Concert Review: Aaron Silberman Concert

March 14th was the day of Aaron Silberman Concert at Engelman Recital Hall in Baruch Performing Arts Center. The entire concert was performed by Joshua Grunmann, the pianist, and Charles Neidich, the clarinetist.

The piece that I’m going to talk about, and this was the only piece that really relates to this class, is Johannes Brahms’ Sonata for Clarinet and Piano, op.120, no. 2.You can listen to the whole piece here (part 2 & part 3).

Before I get into the piece, I am going to discuss a little about the composer. Johannes Brahms was born in Germany but spent most of his professional life in Vienna, Austria. Not only was he a composer, but also was a pianist who led musicians during Romantic period. He is known to be both traditional and innovative. His techniques and structure of music are rooted in Baroque and Classical era, but he also wanted to advance his music into a Romantic idiom, inventing new approaches to harmony, melody and rhythm along the way.

This sonata is the second part and made up of three different movements: Allegro amabile, Allegro appassionato, and Andante con moto. The word “Allegro” means lively or fast while “amabile” translates to cheerful and amiable. So the first movement of the piece is very lively and happy just like the name suggests. It is easy on the ear and this movement is mostly consonant. The first few measures of the movement (about first 2 minutes into the song) is what we learned as exposition, or the principle theme that repeats throughout the movement. After the performer introduces the exposition, the development follows, developing the idea that was performed in the exposition. You can hear the development from 1:54 to 6:50. Then towards the end, the same exact opening theme repeats in tonic, indicating the recapitulation.

The second movement, Allegro appassionato translates to “lively and passionate.” It doesn’t sound as happy as the first movement, and it sounds a bit more serious than the first. Structure is similar though. It starts with an exposition (from the beginning to 1:35), followed by development (from 1:35 to 3:09), then finally recapitulation.

The final movement, Andante con moto means in a “walking tempo and with motion.” I don’t know how, but I find it amazing that these composers find the perfect word to describe the mood of the song (or maybe I’m just that inexperienced with classical music). Anyway, just like the first two movements, the final movement has the same structure.

While I was writing this blog entry and repeating the songs over and over to find out where these transitions from one part to another occur, I wondered if people actually realize these structures while they are listening in the concert hall. I was only able to realize that some part of the song was repeated a few times in a movement, meaning that was the theme. And I was able to recognize only because I learned it in class. So do other people just know where the exposition end and development start? You can’t ask the performers to play a part over like I did on Youtube in the middle of a concert. Classical music listeners must have sophisticated listening skills.

I also realized that this Sonata form must have influenced the popular songs today. Some songs start with the chorus which is the theme or the main idea of the song. Then the artist proceeds to the first verse then to the bridge, developing the theme that was introduced. Chorus usually follows the bridge, acting as recapitulation to re-introduce the main idea. Then the whole process repeats with second verse, and so on. Because classical music and rap are so different, I have never even tried to make a connection, but writing this blog and the article professor wrote a few weeks back (the one with comparison of Kanye West and Mozart) made me think otherwise. Nonetheless this was a good experience.

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Aretha Franklin Is Looking For The Next Great Star…Of Opera

As soon as I saw this article it immediately interested me.  I thought to myself Aretha Franklin and opera?  What do the two have in common and why would she be looking for the next big Opera star?  Aretha is the “Queen of Soul” so this really surprised me.  When I started researching this topic a little bit more I saw that Aretha is actually a really big fan of opera and classical music.  The song “Nessun Dorma” was performed by her at the Grammys!  “Nessun Dorma” is an aria from the final act of Giacomo Puccini’s opera Turandot.  She especially loves Puccini’s melodies.  She has sang many great arias in concert as well.  She says that many great Opera singers are retiring and that she wants to have some phenomenal ones lined up for when they do.  These singers will be signed to her record label called “Aretha’s Records.”  Some people were very skeptical about this but others think it is a really great idea.  I am somewhere in between.

