Bernstein
Year of Wonder – September
August 30, 2019 Music Potpourri
I have just finished another wonderful month with Clemency Burton-Hill’s Year of Wonder and have embedded videos of four pieces of music that were covered in the book for the month of August. With each piece I have included a quote from Year of Wonder with hopes that anyone reading this blog will be inspired to purchase the book and dedicate themselves to listening to one piece of classical music every day for the next year.
For those who have already begun the journey, I have also embedded a Spotify playlist for September’s recommendations from Burton-Hill’s book.
Enjoy!
Spotify Playlist for SEPTEMBER of the Year of Wonder
J.S. Bach, Partita No. 1 in B-flat major, BWV 825, “Allemande”
“It might seem a bit irreverent to describe the mighty J. S. Bach as a ‘palate cleanser’, but among the many services into which I have pressed his music over the years (commute companion, grief counsellor, baby wrangler, and so on) the role of life-clarifier and head-clearer is right up there. Whenever I’m stuck, whenever I need to quiet my ranging mind, whenever I require what I imagine is the sonic equivalent of yoga or meditation, it’s to this sort of music I turn, and submit myself, and go still, and recover.”
Audrey Abela, piano
Anton Bruckner, Locus iste
“This three-minute motet makes a strong case for the argument that there is little more powerful in music—or indeed, in life—than the sound of intertwining human voices.”
UniversitätasChor München, conducted by Johannes Kleinjung
Sergei Rachmaninoff, Piano Concerto No. 2 in C minor, Second Movement
“This is the sort of unashamedly wonderful piece that some classical music critics pride themselves on deriding—for being, I don’t know, ‘cheesy’ or ‘populist’.… Being universally loved does not detract from the concerto’s genius. Quite the opposite.”
Hélène Grimaud (piano) with the Lucerne Festival Orchestra, conducted by Claudio Abbado
Leonard Bernstein, “Somewhere” from West Side Story
“Bernstein, together with his lyricist Stephen Sondheim, takes the simplest yet most gut-wrenching of scenarios—not now, my love, but someday, somewhere, we well be able to be together— and enshrines it in music that is so direct and relatable it just takes you apart.”
Cynthia Erivo with the National Symphony Orchestra conducted by Gianandrea Noseda
For those who have already begun the journey, I have also embedded a Spotify playlist for September’s recommendations from Burton-Hill’s book.
Enjoy!
Spotify Playlist for SEPTEMBER of the Year of Wonder
J.S. Bach, Partita No. 1 in B-flat major, BWV 825, “Allemande”
“It might seem a bit irreverent to describe the mighty J. S. Bach as a ‘palate cleanser’, but among the many services into which I have pressed his music over the years (commute companion, grief counsellor, baby wrangler, and so on) the role of life-clarifier and head-clearer is right up there. Whenever I’m stuck, whenever I need to quiet my ranging mind, whenever I require what I imagine is the sonic equivalent of yoga or meditation, it’s to this sort of music I turn, and submit myself, and go still, and recover.”
Audrey Abela, piano
Anton Bruckner, Locus iste
“This three-minute motet makes a strong case for the argument that there is little more powerful in music—or indeed, in life—than the sound of intertwining human voices.”
UniversitätasChor München, conducted by Johannes Kleinjung
Sergei Rachmaninoff, Piano Concerto No. 2 in C minor, Second Movement
“This is the sort of unashamedly wonderful piece that some classical music critics pride themselves on deriding—for being, I don’t know, ‘cheesy’ or ‘populist’.… Being universally loved does not detract from the concerto’s genius. Quite the opposite.”
Hélène Grimaud (piano) with the Lucerne Festival Orchestra, conducted by Claudio Abbado
Leonard Bernstein, “Somewhere” from West Side Story
“Bernstein, together with his lyricist Stephen Sondheim, takes the simplest yet most gut-wrenching of scenarios—not now, my love, but someday, somewhere, we well be able to be together— and enshrines it in music that is so direct and relatable it just takes you apart.”
Cynthia Erivo with the National Symphony Orchestra conducted by Gianandrea Noseda
Year of Wonder – June
May 24, 2019 Music Potpourri
Since January I have been posting a Spotify playlist each month for Clemency Burton-Hill’s Year of Wonder. Burton-Hill's book has been great fun for me, and I look forward each day to reading about a piece of music and finding a variety of recordings for that piece on Spotify.
