Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, the Austrian wunderkind, was an accomplished and magnificently gifted musician. He is attributed with the composition of 22 operas in his 35-year life, but his most successful theatre work was his last. Die Zauberflöte, completed in 1791, was written specifically for the Theater auf der Wieden in Vienna. The theatre housed a troupe of actors led by Emmanuel Schikaneder, a versatile actor and writer who crafted the libretto of Zauberflöte and portrayed Papageno at its premiere. Zauberflöte was written in the singspiel operatic style; the libretto is in the vernacular – German – language, spoken dialogue is interspersed with recitative and aria, and there is a folk-like strophic style in the music. Schikaneder had known Mozart since 1780, but the two artists enjoyed a more meaningful relationship when Schikaneder became a member of the Viennese Masonic Lodge, to which Mozart already belonged. The libretto and score for Zauberflöte is replete with references and symbols from Freemasonry. Many scholars have asserted that the entire work is an allegory for the principles and ceremonies of the secret society. Regardless of this claim’s validity there is a deliberate tonal and structural language used in Zauberflöte, and the contributions of Schikaneder and Mozart leave much to be studied.
The overture in Eb major opens with three fully orchestrated chords. The number three appears throughout Mozart’s score, and this Masonic number’s application at the beginning of the opera, both in the chords and the three-flat key, is hardly coincidence. Twelve placid measures follow in what can be called ‘the calm before the storm’. The second violins open the Allegro by introducing a dynamic staccato fuga...
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...ning about the Masonic dictates of honesty and secrecy. The first handmaiden presents Tamino with a gift: a magic flute. The tonality returns to tonic Bb as the ladies explain the flute’s power over human emotions. As soon as the prince receives his gift, Papageno decides to bid farewell his companions. His cowardly desire causes the key to fall into g minor. The maidens assure the flighty birdman that Tamino will protect him, and they entice Papageno with a gift of his own. He is given magical bells, and his decision to stay with the prince brings the key back to Bb major. The Quintet comes to a close with an Andante in which the maidens give Tamino and Papageno instructions for their quest. The clarinets join the strings, horns, and double reeds in this final section, and the orchestra delivers three soft Bb major chords to close the scene.
The year is 1788 as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart began to work on his last three symphonies during a time of strife for musicians as the Austro-Turkish War continues to war on in Austria. Tired from moving his family from central Vienna to the suburbs of Alsergrund all while in debt to his ears as he continued to borrow money from friends including a fellow mason, Michael Puchberg, Mozart finished his final symphony on August 10, 1788. This piece, nicknamed the “Jupiter Symphony,” coined by impresario Johann Peter Saloman, was Mozart’s longest symphony with a total of four movements, a typical symphonic form during the Classical era. The Jupiter Symphony totals to about forty five minutes of music ending with a quintuple fugato that brings back the five melodies introduced in the final movement making the closer one of the most complex examples of counterpoint that has ever been created. My goal shall be to give the reader a sense of Mozarts life at the time of this composition, a detailed analysis of all four of these movements, as well as a look at why this piece was seen as a work of innovation.
For the purposes of this assignment I choose this particular concert because I find Mozart’s music to be intellectual and engaging, requiring deep concentration and an open mind to be able the comprehend the depth of his musical visions. In this paper a will attempt to explore the qualities I like and dislike in the pieces presented in this concert and endeavor to analyze the “Piano Quartet No. 1 in G Minor, K 478”.