There are many singing contests out there now like American Idol and The Voice but Aretha’s singing contest will not be aired on television.  It will be a very different contest.  Aretha is asking for those interested to send their CD, an eight by ten head shot, and a resume directly to her.  The only restriction is that you can to be from the age of 18 to 40 and no originals are allowed.  She will be signing two or three people to her record label.  She says that she wants to see younger singers take older classical singers like Jessye Norman place because singers like her are retiring.

I am skeptical about this because of several reasons.  I don’t think that Aretha has the classical and opera music background to judge what singers will be great like the older singers out there.  She may sing opera and be a fan of opera but that doesn’t necessarily mean she has what it takes to choose the best opera singers out there.  Many people are fans of pop music and sing it but that doesn’t mean they can pick the next big popstar.  When I started reading the article I thought it was going to be another singing show.  I’m glad it wasn’t because those ratings would have been terrible!  In the article, Carter says that, “singers should be “peer reviewed” by real opera professionals, not “pop reviewed” like the singers on shows like Britain’s Got Talent.”  I agree with Carter because he makes a similar point.  I would be surprised if Aretha finds a singer and that singer becomes big in the Opera world.

I also think this can be a good idea because it is a chance for classical and opera singers to audition and possibly make it big.  It must be so difficult to make it big in the Opera world especially that it is not one of the most popular genres in the industry.  Aretha is giving younger people a chance to make it.  Mezzo-Soprano Sarah Nisbett says that she definitely plans to audition and that she thinks the blending of pure classical with something a little more funky and popular is exciting.

I compared Aretha’s version of “Nessun Dorma” and a version in the real opera Turandot.  Aretha’s version sounded beautiful nonethelss but very poppy and not natural like the original one.  I am interested in what other people think about this.  I found this article and what I researched to be very intriging.

 

Aretha’s version of “Nessun Dorma” on the Grammys.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2DwZ-GMHyho&feature=related

“Nessun Dorma” in Puccini’s Turandot

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ndMamv76plE

The article by Jennifer Guerra

http://www.npr.org/blogs/deceptivecadence/2012/01/03/144624251/aretha-franklin-is-looking-for-the-next-great-star-of-opera

 

 

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Beethoven & Stravinsky at NY Philharmonic

I recently went to see the NY Philharmonic perform the 2nd and 7th symphonies of Beethoven and a piece by Stravinsky called Capriccio for Piano and Orchestra. Before going I had never heard any of these pieces. When hearing them on youtube I had the typical reaction when listening to classical pieces. I got bored rather quickly and didn’t finish the pieces in their entirety. But I know I like both composers so I decided to go anyway.

I also had never been to Avery Fisher Hall before. The venue was absolutely amazing. We sat in the last row of the orchestra section and I was a little concerned we weren’t going to be able to hear anything. As soon as the first chords hit, you feel like you’re in the front row. The acoustics of this place was unreal. Nothing was too loud but you can hear every tiny pluck and bow.

The second symphony has four movements, the first starts in D major. The flutes and strings are the main instruments throughout the piece with minimal rhythm. There are a couple parts where some percussion comes in and really adds to the suspense of the piece. Of the three pieces played, this was my least favorite.

Stravinsky’s piece was my favorite. I loved how dissonant the piece was. I really like classical pieces in the minor key and this definitely had all the minor elements. Dramatic,  suspenseful, dark… I’d say this is more of a concerto since the piano is the highlighted instrument. There is a lot of cyclical coherence here. There is a real suspenseful theme the piano plays in the lower register in which the other instruments form around. The pianist was also very dramatic while playing. When he his a string, he’d throw his hand in the air as if the piano shocked him.

Beethoven’s 7th symphony was the last piece. This also was in a major key. The rhythm played a much more apparent role unlike the 2nd. The piece had a lot of movement entertaining. The conclusion of this piece blew me away. The chord progression was very strong and you almost knew where the piece was going to go but still was so very powerful. It truly was impressive to see these professionals play their instruments and sound so amazing. I strongly recommend everyone going to see something here!!