I have embedded the playlist for June below, as well as videos of a few of my favorites from Burton-Hill's recommendations from May.
Enjoy!
Spotify Playlist for JUNE of the Year of Wonder
Debussy, Children’s Corner, “Doctor Gradus ad Parnassum”
Performed by Stephen Malinowski with the Music Animation Machine
Tavener, Mother of God, “Here I Stand”
Recorded at Kulturtemplet, Göteborg, Sweden
Peter Maxwell, The Yellow Cake Review, “Farewell to Stromness”
Performed by the Los Angeles Guitar Quartet
Bernstein, Overture to Candide
Performed by Leonard Bernstein conducting the London Symphony Orchestra
I have embedded the playlist for June below, as well as videos of a few of my favorites from Burton-Hill's recommendations from May.
Enjoy!
Spotify Playlist for JUNE of the Year of Wonder
Debussy, Children’s Corner, “Doctor Gradus ad Parnassum”
Performed by Stephen Malinowski with the Music Animation Machine
Tavener, Mother of God, “Here I Stand”
Recorded at Kulturtemplet, Göteborg, Sweden
Peter Maxwell, The Yellow Cake Review, “Farewell to Stromness”
Performed by the Los Angeles Guitar Quartet
Bernstein, Overture to Candide
Performed by Leonard Bernstein conducting the London Symphony Orchestra
Leonard Bernstein
August 25, 2018 Postmodern (1945-present)
Leonard Bernstein's contributions to educating people about classical music in general and Gustav Mahler in particular are legendary. For almost fifty years he brought a depth of passion to the musical masterworks he conducted that touched audiences around the world. If only he had been able to live two lifetimes so that he could have given us even more original compositions. (Bernstein was born on this date 100 years ago.)
Bernstein, "Simple Song" from Mass (1971)
Joseph Kolinski (baritone)
Bernstein, score for On the Waterfront (1954)
(The music begins at 2:53.)
Bernstein, "Mambo!" from West Side Story (1957)
Gustavo Dudamel conducting the Simón Bolivar Youth Orchestra
Bernstein, "Simple Song" from Mass (1971)
Joseph Kolinski (baritone)
Bernstein, score for On the Waterfront (1954)
(The music begins at 2:53.)
Bernstein, "Mambo!" from West Side Story (1957)
Gustavo Dudamel conducting the Simón Bolivar Youth Orchestra
Defining "Classical" Music
December 03, 2017 Beginner's Guide
The term “classical” is used in so many different ways when applied to music that defining it is difficult, maybe impossible. Such a wide variety of music has been labeled "classical" that I’m tempted to ignore the issue of trying to give it a definition and simply state, “You know it when you hear it.” However, having a working definition of the term is important, especially for people who are new to the genre.
The term "classical," in the strictest sense, refers to the cultural traditions of the ancient world. Therefore, when we call music "classical," we might be describing only the music from ancient Greece or Rome.
"Classical (adj.): Designating, of, or pertaining to the standard ancient Greek and Latin authors or their works, or the culture, art, architecture, etc., of Greek and Roman antiquity generally; specializing in or based on the study of the Greek and Latin classics, or Greek and Roman antiquity generally." – Oxford English Dictionary
With regard to music of the last sixteen centuries — anything created after the fall of Rome — the term "classical" is most accurately used to describe European-based music of the late eighteenth century. During this “Age of Enlightenment," European culture was characterized by a renewed interest in the ancient traditions of Greece and Rome that is often described as “neoclassical.”
In short, when describing musical eras on this blog, I will identify the Baroque era (1600-1750), the Classical era (1730-1820), the Romantic era (1815-1910), The Modernist era (1900-1945), and the Postmodernist era (1945-present). The term "classical" would therefore describe only the music of the Classical era, primarily the music of Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven.
Now, let’s make it even more complicated.
In most cases, it seems, people use the term "classical" to describe European-based “art” music, both sacred and secular, of the last 800 years. Admittedly, that covers a lot of ground. Often, when people describe music as “European-based” they are including music from Russia and North America, and the term “art” is used in reference to almost any type of music that’s not “folk” music (whatever that is).
"All music is folk music, I ain't never heard no horse sing a song." – Louis Armstrong
Confusing, eh? We have few clear guidelines for labeling music as "classical" and must also cope with the problem that the term has been applied to all types of music from medieval plainchant to modern movie music.
