Silly Symphonies

Robert Schumann is known as one of the greatest German composers of the Romantic era. His contributions to the world of music are not only vast in numbers, but they span a very broad range of composition including his piano sonatas and lied. Although this output is grand and very influential, it is important to keep in mind that Robert Schumann was fighting with mental illnesses throughout his life. With the knowledge of his struggles with depression and other illnesses, one must look deeper…

Attention Getter: I will start by saying something to the effect of “From Beethoven to Bieber, an incredibly wide variety of music has been recognized as ‘good,’ but why are these songs good? Why is Trout Mask Replica, an awful sounding cacophonous mash of notes, seen as good?” Interest Explained. (What experiences have caused the writer to become interested?) I first heard Trout Mask Replica on a video I saw on Facebook, and since then I have been enthralled in finding out why the video…

All eyes were on me, judging me and peering into my soul. I had two left hands with cold, concrete fingers. Heart beating rapidly, I began the walk to my demise. No, I was not about to be executed. But I was just about to play Frederic Chopin’s Heroic Polonaise in front of a large audience. The Polonaise is a piece riddled with treacherous passages that either make the pianist leap across the keyboard or tie his fingers into mini Gordian’s knots. I found myself wishing I wouldn’t mess up…

period. A symphony typically refers to a large work for an orchestra that was usually in four movements. During the 18th century, the symphony had been developing and by this point most composers had established a pattern of four sections that became known as movements. Generally the movements contrasted in terms of mood and tempo but were usually linked by the same or related keys. The first movement was categorized as being lengthy and weight, often led by a slow introduction. Symphony…

Johann Christoph Denner created the clarinet soon after 1698 (Barrett, G. 1999) (Adullah, M et al. 2015). The clarinet is a woodwind instrument with a single reed. A clarinet has many different keys, and each of them helps produce a different note. “The keys were of brass, sometimes of silver and the springs were of brass.” (Barrett, G. 1999). It is an instrument that is somewhat quiet compared to others, but it can be played loudly if the player desires. “While almost every other woodwind…

Beethoven is a well-known composer for his great work and symphonies that are filled with intensity and emotion. “Some of Beethoven’s most famous works mirror this sense of struggle to overcome an adversity imposed by fate.”(Bonds) Like Beethoven, many other composers of this time began expressing intense feelings and emotion in music. Romantic music is an era of Western classical music that started during the Romantic period around the late 18th or early 19th century. During the Romantic period…

The Dallas Symphony Orchestra and Chorus presented a beautiful concert called Christmas Pops. The concert had sing-along carols to sacred choruses, this is a must see concert for anyone wanting to enjoy the perfect holiday season music. Throughout the concert, pieces from different musical eras were played from baroque period to the classical period to present day. By being able to hear multiple pieces from different eras all combined into one concert was an amazing experience just because I was…

for his program symphony that he composed, Symphonie Fantastique. A program symphony is a symphony that portrays something nonmusical. There was another composer to wrote a program piece. Vivaldi wrote a program concerto; this being the same as a program symphony, but instead of being a symphony portraying something nonmusical, it is a concerto. His program concerto…

Prelude Frederic Chopin, famous 19th century composer, taught me that life is lived in preludes. Beginnings, fragments, moods-in- miniature, some less than a minute long. Introductions to larger works that don’t even exist. Lullabies overtaken by laments. “Why can’t you be more like Mozart?” I once asked him. “More…predictable, more full of pleasing pattern?” “Why can’t you?” he shot back. Ghosts can be very peevish. But Chopin didn’t like to be called a ghost. Or an imaginary friend.…

Julian Howard Music History 3210 Professor Barte December 8th, 2015 Final Term Paper Johann Sebastian Bach was born on March 21st, 1685 in Eisenach, Germany. Bach’s musical talent was no surprise due to the great reputation the Bach family held for their musical talents; learning to play violin and the harpsichord from his father and organ from his famous uncle. Bach considered one of the best composers of all time, you may recognize a few of his most popular compositions such as “Toccata and…