Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov's Scheherazade, Op. 30 Analysis

Certainly the jovial nature of the overture fits with this both this theme and the October Revolution festivities. Shostakovich’s composing life was certainly one of paranoia, due to a fear of pushing the boundaries too far with his work. His work had already been subject to censorship in 1936 and 1948 under Stalin’s rule. He managed to escape persecution however by his willingness to write works which reflected ’Soviet Realism’, How ironic it would be if the outpour of relief of Stalin’s death was the true inspiration for piece supposedly penned to celebrate the

As noted by Robert Hughes, "Beethoven was not only the embodiment of all that was before him, but also of that which was yet to come" (Hughes 486). The truth of this may be seen by comparing Beethoven's 5th Symphony in C Minor to Haydn, the father of Symphony, and his 95th in C Minor. While Haydn's symphony is both playful and dramatic, Beethoven's symphony is grander both in terms of scale and vision. He expands the size of the orchestra to incorporate the sounds swirling around, underlying, and depicting the arrival of Fate in a rhythm-driven, thematic symphony that takes Haydn's form and runs with it as though to the top of a mountain peak. This paper will analyze the symphonies by movement, according to form, size, structure, tonalities, melodies, orchestral sound and overall mood and effect.

The abundance of harmonies never loses the thread to his audience. Furthermore, the opening of the slow movement inspires the imagination and attention of its listeners. All these elements make this piece one of the most successful concertos in the musical history.

Ensemble Vagabond’s debut performance of The Rite of Spring changed the history of Igor Stravinsky’s outrageous ballet. Arranged for Winds and Piano, Peter Facer has taken this momentous piece to an entirely new level. With the Callaway Music Auditorium at maximum capacity, Vagabond strode confidently onstage to roaring applause to give the performance of a lifetime.

For the second and final concert report, I listened to the performance of Beethoven’s 9th symphony, as played by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Beethoven lived in Germany during the late 16th and early 17th centuries, and was an influential figure in the transition between the Classical and Romantic eras in western music. The performance requires a large number of instruments, with woodwinds, brass, percussion, strings, and even a choir during the 4th movement.

As a University of Northern Iowa College student taking Soundscapes, I attended a recital by Annalea Milligan on Wednesday Oct. 19th, 2016 at 8:00 p.m. in Davis Hall, a small auditorium, at the Gallagher Bluedorn. Annalea Milligan received her Bachelor of Music degree in performance at Pacific Conservatory of Music, and is currently a first-year graduate student pursuing a Master of Music degree in bassoon performance at University of Northern Iowa. For the first half of the program she played the bassoon in Rhapsody composed by Willson Osborne and then she was accompanied by Mariya Akhadjanova on piano playing Variations on Theme of Pergolesi composed by Otmar Nussio which included I. Arietta, II. Scherzetto, III. Tamburino, IV. Lamento, V. Ostinato, VI. Rapsodia, VII. Elegia, VIII. Barbaresca, IX. Stornello, and X. Danza. Then after a brief intermission Milligan played the bassoon and was accompanied by Serena Hou with the harpsichord playing Concerto in G Minor, RV 495 composed by Antonio Vivaldi which included Presto, Largo, and Allegro, not to mention she also played Bachianas Brasileiras No. 6 composed by Heitor Villa-Lobos and was accompanied by Azeem Ward with the flute which included I. Aria (Choro), and II. Fantasia. I will depict the first and second part of the recital and describe my reaction and total opinion about the overall concert.

​In his derogatory passage, Igor Stravinsky discusses the common views and reputation of orchestra conductors; he argues that conductors are not musical gods but rather destroyers of musical compositions and the glory that they are meant to receive. Because Stravinsky is a composer himself, he has firsthand experience with the relationship between composer and conductor and has dealt with conductors that have conducted his compositions. Stravinsky’s purpose in writing this passage is to convince the reader of the false perspective they possess of conductors. He wants to correct these pretenses and expose the façade of conducting in order for the reader to disassociate the conductor with being the star of the performance and help them focus

Born Dmitri Dmitrievich Shostakovich on the 25th September, 1906, in St. Petersburg, Russia, the composer began his descent into classical music at the age of 9, before later moving on to study at the Petrograd conservatory. Throughout his life he compiled 15 symphonies, 15 string quartets and 36 film scores as well as many other compositions. Within his musical work and the course of his career Shostakovich managed to both adhere to traditions set within classical music as well as dissent from them, I will be exploring these.

Theodore Roethke’s poem, “My Papa’s Waltz” has spurred passionate academic debates among professors, scholars, and students; the imagery, context, and diction of the poem clearly supports the interpretation that Roethke writes “My Papa’s Waltz” reflecting on his relationship with his father. A relationship in which, notably, causes harm to the author. However, through all the nights Roethke spent in pain and in horror, his love for his father still exists. While many people believe that the author tells a lovely story of a fond memory with his father, it is not possible that the use of negative imagery and negative diction does not play a role in the story told. “My Papa’s Waltz” tells the story of a “small boy” who is abused by his

The setting also includes the isle of Cheniere Caminada. The time of the setting at the end of the nineteenth century signifies a time when women had no voice and literally may have seemed to be asleep.

A great interest in hearing only instrumental music tell the story without text arise. The development of the concerto grosso which is a small unit of soloists against a full orchestra (Wright, 7-4) brought about one of the most popular and recognized concerto pieces, Vivaldi’s Violin Concerto in E Major (the “Spring). As one of

On Saturday, December 12th, the High School Philharmonic All-Region Orchestra performed a variety of fascinating pieces. They were directed by Professor Edward Kawakami from Carthage College. The region orchestra began the concert with “Pomp and Circumstance March No. 4 op. 39” by Edward Elgar. The next piece that the orchestras performed was “Clair de Lune” by Claude Debussy. The last piece that the High School Philharmonic All-Region Orchestra performed was “Samson and Dalila Dance Bacchanale op. 47” by Camille Saint-Saens.

The orchestra performed passionately and precisely with perfect synchronization. The dramatic crescendos and decrescendos really brought out the emotions of each piece. The first piece performed was called “Don Juan” (1888-1889) and started off fast paced and suspenseful. Composed by Richard Strauss (1864-1949), the piece had a lot of dissonance within it. There were times when the piece would slow down gradually then suddenly speed up, returning back to its original pacing. Each instrumental section could be heard precisely and no one section overwhelmed another. The conductor stood out the most during the performance and excellently controlled the pacing and tone of the piece. His exotic movements seemed excessive at first, but I began to realize that he was simply passionate about the

One of the problems clarinetists of the 21st century face when performing Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto, K. 622, is creating a performance that is memorable while keeping the authentic integrity of the work. Many clarinetists who perform this work are often concerned with how they should the approach and execute the concerto. Any musician who tackles any new work will approach it by researching historical information on the composer and work, do a musical analysis, and gathering recordings of other interpretations of the same work. This approach will not only allow the performer to be fully immersed in the piece but allow for the performer to create a memorable interpretation.

With a sense of mystery, highly acclaimed New York Philharmonic conductor Lorin Maazel opened Bruckner’s 8th symphony with a tremolo on the strings and then repeats this tremolando in forte while the brass gloriously brought in the first major theme. Amidst the bright colors and amazing acoustics at Disney Hall, the audience sat in eager anticipation; many of the present members were experienced with Bruckner’s pieces and Wagnerian style. Sitting next to me, David Barry of the LA Philharmonic Board of Directors gave me an introduction to the history of Disney Hall, the LA Philharmonic musicians, and Anton Bruckner. He quickly detailed several prominent musicians’ profiles, including that of the only timpanist at the concert, and then, he