The Kindly Kurmudgeon

Musical Terms Part 2

2009-11-20T19:50:00.000-08:00

Here is the second, and final, post on musical terms. Note that this list is not complete; if you encounter other terms, you can always look them up in a dictionary or on the internet.

A Measure is a rhythmic grouping or metrical unit that contains a fixed number of beats; in notated music, it appears as a vertical line through the staff.

A Movement is a section of a more extended work that is more or less complete in itself, although occasionally movements are linked together, either through the choice of a final inconclusive chord or by a linking note.

A Nocturne is a night-piece, music that evokes a nocturnal mood. It was developed as a form of solo piano music by the Irish pianist and composer John Field in the early 19th century, leading to its notable use by Chopin.

A Note in English is either a single sound or its representation in notation. American English refers to a single sound as a tone, following German practice.

The Octave is an interval of an eighth, as for example from the note C to C or D to D. The first note can have a sharp or flat providing the last note has the corresponding sharp or flat (i. e. C sharp to C sharp).

An Opera is a drama in which most of the actors sing all or most of their parts. The form developed at the end of the 16th century in Italy, from where it spread to other regions of Europe

Opus (from Latin: work) is generally used in the listing of a composer's works by opus numbers, usually abbreviated to Op. Opus numbers are not always a guide to the date of composition or even to the date of publication.

Forms of Oratorio change, but it remains primarily a work in which religious texts often with a narrative content are set for performance by singers and instruments.

The Overture is an introductory piece, often designed to initiate an opera or other dramatic work. also a possible independent composition, a concert movement, often with literary or geographical associations, or an occasional connotation.

Performance Practice indicates the attempt to perform music in the way the composer would have experienced it. The past 50 or so years has brought a renewed interest in musicology and the technology and scholarship necessary to construct copies of earlier instruments, which generally have somewhat different tonal qualities than modern instruments.

Pizzicato (Italian: plucked) is a direction to performers on string instruments to pluck the strings. A return to the use of the bow is indicated by the word 'arco', bow.

Rhythm, an essential element in music in one way or another, is the arrangement of notes according to their relative duration and relative accentuation.

Ritardando (Italian: becoming slower) abbreviated often to rit., is often used as a direction to players.

Scale: A series of tones or pitches in ascending or descending order. Scale tones are often assigned numbers (1-8) or syllables (do-re-mi-fa-sol-la-ti-do).

A musical Score is written music that shows all parts. A conductor's score, for example, may have as many as thirty different simultaneous instrumental parts on one page, normally having the woodwind at the top, followed below by the brass, the percussion and the strings.

A Sharp, represented by the sign #, added before a note, raises its pitch by a semitone. In general terms music that is sharp may be simply out of tune, at too high a pitch.

Sonatas developed from an earlier form in which the melody instrument predominated to a form in which the keyboard assumed greater importance, with an optional accompaniment from a melody instrument. Greater degrees of equality between the two were achieved in the later violin sonatas of Mozart and the violin sonatas and cello sonatas of Beethoven.

Staccato, (Italian) "Separated." Notes which are held for less than their written value, or "separated" from one another. Notes written to be played staccato are often played in a pointed or spiky manner.

The String Family includes two types of instruments: bowed and plucked. The standard bowed string instruments, from highest to lowest, are violin, viola, cello and double bass. The harp and guitar are common plucked string instruments.

A Symphony may simply be defined as an orchestral composition generally in several movements.

Syncopation: A change in the expected rhythmic emphases: for example, stressing a weak (instead of a strong) beat, or replacing strong beats with a rest (silence). Syncopations disturb the regular, predictable pattern of strong and weak beats.

Tempo (Italian: time) means the speed at which a piece of music is played. Sometimes the exact tempo is given at the beginning of a piece of music with the number of beats to a minute, as measured by a metronome. More often tempo indications give the performer more latitude.

Tonality is a term for the principle of organization around a tonic, or home, pitch, based on a major or minor scale.

A Tone Poem is a symphonic poem, an orchestral composition that seeks to express extra-musical ideas in music.

Variation relates to the repetition of a theme in changed versions. It is possible to vary the melody, its rhythm and its harmony, or to vary by addition.

The family of Woodwind Instruments is less homogeneous in construction and sound production than the strings; it includes the piccolo, flute, oboe, English horn, clarinet, bassoon and saxophone.

A Glossary of Common Terms in Classical Music

2009-11-19T22:13:00.000-08:00

It doesn’t take one long to realize that the world of classical music has its own language. I briefly introduced a few major terms in an earlier post; now I’d like to expand that list. These terms describe eras in musical history, different forms that classical music can take, and directions about how to perform it as the composer imagined it. This glossary will cover this post and the following one, too.

Although some of these terms will not be seen immediately, others will. Having some basic knowledge of these words will aid your understanding of music, performance and reviews or comments on classical music.

Baroque is now used in music to designate a period of musical history from about 1600 to about 1750, although any such delineation in history can only be a rough guide. The baroque era may conveniently be divided into three fifty-year periods, Early Baroque, Middle Baroque and Late Baroque. The first of these is typified by the Italian composer Monteverdi, the Middle Baroque by composers such as Henry Purcell in England or Lully in France and the Late Baroque by Johann Sebastian Bach, Handel and Vivaldi.

Classical music may designate fine music or serious music. More technically the word may refer to a period in the history of music, the later 18th century, the age of Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven. The classical may be differentiated from the so-called romantic, the relatively experimental and less formally restricted kinds of music that became current in the 19th century.

Romanticism In music it is most commonly applied to a period or the predominant features of the period, from the early 19th century until the early 20th. Features of romanticism in music include an attention to feeling rather than to formal symmetry, expressed in a freer use of traditional forms, an expansion of the instrumental resources of music and an extension of harmonic language.

Impressionism was used to describe an element of vagueness and imprecision coupled with a perceived excess of attention to colour in the early music of Debussy, who did not accept the criticism or the label, although his harmonic innovations and approach to composition have points in common with the ideals of Monet.

Neoclassical style in music indicates a 20th century eclectic return by some composers to various styles and forms of earlier periods, whether classical or baroque.

Accelerando (Italian: becoming faster) is a term to show that the music should be played at an increasing speed.

Accent refers to the emphasis on a beat resulting in that beat being louder or longer than another in a measure.

Allegro (Italian: cheerful, lively) is generally taken as fast, although not as fast as vivace or presto. Allegretto is a diminutive, meaning slightly slower than allegro. The term also appllies to a particular movement of a larger work.

Andante (Italian: walking) is a word used to suggest the speed of a piece of music, at walking pace.

Bar: a bar-line, a vertical line through the staff, came to be used to mark metrical units or bars (i.e., measures).Later, the bar-line came to be used immediately preceding a strong beat, so that a bar came to begin normally with an accented note.

The Brass section of the orchestra includes metal instruments where the sound is produced by forcing air through a cup-shaped or conical mouthpiece. The brass section usually consists of trumpets, trombones and tuba and French horns.