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Witold Lutoslawski: Always Searching For A New Sound

I probably should be embarrassed but I had not heard about Witold Lutoslawski before I read this article. Wikipedia claims that he “was one of the major European composers of the 20th century, and one of the preeminent Polish musicians during his last three decades. He earned many international awards and prizes, including the Order of the White Eagle, Poland’s highest honor.” However, as the review says, he was not prolific composer and left us only 120 pieces.

The article has two main themes. The first one talks about Witold Lutoslawski’s background. He was born in Poland in 1913. He studied in Warsaw Conservatory in late 1930s. Professors there did not always understand the music of young Witold; one of the teachers could not get his scores and once told him “For me your work is ugly.” What an awful comment. Creative people always have doubts about their abilities. They need constant reassurance of their talents. One can argue that such remark could actually push the young composer to work harder and do better. I would say that this is just one side of a coin. People who have connection with art usually are very sensitive. You have to be careful with what you are saying and how you are saying something. The reaction of the professor could have dramatic consequences and deprive us of the young composer, who later made his contributions to music and received the status of “Poland’s preeminent composer.” Fortunately, young Witold was not affected by the comment and in 1939 “was set to study in Paris, but the German invasion of Poland put an end to that, and he was asked to serve his country.”

The second theme in the article explores Witold Lutoslawski’s works on “third disc in a series of his music.” This part also traces the stages of development of the composer’s style. The reviewer states that Witold was inspired by Stravinsky, Rimsky-Korsakov and Rachmaninov. The article mentions many of Lutoslawski’s compositions but I would like to concentrate my review on his Symphony No 4, First Movement. It was his last major work. Tom Huizenga, the author if the article says that “large doses of lyricism prevail in the movement, especially in the dark and ruminative opening where a passionate clarinet line blossoms from a haze of strings.” I would say that the whole movement has this dark, mysterious and at the same time fairy like mood. The first part of this movement, when clarinet has its solo and switches with strings and back, reminded me The Golden Cockerel, the last opera by Rimsky-Korsakov. Therefore, I can agree with Mr. Huizenga’s statement about Lutoslawski’s inspirers. The second part of the movement is full of dissonances. At some point a listener can ask himself whether the piece was written this way or there are some mistakes. In addition, I was expected to hear more resolutions of growing tensions in the work; but here tensions just replace one another. I have listened to five of Lutoslawski’s compositions including Piano Concerto. It has the same dark and mysterious mood and strings do the same kind of “buzzing” as we can notice in the Symphony No 4. Even his Variations on a Theme by Paganini has this darkness and a lot of dissonances. All works by the composer that I have had a chance to listen to created surrealistic images in my mind. Lutoslawski’s style probably has some connections with his war experience. He “was captured by the Germans but escaped after eight days, making his way 100 miles back to Warsaw.” When you listen to the Symphony it is easy to picture him running through forests and fields always turning around to make sure that no one chasing him.

Listening to his music was interesting experience. Art does not have to be pretty and does not have to have major mood to be good. However, for me personally, this music piece is depressing.

http://www.npr.org/blogs/deceptivecadence/2012/03/06/148038598/witold-lutoslawski-always-searching-for-a-new-sound

Symphony No 4, First Movement

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sSg2lh94wpY

The Golden Cockerel

http://youtu.be/f0psZQVA69s?t=7m52s

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Classical Music Lost and Found: Florence Price Rediscovered

When I think of composers of orchestral music, I think of Stravinsky, Schoenberg, and Bartok. What do they all have in common? They were all men. Someone who is overlooked is an American composer named Florence B. Price. In the Article from NPR, “Classical Music Lost and Found: Florence Price Rediscovered,” Bob McQuiston shined a light on this seemingly obscure composer. What is amazing is the fact that she was not only a woman, but was African American. What makes her an interesting part of history is the fact that she was the first African American to have her symphony performed by a major orchestra in America.

