In this paper I will take a closer look into Sergei Rachmaninoff’s life with a specific focus on his Vespers with special attention on the fifth movement, Nunc dimittis. There is confusion as to with what purpose he wrote the Vespers as some claim him to be non-religious while others claim he is very religious. Regardless of his preferences, he requested the fifth movement be played at his own funeral so I intend to explore potential reasons for his decision. I will go about this research by looking into what information we know of his personal life using credible sources, as well as researching his Vespers as a whole with specific focus on the sixth movement. I will also address World War I and the Bolshevik Revolution and its effects Rachmaninoff’s All-Night Vigil—also referred to as his Vespers, is a collection of 15 works for solo alto, tenor, and choral that he composed in under two weeks. The ranges for the singers in this work as well as the intonation and breath control were thought to be absurd and profound. To find basses capable to sing it would be "as rare as asparagus at Christmas” as the conductor Nikolai Danilin put it. But Rachmaninoff claimed "I know the voices of my countrymen!” and he did indeed! The text for this work is taken directly from the Russian Orthodox All-Night vigil ceremony as well as various plainchant melodies. “The 15 movements of the Vespers together form the core of a well-known Russian Orthodox monastic service” (Rodman). The work premiered in 1915 during World War I “and Russians were hailing the Vespers as a masterpiece even before the performance began” (Rodman). His eight-voiced choral textures are part of the reason why this was such a popular work. In Rodman’s quick analysis of the Vespers he talks about how the chant-like homophony created a texture of “sobriety, and power…[and] his harmonic language is tonally grounded with frequent pedal points, but also rich modal and chromatic inflections. Antiphonal textures (Nos. 2, 8, 10) and liturgical refrains (Nos. 3, 9, 11, 12) evoke the incense-choked atmosperes of the church. At the same time, local text details can inspire him to exsquisite passages, such as the radiant harmonic shift before the first tenor solo (No. 4) and the clusters of angelic melismas at the climax of No. 7. ” The country was still recovering from the Russian Revolution in 1905 so this work was just what was needed at the time of political turmoil that Russia was in. It was “enthusiastically received by the audience and critics alike. Alexander Kastalsky thought the Vigil
From the outset it is important to define the boundaries within which the term ‘Judaism’ and ‘Reform Judaism’ will be used. This paper focuses upon Judaism (be it Orthodox or Reform) within America and does not focus upon the origins of Judaism in Europe. Although perhaps some beliefs and moral standings were reflected across the Atlantic, for the purposes of this argument this will be negligible. When analysing the musical content of Falsettoland it is important that one does not get carried away on the intended meaning, although only suggested as a guide and personal response to the music, the analysis is by no means definite and as the author intended. We’re free to borrow from both European operatic tradition and American musical tradition, toss out what we don’t need and invent whatever creature we want, whatever we choose.
As indicated by musicologist Stephen Walsh the colossal advancement of the ritual is not the discord or the stationary nature of the consonant movement in light of the fact that both of these thoughts were by and by before Stravinsky's work. The genuine development was Stravinsky's utilization of musical parts and convincing rhythms to give a structure to drive the sensational activity and therefore free the solidified consonant riggings. Arrangers of the late nineteenth and mid twentieth century found a situation as the customary part of discord as a vehicle for consonant movement was deserted. The issue with disharmony that does not prompt an unavoidable determination is an aggregate discontinuance of consonant and in this way musical motion.Walsh refers to Debussy's Et la Lune Descend Sur le
Drummond, Pippa; “The Concertos of Johann Adolf Hasse.” Proceedings of the Royal Musical Association, Vol. 99, Iss. 1, 1972.
Volondat, Pierre-Alain, perf. Variations OP 20. By Clara Schumann. Rec. 15 May 2010. Saphir Productions, 2008. Florida College's Classical Music Library. Web. 17 Nov. 2013.
Fay, Laurel E. ‘Shostakovich vs. Volkov: whose Testimony?’ The Russian Review (October 1980), pp. 484-93.
Antonin Dvorak was one of the leading composers of the late Romantic period and one of many composers that utilized portions of music from different ethnic and cultural backgrounds in his compositions. The idea of Music Nationalism can be found in many of his works, especially in his Symphony no. 9 in E minor “from the New World”, which incorporates ideas from the American culture.
