Yellow River Piano Concerto

The melody in the first movement opens with the violins and they are then accompany by the violas and the cello. As you keep listening you notice that French horn, clarinets, flutes, and oboes contribute to the harmony. The first movement is also in the key signature of G minor. As you move through the first movement you enter into the second section which is in a different key. The key signature of the second movement is in B flat major. The instruments that have the melody this time are the violins along with the clarinets and bassoons.

The most distinct sound throughout the play is a musical piece called the "Blue Piano".

A texture is a musical relationship among ensemble parts. There are three textures in “West End Blues”, monophonic, homophonic, and polyphonic. Monophony is musical texture of a single melodic line and nothing else. The intro is monophonic because Louis Armstrong is playing his trumpet solo. Homophony is musical musical texture of one melody with block cords.

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 introduction opens with a descending minor scale by pizzicato strings, followed by  three sforzandos in the orchestra. Section A begins with strings, woodwind and brass playing a waltz rhythm, which modulates to major. The strings play melody 1, which is then repeated with piccolo countermelody. Brass and string crescendo and cymbal crash before strings play melody 2 which is dotted, and followed by suspensions and an imperfect cadence. The suspensions are repeated with a perfect

Texture – The texture is homophonic throughout the whole of Section A. There are three layers of sound in the Section A. The first is the melody – played by the violins and trumpets. This is the layer of sound which is most prominent throughout A. The second is the timpani and viola part. This is the softest layer throughout the section. It provides harmony to the melody, using the notes of the D major chord. The last layer is the continuo bass It provides accompaniment and bass.

Anita's "Tonight" motif overlaps with Tony's "tonight" on the anacrusis. Again there is a change to A major as Tony sings

It was again as if the river has established an opportunity to lead a new life, away from the war in Italy to a more comfortable life. Henry’s and Catherine’s escape through the river not only leads them to a better life but the unborn child, too.

The second piece that is discussed is Toccata in F major, by Johann Sebastian Bach. It is a solo piece that was performed in a unison and dissonant harmony. Surreal coordination and impressive pedal solo was extremely impressive and gave this particular piece a broad spectrum of dynamic change and tempo. Ascending and descending theme constantly repeated throughout this performance, alternating in crescendo and decrescendo, which brought life and movement to a classical piece.

This piece has quite a few elements like the use of musical ideas. There are both A and B ideas expressed through the music lasting no longer than six seconds. This of course is different pertaining to solos due to the fact

2. Albert M. Craig, William A. Graham, Donald Kagan, Steven Ozment, Frank M. Turner. “China‘s First Empire”. The Heritage of World Civilizations. 1: 1152 (2007, 2005, 2002) Pearson Education, Inc. New

Survival, both its temporary means and its ultimate permanence, is certainly a theme throughout this story, and the river is the most obvious metaphorical representation. Among the undulant hillsides, the river remains steady

There were a total of four music pieces performed. They were “Overture from the Singspiel”, “Concerto in e minor”, “Concerto on b minor,opus 104”, and “Symphony#2 in b minor, opus 5”. I think pieces were performed belong to classical style.

A slow crescendo is lead by the strings and low brass play a phrase with very low pitches in small intervals, creating a dark tone. The choir sustains a minor chord overtop this. This section of the music is getting heavier due to large amounts of lower voice instrumentation. The snare drum then plays a rhythm comprised of sixteenth notes, which resembles a typical march line. The melody is later carried by the double basses and the cellos. After a few bars, the boy soprano sings the main melody of the piece while the violins play a very frantic run using scales ascending and descending at random scale degrees. The short durations in contrast with the sustained notes create a very interesting effect on the mood. The melody shifts over to the violins who play a connected series of held notes in the higher register of the instrument. The chord is built up slowly as more instruments gradually make subtle entrances. When brass join, the section continues to build up, and is being pushed forwards. The trumpets then play repeated eighth notes underneath. The dynamic is building up and is very close to reaching a climax until a sforzando, transitioning to the final melody from the boy

This melodic idea is equally promising; it has the potential to serve as the primary theme which had been cut short. Unfortunately, it only holds for two measures before it is swept away by a descending chromatic scale in sixths.