The Interpretation Of Tempo, Dynamics And Expression Through Instrumentation

The title of the first song is “Roman Carnival Overture, Op. 9” , preformed by the Youtube Symphony Orchestra and written by Hector Berlioz. It is a classical piece composed by Michael Tilson Thomas. The tempo for this song was all over the place. It starts off as a crescendo, then towards the end of the crescendo it becomes a mezzo-forte allegro. Suddenly it drops down to a pianissimo largo. It goes on like that for a few more steady beats then turns into a piano. As more instruments join in, it becomes a mezzo-piano adagio. When the chorus comes on it turns into an allegro. Throughout most of it, it is legato. There were many times in the beginning and end that it was an accelerando, but through most of the middle it is a ritardando. I could not tell what the meter was for this song because it seemed like it was all over the place. For rhythm, I noticed that there were a few parts that were repeated, but there was not any syncopation. The melody was predominantly conjunct and it seemed to be very tuneful. The harmony became a little dissonant in the beginning, but during most of it, it was consonant. The texture was homophonic because there were many instruments playing for most of it. The only time it was monophonic was at the start when there was a solo. The concert section that was an allegro, put me in thrilled mood. The decrescendo largo part was so moving that it made me want to cry. Overall, I liked it, it was very consonant, which made it pleasing to listen to. It was very good because the temp was vivace for a good amount of the song. This music made me picture a relationship between a man and a woman. Throughout parts they fight and during other parts they don’t, but no matter what they do, they are very passionate throughout it all.

When the concert first began, the three instrumentalists walked with energy despite their age. The first song, “Sonata I in G-Major Op. 2, Nr. 1” by Michel Blavet, was a Baroque Sonata. There were five movements and was played by the harpsichord, flute, and cello. All movements of the song were polyphonic because of the three instruments that had different parts and equal importance. In the first movement, I noticed that the flute tended to rise in pitch. In the second movement, I noticed that the melodies often repeated. Throughout the rest of the song the tempo changed from fast to slow and the flute would usually take the lead. On the last movement, the cello and the harpsichord

In any musical drama, be it opera, oratorio, or even musical theatre, it is possible for a composer to convey the personality of their characters through compositional and musical techniques. Doing so heightens the audience’s understanding of the characters, their motivations, and the relationships between them. Monteverdi, as a pioneer of opera, was one of the first to capitalize on this opportunity to heighten the audience’s understanding of the characters. This is highly apparent in his last opera, L’Incoronazione di Poppea. The music for two of the characters, Poppea and Nerone, is especially well composed to demonstrate personality, and this is no more apparent than in the dialogue which introduces the audience to them, Signor, deh

This concerto is made up of three movements, with the second movement entitled Larghetto e spiritoso in between two Allegro movements.  Originally intended for two solo violins, violin I, violin II, viola, cello, and bass, this piece has been transposed in various forms and is now commonly performed with two solo violins and piano.  While the other two movements are lively and exciting, the second movement provides a great contrast.  It is in a different key and has a completely different feeling, one of heaviness and melancholy, though its chord progressions and harmonies make it appealing to audiences.  This composition in its entirety gained Vivaldi his greatest popularity as it spread throughout Europe and became a standard for 18th century composers.

The eight-part collection for various combinations of trumpets and trombones, Canzona septimi toni no. 2 by Giovanni Gabrieli, employs antiphony as a means of taking advantage of church acoustics. His strategic separation of two instrumental groups illuminates the dialogic structure of Gabrieli’s composition. It’s meter alternates between duple and triple, finally returning to duple meter pending the completion of the piece . In terms of harmony, the work contains mainly homophony, again, alternating between both instrumental groups placed antiphonally within the church. The through-composed canzona exhibits Gabrieli’s cultivation of musical material in dialogue between instrumental groups. The timbre, meter, and antiphony utilized in Gabrieli’s

The analysis of the aria “Lascia ch'io pianga” by Haendel according to the thorough bass method, shows us how the composer refer in this piece to the typical compositional procedures of baroque music.

