What Could Be Better?

A few days ago, I posted about Bruckner’s lyrical Seventh Symphony. Today, I’m happy to introduce another magisterial member of his symphonic repertoire- No. 4. The “Romantic” Symphony is long, drawn-out, and requires some patience to listen to. That isn’t to say that the patience doesn’t pay off- each movement’s climax is full of string-rich sound.

It is performed here by the Vienna Philharmonic and Claudio Abbado, who died recently after a long and fruitful life.

(Also, try and spot a female musician!)

Would You Call This Scandalous?

The American composer Samuel Barber wrote some of the most passionate, open-sounding, and uniquely North American music of the twentieth-century (I prefer him one hundred times to Aaron Copland). One of his most vibrant works is his Overture to The School for Scandal, his graduation piece for the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia. It’s a remarkably mature and knowledgeable piece, and Yoel Levi and the Atlanta Symphony give it a rousing go here.

It Never Stops

The American composer John Adams’ Short Ride in a Fast Machine is a story of momentum. Started and ended by a woodblock that never ceases its  plock-plock-plock-ing, the piece is appealingly bright and fast. Incredibly challenging to pull off because of strange rhythms and enormous range of notes, it is a spectacle when played well. This animation is just as exciting as the music.

See if you like it.

A Piece That Calls For New Beginnings

Anton Bruckner’s works are magisterial, powerful, and grounded monuments of tonal power. The Austrian’s seventh symphony, one of his most famous, has the power, but it has what some of his other pieces lack: melody. It’s nostalgic and beautifully heartwarming. Laid over pulsing winds and brass and smooth strings, it is nothing other thoughtful. The first movement is a highlight.

(Berliner Philharmoniker/Jochum)

Better Than The Movie

Yes, the Stanley Kubrick Film is a classic. Kirk Douglas is a magnificent fit for the role. The plot is thrilling. It’s up there with the top American films of the twentieth century.

But the music?

It can’t beat Aram Khachaturian’s. The composer didn’t have Douglas’ sex appeal, but he sure had brains.

The Armenian composer’s score for his ballet, also called Spartacus, is zesty, catchy, and clever. Not one moment is uninteresting, even for those who feel they don’t want to sit through a whole ballet.

Here’s the second ballet suite. One of the most exciting and quintessentially Khachaturian moments is the Dance of the Pirates, at about 19:15.

Tell Me Something More Engaging Than This

Jumping on the bandwagon and joining groups like the Baltimore Symphony and the San Francisco Symphony, the Columbus Symphony is hosting a side-by-side concert with amateur players and professional musicians.

It’s a good idea. Playing tough repertoire in an amateur orchestra can have its rewards, but getting to do it alongside professional players makes it a dream come true. There are enough in the orchestra to make the piece sound good anyways.

Here’s video from Columbus. It looks like a happy event.

I find this clip from Baltimore, however, more heartwarming.

I’m Suspicious

 

Well, kind of.

I’ve been hung up over the past few days thinking about Ralph Vaughan Williams, or rather, the Ralph Vaughan Williamses.

There were three of them. They shared the same birthday, the same clothes. The same brain.

It is very difficult to conceive how this one English composer could have possessed three separate categories of genius. Hymns, folk tunes, and crazy modernist symphonies all have significant places in his large library of compositions. For the most part, these categories stayed separate; listening to each in turn, it would be impossible to guess that they came from the same guy. Occasionally, there is overlap- a few bars here and there.

But that’s occasionally.

To give you an idea of just how different his work is, I’ve given a sampler of each below.

Hymn (Dominus Regit Me):

Folk (English Folk Song Suite):

Modern (Symphony No. 6):

Guess Who’s Now Really Famous

George Szell is rarely seen on video. Only a few of his concerts are preserved on camera, and he was generally less prolific in his recording output than others. Nevertheless, he did allow himself to be featured in a television special while at the helm of The Cleveland Orchestra. In this clip, he coaches three apprentice conductors.

One of them is a star. Can you guess who?

Wait A Second- Nobody Lives Forever

When everybody shakes his head and cannot put his finger on why classical concerts are so poorly attended, something goes forgotten.

The people who came to concert halls in droves a few decades ago are now dead.

There’s no doubt, although it is pretty morbid, that classical music’s survival seems now to depend on the fans who are still living. More than ever, it is important to kindle interest in younger folk- we have to buy a few more years?

How do we do it- bribes? After-concert parties? Audience-selected programs? Eye candy soloists?

As for that disgusting last one, here’s Lola Astanova.

Really. Rachmaninoff is not club music.

Paper Is Important, but There’s More To It Than That!

As the story goes, the commission for the Firebird didn’t originally go to Igor Stravinsky, who ended up composing a magnificent, world-renowned score. Anatol Liadov was supposed to do it first. However, the brilliant Russian mind was also a great procrastinator. When asked of his progress, he remarked, “I’ve bought the paper.”

That job didn’t last long.

A good, not particularly well-known composition of his is the Ballade. In a way, it’s probably good he didn’t end up doing the Firebird, because I couldn’t see anyone dancing well to the fast 5/4 rhythm central to the piece.