Cadenza is a virtuoso passage usually found near the end of a concerto movement or vocal aria . Cadenzas are often based on the themes of the piece in which they appear and are improvisatory in style. In the Classical and Romantic eras performers were expected to improvise or provide their own cadenzas, although Mozart began providing written cadenzas for some of his piano concertos.

A Cantata is generally a longer choral work that also uses solo voices, usually with instrumental accompaniment. The texts used may be sacred or secular, and may use solo voices without chorus or choir.

Chamber music is the term used to describe ensemble music for up to about ten players, with one player to a part.

While Chromatic notes in an ascending scale are taken from the note C, the following chromatic notes would be C# (C sharp), D# (D sharp), etc., notes not found in the diatonic scale of C major, which has no sharps or flats.

A Concertmaster is the leader of an orchestra (that is, the principal first violin) Also known in German as a Konzertmeister the term now concert master has found more general acceptance in other English-speaking countries, apart from Great Britain, where the word leader is still preferred.

A Concerto is a piece of instrumental music that contrasts a solo instrument or a small group of solo instruments with the main body of the orchestra. In the earlier 17th century the word had a more general significance, but in the early 18th century it came to mean primarily a work as described above.

Crescendo (Italian: growing, becoming louder) is frequently used as a dynamic instruction to performers.

Decrescendo (Italian: growing less) is used as a direction to performers, meaning becoming softer.

Diminuendo (Italian: becoming less) is used as a direction to performers to play softer.

A Divertimento is an instrumental composition intended for entertainment, usually in a number of movements. The term is used particularly in the second half of the 18th century. Haydn described his first string quartets as Divertimenti and the title is also used by Mozart and other composers of the period.

Dynamics are the levels of sound, loud or soft, in a piece of music.
An Etude is a study, intended originally for the technical practice of the player. Chopin, Liszt and later composers elevated the etude into a significant piece of music, no mere exercise.

The word "Flat", indicated by a sign derived from the letter b, shows that a note should be lowered by a semitone. In a more general sense music that is flat may simply be out of tune, its pitch below the accepted pitch.

A Fugue is a work of music with many voices based on a single melody, repeated in various ways. From simplicity comes richness and complexity.

Harmony describes the simultaneous sounding of two or more notes and the rules for building and their arranging a succession of chords. In other words harmony deals with chords, simultaneous sounds, and counterpoint with melody set against melody.

Improvisation is the creation of a musical composition while it is being performed, seen in Baroque ornamentation, cadenzas of concertos, jazz, and some non-Western music.

Key. A musical work in a "key" is melodically and harmonically orientated around a particular major or minor scale. For example, a composition in C Major will usually begin and end in that key, although excursions to other keys may occur. However, a passage in C Major may temporarily utilize notes that do not occur in that scale and still remain in C Major.

Largo (Italian: broad, wide, large and consequently slow) is used as a frequent instruction to performers.

Legato (Italian: smooth) is used as an instruction to performers. It is the opposite of staccato, which indicates a shortening and consequent detaching of notes.

The Libretto, literally, little book, is the text of an opera or similar vocal work, originally issued in a small printed book.

Saga of Cincinnati Chili

2009-11-18T21:10:00.000-08:00

Cincinnati Chili. I’ve never visited Cincinnati. In fact, I don’t think I’ve been anywhere near it. However, I did find a Cincinnati-style chili parlor in San Diego - after it had gone out of business. Let me tell you about my saga of Cincinnati chili.

One of my favorite sections of the newspaper is the food section. I have been reading them for many years. I even have an album in which I’ve mounted a considerable number of recipes I have clipped from various food sections.

One week either the San Diego Union or the San Diego Tribune (long since merged in the San Diego Union-Tribune) had a feature story on Cincinnati Chili. I was intrigued, and saved the article and recipe. But I didn’t try it out right away. When I decided to give it a go, I discovered the recipe was missing, I found it gone. (Ah, more oxymorons.)

In desperation, I searched the local branch of the library, finding nothing even remotely close to what I could remember from the recipe. At that time, it wasn’t too difficult to access a computer in the public library. (Now it’s a matter of making a reservation and/or waiting a while to use a computer.) I plugged “Cincinnati chili” into what must have been an archaic search engine. Then I combed through the results, alighting on one that seemed to have all the right stuff. I printed it, took it home and cooked up a batch.

Right now you may be asking “What is Cincinnati Chili? What makes it so special?” Cincinnati Chili is not all like southern or tex-mex chilis that we have become accustomed to think of as chili. It was developed by Greek immigrants in the Cincinnati area. They used ingredients with which they were most familiar - things like cinnamon, clove, allspice, bay leaf, vinegar and chocolate. (Yes, chocolate, but the unsweetened variety.) Over time they came up with various ways to serve it. One-way (as it was called) is simply the chili itself. 2-way is chili served over spaghetti. 3-way adds a grated cheddar cheese topping, 4-way includes chopped onions with the cheese topping, and 5-way adds beans.

After finally finding this holy grail of Cincinnati chili recipes, I began cooking it from time to time, especially when I was feeding a large number of people. My family likes it, but it didn’t catch on with them as it did me. One day I took some to work for lunch. Someone asked about it, so I brought more in the next day for this person to try. She shared it with her mother, and came back with the report “This stuff is the bomb! It’s the real thing.” Turns out she was from Cincinnati, but I didn’t know it.

This is one recipe that I don’t tinker with as I do with others. I cook this one as is. If I’ve whetted your appetite, or at least piqued your curiousity, as I hope I have, you can locate this recipe online at members.cox.net/jjschnebel/cinnchil.html.webloc.

Bon appetit!

Why listen to classical music?

2009-11-17T21:47:00.000-08:00

Indeed, why? I have shown that we are surrounded by classical music in its varied forms from diverse sources. However, our response to much of this music is passive - it’s there, we may or may not be aware of it or pay attention to it. Should we become more active in pursuing an active response to classical music in our lives? Both ancient tradition and modern science agree: “Yes!”

Let me offer some cautionary words first. While it is true that these benefits can be derived from classical music, some other forms of music may offer some of these, too. Not all classical music selections may offer these benefits. For instance, Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring caused a riot at its premiere; it was so “new” and controversial that the audience rose up against this music. (This has happened to other pieces of classical music, too, especially some that have “thrown away the mold” to install some new concept in its place.)

This being said, if you Google the search term “benefits of classical music,” you will find a large number of sites that, in general, share the same information from various resources.
There does seem to be some consensus on the subject.

Classical music is a major part of cultural history, at least in the Western world. (It is interesting to note that the past 30 - 40 years have produced many talented classical musicians from the Asian world - Japan, Korea, China, for example. The Suzuki method of teaching to play an instrument began in Japan, where violinist Shinichi Suzuki developed the concept of making children better people though music.)