Before focusing on the symphony that gave her the recognition of her time, I will give a brief background of the composer. Price was born in Arkansas. Her mother taught her music as a child. When she was 14, she attended the New England Conservatory of Music. She was a teacher until she moved to Chicago. When her marriage ended, she composed music to support her and her children. She wrote music for silent films and wrote piano works. Price wrote over 300 works throughout her lifetime with the bulk of it being art songs. Her works has been performed by the Women’s Symphony Orchestra and the Women’s Philharmonic. Marian Anderson even sung one of her songs. Price’s Symphony in E Minor is just one of her most famous works.

What is fascinating is the fact that Price used banjos, fiddles and the slide whistle in the Symphony in E Minor. She incorporated instruments from African roots. Along with the unique use of these instruments, she also used spiritual tunes. There are also roots of the juba dance, which is the title of the third movement. The juba was a plantation dance. It is rhythmic and syncopated. Price even stated according to another article by the American Symphony orchestra by Linda Rae Brown, “It seems to me to be no more impossible to conceive of Negroid music devoid of the spiritualistic theme on the one hand than strongly syncopated rhythms of the juba on the other.” Price’s pieces were nationalistic.

After listening to the final movement of Symphony in E minor, I immediately purchased both the third and fourth movement. What I loved about both pieces was the contrast of themes. In Movement three, you can hear the roots of spiritual music. It is dance-like. The slide whistle is used in the beginning of the movement. It seems to give off a very cheerful vibe, however in the final movement; the music seems to tell the story of a struggle with the strings descending notes as a constant motive. The very last few seconds are very percussive which was not a highlighted in the previous two movements. Price’s work is very evocative and whimsical because of the way the music causes you to imagine the story she is telling.

Price broke barriers for women during her time thus making her an integral part of history especially in the classical music sphere. Here is a list of link on further information about Florence Price.

http://www.americansymphony.org/concert_notes/symphony-no-1-in-e-minor
http://www.npr.org/blogs/deceptivecadence/2012/02/27/147522468/classical-lost-and-found-florence-b-price-rediscovered
http://chevalierdesaintgeorges.homestead.com/price.html#1

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Are We Missing Out Because of Our Musical Blind Spots?

For this blog I uncovered an article on NPR’s classical music blog “Deceptive Cadence” titled “Jonathan Biss Uncovers a Brahms Blind Spot.” The post, written by Jonathan Biss, covers the concept of “musical blind spots,” or pieces of music we should know but haven’t discovered for ourselves yet. He further talks about the phenomenon of scores and scores of music by various composers in existence, and yet only a few titles make it to the mainstream or what he refers to as “the hit parade.”

The example Biss uses is Brahms vocal Duets, Op. 20, which he had previously never heard and upon hearing, was “blown away.”  So I wanted to compare this relatively unknown piece with one of Brahms more popular pieces, op.49 No.4 “Wiegenlied,” or more famously known as “Brahm’s Lullaby.” My first clue that Biss wasn’t the only one who’s never heard the duets? It took me one Youtube search to find the lullaby. On the other hand, after searching the terms “Brahms vocal Duets, Op. 20,” “brahms vocal duets,” “3 vocal duets, Op. 20”, and not getting a single result, I gave up and went into the Naxos library to find the individual titles of the 3 duets: “Weg der Liebe I and II” and “Die Meere.” I was able to finally find Youtube links for the duets after searching by their individual names – but I think my difficulty in finding these pieces on the most popular video site on the internet is a definite testament to what Biss is saying. To further elaborate my point, the video I found for Brahms Lullaby has over 2.8 million views, and the 2 videos for the duets have a combined 32, 509 views.

Anyway, I digress. I listened to each piece a few times, and I have to say – they are each beautiful in their own way. The only immediately observable difference between them is that the lullaby is purely instrumental and the duets feature piano and vocal accompaniment.

