The main purpose of this channel is to share symphony cycles with detailed and useful descriptions. My range goes mostly from XIX century to the current day, from forgotten or unknown composers to the classics of the canon. First half of every month are dedicated to the symphonies, followed by a varied selection of pieces to offer variety, orchestral music for the most part.
If you are a composer with a written and recorded symphony, please contact me through mail for a possible collaboration. I also encourage you to send me your suggestions and comments related to the channel.
I am also collaborating with the following website: (www.historiadelasinfonia.es), an Spanish encyclopedic project dedicated to the the symphony, analyzing the evolution of the genre by nations and centuries.
dear Sergio, by coincidence i also have a piece called "Loon Lake" for two bassoons, which imitates loon calls...i would love if you gave it a listen and shared any feedback you had.
The second movement takes the form of a slow rondo. It opens with a nocturnal, deeply lyrical main theme presented by the clarinet over pizzicato strings. It is then extensively unfolded through the use of counterpoint, reaching an ambiguous and dissonant climax. A very expressive, almost Mahlerian second theme is then introduced by strings, full of a sense of defeat and tragedy. It turns much more contemplative and broad with intervention of woodwinds. A more rhythmic and menacing third theme is presented by strings, offering great contrast. These materials are then combined and twisted in grotesque ways, leading to a tumultuous and violent climax. After a state of almost shell-shock, this violence is answered by a hopeful motive that grows lyrically. A transition leads us to the recapitulation of the main theme by solo violin over pizzicati, followed by the bassoon. The music ends with a resignated coda. The last movement consist of a scherzo and a large coda. It begins with a series of dissonant motoristic ostinatos (evoking the sounds of industrial machines), which leads to a forceful and aggressive main theme, supported by accentuated syncopated rhythmic pulsations. A military march appears in a distorted way, becoming more grotesque and uncanny as it unfolds. The trio consist of a deliriant section which grows more raucous until taking us to a parodic climax in form of a march. Overlapping ostinatos lead us to the extensive coda, which begins with a polytonal, deformed and schizophrenic march. A powerful chorale-like theme appears on the brass over the dense percussive texture, rising triumphally. A victorious joy permeates the atmosphere with the ringing of the bells, which lead us to a final ecstasy in C major. This is the final triumph of human struggle, only perceived in the final bars of the entire work in an almost agonising journey, giving sense to the final truth that is "life is struggle, and the purpose of life is the struggle itself".
The second movement takes the form of a slow rondo. It opens with a nocturnal, deeply lyrical main theme presented by the clarinet over pizzicato strings. It is then extensively unfolded through the use of counterpoint, reaching an ambiguous and dissonant climax. A very expressive, almost Mahlerian second theme is then introduced by strings, full of a sense of defeat and tragedy. It turns much more contemplative and broad with intervention of woodwinds. A more rhythmic and menacing third theme is presented by strings, offering great contrast. These materials are then combined and twisted in grotesque ways, leading to a tumultuous and violent climax. After a state of almost shell-shock, this violence is answered by a hopeful motive that grows lyrically. A transition leads us to the recapitulation of the main theme by solo violin over pizzicati, followed by the bassoon. The music ends with a resignated coda. The last movement consist of a scherzo and a large coda. It begins with a series of dissonant motoristic ostinatos (evoking the sounds of industrial machines), which leads to a forceful and aggressive main theme, supported by accentuated syncopated rhythmic pulsations. A military march appears in a distorted way, becoming more grotesque and uncanny as it unfolds. The trio consist of a deliriant section which grows more raucous until taking us to a parodic climax in form of a march. Overlapping ostinatos lead us to the extensive coda, which begins with a polytonal, deformed and schizophrenic march. A powerful chorale-like theme appears on the brass over the dense percussive texture, rising triumphally. A victorious joy permeates the atmosphere with the ringing of the bells, which lead us to a final ecstasy in C major. This is the final triumph of human struggle, only perceived in the final bars of the entire work in an almost agonising journey, giving sense to the final truth that is "life is struggle, and the purpose of life is the struggle itself".
terribly interesting music. still unknown to me. very beautiful. very reminiscent of Dvořák's cello concerto with orchestra in terms of emotional mood. characteristic mood of the composer in those stormy years 1917-1922. very good music. and execution at a high level.