It would be difficult to understand music today without some knowledge of its development and place in past culture. The whole scope of developing the melodic line that is so pleasing to Western ears, then the harmonies that underlie the melody, as well as ways to annotate it (write it down on paper) and bring about the instruments through which to perform the music is tied to classical music. Some understanding of this history can be helpful to a better appreciation of the music that we listen to today, even if it isn’t classical.

Music has been called the “universal language.” Although people of different cultures, languages and ethos may not be able to communicate with one another, through classical music one might observe simultaneous smiles or trickling tears as diverse audiences hear it performed. Classical music (indeed, music in general) promotes the social contract of loving one’s neighbor and doing good to them when possible.

Classical music has an enduring quality, not passing fancy as so much popular music. Classical music has lasted and been performed repeatedly over the centuries because of its universal and long-lasting appeal. Not all classical music. however, is so enduring; some is of such quality that it has been shelved. However, in today’s world of knowing, even the most obscure works of the most obscure composers are constantly the quest of musicologists’ searches, and the income for performing forces as well as recording companies.

Classical music offers an extremely wide range of emotional impact - sad, happy, manic, depression, anger, love, fright, delight. You may experience any of these as you listen to any particular piece of classical music. After some time and you become more familiar with classical music, you can easily choose to listen to music that matches or can change your current mood. This music inculcates a broader range of sensitivity than other forms of music. Somewhat tangentially, classical music has a very wide scope of feelings and their expressions. Sometimes people may think that listening to classical music alone is very narrow. However, for a number of reasons - forms, dynamics, historic styles, instrumentation and size of performing groups - this music is broader and more encompassing than other styles of music. Begin to listen attentively and see if this music doesn’t stretch your mind as well as your emotional palette.

There are social consequences that may be derived from classical music. Tests in both London and in Florida have shown that problem areas where classical music is played become less problematic as rates of hostility and crime went down. Classical music can form a bond between individuals, either singly or as part of a group. There are music lovers who come together around a single composer, a single musical era and even a single piece of music. Sharing of musical knowledge and favorites builds camaraderie.

Medical science has shown repeatedly that classical music has much to commend it as a part of music therapy. The tempo (speed) of a composition can speed up or slow down a heart’s rate of beating, as well as respiration. Classical music seems to reduce production of the hormone cortisol, which is a major component in stress, thus relieving stress. Both chronic pain and post-operative pain have been significantly reduced through listening to classical music. It is thought that the music offers a patient something other than pain to focus on, and gives a measure of control over unmitigated focus on pain. Along with production of anti-cortisol hormones, classical music has been shown to boost the production of hormones that increase one’s immunity. Listening to classical music also gives a “lift” that enables greater endurance. Perhaps this is why so many walkers, joggers and runners have their portable music systems plugged into their ears as they exercise.

What are the effects of classical music on the brain? One theory suggests that certain musical selections have the ability to increase concentration and focus, enabling better learning functions and later recall. A popular approach to this is called the “Mozart Effect,” wherein studies have shown that certain kinds of cerebral activities are enhanced as the music of Mozart accompanies the study and followup activities mental grasp of spatial concepts. While the Mozart Effect is not accepted unanimously, most professionals accept the basic tenets described above. It is possible that other types of music can produce a similar effect, but doubtful that just any other kind of music can do so. Music by Mozart (and others) apparently opens neural pathways to enable quicker and easier learning and the ability to remember what was learned.

When I worked as a driving instructor, I normally tuned the car radio to a classical music station. Many of my students were teens, and a large number of them commented about how that seemed to calm their nerves to make learning easier. In fact, many of these students spoke of teachers at school who played recordings of classical music in class to enhance the learning environment.

Since classical music can be relaxing, slower-paced tuneful music can aid one’s sleep patterns. One can sleep naturally, and awaken without the side effects of sleep medications.

Finally, there is even a little-known financial component to classical music. Many farmers have learned that cows give more milk, chickens, more eggs, etc., whenever classical music is piped into their living quarters. Also, beware of shopping in a store that plays classical music over its PA system. Studies have shown that people tend to spend more money in such an environment.

There you have it - a number of good reasons to encourage listening to some classical music. When you are tired, stressed, have to study, need a little extra “oomph,” or any other conditions described above, try some classical music. Let it have its best effects on you, too.

Film Scores as Classical Music

2009-11-16T11:37:00.000-08:00

I’d like to return to my series of posts opening up the topic of classical music. I believe I have sufficiently demonstrated that we are exposed to classical music through many means. However, we may not recognize that music as “classical” music. I have tried to use this music as a bridge from its use in popular culture to its greater expression in the concert hall. From there, I hope you might be motivated - or simply curious - to explore classical music in greater depth.

My last post in this series listed film scores that were created by composers who were generally known first for their output of classical music. Some of these films were musicals, so that’s not a stretch of the imagination to understand. Others wrote accompaniment soundtracks that had little or no musical "fact" in the plot itself.

There was a time when I was a voracious reader of periodicals that offered critical reviews of classical recordings. Some of these publications are no longer available. Some have been bought out and included in other publications; e.g., High Fidelity magazine was taken over by Stereo Review, merging the two into one. I may be mistaken, but I think these together have further evolved into Sound and Vision, with a widened scope including video arts as well as musical arts. Other publications have apparently decided that there is no longer a need to review recordings of popular and often-recorded works, so they have turned to the unfamiliar, unknown and little-played composers and compositions. This is great for anyone who wants to get (almost) completely off the beaten path to explore new music. Subsequently, I built a decent library, first on LPs, then on cassettes and now on CDs, of recordings that had received considerable acclaim in the critical realm. Of course, these reviews are all subjective, and I didn’t always agree with critics evaluations and conclusions. It was also frustrating to read a rave review of a familiar and loved piece of music, only to read another a short time later; it was a never-ending chase after the “best” performance.

Some years ago, I noticed that film score reviews began showing up in these periodicals. The case was being made, although often implicitly, that music composed as film scores could (should?) be considered a legitimate successor to the classical, romantic, impressionistic and early pre-20th century modern composers. Contemporary classical composers, always trying to find a new way to look at music, left traditional compositional, tonal, structural and instrumental elements to create “new” music that, to me, often just wasn’t very conducive to listening to and enjoying. Film composers, since they must appeal to a wider audience, generally have been constrained to stay closer to traditional classical music.

So the question arises: Are people who compose film scores in line with the three Bs of classical music - Bach, Beethoven and Brahms? The issue has been hotly debated, so I’d like to offer a definitive answer. Yes...and no. That is my humble opinion. All that follows are collected random (an oxymoron?) thoughts that have entered my mind from time to time.