Brahms Lullaby: http://youtu.be/t894eGoymio

Vocal Duets:

I know a few things about Brahms. I know that he was a perfectionist and would refuse to publish a piece unless he was completely satisfied with it. So in Brahm’s eyes, both the Lullaby and the vocal duets were satisfactory to his standards, and yet only one made it to “the hit parade.” What I also know about Brahms is that during his time he had a reputation for composing complex musical pieces that usually lasted for more than a few minutes. However, looking back it seems that his most beloved pieces, including the lullaby, are on a much smaller scale in both duration and complexity. So my assumption before hearing the duets were that they weren’t similar to the lullaby in that way – I was expecting a 20-minute harmonically and melodically complicated piece that would chew my ear off by the time I was done. What I got instead were three relatively short and simple duets, with an easy to follow melody and uncomplicated homophonic structure. Additionally, the blend between the piano accompaniment and vocal in the duets is nearly flawless and all three duets move at a pace that makes listening to them incredibly enjoyable. Overall; audience-friendly music.

So I’m with Biss. How does this happen? This is also a topic that has come up in our class conversations over the semester. Both Professor Wilson and Biss bring up Haydn and how our retrieval set of his works is exponentially smaller than what is in his entire repertoire as a composer. Or, consider today’s class on character pieces where we learned that Liszt not only composed for a virtuosic audience but also for an amateur audience. Is it because these composers create a type of brand or trademark for themselves that their most famous works end up being representative of that (ie. Liszt being such an incredible virtuoso)? Or is it more decided by their audiences and the time period during which the piece is published?

This concept doesn’t only apply to centuries old classical music. Think about the contemporary music world. An artist releases a 10 or 12-track album and only 2 or 3 become singles that make it to radio. Unless you’re an avid fan of that artist, the only music you’re exposed to by that artist is what’s been chosen for the mainstream. From my own experience, I’ve bought albums where the majority of the tracks that didn’t make it as singles are my personal favorites. Is a radio station that plays only the Top 40 really that different from textbooks that force-feed us the classical music we “should” be aware of?
To conclude, I don’t think there is a final conclusion on this topic. I believe that this concept is an inescapable aspect of all types and genres of music – there’s always going to be something someone has never heard. However, it does raise the question of whether or not our musical blind spots are causing us to miss out on hidden gems. However, I’m glad Biss brings up the silver lining, that “it’s a nice reminder that there will always be more wonderful music to discover.”

 

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Brahmseroni @ Baruch

Going into the free concert at Baruch, I wasn’t sure what to expect.  Sometimes free means poor quality, however, that was not the case.  Mr. Charles Neidich and Mr. Joshua Grunmann have been playing together for years, and it was quite obvious.  There were no mistakes in either of their playing and it was so fluid that you would think it was a recording that had been edited to sound perfectly in sync.  I did not know what the program would consist of, so I did not have the chance to listen to anything before I attended.  Upon arrival, we were handed papers that listed the program.

The first piece was called Sonata for Clarinet and Piano, op. 28 by Mieczyslaw Weinberg.  Having never heard of Weinberg before, I listened intently.  Neidich told us that Weinberg’s parents were killed by the Nazis in World War II.  Because of this, Weinberg fled eastward, composing music all along.  In listening to the performance, one could almost taste the raw emotion; it was palpable.  There were a lot of crescendos and a lot of slight tempo change, or rubato.  It seemed as if Weinberg was doing his best to keep everything inside of him until he could not handle it anymore and burst out in a fit of hysteria in every direction.  Although much easier to portray a hysterical fit with a full orchestra, Weinberg did a fantastic job at making good use of only the clarinet and piano.

The second piece was called Threnos by Charles Neidich himself, which was for solo clarinet.  He said the title was Greek for Tears and that he wrote the work in 2005 in remembrance of the tsunami victims.  The piece started off slow and seemingly all over the place, then towards the middle came together for just a few short measures, before returning to its hectic state.  Personally, I didn’t enjoy it very much, but I know that his intentions were good and he had an emotional connection with the piece and that’s all I can ask for when listening to music.

