Track Analysis: Galbreath Memorial Chapel

The piece that I decide to do was Mozart Symphony No. 40 because it seemed like it would have the most instruments, different dynamics and a different sound to it.

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

The next piece I would chose is Notre Dame School: Gaude Maria Virgo. In this piece, it is sung in a cappella with a rhythmic mode. What caught my attention in this piece is the different voices singing at different pitches. The voices in this song are layered also making it a polyphony until the end when everybody joins together to make it a monophonic texture. When I listen

In this week’s listening exercises, I found there to be much excitement and mood all in one movement. I enjoyed listening to all the pieces, but my favorite two were Eine kleine Nachtmusik (Third Movement: Minuet, Allegretto) by Mozart and Symphony No. 94 in G Major, Second Movement: Andante (Surprise) by Haydn. Even though they were very different I found them both to be entertaining.

Before entering the exhibition the viewer is introduced to an energetic video montage of all the works with a sound created by Kevin J. Simon. This fast pace hip-hop sounding song at first seems very out of place from the work, but after listening to it for some time you do hear

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.

The concert is Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique, performed by The Chicago Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Stéphane Denève, recorded in high definition at Orchestra Hall in December 2013.

The sound in this early part of the scene is very direct -by the means

Then we walked into the New Jersey Preforming Arts Center, which is a very nice building. The acoustics of the hall were very nice which made for easy listening. The seats themselves were not the greatest because once again we like saving money.

Saint Louis Brass began their set with a harmonious, traditional 1600s tune. I was amazed at how well all the sounds from the brass instruments melded together. Before hand, when I thought of brass instruments, especially trumpets, I thought of the sharp notes often played in jazz; however, the smooth sounds from the five instruments infiltrated the room, completely filling my body with a calm peace. The musicians sat, fully engaged in the music that buzzed from their lips. I really enjoy this antiquated piece of music far more than I anticipated.

1 in G Major, BWV 1007. I really loved this piece because the first part, the prelude, is super familiar and it helped to know the music beforehand so I could just follow along with the melody. The other two movements, Sarabande and Gigue, were new to me but just as exciting and pleasant as the prelude. Technique-wise, this entire piece is lovely and Dr. Snyder executed it very well. The notes were very clean and precise, and his use of vibrato and rubato were excellent. Because he was a soloist, it did not matter whether he kept tempo since he did not need to maintain a rhythm with anyone else, unless the music instructs the musician to keep a steady tempo. It is the same with dance, if one is a soloist, that person does not have to worry about matching the movements of another dancer. I also enjoyed that the Sarabande was so peaceful. It was quite flowy, smooth, and overall gentle. I especially loved the intro to this movement, with a grand entrance that figuratively just filled me with anticipation for the rest of the song. It was also just the right amount of time; it was not too long or too short. I also really liked the Gigue. One reason is because it’s different than the prelude and the Sarabande, so it gives variation to this collection. This last movement was very lively and cheerful, a difference compared to the previous two movements. When I listened, I could imagine a village scene with little kids dancing around a maypole, and it just made me

There is one this I didn’t like and that seemed like a major mistake. Since I was near the side, where the back of the stage was, I could hear people moving around. Now, this isn’t a huge deal, but when something is supposed to be quite and I hear footsteps it can be very distracting. They should have been more mindful of

experience for me. It was far different from a rock concert held in some big

The concert was performed on the Southam Hall stage at the NAC; this is a large hall with extremely good acoustics. It is a nationally known stage, so the quality of the hall is very good. Generally, the audience was very receptive as it was composed of adults, who were all silent. The acoustics were very good as the hall spread the sound throughout the hall without making it echo. This had a positive effect on the performance, because it was possible for the orchestra to be clearly heard from any point in the entire hall. I was impressed by the large number of students that I saw that night because the show deserved to have been heard by many young people.

This instrumental made me want to fall asleep. I felt bored while listening to this. I wasn’t too thrilled about the selection. It was like watching a movie that was played in the 1960s. While you are waiting for a good scene of the movie and they play this certain tune to make you think something good was about to come up next. Instead, the scene turns out to be a sad part in the movie. The contour of the piece varies as it goes from a low tune to a high tune then back down again. It has many different chords. The musical form was repetitious and ostinato. There were only two different textures that I heard in this piece. At the beginning of the instrumental the texture started off as monophonic. Near the end at 5:22 was a polyphonic texture