Traditional classical composers often composed for larger instrumental groups, utilizing the instruments that were available to them. Yes, there were solo compositions and works for smaller groups, but it seems that the majority of the music was for larger musical forces. Classical composers used different keys and tempos (speeds) to focus on a particular mood or pace of action. Traditional classical composers worked within tonal structures, that is to say, the recognized major and minor musical keys with their appropriate intervals between each note. Classical music is often descriptive, that is, a musical portrayal of something else. In simplest terms, Beethoven’s “Moonlight” sonata is a musical representation of a moonlit evening. Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique tells a story of passion; a young man falls in love with an actress, who refuses his attentions. In a rage, he kills her, then, ultimately, is judged and convicted and given a death sentence. After a musical representation of his head being separated from his body and rolling away, there follows the sound of the rollicking joy of wicked spirits who delight in all that has happened. Another example can be seen in Richard Strauss’s An Alpine Symphony, which depicts an entire day’s events from sunrise to night time, with the majority of the music describing one explorer’s ascent and descent into the Alps and what he encounters. He meets with cows in a meadow, with gusting wind and a heavy rain storm among other things. These were nearly always harmonious, although composers sometimes threw in a short dissonant section for some effect. Composers of film scores follow these same elements, although they may not be as developed as classical music. So there are a number of ways in which composers of film scores clearly acknowledge their classical heritage.

However, classical music often follows a strict pattern that prescribes its form. It may have 3 or 4 or more sections (or movements), with each one separate from the others, although there may be a repeated theme, or motif, among several sections. It is said that classical music is “linear” in that there is a steady progression from beginning to end of each section as well as from section to section, finally reaching its conclusion at the end of the entire work.
Film composers don’t follow this pattern; they write music to accompany the action of the screen. There is primarily one movement with several parts, including “cyclical” repeating themes but they do not always follow classical form. A couple examples of these recurring themes are “Tara’s Theme” from Gone with the Wind, and “Lara’s Theme” from Dr. Zhivago. Perhaps another is the two-note threat theme that recurs menacingly in Jaws. These sometimes occur at unexpected times in classical music forms.

Perhaps another aspect of classical music vs. film score lies with the audience. Whereas past generations seem to have been able to sit through longer works in their entirety, today’s audience has become accustomed to hearing sound bytes. Popular songs run 4 to 6 minutes in length. It is hard for many people to hear and understand the continuity of a longer piece of music. It seems that the longest sound bytes now, other than movies themselves, come to around 8 - 10 minute segments of television programming between commercials. I am inclined to think that many people “miss” most of the music in a film simply because of its length and its “lesser” role of accompanying what’s really important on the screen.

The parallels between classical music and film music are not exact, but offer strong hints of their continuity. Purists will decry any such similarities, but it seems that their reasons are more emotional that rational. They insist that classical music is “high art,” while movie scores are not. Who can really say what is high art and what is popular art? Much of the music written by classical composers was written as popular art, not high art. I’m sure my limited insights into the question and its resolution are not the last thoughts, and that the debate will continue. If you listen to and compare classical music and popular film music (which I encourage you to do), what do you think?

First Steps in Classical Music

2009-11-15T21:32:00.000-08:00

I had planned to conclude the series I had been offering to demonstrate the concept that we hear (and often recognize) classical music from various sources around us - even though we may not know the actual name. I haven't been able to complete that thought today, so am taking a brief break. In the meantime, I'd like to continue with some listening suggestions.

Visitor to New Yorker: Pardon me, can you tell me how to get to Carnegie Hall?
New Yorker: Practice, practice, practice.

How can someone get to know, like and even recognize classical music composers and even individual pieces? Listen, listen, listen.

Do you recall this scene from Mr. Holland’s Opus? Mr. Holland is an aspiring composer who must struggle as a music appreciation/band leader/driver training teacher just to make ends meet. His career as a composer is always on the back burner it seems. Then his wife tells him she’s pregnant. Mr. Holland is stunned; how will this affect his love of music composition? He can’t find words to say anything, leaving his wife in tears because he isn’t overjoyed to hear this news. He tells her a story about how he came to love the music of John Coltrane. A friend in the record shop introduced him to John Coltrane one day, and young Mr. Holland listened to it. He didn’t like what he heard. But he listened to it again, then again, then again and again and again. The result? He came to love John Coltrane’s music. His wife, wiping tears from her eyes, said “If that’s a lie, it’s the most beautiful lie I’ve ever heard.” Similarly, Glen Holland’s excitement grew as he contemplated the coming of their child.

Where do you start on this musical trek? I’d suggest beginning with the familiar, even though it might not be familiar by composer or name. Here are some suggestions, perhaps with some personal reflections.

Haydn’s Surprise Symphony (# 94): The opening theme of the second movement is an old folk song “Ah, vous dirai je maman,” better known to us as “Twinkle, twinkle little star.” Listen to the surprise. There have been a number of guesses about the surprise. Why do you think Haydn put it there? (Mozart also wrote a set of piano variations on the same theme.)

Haydn is often called the father of the symphony. He developed the form, then wrote 104 or so symphonies himself. He is similarly the popularizer of the modern string quartet, having written around 68 string quartets. His string quartet # 62 (opus 76 # 3) includes a set of variations on the Austrian National Anthem. (If you attend church you may know the melody as “Glorious Things of Thee are Spoken.")

Bach’s Toccata and Fugue in D minor, BWV 565. Listen to the opening Toccata. It’s the theme that is traditionally and classically played for a spooky sound effect. Traditional Phantoms of the Opera played it, and, so did Captain Nemo in the music chamber aboard the Nautilus. The Toccata is fairly short, the Fugue is considerable longer. A fugue is a more developed form of a round. Do you remember singing Row, row, row your boat Gently down the stream, at which point another group began singing these words as you continued with Merrily, merrily, happily merrily Life is but a dream. This is called a round. A fugue is like a round. If you listen to the Fugue, listen to the theme as it makes its entry with another grouping of instrumental sounds, and try to note how it all ends.

I’ve mentioned repeatedly The William Tell Overture by Gioacchino Rossini. Listen to it. You may not recognize the opening part, but when this overture moves into the second part, you’ll hear a theme that was often played in cartoons. Finally, the third section includes the big fanfare that has long been associated with The Lone Ranger. (Hi-yo Sil-ver away!)

Beethoven as a major composer has written pretty complex music, but also some beguilingly simple tunes, too. What beginning pianist has not played “Fur Elise?” Or who hasn’t heard at least the opening of Beethoven’s “Moonlight” Sonata? Of course, there is the grand opening of the 5th symphony, often called “fate knocking at the door.” During World War 2, Churchill popularized the music by adopting its opening notes - da, da, da, dummm - as the musical equivalent of the Morse code letter V, for victory.

To get acquainted with the instruments of the orchestra turn to Britten’s Variations on a Theme of Purcell. The narrated version is called A Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra, with introduction of the music, then introduction of the various instrumental sections of the orchestra and each of their members as they perform variations on the original theme.

Of course, not all classical music is slow and heavy. Some of the works listed above are lighter. But for classical music “lite” listen to music of Jacques Offenbach, either his Overture to Orpheus in the Underworld, or as music from a ballet put together from Offenbach’s works called Gaite Parisienne. You may even feel like dancing the Can-Can from either of these music selections.

