Piano Man

“One thing I am certain of is that, if I have done anything good in music, it was first, because of my father, and second, because of my wife,” quoted by Charles Ives. Music played a significant role Ives’ family from generations to generations which were carried down to Charles. The family oriented American composer, Charles Edward Ives (also known as Charlie) was born on October 20th, 1874 at Danbury, Connecticut to George Ives and Mary Parmelee. He spent most of his childhood with his father…

Felsenfeld and the text “Weirdly Popular” by Sasha Frere-Jones deal with the main idea of music and the affect it has on people. “Rebel Music” is about Daniel Felsenfeld’s transformation and discovery as a musician. It discusses his time as a child playing piano and listening to punk music, to later finding classical music and dreaming of becoming a composer, he even says in his article that “..., having long ago colonized this planet and gone native, and active member of a community I once…

pressure of wanting to be the person that his daughter Francis Bean needed as a father, and the increasingly jaded spotlight that had lost its short lived appeal, were all beginning to take a fatal toll on the undernourished body of Nirvana’s front man. In ’93, the band released what would be their final album, In Utero, which quickly hit the number one spot, leading to more world touring, and increased fame; proving to be the added weight that would serve as the straw that broke the back of the…

August Wilson uses The Piano Lesson to illustrate the hardships of two siblings involving conflicts, symbolism, religion, and folklore. Boy Willie focuses mainly on the time at which his family was held captive as slaves to a chance to buy his own piece of land. The Piano Lesson demonstrates the importance of family heirlooms and how no amount of money could ever replace the sentimental value of they hold. Berniece and Boy Willie constantly argue as to whether the piano should be sold to help…

The period from the middle of the 18th century to the early 19th century was the time that contained great historical changes over the world. In the 18th century, a new idea of the economic system was claimed by Adam Smith and people started to be concerned about broader educations. Because of this reason, a humanitarian movement was led by French philosophers, such as Voltaire, Montesquieu, and Rousseau, which is known as the Enlightenment. The Enlightenment aimed that individuals had rights,…

evolution by observing changes to a style, genre, or concept. In this report, the focus will fall on movements from two violin sonatas. For the purposes of this discussion, a violin sonata will be defined as a work specifically written for violin and piano with the purpose of it being a chamber piece. By analyzing the movements, the progress from the Classical to the Romantic eras will become observable through subtle and apparent musical elements. The concert these pieces were performed at was…

Furthermore, it was located at Powell Symphony Hall. At this concert, I listened to professional musicians perform music that was composed by Bernstein, Copland, and Gershwin. Three Dance episodes from On the Town, Symphonic Suite from On the Waterfront, Piano Concerto, and An American in Paris are the pieces the musicians played. Furthermore, a symphony played these American pieces. Lastly, Bernstein 's and Gershwin’s music are programs, while Copland’s music is absolute music. All three of…

Music can have a huge influence over a child’s academic life. The author of Life of Pi, Yann Martel feels that the arts can have an influence over a person’s imagination. Martel feels that “If we citizens do not support the arts, then we sacrifice our imagination...” (xi). Music has the ability to spark memories of times someone has had with his or her families and friends. A song played during the holiday season can bring back memories of something as simple as decorating a Christmas tree or…

“If you can find a path with no obstacles, it probably doesn’t lead anywhere,” is a quote from Frank A. Clark that Ludwig van Beethoven can most likely agree to. Throughout his life, Beethoven wasn’t dealt the easiest hand and he was able to overcome this in order to become the success he is known as today. In turn, some may claim that Beethoven would have made it “farther” in life if it wasn’t for these “distractions”; however, without these “distractions, or obstacles, Beethoven wouldn’t have…

There are many different ways we can identify ourselves—perhaps you are a white, female, San Franciscan, or a first-generation college student and Chinese-American son. Please share two or three of your core identifiers and how they have shaped who you are. (500) I am Chinese-American. I am the proud daughter of two Chinese immigrants, who rose out of poverty in order to go to medical school and become successful doctors in the United States. They raised my sister and me while still struggling…