The third piece was titled Sonata for Clarinet and Piano, op. 120, no. 2 by Johannes Brahms.  Born in 1833 in Hamburg, Germany, Brahms was one of the leading composers of the Romantic period.  He was a virtuosic pianist who spent most of his career in Vienna.  Brahms is said to have been a perfectionist who left many works torn up and undone because he felt that they were insufficient.  In his late 50s, Brahms decided to retire from making music.  He felt that he had composed everything that was inside of him and that he had nothing left.  A few short months later, he was introduced to an amazing clarinet player named Richard Muhlfeld and was inspired to returned to making music.  He wrote two sonatas for clarinet and piano.  In listening to the second sonata, I found that it was well put together.  Starting out slow, it seemed as though the piece might stay in a basic range and make you fall asleep.  However, after a few more measures you realize that this is no ordinary piece of music; this is Brahms.  Even though there are only two instruments, the color and texture are lovely.  The piano sounds like colorful raindrops dancing as they hit the leaves on tropical trees and the clarinet sounds like a beautiful butterfly as it flutters around swiftly avoiding the rain.  The duo seems to be taking two different paths but yet, are still heading in the same directions.  Complimentary and eloquent are the two best words to describe such a composition.

As an artist, I will never say that any one particular piece of music is bad.  However, like everyone else, I do have preferences.  Brahms’s Sonata for Clarinet and Piano, op. 120, no. 2 takes the cake this time around.  Such a great composer should never stop making such beautiful music.  Once a musician, always a musician.  There is no getting away from it.  I’m glad I got the chance to learn about all of these great artists/composers and even more glad that Brahms came out of retirement to grace us all with some more fantastic music.

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“Demystifying Conducting” & Beethoven’s 5th

At the basic level, a conductor unifies musicians by providing guidance for tempo, dynamics, balance, and cueing.  Seems simple enough, right? We have watched many renowned conductors in class: Gustavo Dudamel, Herbert von Karajan, and Leonard Bernstein.  But how many times have we watched conductors in class and we don’t see an obvious downbeat?  What are they doing?

Below is a video, entitled “Demystifying Conducting,” where Alan Gilbert, Music Director of the New York Philharmonic, describes the nuances of conducting.

How do you find his descriptions of conducting?

Here are clips of contemporary performances of the first movement of Beethoven’s Symphony no. 5.
Now, how would you describe the different conductors interactions with the orchestra?
What version do you like the best?
Can you hear the different in the performances?

1) Gustavo Dudamel

2) Leonard Bernstein

3) Herbert von Karajan

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Concert Review: “The Orpheus Chamber Orchestra”

The MetLife Foundation in combination with The National Endowment for the Arts presented “The Orpheus Chamber Orchestra” featuring Jean-Yves Thibaudet on piano and Louis Hanzlik on trumpet at Carnegie Hall on Saturday, February 11, 2012. Seated on the highest balcony level, I was awed by the beauty of the Isaac Stern Auditorium. I was able to make detailed observations on the orchestral design of the building, noting how they would affect how the performance is received. The pieces for the night focused primarily on sonatas and concertos, with one piece by Honegger, which served as the exception. These pieces from Tippet, Shostakovich, and Tchaikovsky featured light elements of dance, which made the night a joyful and pleasant listening experience. The composer of focus will be Shostakovich. In discussing this piece, I will discuss the execution of his Piano Concerto No. 1 in C minor, Op. 35 in comparison to the prerecorded version and the influence that featured artists Jean-Yves Thibaudet and Louis Hanzlik had on the overall performance of their movement.