Well, there are some starting points that are easy on the ears. You don’t have to rush out and buy CDs of this music. Some of it you may find it on YouTube. Try a resource called Instant Encore; some of these may be there. There is a delightful children’s program called Classics for Kids, although its goal is to inform and introduce children of all ages to composers and some of their music. You can Google Classics for Kids, or search for it at www.prx.org. Although there are a number of P2P apps out there, I don’t want to push any of them because of possible copyright violations. You might also try Googling the term “free classical music resources” to see what pops up, although they are seldom “free.”

So get out there and listen, listen, listen. I’m sure you’ll find something even on this short list that you’ll enjoy and want to hear again and again.

Classical Music Composers as Composers of Film Scores

2009-11-14T11:07:00.000-08:00

There are a number of classical composers who ventured into the realm of film scores. Most of these began their creative output by composing "regular" classical music, then added music scores for films. Some of these were asked to do this because of their name and reputation, in short, their popularity. A few others branched out into classical music after beginning with film scores' I think John Williams is a good example of this. However, all of these composers (and others) have composed some form of classical music - a concerto, a suite, a symphony, etc. The list looks quite ragged, but, because of its length, I decided to list this way, even after significantly abridging it.

Aaron Copland
Of Mice and Men (1939)             The North Star (1943)            The Red Pony (1948)                           The Heiress (1949)     Something Wild (1961) [rereleased as Music for a Great City (1964)]

Phillip Glass
Koyaanisqatsi (1982)                           The Thin Blue Line (1988)            Powaqqatsi (1988)                Secret Window (2004)                         Neverwas (2005)                              The Illusionist (2006)
The Secret Agent (1996)                   [1931] Dracula (1999)
Cassandra's Dream (2007)                   Mr Nice (2009)

Bernard Hermann
Citizen Kane (1941)                                  The Devil and Daniel Webster (1941)
The Magnificent Ambersons (1942)     Jane Eyre (1944)              Anna and the King of Siam (1946)
The Ghost and Mrs. Muir (1947)              On Dangerous Ground (1951)
The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)     The Trouble with Harry (1955)     The Kentuckian (1955) The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956)     A Hatful of Rain (1957)                     Vertigo (1958)              The Naked and the Dead (1958)    The Seventh Voyage of Sinbad (1958)
North by Northwest (1959)    Journey to the Center of the Earth (1959)      Psycho (1960)
The Three Worlds of Gulliver (1960)   Mysterious Island (1961)     Tender Is the Night (1962)     Cape Fear (1962)                    Jason and the Argonauts (1963)            The Birds (1963)           Marnie (1964)                  Torn Curtain (1966) (unused score)      Fahrenheit 451 (1966)
The Bride Wore Black (1968)      Obsession (1976)                         Taxi Driver (1976)

Erich Korngold
Captain Blood (1935)            The Green Pastures (1936)         Anthony Adverse (1936)
The Prince and the Pauper (1937)    Another Dawn (1937)       The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938) The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex (1939)    The Sea Hawk (1940)     The Sea Wolf (1941)        Kings Row (1942)            Between Two Worlds (1944)             Of Human Bondage (1946)

Sergei Prokofiev
Lieutenant Kijé (1934)             Alexander Nevsky (1938)            Ivan the Terrible, Op. 116 (1942-5)

Miklos Rozsa
The Thief of Bagdad (1940)          Jungle Book (1942)   Sahara (1943)
Double Indemnity (1944)                          Spellbound (1945)                     The Lost Weekend (1945)
A Double Life (1947)                                Madame Bovary (1949)            The Asphalt Jungle (1950)    Quo Vadis? (1951)                                     Ivanhoe (1952)                         Julius Caesar (1953)
Ben-Hur (1959)                                         King of Kings (1961)             El Cid (1961)
Sodom and Gomorrah (1963)                   The Green Berets (1968)
The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes (1970)             The Golden Voyage of Sinbad (1974)
Providence (1977)             Last Embrace (1979)                              Time After Time (1979)            Eye of the Needle (1981)            Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid (1982)

Franz Waxman
Bride of Frankenstein (1935)         Fury (1936)       Captains Courageous (1937)
A Christmas Carol (1938)             The Young in Heart (1938)               Rebecca (1940)
The Philadelphia Story (1940)            Suspicion (1941)      Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1941)               Humoresque (1946)     Dark City (1950)       The Furies (1950)       Sunset Boulevard (1950)             A Place in the Sun (1951)         Phone Call from a Stranger (1952)        Stalag 17 (1953)
Rear Window (1954)    The Silver Chalice (1954)     Mister Roberts (1955)        Peyton Place (1957)

John Williams
Diamond Head (1963)                                The Killers (1964)                  None But the Brave (1965)     The Rare Breed (1966) John Goldfarb, Please Come Home! (1965)     Valley of the Dolls (1967)
A Guide for the Married Man (1967)         How to Steal a Million (1968)           Heidi (1968)                The Reivers (1969)                               Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1969)                 Jane Eyre (1970)
Fiddler on the Roof (1971)          The Poseidon Adventure (1972)       The Cowboys (1972)
Cinderella Liberty (1973)                  Tom Sawyer (1973)                     The Towering Inferno (1974)
Earthquake (1974)                    The Sugarland Express (1974)                             Jaws (1975)
The Eiger Sanction (1975                Family Plot (1976)                   Midway (1976)
The Missouri Breaks (1976)          Black Sunday (1977)
Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope (1977)                Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)
Jaws 2 (1978)    The Fury (1978)    Superman (1978)      1941 (1979)
Dracula (1979)        Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)           E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982)
Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi (1983)
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984)
SpaceCamp (1985)           Empire of the Sun (1987)
Superman IV: The Quest for Peace (1987) (Adapted by Alexander Courage.)
The Witches of Eastwick (1987)            Born on the Fourth of July (1989)
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989)     Presumed Innocent (1990)       Home Alone (1990)
Hook (1991)          Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992)           Far and Away (1992)
Jurassic Park (1993)        Schindler's List (1993)    Sabrina (1995)              Sleepers (1996)
The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997)    Amistad (1997)    Home Alone 3 (1997) [Main theme only] Saving Private Ryan (1998)            Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace (1999)
Angela's Ashes (1999)                   The Patriot (2000)                     A.I.: Artificial Intelligence (2001)   Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (2001)
Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones (2002)     Minority Report (2002)
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002) [Adapted by William Ross]
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004)      The Terminal (2004)
Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith (2005)                War of the Worlds (2005)
Memoirs of a Geisha (2005)        Munich (2005)       Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut (2006)
Indiana Jones & the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008)

It should be evident that there is a considerable body of evidence that classical composers have contributed significantly to the field of film scores. In the next post, I would like to discuss that relationship between classical music and "movie music."

2009-11-13T14:19:00.000-08:00

There’s another type of music that isn’t, strictly speaking, classical music, but it shares a lot in common with it. This is the musical.

