Metropolitan Opera

The Trumpet – various, trumpet A mixture of feelings is how I reacted to this album. A selection of pieces, experts, and composers that I have not even heard of appeared on this album. This album featured many different trumpeters as well, making it hard to hone in on specifics on the technique of playing. Ludwig Guttler, however, did appear on many of the pieces and had an interesting sound. At first listen, I was struck by the style of his tone and timbre. Ludwig sounded very, in the throat,…

to 1782, Mozart ‘s first two successful operas were composed and later, his most enduring operas would be written. There would be several years between these two opera’s and his last three operas created in the last couple years of his life Mozart’s opera career started in 1780 while still in Salzburg, but it was not until his break from the Archbishop Colorado’s service in 1780 that Mozart was able to create music for himself and the Vienna opera audience. After being relieved from…

After Idomeneo, Mozart composed a few more operas, but in 1786, the premiere of Le Nozze di Figaro set Mozart’s opera career on a new path. Le Nozze di Figaro is one of, if not the most famous opera buffa composed by Mozart. The Libretto was written by Lorenzo Da Ponte, and is the was first of the infamous Da Ponte operas, the others being Don Giovanni and Cosi fan tutte. The opera is set in 18th century Spain. This story takes place on the wedding day of Figaro and Susanna, Count Almaviva’s…

The first feature that ties some of these songs together is the period they were produced. Many of these composer lived during the romantic period, such as Felix Mendelssohn, Charles-Camille Saint-Saëns, and Edvard Grieg, accordingly, their music possessed the traits that defined the romantic period. As has been discussed in class, Grieg bases his “Morning Mood” on the Norwegian folk tune, creating a sense of nationalism in the process. While Mendelssohn’s “Symphony No. 5” contains a variation…

would be a slow and quite piano solo in deep tones. Most people would describe it as either thoughtful or a saddening piece. The main character in my book is a famous Russian composer by the name of Dmitri Shostakovich who wrote emotional symphonies, operas, and ballets for the people around him. “May 12, 1926, was a date Shostakovich called his “second birth”. He celebrated it for the rest of his life. It was the day his First Symphony was performed by a full orchestra, the Leningrad…

“If a composer could say what he had to say in words he would not bother trying to say it in music.” ~Gustav Mahler. The romantic style period started during 1780 and ended in about 1910. It was one of the most influential time periods that ever was. The romantic period was dramatic and full of action, also involving contradictions between capitalism and socialism, freedom and oppression, emotion, and faith. Many passionate pieces were written during The result of this was creative artists…

Gustav Holst, born in Cheltenham in September 1847, is still today considered to be one of the greatest music composers of all time.He didn’t start out as the great composer that we know and love. His path to success wasn’t the smoothest. Holst was born to Adolph von Holst and Clara Cox Lediard. His father was a professional pianist who practiced many hours a day leaving very few to his wife Clara and their children. Clara was a student of Adolph when they first met. She was also a talented…

Road Ensemble and went on to win many awards and recognitions. Ma has changed the face of music forever. Born in 1955, Paris, France, Yo Yo Ma changes classical music forever. His father, a professor of musicology and a composer, and his mother, an opera singer, both knew he was different from the very beginning. Yo Yo Ma had his first musical experience at the very young age of four years of four years old. Originally he wanted to play the double bass, but that was nearly impossible for a four…

ou might say they pulled out the stops at the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra concert on Friday. There were many engaging moments in the Cincinnati Symphony's unique program hailing the French organ tradition in Music Hall. But Louis Langrée’s direction of the famous “Poco adagio” in Saint-Saëns’ Symphony No. 3, “Organ,” was truly magical. At the Allen organ, Thierry Escaich’s tones provided a soft, rich carpet under the lustrous sounds of the Cincinnati strings. It was serene and moving, and…

In the world of music, no piece quite received quite the same reception as Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring. As a paganistic approach to the rebirth and celebration of nature, the piece astonished audiences with its forceful and earth-like tones. However, the world premiere induced a massive riot throughout the audience, which rendered the orchestra inaudible. The chaos that ensued angered Stravinsky, who was displeased with humanity as a whole. In the Rite of Spring, Stravinsky expressed the…