Zoltan Kodály. It is performed by Janos Starker.

After the composition and discovery of JS Bach’s six cello suites, no great solo works were written for the cello for almost 200 years. Kodály, although not a cellist himself, composed this sonata in 1915 in homage to the genius of Bach. Ironically, the performance of this suite was delayed in a manner similar to the performance of Bach’s suites because of World War I.

Kodály was fascinated by the music of Claude Debussy and Béla Bartók, both of home he had encountered while studying composition in Paris many years earlier. He and Bartok eventually became two of the most well-known Hungarian composers in history. In fact, the two of them made several trips around the Hungarian countryside for the sole purpose of collecting folk tunes. You can therefore hear Hungarian folk and influences in this music at many different points.

The link above only contains the first movement of the Sonata, but you’re welcome to listen to the other movements at your leisure. This first movement is the grandiose exposition of the sonata. Kodály uses this movement to explore all of the main themes that he wants to develop throughout the rest of the sonata. The second movement simply takes one of these themes and meanders through it with a melancholy and introspective attitude. The third movement is a rollicking folk tune that Kodály transcribed entirely from a rural village musician.

Kodály was extremely confident that this sonata would become very popular. He even predicted that, within 25 years of its composition, every serious cellist would want to play it. Posterity has been friendly to him; almost every single international cello competition now requires a performance of this sonata if the cellist hopes to advance to the final rounds.

Enjoy!
Posted on by tjphilbrick

Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk

Our music for today comes from Shostakovich’s opera Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk. This song is a soprano solo titled Katerina’s Aria, and it is sung by Galina Vishnevskaya.

This opera was based on a Russian folk story about a young woman who falls in love but is shunned by the object of her affections. This rejection later drives her to madness and, eventually, murder. However, Shostakovich was not interested in the story itself; rather, he was interested in exploring all of the possibilities of the soprano voice. The opera is almost entirely focused on glittering soprano solo lines, and even the oft-powerful tenor line is noticeably absent. Shostakovich even changed the folk story so that he could give the soprano more of a solo presence. The aria that you hear this recording is one in which the main character, Katerina, sings of the guilt and remorse that have resulted from her murderous actions.

Shostakovich which was not only interested in displaying the soprano voice through a dark and tragic story. He also wanted to paint a new and different conception of what love could be. As he wrote about the opera, “I dedicated Lady Macbeth to my bride, my future wife, so naturally the opera is about love, too, but not only love. It’s also about how love could have been if the world weren’t full of vile things.”

The opera enjoyed spectacular success until early 1936, when it was the object of a sudden and shockingly harsh reprimand by the ruling Communist Party. This denunciation was, for the time being, a death knell for this opera. Sadly, it became well known later on largely because of its history of censorship.

The singer you will hear is Galina Vishnevskaya, who was honored as a People’s Artist of Russia in 1966. As a child prodigy growing up under the guidance of the renowned Moscow Conservatory, she rose to fame at a young age and performed most of the world’s most popular Sopranos lines before the age of 30. She was married to the world famous cellist Mstislav Rostropovich, and the two of them where best friends with Shostakovich himself. It is therefore quite likely that Shostakovich wrote this soprano line with Galina’s voice in mind.

Enjoy!