Within the classical music realm we have operas, opera comique operetta. Operas are often quite dramatic, and every part is sung; there are no spoken roles. In opera comique we begin to hear spoken dialogue between musical singing, although the singing certainly takes the majority of the presentation. From opera comique, which developed primarily in France, we begin to see other composers “lighten up,” offering musical stories in a lighter vein, sometimes comical, sometmes satirical, but always considerably shorter than most operas. Among the earliest of these is Jacques Offenbach’s Orpheus in the Underworld. Operettas that ensued from other countries continued to lighten up, paving the way for what we know as musicals.

Among the operettas that were penned, some of the most popular were Franz Lehar’s The Merry Widow and Johann Strauss Junior’s Die Fledermaus (“The Bat”) and Der Zigeunerbaron (“The Gypsy Baron”). From America, Czech-born Rudolf Friml wrote a number of operettas, among which are Rose Marie and The Vagabond King. An Irish-born American composer named Victor Herbert wrote the popular operettas Babes in Toyland, The Red Mill, Naughty Marietta and Sweethearts. Born in Hungary, Sigmond Romberg added to the list of beloved operettas: Blossom Time, The Student Prince, The Desert Song, and The New Moon. Finally, no list would be complete without including the works of Gilbert and Sullivan. Their tongue-in-cheek way of poking fun of English society were poorly disguised. Their operettas included H.M.S. Pinafore, The Mikado, The Pirates of Penzance, but they wrote quite a few more. These were probably their best-known operettas.

What does all this have to do with music today? For one thing, although their day has passed, a number of songs from operettas became quite popular. Some of these are “Toyland” and the “March of the Wooden Soldiers” (yes, the same one used in Abbott and Costello’s movie version titled after this song) from Herbert’s Babes in Toyland. “A Kiss in the Dark,” “Kiss Me Again,” and “Every Day is Ladies’ Day with Me” are from Herbert’s The Red Mill. The song “Rose Marie (I Love You)” comes to us from Friml’s operetta Rose Marie. (Bet that was a big surprise!) From Gilbert and Sullivan we have “I Am the Very Model of a Modern Major General,” and “When I Was a Lad.”

Jeanette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy popularized a number of songs in some of their movies. One of these was “’Neath the Southern Moon” from Herbert’s Naughty Marietta. Perhaps you’ve heard “I’m Falling in Love with Someone,” or the “Italian Street Song,” or “Ah! Sweet Mystery of Life” from the same operetta. I remember hearing all of these on the radio as popular songs when I was a lad (with my apologies to Gilbert and Sullivan.)

The next step in large scale popular music was the musical, originally on Broadway, but many became films as well. By this time, musicals had longer plots and mostly spoken lines with songs interspersed throughout the whole. In its early days, producers preferred a classically-trained voice for the singing stars. Ezio Pinza, for example, a well known Metropolitan Opera star, was tapped to sing the songs for Rossano Brazzi as Emile de Becque. Although musicals preceded the 50s and 60s by a considerable time, these decades saw the greatest fruition of musicals - on stage and on screen.

Here is a partial listing:
Berlin,                                  Annie Get Your Gun
Porter                                   Anything Goes
Loewe                                   Brigadoon
Loewe                                   Camelot
Hammerstein                      Carousel
Webber                                 Cats
Webber                                 Evita
Bock                                      Fiddler on the Roof
Gershwin                              Funny Face
Styne                                     Funny Girl
Loesser                                 Guys and Dolls
Herman                                Hello Dolly
Hammerstein                      The King and I
Porter                                   Kiss Me, Kate
Schonberg                           Les Misérables
Menken                                Little Shop of Horrors
Leigh                                    Man of La Mancha
Schonberg                           Miss Saigon
Willson                                The Music Man
Loewe                                  My Fair Lady
Youmans                             No, No Nanette
Gershwin                            Of Thee I Sing
Hammerstein                    Oklahoma
Bernstein                            On the Town
Loewe                                  Paint Your Wagon
Webber                               The Phantom of the Opera
Gershwin                            Porgy and Bess
Larson                                 Rent
Kern                                     Show Boat
Hammerstein                     Sound of Music
Hammerstein                     South Pacific
Bernstein                            West Side Story

You will note that, in order to be a bit more streamlined and because our focus is on the music, I have listed the composers’ names, but have omitted the names of the lyricists.

I would be surprised if you couldn’t close your eyes and point at one (or more) of these and not recognize at least one song that was derived from the musical. Try it. (While not vouching for all their veracity, Wikipedia is a quick reference source that will list songs in each of these musicals. Look any of these up by title and you should see a listing of songs from that musical.)

Classical Music in Hymn Tunes in Classical Music

2009-11-12T10:17:00.000-08:00

The Kindly Kurmudgeon # 17 11/12/09

It is interesting to note that a full cycle may occur in classical music. That is, a classical melody may be adopted for a hymn text, then, later, another classical composition incorporated the hymn tune into yet another classical work. A few examples should tell the story.

American composer Charles Ives lived early in the 20th century (1874-1954). He served as church organist, but also composed a considerable body of music himself. Ives seemed to have a way of weaving classical themes and hymn tunes together into a continuous, although sometimes disconcerting, work. One was his first string quartet. Another is his first violin sonata. He wrote a number of hymns and variations on others.

Perhaps both his serious and comedic genius shine through best in his fourth symphony. Here you will here a variety of church hymns, such as Watchman Tell Us of the Night, In the Sweet By and By, Bringing in the Sheaves, Beulah Land. But they don’t always play at different times. Sometimes, Ives had them playing at the same time, but in different keys! To this he often added popular tunes, such as Turkey in the Straw , Columbia, the Gem of the Ocean , Jeannie with the Light Brown Hair and Camptown Races. In this music, he intended to point to a day in the park where one could hear church music in one corner, popular music in another and a poorly-rehearsed marching band in another. Sometimes, if you listen carefully, you will hear them all at once in a wonderful cacophony of familiar music.

By the say, Ives was a very successful insurance salesman who developed the concept of financial planning. His music was an avocation for him. Good thing, too, because his music is sometimes so strange that, at that time, few people would want to listen to it.

Another American composer borrowed hymn tunes for his Symphony on a Hymn Tune. His name was Virgil Thomson. In this symphony you won’t hear multiple tunes playing against each other. They appear singly in various orchestrations and arrangements. If you listen, you will hear How Firm a Foundation and Yes, Jesus Loves Me rather prominently played throughout the work.

A couple more American composers who borrowed hymn tunes are William Schuman and Aaron Copland.

Schuman wrote a composition called A New England Triptych, in which there is a section called Chester. Hymn tunes often have a name assigned to the tune itself; Chester is one of these. It is the tune that accompanies us when we sing Jesus Shall Reign Where’er the Sun.

Perhaps the most familiar is the music used by Aaron Copland. In fact, he used this tune in several of his works. The tune is the old Shaker song ‘Tis the Gift to be Simple. Copland used this in his collection of Old American Songs. He also closed his beautiful ballet Appalachian Spring with this melody.