Hector Berlioz was a French composer his ideals of the 19th century Romanticism in musical creations such as “Symphonie Fantastique” and “La Damnation De Faust”. His father wanted him to be in the medical field he turned his back to that to pursue his musical career. In 1826, Berlioz enrolled at the Paris Conservatoire. Where he started his music career. He became successful in 1830 with “Symphonie Fantastique”. Berlioz was a huge contributor to the modern orchestra with one of his greatest works, “Treatise on Instrumentation”. He works influenced the further development of the Romanticism, his pieces influenced composers like Richard Wagner, Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov,
On Sunday, December 07, 2003, I attended the Mozart and The Height of Classicism concert that was held in the Lincoln Theater of the New World Symphony orchestral academy. Conducted by Nicholas McGegan featuring pianist Robert Levin. There were two pieces of music during this concert, one of the movements was performed by the pianist alone as a solo, Mr. Robert Levin. The program’s title was Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Chaconne from Idomeneo. The first piece was Concerto No. 24 in C minor for Piano and Orchestra, K. 491, Allegro, Larghetto, and Allegretto. The second piece was Symphony No. 36 in C major, K.425, “Linz”, Adagio-Allegro spiritoso, Andante, Menuetto-Trio, and Presto. This concert was unique in that the focus seemed to be as much on the instruments as in the music itself. As the pianist and conductor expressed the form of improvisation as Mozart did, which I will explain further on my critique.
The event I attended for MUS111 was Mozart’s Opera Buffa, Abduction from the Seraglio, first presented in Vienna July 16, 1782. The opera was presented by Opera Atelier with musical accompaniment by Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra at Toronto’s Elgin Theatre. The Abduction from the Seraglio is an opera Singspiel in three acts. It is an irreverent comic opera based in the commedia dell’arte tradition. The Abduction from the Seraglio, or in the original German, Die Entführung aus dem Serail, was written in German for Vienna’s new national Burgtheatre, established by Emperor Joseph II as a venue for German language operas (Osborne 181). Opera Atelier’s production was sung in German with English surtitles and recitatives. Opera Atelier specializes in opera, ballet and drama from the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Opera Atelier’s productions draw from the aesthetics and ideals of the period represented, and feature period ballet, costumes and original instruments (OA Program 39).
...ers and the audience. The dramatic nature of this piece alone is something to be reckoned with as it is extremely passionate. The symphony is presented in 4 movements as is common and begins with a Poco Sostenuto- Vivace, followed by a Allegretto movement, Presto movement, and finally ends on an Allegro con brio movement. the central theme of this piece is introduced in the first movement by a flute playing in tripple meter continuously ascending up the scales rising in dynamic contrast, continuing to grow into a louder and more stark contrast between it’s highs and lows. Consistently dance like, the piece is celebratory of its roots buried in historical Austrian music that has been present in the culture for years. The accomplishments of the soldiers for which the piece was composed for are easily told of simply by the energy and power present throughout the piece.
...Countess would never have been able to resurrect her spirit and rise up to help foil the Count’s plan. It is thanks to Susanna that the Countess rediscovers herself, and gratitude is owed to the Countess for helping the marriage of Susanna and Figaro to successful transpire. The letter aria is the pinnacle of their friendship, and “the only duet [written by Mozart] that portrays both females in a favorable light.”15 He sought to depict a state of equality between the two, despite social differences, in which they would “be defined by the nobility of their souls rather than their social rank.”16 Here we see the ideals of the Enlightenment shine through, as Mozart gives us a glimpse of a world without class barriers, where two people build a relationship on mutual respect, and judge each other by their actions in relation to their character, not their social station.
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, as he is generally known, was baptized in a Salzburg Cathedral on the day after his birth as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus. The first and last given names come from his godfather Joannes Theophilus Pergmayr, although Mozart preferred the Latin form of this last name, Amadeus, more often Amadé, or the Italiano Amadeo, and occasionally the Deutsch Gottlieb. Whatever the case may be, he rarely - if ever - used Theophilus in his signature. The name Chrysostomus originates from St. John Chrysostom, whose feast falls on the 27th of January. The name Wolfgang was given to him in honor of his maternal grandfather, Wolfgang Nikolaus Pertl.
Countless dozens of Ph.D theses must be written about Mozart's The Magic Flute and yet it is so lively with elements of fantasy and free-flying imagination that it is often the first opera to which children are taken. It has a plot of such complexity that it takes several viewings for all but the most studious opera buffs to sort out the characters and follow the ins and outs of the multilevel story. At the same time it has so much easily accessible charm and so many glorious Mozart tunes that even the novice will be captivated.
