Research Paper On Piano Night

On Sunday, 14 October, Jeffrey Phelps, cello and Lee Jordan-Anders, piano, performed Ludwig van Beethoven’s Sonata in A Major, Opus 69 (1808) and Claude Debussy’s Sonata (1915)

I found this piece very interesting; it tells a clear story, and has a dissonant accompanist which makes it sound stylistically similar to the music of musical theatre.

     Monteverdi combines styles and forms of music here to create a true masterpiece. Even though I have not studied composers very much you can get a feeling of true accomplishment by listening to this piece. AS a whole piece it flows well. The instruments accompany the voices well and the piece is fun tp listen to.

The music played throughout all of the concerts adhered to be diverse. The instruments, the individuals performing, and the conductor all proved to be outstanding. The concerts proved to be interesting as I witnessed them, first hand.

Overall I actually enjoyed the piece more than I thought I would. It had a nice tempo that allowed listeners to be engaged and even when the volume dropped the violins played a softer texture as if they were inviting you to listen closer and pay more attention. Generally, the theme was also joyful which I took notice of and enjoyed. Lastly, I didn’t notice any musical mistakes, and thought the piece was well played.

On March 10th, 2017, The First Ontario Performing Arts Center showcased Anagnoson and Kinton, piano duo. Upon entering the hall, placed in the middle of the stage, where two butterfly positioned grand pianos. There was a universal anticipating mood for the music that is to be performed prior to the commencement of the concert. The duo took us through the timeline of their careers, playing pieces from significant times in their profession.

My favorite part of the concert was the second part. The group played a song called “Body and Soul.” The guitarist played slowly before the others joined. They created a relaxed atmosphere with an old-school effect. All the notes were legato except the melodies of the drum which was staccato. The combination added character to the piece and made it entertaining. At 19:00, the pianist played briskly but beautifully, then the guitarist did the same. The notes became high pitched and the tempo and dynamics increased. After the guitar stopped, everything went into decrescendo and the melodies from the bass and drums became choppy (staccato). Overall the piece surrounded the theme of dependence and how it affects one’s happiness or strength. The piano and the guitar brought the happy aspect to the piece and without it, everything weakened and became uncoordinated. Initially it celebrated peace,

This song seemed to require the most work from the performers as it used a wide range of dynamics, pitches, and tempo. The last song of the evening, and probably my favorite (not just because it was the last), was “Folk Dances”. This song, just like the first, had a very festive feel to it. The upbeat tempo, lead by the flutes and clarinets, made the song very enjoyable to hear and also had a very happy feel to it, which, in my mind, made it a very appropriate closer. The song started with a great tempo but a relatively soft dynamic. This quickly changed about half way through the song when the dynamics picked up. The loud dynamics with the fast tempo at the end of the song had a very grandiose sound and left the audience with a great taste in their mouths.

For this assignment, I went to the Basically Beethoven Festival at the Dallas City Performance Hall. The recital was opened with a few pieces played by the rising stars Madera Wind Quintet. The main performance included Rachel McDonald on the viola, Joseph Kuipers on the cello, Grace Wollett on the violin, Scott Wollett on the oboe, and the great pianist Alex McDonald. They performed a compilation of famous composers’ masterpieces.

One highlight of the concert will be Patrick Armstrong’s premiere of his father’s five-movement piano work called Remember. John Armstrong originally composed Remember for Patrick’s fourth year piano recital. As the father and son collaborated on the last movement, the work became substantially longer than intended. In John Armstrong’s words, the collaboration was substantially simple as “one of the performers lives in my house and practices at the same time. He just grabs me at the same time and says ‘I can’t play this!’” This level of collaboration between composer and performer is a rarity for most composers to experience and an added pleasure for John Armstrong as both a composer and father.

Both movements in this sonata began with slow introduction played by cellist, and later accompanied by the piano. The first movement, Andante, was first gentle and soft, giving me a sense of serenity and peace. However, the tempo suddenly increased after the abrupt shift to Allegro vivace. The sudden change in tempo, rhythm, and dynamic surprised me like a ringing alarm suddenly wake me up from a sweet and placid dream, bringing me back to the cruel reality. The second movement, Adagio, also started with a slow introduction but both performers played together instead of just the cellist. As the second movement progressed the tempo became faster and the melody became more playful and animated, along with unexpected pauses. The second movement reminded me of the story of Alice in Wonderland. I could imagine a little girl experiencing a wonderful adventure in the wonderland and encountering and playing mysterious characters and objects. I enjoyed all three sonatas performed by Anton Nel and Bion Tsang, but I especially loved the Sonata in C major, Op.102, No. 1, by Ludwig Van

Another piece I appreciated was Flight of the Bumblebee. Composed in 1899-1900  by Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov. Korsakov wrote this piece for his is opera The Tale of Tsar Saltan.I savored the music because it was rapid and reminded of this movie Bee Movie. Also we sat on the seats where we could see the pianist fingers go quickly and elegantly.

Never could I have thought that my first concert experience was going to be in a college class, performed by various composers of classical music. During the concert, I got to listen to four performances. First, the Oxycotton was played by Tim Sanchez. Second, Samantha Post played Acht Stucke on flute, followed by Nicholas Gledhill, playing Blues and Variations for Monk on horn. Finally, the CSU Graduate Brass Quintet performed a piece named Misty. In this essay, I will share my personal experience of the concert and discuss the different elements of music seen in the different performances.

I feel that the fourteen members of chamber orchestra and the two vocalists did an outstanding job. This piece was well put together. I loved the harmony that was brought forth between the orchestra and the vocalists. The two vocalists a tenor known as Paul Groves and a soprano known as Anna Larson, did a beautiful job staying in tune. The way that their voices went back and forth in harmony was just beautiful.

The performance that I attended was of the Ottawa Symphony Orchestra playing the Overture to The creatures of Prometheus, by Beethoven, the Concerto for Orchestra by Kodaly, and Harold in Italy, by Berlioz. The orchestra was conducted by David Currie, and I think that they played very well overall.