I don’t think that karma is the right word for it, but, most certainly, in this music “what goes around, comes around.” Hear it for yourself.

Classical Tunes in Church

2009-11-11T15:14:00.000-08:00

Where else are we exposed to classical music themes, but may not know them? In church. This may appeal to a reduced audience, but most people have been in church at some time or other in their lives. Most churches have hymnals available with which singing congregants can follow the words and music of any selected song. (Unfortunately, many “up to date” churches are tending more and more to projecting onto a screen only the words without music.)

Many hymn tunes have been borrowed or adapted from classical themes. If you are in church, take a hymnal and check it out. (But not during the sermon, please!) Usually you will find under the title a couple of names, one on the left and the other on the right. The name on the left is normally that of the writer, while the name on the right is that of the composer or arranger or both. Some hymnals have a number of indexes at the back, including a composer index. Here are a number of hymns drawn from a couple of popular hymnals.

Adolphe Adam           O Holy Night
Arne, Thomas                                                Am I a Soldier of the Cross
Bach, Johann Sebastian (arr.)                   Ein Feste Burg (A Mighty Fortress is Our God)
Bach, Johann Sebastian                            O Sacred Head now Wounded
Bach, Johann Sebastian (arr.)                   Break Forth, O Beauteous Heavenly Light
Bach, J.S. & Gounod, Charles                   Ave Maria
Beethoven, Ludwig van          Joyful, Joyful We Adore Thee
Beethoven, Ludwig van                                May the Grace of Christ Our Savior
Brahms, Johannes                                         We are God’s People
Gottschalk, Louis M.                                    Holy Ghost, with Light Divine
Gounod, Charles           Christ Whose Glory Fills the Skies
Gretry, Andre                                                My Faith has Found a Resting Place
Handel, Georg Frideric                                 Hallelujah Chorus, from The Messiah
Handel, Georg Frideric                                 Joy to the World
Handel, Georg Frideric                                 While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks
Handel, Georg Frideric                                 For unto Us is Born, from
Handel, Georg Frideric                                 I Know that My Redeemer Liveth, fr. The Messiah
Handel, Georg Frideric           Thine is the Glory
Haydn, Franz Joseph                                    Praise the Lord! Ye Heavens, Adore Him
Haydn, Franz Joseph                                    The Spacious Firmament
Haydn, Franz Joseph                                    Glorious Things of Thee are Spoken
Haydn, Johann Michael                                O Worship the King
Mendelssohn, Felix          Cast Thy Burden upon the Lord
Mendelssohn, Felix                                      Hark! The Herald Angels Sing
Mendelssohn, Felix                                      Here, O My Lord, I See Thee
Mendelssohn, Felix                                      In Heavenly Love Abiding
Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus                        Jesus, I My Cross have Taken
Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus                        It is Good to Sing Thy Praises
Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus                        O Could I Speak the Matchless Worth
Praetorius, Michael                                      Lo, How a Rose E’er Blooming
Schubert, Franz                                            Ave Maria
Schubert, Franz                                            Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord
Schumann, Robert                           A Hymn of Joy We Sing
Schumann, Robert                                       Lord, Speak to Me
Schumann, Robert                                       We Give Thee but Thine Own
Schutz, Johann Jakob                                   Sing to God Who Reigns Above
Sibelius, Jean                                               Be Still, My Soul
Sullivan, Arthur S.                                     Onward, Christian Soldiers
Tallis, Thomas                                             God Moves in a Mysterious Way
Tallis, Thomas                                             All Praise to Thee, My God
Vaughan Williams, Ralph                            For All the Saints
Vaughan Williams, Ralph                            At the Name of Jesus

A couple of notes to add:

1. During the early years of western music it was not uncommon to borrow themes from other composers. As a consequence, sometimes we see a composer named as creator of the melody, when in fact he simply may have arranged it or orchestrated it. Apparently, the bigger name stuck; the lesser name has been forgotten.

2. Over the course of many years, a number of Christian traditions (sects) have adopted their own versions of hymns and their tunes. Thus, a tune listed here may be different from one you are more familiar with. Also, some texts have had music written for them by more than one composer over a span of time, creating more confusion about the tune for a hymn.

Classical Music and Television

2009-11-10T14:18:00.000-08:00

Classical Music as Heard on Television

When we turn to television, we don’t see as many classical themes associated with various programs. Why? I don’t know, but will make a few observations. Perhaps stricter copyright laws made classical music less available/more expensive to use. Pressure from union groups such as BMI or ASCAP may have brought programmers and producers to choose living composers’ music over (mostly dead) classical composers’ music. Perhaps union wages for groups that would be used to perform these themes became prohibitive. It is also possible that the move away from classical music toward so-called popular music lessened the demand for classical music on TV. However, these are simply conjectures, and I may be way off base. If you have accurate information, please respond; I’d be happy to be corrected.

At any rate, there were a number of television programs that did use classical music themes until the mid-60s and into the 70s. How many of these have you heard of? Better yet, how many of them do you, yourself, remember?

ABC-TV Reports                      Song Of The Blacksmith              Gustav Holst
Action in the Afternoon (WCAU-TV)   Billy the Kid            Aaron Copland Alfred Hitchcock Hour               Funeral March of a Marionette   Charles Gounod
Alfred Hitchcock Presents           Funeral March of a Marionette   Charles Gounod
Big Story (NBC-TV)                  Ein Heldenleben                  Richard Strauss
Captain Midnight (DuMont TV)        Flying Dutchman Overture        Richard Wagner
Huntley Brinkley Report (NBC News) Symphony # 9, 3rd Movement Ludwig van Beethoven
Lone Ranger                         William Tell Overture         Gioacchino Rossini
Masterpiece Theater (PBS TV)        Fanfare from 'Rondeau'               Jean Mouret
Olympics (ABC TV-NBC-TV)          Fanfare                               Leo Arnaud
                                    The Olympic Games                  John Williams
Sergeant Preston of the Yukon       Donna Diana Overture           Emil von Reznicek
Victory at Sea (NBC-TV)             Orig. music: Richard Rodgers arr: R. R. Bennett
What in the World? (WCAU-TV)        Fountains Of Rome              Ottorino Respighi
                                Music for Strings, Percussion & Celeste Bela Bartok

There were other ways in which classical music was heard on television, and some of these continue even today.

For example, there were a number of music-oriented programs that primarily offered classical music, such as Bell Telephone Hour. There were variety programs that, although airing mostly popular music, included classical music, too. Some of these were Ted Mack’s Original Amateur Hour and the Ed Sullivan Show, where you might hear a classical vocalist, violinist, or pianist perform amid popular music. Today, you occasionally hear classical music on the “talent” shows, as was the case on BBC with Paul Potts and Susan Boyle.