The piece opens with an allegro, minor melody with cymbal crashes and timpani rolls. There is a short pause then a major trill. Harp glissandos then accompany a legato oboe melody, which is repeated with a pizzicato string bass. The melody is then repeated by the whole orchestra. There is a crescendo with the tim...
One of the most interesting challenges in operatic composition , is composing for all the specific characters. A composer has to distinguish between characters through his music. Jan can’t sound like Fran , and Dan can’t sound like Stan. Each character must have his or her own traits. Mozart’s opera , Don Giovanni , provides us with many different characters to compare and contrast. One scene in particular lends itself to the comparison of Don Giovanni , Leporello , and The Commendator. Scene fifteen of Act two, places all three characters in close interaction with each other , making it easy to compare and find out how Mozart and his Librettist Lorenzo da Ponte brought them all to life.
He was a great young composer that transformed into a genius that was able to write music in the short periods of time he had during the day and was able to rewrite the musical rules. After being very successful in his early years, Mozart grew little older and started looking at things in a bigger picture. He tried to fit in on many different things including languages of others. The “Magic Flute” that was written at the end of his short life is known as the ultimate expression of Mozart’s ambition to connect with the human life and the human emotion through music as well as theater. At 25 years old, Mozart is no longer a prodigy but has not proved to be an amateur composer. In Provincial Salzburg is where Mozart is still living with his father and sister. Mozart is going to Munich because they have commissioned him to write an Italian opera in a serious style. Mozart’s father said he gave Wolfgang the advice to never neglect the popular style for the unmusical public as the musical ones. Leopold agreed to be Mozart’s middle man between the poets but he didn’t know that this would be his last detailed involvement in one of Mozart’s projects. Mozart’s father said they worked every day on the poems but Mozart was determined about something totally different than his father. He had problems with everything his father done. Whether it was too long or not dramatic enough, it would never suit his needs. His
The Fifth movement is called Dreams of witches Sabbath which describes the sinister creatures at his death. The movements with the strings created a repeated sound and also makes the instrument resemble a screeching sound. The fifth movement is much like the fourth because of the dramatic sounds. Dreams of witches Sabbath is also in minor tonality. In this movement there is a lot of alteration with the music being soft then getting loud almost immediately. The tempo in this movement is presto but there are various times when the tempo slows down. The ending of this movement marks the ending of the performance and it is completed with the whole orchestra in the Forte dynamic and there is a quite slow cease. At the end of the performance the audience applauds and stands to their feet. There is a couple of smiles but mostly there is a vast majority of unemotional faces. I was delighted to see the conductor smile at the orchestra at the end the performance as to say “Great Job” without any words. This conductor was great to watch because of the facial expressions he did. His emotions told the mood of the music. I never realized how much work it took to be a
...chestral introduction with an imperfect cadence. A strong rhythmic ¾ allegro passage, with sequences and descending scales is played by the orchestra, with timpani and cymbals. The music modulates, and a short, quiet woodwind passage is then alternated with an orchestral passage with dotted rhythms, creating a `terraced dynamics' effect. Part B begins with a major clarinet melody accompanied by pizzicato strings. A minor flute sequence follows, and is followed by a repetition of the oboe melody. A string sequence is then played, imitated by the oboe. There is a crescendo, then the rhythmic orchestral melody returns, alternated with a short flute passage. There are suspensions, descending scales and a crescendo, followed by a strong rhythmic passage with the timpani playing on the beat. Imperfect cadences are played, before the piece finishes with a perfect cadence.
And a musical genius Mozart was indeed! As I analyzed this piece, I was continually struck by his following of major voice leading and counterpoint rules. The times Mozart did break away from the standard were masterfully done, engaging to the ear, and he was always able to bring us back home. In this paper I will share with you what I learned about Mozart’s Requiem, Domine Jesu measures 1 through 43. I will start with the big picture and whittle it down to the minute details.