In order to fully encapsulate Leonardo’s conquest of the almighty heavens it would only be fitting to have the text set to a full orchestra accompanied by a SATB choir. This is the only combination of instrumentation and vocals that will fully capture the piece’s dramatic story (save a Wagnarian music drama). A full orchestra is a glorious medium that can be used to accommodate the full range of emotions embodied in the poem because of the breadth of orchestral timbre. In parallel with the orchestra, a four-person choir is ideal for the lyrical expression of the poem due to the wide range of notes that can be sung by the soprano, the bass and everyone in between. The parts of the poem sung by the full choir would be done in an imitative polyphony texture utilizing malismas on the repeated line “Leonardo, Leonardo, viene á volare” to accentuate the fact that this line is a “siren-song” sung by “the very air itself.” However, the majority of the text would be sung by the tenor to give the piece a story telling quality, with the rest of the choir chiming in for the Italian parts. This will serve to emphasize the contrast between English and Italian that Sylvestri creates in his poem. It seems appropriate to have the orchestra and choir perform a through-composed setting with a change in music for each st...
This is the second volume of Richard Taruskin's historical work, and it highlights composers of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. He examines the progression of different styles and eras of music.
TitleAuthor/ EditorPublisherDate James Galways’ Music in TimeWilliam MannMichael Beazley Publishers1982 The Concise Oxford History of MusicGerald AbrahamOxford University Press1979 Music in Western CivilizationPaul Henry LangW. W. Norton and Company1941 The Ultimate Encyclopaedia of Classical MusicRobert AinsleyCarlton Books Limited1995 The Cambridge Music GuideStanley SadieCambridge University Press1985 School text: Western European Orchestral MusicMary AllenHamilton Girls’ High School1999 History of MusicRoy BennettCambridge University Press1982 Classical Music for DummiesDavid PogueIDG Books Worldwide,Inc1997
In the late 1930’s while the United States was going through The Great Depression the Soviet Union was going through its own turbulent times. This would be known as the Moscow Show Trials, which took place under the Soviet leader Joseph Stalin. The book Darkness at Noon by Arthur Koestler takes place during this time period. The main character Nicholas Rubashov has been imprisoned even though he always has been loyal to the goals of the party (Koestler). This showed a shift that was happening in the country and an attempt by Stalin to eliminate any possible opposition even if they were heroes in the revolution. In the text two different concepts come to light vivisection morality where the party comes before the individual and anti-vivisection morality where the individual is sacred. Rubashov in the beginning does not embrace individualism however throughout the novel he begins to adopt individualism that he refers to as grammatical fiction. Vivisection morality is never a justifiable political system. Suppressing the rights of human beings is not only inhumane but also counter productive in creating an effective and wealthy society.
The string quartets of Ludwig Van Beethoven were written over a long period of his life, stretching from 1799 to 1826. The tragedies that occurred throughout Beethoven’s life did not stop him from writing these seventeen masterpieces. The string quartets can be divided into three periods; early middle and late with the first six quartets of Op. 18 marking his ‘early’ works. As Beethoven’s writing began to flourish with creativity and imagination, he wrote the ‘Rasumovsky’ quartets that mark the ‘middle’ period in his career. Finally, the late quartets (also last works that Beethoven ever wrote) mark a cornerstone for various composers writing string quartets through the Romantic era and into the 20th century with use of counterpoint and harmony, especially. This essay will show how these works display great importance in developing the string quartet through Beethoven’s career, and also how their influences can be found in string quartets of other composers.
Great works were composed during the Romantic Era, but who would consider looking deeper into the depths of composers and find one of many great masterminds of music for the Paris Conservatory? Louis Ganne made influences on the Paris Conservatory, and this would not have happened if it was not for influences from family, geographical location, and his background with opera and orchestral conducting; but most importantly Paul Taffanel himself. All of those, as well as why I plan to perform this piece and how I understand some of the contextual elements, are all features in this paper.
The Violin Concerto No. 1 in G minor, Opus 26 is one of the most famous violin concertos over the musical history. It is also considered to be the most renowned work by the German composer Max Bruch. I will begin with a short explanation of why I choose to analyse this piece followed by what makes this piece so remarkable. I will then present the musical context – German Romantic period – in which this piece was composed and discuss how it is representative of this period. Also, I will present briefly the biography of the composer and relate his life and style with this particular piece of music. After, I will explain the basic structure of a concerto, associate it with this violin concerto, and analyse how each movement is related. Then, I will analyse some psychoacoustic parameters of this piece (pitch, dynamics, rhythm, and texture). Finally, I will give my appreciation of this piece in term of beauty, musical expression, and mood.
1-27. The 'Standard' of the 'Standard'. Dragomirov, M.I. & Co., Ltd. "Dragomirov on Prince Andrey and the Art of War". Tolstoy: The Critical Heritage.
"To me he seemed like a trapped man, whose only wish was to be left alone, to the peace of his own art and to the tragic destiny to which he, like most of his countrymen, has been forced to resign himself." Nicholas Nabokov on meeting Shostakovich in 1949 in New York