The Young Person's Guide To The Orchestra, By Benjamin Britten

The first movement of both pieces start off in their own unique way. Haydn’s work begins stridently with a quick timpani strike accompanied by the strings, then is followed by a toned-down melody in C-minor. The second theme of Haydn’s first movement is more jovial sounding and is in C-major. After the

Orchestrally, it is scored for strings, timpani, bass drum, cymbals, two flutes, one piccolo, two oboes, one English horn, two clarinets, two bassoons, four French horns, two trumpets, three trombones, two harps, and one cimbasso. Musically, this opera is very directly vigorous. It sticks to the widely used concepts of arias, duets, finales, and choruses. His fine music often excused the glaring faults in character and plot lines.

This composition consists of three movements of which we will further examine movement II, Adagio Cantabile. This movement is placed in high contrast with the other two, particularly in tempo.

There were a lot of instruments you could hear when you first listened to this piece. The first instruments that I heard right away were the violins, flutes, and oboes. As I kept listening I noticed the clarinets, bassoons, cello, viola, and the French horn. The instruments that seemed like they were the most important in this piece were the violins, because they started the piece and through-out the rest of the piece they were always there being the main part of this piece.

Historically in Bach’s day, toccatas often served as introductions Fugues, setting the stage for the complex and intricate composition to follow. “Fugue” can be described as a technique characterized by the overlapping repetition of a principal theme in different melodic lines (counterpoint) and hence the second part of Bach’s composition reflects the particular popularity of this form. Bach made much use of the fugue in his compositions in solo organ pieces as in this particular fugue, with its accompanying toccata, is his best known

Composers since the early classical era have used sonata form to express through music ideas which are at once complex and unified. This form contains a variety of themes and permutations of these themes, but is brought together into a comprehensible whole when these excerpts reappear. Beethoven, in the first movement of his Piano Sonata Opus 2 Number 3 utilizes this form to its full potential, modifying the typical structure in his characteristic way.

Another example of the theme is in the short story "The Necklace." The theme shows itself in the story when Madame Loisel refuses to wait for her husband to hail a cab in front of the elegant party she had just attended because she doesn't want people to see her shabby wrap. This part shows the theme because she is ashamed to show herself wearing her old, decaying wrap.

Throughout the piece, the brass plays the theme in alteration with the timpani and tam-tam. Although the theme is simple, together they create a long musical idea. The overall dynamic of the brass grows throughout creating a sense of power especially when

It is then restated by each of the various families of instruments such as the woodwinds, brass, strings, and the percussion. It is then played again at the end, but by the orchestra as a whole. Each variation also changes the theme's dynamics (e.) by making the sounds go from a soft, mellow type of volume to a loud and very energetic volume. Throughout the piece it seemed that the tempo (g.) would go from a very fast, powerful pace to a slow, light and playful pace. In the final parts of Benjamin Britten’s piece, he makes use of counterpoint by showing how a melody (b.) can bounce from one instrument to another while still being in sync. The style period (j.) of Britten’s success musical composition was modern, since it was created in the latter years of the 1940s.The performance medium (k.) of this piece was of various classical instrumental

and another lyrical theme, (denoted hereafter by b). It is clear when one looks at the outline of the themes with respect to their placement, theme "a" is transformed into 8 different versions throughout the composition's first movement, and an additional type, that we will call (a) which utilizes C-G-C-G-C timpani-like motive. This one, namely (a) and a derivative called a6 will play primary roles in identifying and linking structurally important keys and harmonic motions related to changes into different subsections (eg. Timpani theme appears from 288-295 into T3/S3 on minor v,

At 0:46 they introduce the first orator/conductor by the name of Michael Tielsson Thomas. Everyone applauds him. He explains what the audience will be in for for the evening. Then, clips of some of the orchestra members appear on the wall via projection. At 07:15 the orchestra then begins to play Allegro giocoso from Symphony No.4 in E minor, Op. 98 by Johannes Brahms from the Baroque Period. It was written in Austria by 1880s. The symphony is scored for two flutes (one doubling on piccolo), two oboes, two clarinets, two bassoons, contrabassoon, four horns, two trumpets, three trombones, timpani, triangle and strings.

The first and opening piece was a Roman Carnival Overture, Op. 9, by Hector Berlioz. In major tonality, classical piece started with vivace statement, and then slow introduction progressed later in allegro. It featured an independent solo that was performed with an English horn and gradually changed dynamics throughout the classical movement.

Then follows a scherzo with trio - Molto vivace - also in D minor. The scherzo itself is in sonata form with all parts repeated. The octave tuned drums immediately announcing the important role they play in the tonality of the movement as a whole. Then follows a hushed fugato, which serves an introductory purpose as the full force of the orchestra. Then follows a more harmonic path with the utmost vigor. The second subject in C major adds an unusual harmonic flavor. The trio has a quasi-pastoral flavor, The trio is played only once, although Beethoven fools us into believing we will here it once more at the end, like in the first movement but it abruptly ends.

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.

The rest of the orchestra enters; the high woodwinds take the fugue theme while the lower instruments emphasize each downbeat with familiar chordal movement. The fugue enters the development section and twists through a variety of major and minor tonalities. Mozart delays the recapitulation by inserting three Adagio major chords repeated three times. Now the ‘magic number’ is made blatantly apparent. The second Allegro opens, in Bb this time, and the anticipation build as Mozart introduces dramatic dynamic contrast and contrapuntal texture. The overture ends in its original key, with three pronounced Eb major chords accentuating the triumphant conclusion.