The day before this concert, I attended another concert concert at Carnegie Hall where I made note of many execution mistakes in the live performance of the pieces. With this in mind at this concert, I am unintentionally looking for slight mishaps only to find that their execution was just as clean and precise as the recording. As I listened to this concerto prior to attending this concert, I took note of the neat and clean execution of each movement; I realized that every note was in place and every hit was properly accented. During the concert, I did not make note of any mistakes in dynamics or any timing issues. After I realized their clean execution, I was caught in the beauty of the piece disregarding all aesthetic issues. The ambiance that a live performance would give is vastly different from a recording. Therefore, the impact of each strong accent in comparison to soft peaceful feeling of a melody was experienced regardless of one’s seat in the hall- especially considering that I was seated furthest from the stage.

Pianist Jean-Yves Thibaudet and trumpeter Louis Hanzlik were the featured artists of the night. As an element of concertos, one individual or small group would play in contrast to a larger group. For the third movement in Shostakovich’s Piano Concerto No. 1 in C minor, Op. 35, Thibaudet played the piano as the soloist while the rest of the orchestra performed as the larger group. For the fourth, Hanzlik was featured as the soloist. For the third movement, the pianist began by playing with the entire orchestra. When it was time for her to play separately, the pianist played with a great fervor that accented the contrast. The intensity of her sound was great where she became the focus of the piece even when the orchestra returned enhancing the song. For the fourth movement, the trumpet did not play throughout the piece. There were specific moments from the beginning where I was looking for the trumpet to come in. Nevertheless, when the trumpet came in, we immediately knew that this was the undeniably the trumpeter. In comparing these two soloists, the presence of the pianist was strongly noted throughout the piece while the trumpeter was recognized at few places in the song.

Overall, “The Orpheus Chamber Orchestra” featuring Jean-Yves Thibaudet on piano and Louis Hanzlik on trumpet was a great experience. The cleanness of the execution in combination with the great soloists allowed for an enjoyable listening experience.

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Liszt and “Faust” Symphony

Liszt is known to have intricate works and according to Allan Kozinn, reviewing Leon Botstein’s Carnegie Hall program including Liszt’s “Faust” Symphony, the American Symphony Orchestra conducted by Mr. Botstein delivered this challenging piece with clarity and success. Kozinn highlights the ability of the composer to tackle unusual works and points our how many fail to deliver a good performance without proper preparation. I almost thought he was setting the stage for what was to be an inadequate depiction of “Faust”. But 19 years of conducting the American Symphony Orchestra is something I believe gives him an upper hand to know what his musicians are capable of.

The symphony is divided into three main parts that are all centered on the three characters of the Faust legend, “Faust”, “Gretchen”, and “Mephistopheles”, this symphony was dedicated to Goethe who wrote the toned poems of Faust. The section I will focus on is “Faust”, which is the 1st movement of the 70-minute piece.  This is not what I would consider strict sonata form but still has the main points of that structure. This section is important because Liszt introduces us to the themes that will continually appear throughout the rest of the symphony, and the idea of thematic transformation is something he was known for and mastered. The symphony is in C major but it was hard to identify because of added augmented fifths. The strings really create that sense of gloom that the character lives in because in the poems he is constantly on a quest for truths in life.  Then you hear the sound of an oboe leading to the introduction of the C minor scale, and then a clarinet, which really gives you a feeling of pain and sorrow that Faust is overcome with. There are moments of intense power statements in this 1st movement, which really represent the depth of Liszt’s compositions.

I believe the most amazing parts of the performance are the way the sections of the orchestra take on the emotions of the character. The great use of contrasts with the strings as a solid presence but the wind section representing a low melancholy undertone create the mood that the character is experiencing. The violins seem to come in as a question with almost a resolution or answer with the sudden sound of calm.  The theme remains constant throughout and the repetition is what makes it a tone poem.

Kozinn recognized the strings and how they painted the emotions of the character as well as “brassy triumphant scoring”. The themes within the symphony were delivered well, and he recognized the intensity of this piece and the orchestra’s ability to play with emotion. Kozinn states in the title of this review that works such as this are rarely heard and take a great amount of mastering before they can be presented, and many fail, but I believe each theme and motive was delivered with continuity throughout the entire first section. The poems that Goethe wrote were truly brought to life with the American symphony Orchestra.

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