Interesting...how quickly the modernists all sound alike...Wozzeck is only a few years off and you can hear similarities in the melodic intervals. These are certainly enjoyable and not to hard on the ear at all.
There is an artistic notion inherited from the romantic era that assumes the more prolific a composer is, the less important or valuable the work as a whole is. This is of course completely false, but is a widely assumed idea, and so when people see large catalogues, many will think "how good can they be if there are so many works?"
@@geshtin Yes its completely ridiculous, because from that logic then we would have to dismiss almost all composers from the baroque and classical eras for example, because they were so prolific and didn't concern themselves with writting "masterpieces" as romantics did.
Ah yes, those famously second rate composers JS Bach and Mozart. :D :D Sometimes classical music fans are a bit silly. You know who is another who wrote sooooo much music and everything I've heard is still great: Martinu.
This is a fabulous cello concerto. Big, robust,Romantic. Its melancholy which is perfect for cello. Such an excellent performance by the cellist and orchestra. This is a wonderful revelation to me. Im hooked on this.
Una obra interesantísima. Gracias una vez más. Posiblemente alguien sepa cuando entra cada animal o cómo es su interacción. Si se indicara en los tiempos sería genial. Me maravilla cómo Hovhaness es capaz de conducir los sonidos de vanguardia de entonces a un entorno comunicativo. Hay algunas partes, varias, que me suenan a gagaku, sobre todo las armonías de las maderas. Un poco como Toru Takemitsu pero sin su intento de rigor historico. Mil gracias.
Again a great constructed and very beautiful and captivating quartet and many congratulations for the exquisite performance by the Taneyev Quartet. Its a pure joy to listen to Myaskovsky's music. Thank you so much !!
Une symphonie appréciée du monde musicale, mais avec laquelle j'ai toujours eu énormément de mal. Malgré de nombreuses écoutes, je la trouve simplement agaçante.
Exactly, jazz kept redefining itself until the deaths of Coltrane and Miles. Classical music is the keeper of the flame while jazz festivals today feature everything but jazz...
As of lately, I try to match the music with art of the period and style that most closely follows the spirit of the music. In this case I think I put the date Milhaud composed the symphony along 'french paintings' on Google. Then I checked a lot of art and decided to use this one.
The Philharmonic has an online resource with all of its programs: New York Philharmonic Digital Archives. A real treasure trove - it even has Bernstein's score of this piece.
The seventh variation is the finale in form of an overture. This form proves not to be that of the Baroque French or Italian Overture. Brian obviously had in mind the XIX century concert overture, for it turns out to be a fully developed sonata-form. The first-subject group starts with a theme closely related to the fourth variation, announced in B minor against pulsing horn rhythms. The abruptness of the transition to the second subject is already characteristic of the "meaningful discontinuities" of Brian’s mature symphonic style. He just slices the music of on an upbeat, inserts a silent general-pause bar, and resumes in a distant key with the molto tranquillo second-subject tune, a lyrical little idea rather reminiscent of Grieg. These are the principal materials out of which Brian wrings an impressive large-scale symphonic structure that shows a fine grasp of tonal architecture. The eventful development sets of in D major and is largely concerned with the first subject group. Eventually a gawky kind of fugue does start up on solo wind instruments, but it hardly gets going before Brian stops it short, and the second subject sails in triumphantly, at which point it becomes plain that the recapitulation is well under way, Brian having started it with the last stage of the development of the first subject. There follows an expansion and glorification of the second subject, rising to a pitch of excitement. After a rhetorical preparation on the dominant, the final chorale crashes in, in a truly grandiose B major. And with its massively pompous augmentation of the Original Theme, played by full orchestra including organ, with 1812-like carilloning figurations in the strings and each phrase punctuated by gleeful trumpet fanfares, this highly ambitious work of Havergal Brian’s youth thunders to its magniloquent conclusion.