Susan Botti’s Echo Tempo, is a double concerto for soprano voice, percussion, and orchestra. Botti’s program notes for this piece state, “Echo Tempo is a setting of Native American translations for

Many ensembles across the world dedicate time to learning and performing early renaissance music. When practicing music not from this era, it is easy to perform it incorrectly and not give the work the justice it deserves. Ensembles that do not take careful time and consideration to study the style of early music and the techniques they must use when performing these pieces, ultimately fail when attempting to perform early music. When performing early music, such as Canzon Septimi Toni a 8, musicians must study the styles and techniques musicians in that time period implemented, reciprocate the tone, timbre and articulations used in the renaissance era for this specific work, transpose the piece to their instrument, and know the differences between early and modern instrumentation needed to perform the piece.

He creates this dance-like feel in a variety of ways. Firstly, the 2/4 time signature makes the music feel upbeat compared to the 4/4 time signature of the rest of the piece. Secondly, the sforzando accent on the first beat of every bar drives the music onwards. Also the catchy, short and rhythmic melody is lively and metronomic. Finally the fiddle-like manner in which the violins play creates a sense of a dance. There are unexpected changes and dramatic dynamic changes throughout the trio which are both romantic qualities. The fact that this movement moves seamlessly into the next is also romantic.

This work was composed during the Classical period, 1750- 1820. One aspect of the classical music style beign applied to this work includes the reoccurance of two or more contrasting themes. Another is the use of short and clearly defined musical phrases. Lastly, this piece, on a purely musical level, was simply more to hum along to. This type of melody took over the complex polyphony of the Baroque period.

On Wednesday July, 8 I attended a concert at the Mimoda Studio located in Los Angeles the concert started at eight o’clock. On that day there was a group of four Instrumentalists performing a cello concert. The performances consisted of acts of big composers such as David popper the cellist also Alexander Konstantinovich ,it last about an hour. The show did not include programs so I will have to go off my notes some of the pieces that were played for David popper were Serade, Ballet scene, Gavotte, and La Chanson villageoise. The pieces played from Alexander Konstantinovich were impatient, land of heroes. There were also some Armenian chants played from the medival times, that were either composed by Sahakdukht orkhosrovidukht.

In Sardinian Chronicles, Bernard Lortat-Jacob seeks to explain Sardinian music through the people involved in the creation of it. The tradition of music in Sardinia runs deep, and Lortat-Jacob shows the importance it has to the residents of the island. Many lives are defined completely by music, and these people are the ones in which Lortat-Jacob focuses in on to study. Deeper than this though, the author shows how a rich and dynamic scene is affected by the powerful marching of time. Particularly in the monograph, a vignette regarding the residence and life of a Sardinian craftsman named Attilio, this affliction is shown. The article shows how the Sardinian musical culture has succumb to the aging process. The fragility of a tradition is emphasized through a rich character portrayal and inferred admiration.

I chose “Caprice No. 24” largely because it is one of the most well-known piece by Paganini. In present day, the famous neoclassical guitar player, Yngwie Malmsteen—a virtuoso in his own right and a musician that I greatly admire—has cited Paganini as a source of inspiration for his music. I wanted to investigate this claim. I had heard small portions of “Caprice No. 24” over the years, but my first exposure to the piece in its entirety was through a studio-recorded, 2013 performance by violinist David Garrett, accompanied by an orchestra.

When approaching a performance, accomplished musicians often consider the historical context from which a piece originates. They most often think of such considerations in the application of that context as it pertains to early music that is, the Baroque era or earlier. For any era, such historical considerations are called performance practice, and may include the use of vibrato, ornamentation, dynamic levels, tempi, instrumental timbres, performance setting, and balance. Vibrato and ornamentation are two important areas of consideration that vocalists must explore when aiming to give an authentically Baroque performance.

Berlioz would also have instrumental depictions of actual things happening in the scene. For example there are points in this piece where he maintains a dull steady beat on the timpanis representing the artist’s footsteps, trudging his way along to the scaffold. He also uses the whole band to create one huge g minor chord giving the sense of something crashing down which is the guillotine blade during the execution. Right after this a violin is used to create a sound of something bouncing along which is the artist’s head. From the big brassy sounds of the horns to represent the crowd, to the sound of a lone clarinet representing the artist’s last conscious thought, Berlioz would utilize the different characteristic sounds of each instrument to portray different aspects of his story.