We do, however, have a way out of this mess. In a book titled Music in the United States, musicologist H. Wiley Hitchcock offers guidelines for distinguishing classical music from other types of music. Dr. Hitchcock recommends dividing music into two simple categories: vernacular and cultivated.
According to Dr. Hitchcock, vernacular music is the everyday music of ordinary people, music that develops “democratically” within a culture. Vernacular music can be used for entertainment. It can also be music that is created and performed for practical use: work, weddings, funerals, festivals, etc. Vernacular music is often labeled as “folk” music or “popular” music.
Cultivated music, on the other hand, requires a community' conscious effort for its creation and maintenance. Quite simply, if the music is not “cultivated,” it dies. It’s a type of music that would not exist without a foundation of knowledgeable teachers, well-trained musicians, educated audiences, and substantial financial support. Cultivated music is a type of music that is usually longer and contains more musical information than so-called folk music or popular music.
And there it is. Unless we want to restrict our use of the term "classical" to refer only to music of the ancient world or music of the Classical era, we can use the term as a generic description of any music that is “cultivated." The historical era makes no difference.
Classical or "cultivated" music is not necessarily “better” than vernacular music. It is simply different.
And I say, enjoy it all!
Vernacular Music: "Turkey in the Straw"
Cultivated Music: Beethoven, Symphony No. 9, Second Movement
This blog was written under the influence of Leonard Bernstein’s Symphonic Suite from “On the Waterfront.”
The term "classical," in the strictest sense, refers to the cultural traditions of the ancient world. Therefore, when we call music "classical," we might be describing only the music from ancient Greece or Rome.
"Classical (adj.): Designating, of, or pertaining to the standard ancient Greek and Latin authors or their works, or the culture, art, architecture, etc., of Greek and Roman antiquity generally; specializing in or based on the study of the Greek and Latin classics, or Greek and Roman antiquity generally." – Oxford English Dictionary
With regard to music of the last sixteen centuries — anything created after the fall of Rome — the term "classical" is most accurately used to describe European-based music of the late eighteenth century. During this “Age of Enlightenment," European culture was characterized by a renewed interest in the ancient traditions of Greece and Rome that is often described as “neoclassical.”
In short, when describing musical eras on this blog, I will identify the Baroque era (1600-1750), the Classical era (1730-1820), the Romantic era (1815-1910), The Modernist era (1900-1945), and the Postmodernist era (1945-present). The term "classical" would therefore describe only the music of the Classical era, primarily the music of Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven.
Now, let’s make it even more complicated.
In most cases, it seems, people use the term "classical" to describe European-based “art” music, both sacred and secular, of the last 800 years. Admittedly, that covers a lot of ground. Often, when people describe music as “European-based” they are including music from Russia and North America, and the term “art” is used in reference to almost any type of music that’s not “folk” music (whatever that is).
"All music is folk music, I ain't never heard no horse sing a song." – Louis Armstrong
Confusing, eh? We have few clear guidelines for labeling music as "classical" and must also cope with the problem that the term has been applied to all types of music from medieval plainchant to modern movie music.
We do, however, have a way out of this mess. In a book titled Music in the United States, musicologist H. Wiley Hitchcock offers guidelines for distinguishing classical music from other types of music. Dr. Hitchcock recommends dividing music into two simple categories: vernacular and cultivated.
According to Dr. Hitchcock, vernacular music is the everyday music of ordinary people, music that develops “democratically” within a culture. Vernacular music can be used for entertainment. It can also be music that is created and performed for practical use: work, weddings, funerals, festivals, etc. Vernacular music is often labeled as “folk” music or “popular” music.
Cultivated music, on the other hand, requires a community' conscious effort for its creation and maintenance. Quite simply, if the music is not “cultivated,” it dies. It’s a type of music that would not exist without a foundation of knowledgeable teachers, well-trained musicians, educated audiences, and substantial financial support. Cultivated music is a type of music that is usually longer and contains more musical information than so-called folk music or popular music.
And there it is. Unless we want to restrict our use of the term "classical" to refer only to music of the ancient world or music of the Classical era, we can use the term as a generic description of any music that is “cultivated." The historical era makes no difference.
Classical or "cultivated" music is not necessarily “better” than vernacular music. It is simply different.
And I say, enjoy it all!
Vernacular Music: "Turkey in the Straw"
Cultivated Music: Beethoven, Symphony No. 9, Second Movement
This blog was written under the influence of Leonard Bernstein’s Symphonic Suite from “On the Waterfront.”