I recall (from the early 60s) that Leonard Bernstein conducted several Young People’s Concerts that aired on Sunday afternoons. During these concerts Bernstein introduced various topics related to and aspects of classical music. He covered a wide range of classical styles, and introduced young soloists who continued in the classical music world as “rock stars.”
By the way, the NY Philharmonic’s Young People’s Concerts began many years before Bernstein, and have continued since then on a regular schedule each season. Many other symphonies and classical music groups also offer children’s concerts and family concerts as a way to introduce young people (especially) and their families to the wonders of classical music.

I also remember that for quite a few Christmases NBC offered an annual presentation of a Christmas opera that had been commissioned from Gian Carlo Menotti. It was called “Amahl and the Night Visitors.” I was greatly disappointed when NBC’s rights to this expired, and they didn’t renew to continue it each Christmas. (Apparently, this was due to a rift between the network and the composer.)

While we are on the topic of seasonal music, I think it is not too uncommon for networks to program some classical music related to the season. Perhaps the best known examples might be Handel’s Messiah, which can be programmed for both Christmas and Easter. At Christmas, too, it is not unusual to see some production of Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker ballet on TV.

Finally, Public Television is a contemporary mainstay for classical music. On PBS stations you can hear (and watch) broadcasts of major symphonies, e.g., NY Philharmonic and Vienna Philharmonic. There are broadcasts of operas from the Metropolitan Opera, as well as Chicago’s Lyric Opera and the San Francisco Opera. (I have no intention of slighting other companies, but they don’t come to mind at this time. I am sure there are others.)

We can safely conclude that we have heard classical music themes on classic TV shows, and we still have the opportunity to hear, see and learn about classical music on TV today. Let’s take advantage of it whenever we can.

Classical Music is on the Air

2009-11-09T13:17:00.000-08:00

Classical music is in the air. Perhaps it would be better to say “Classical music is on the air.” Although we don’t hear as much today, “old time radio” often had themes borrowed from classical music, and some even used music to underscore the drama of the program. Here are some examples of OTR (old time radio) themes. I guess this will be directed to older readers who might remember some of these programs. However there are others, like myself, who came after, and belatedly discovered the (often superior) entertainment that OTR offered. These are listed as program title, musical selection, composer.

Action Theater               Piano Concerto in A minor    (Edvard Grieg)
Adventures of Ace Williams Poet and Peasant Overture    (Franz Von Suppe)
American School of the Air   Leonore Overture # 3             (Ludwig von Beethoven)
Arabesque                    Scheherazade                     (N. Rimsky-Korsakov)
Author's Playhouse           Adagio from Symphony No. 2       (Sergei Rachmaninoff)
The Big Story    Ein Heldenleben    (Richard Strauss)
Buck Rogers    Les Preludes                     (Franz Liszt)
Captain Midnight             Flying Dutchman Overture         (Richard Wagner)
The Count of Monte Cristo    Sylvia Ballet                    (Leo Delibes)
Escape                       Night on Bald Mountain           (Modeste Mussorgsky)
The Family Hour    Clair de Lune                    (Claude Debussy)
FBI In Peace and War         March from Love for Three Oranges(Sergei Prokofiev)
Green Hornet The Flight of the Bumblebee      (N. Rimsky-Korsakov)
Hilltop House    Lullaby                          (Johannes Brahms)
I Love A Mystery Valse Triste                     (Jan Sibelius)
Jungle Jim William Tell Overture            (Giacchino Rossini)
Kitty Keene    None but the Lonely Heart        (Peter I. Tchaikovsky)
Kraft Music Hall Rhapsody In Blue                 (George Gershwin)
Life Begins at Eighty        Melody In F (Opus 3, No. 1)      (Anton Rubinstein)
The Lone Ranger              William Tell Overture    (Gioacchino Rossini)                              Fingal's Cave Overture           (Felix Mendelssohn)
                             Les Preludes                     (Franz Liszt)
Mandrake, The Magician The Sorcerer's Apprentice        (Paul Dukas)
Mercury Theater on the Air Piano Concerto # 1, 1st movement (Peter I. Tchaikovsky)
Moon River                   Caprice Viennois                 (Fritz Kreisler)
Mr. District Attorney        Ein Heldenleben                  (Richard Strauss)
Passing Parade Romeo & Juliet (Fantasy Overture)(Peter I. Tchaikovsky)
Philip Morris Theatre    Grand Canyon Suite               (Ferde Grofe)
Quiet, Please    Symphony in D minor, 2nd mvmt    (Cesar Franck)
The Road of Life             Andante Cantabile                (Peter I.Tchaikovsky)
The Shadow Omphale’s Spinning Wheel         (Camille Saint-Saens)
We, The People Symphony No. 1, First Movement   (Johannes Brahms)
Words And Music    Largo from the Symphony, No. 9   (Antonin Dvorak)
You Are There    Fanfare for the Common Man       (Aaron Copland)

Well, once again, we have a huge list of old time radio programs that used classical music. This is not an exhaustive listing. I left out a number of music programs that (obviously) used classical music for their themes. Notice, too, that we have all kinds of radio programs - adventure, drama, variety, musical, romance, mystery, sci-fi, suspense, documentary, comedy.

There are a number of websites that offer streams or downloads of OTR, many of them at no cost. You can become better acquainted with these melodies if you stream or download some of these programs and spend a bit of time listening to them, especially their opening music and/or main themes that recur throughout the program.

And so, classical music is "on the air."

Classical Music in Commercials

2009-11-08T08:45:00.000-08:00

Classical Music in Commercials

I seem to recall from the dark recesses of my mind several commercials that I can’t find info on, perhaps because they were about 40 years ago. One showed a cartoon character ascending a podium and conducting a Beethoven Symphony. (I don’t remember which one, but it seems that it was the 5th or 9th.) About the same time was another wordless commercial of an autumnal scene with a deer in the golden grass, accompanied by Beethoven’s Symphony # 6 (“Pastoral”). Finally, these words appeared on the screen: “This moment of softness was brought to you by Zee, a very soft tissue.” A bit more recently, a third one I recall was for a feminine product to the music of Satie’s Gymnopedie # 1.

Some research has brought me to several sources that have identified classical music in commercials, from which I have compiled this listing.

Bach Cello Suite # 1                                                                          AmericanExpress              Current
Beethoven Symphony # 5 in C minor                                           XM Satellite Radio            2007
Beethoven Fur Elise                                                                         McDonald’s                         1980s
Beethoven Symphony # 9 in D minor                                          Starz Cable Movies          1990s
              (The theme is the “Ode to Joy” theme from the 4th movement.)
Bizet “Habanera” from Carmen                                                     Pepsi                                 2001
Copland Fanfare for the Common Man                                       U. S. Navy                        1990s
Copland “Hoedown” from Rodeo                                              Nat’l Beef Council           1970s
              (“Beef, it’s what’s for dinner.”)
Debussy “Claire de lune”                       Chanel No. 5                      2005
Gershwin Rhapsody in Blue                                                           United Airlines                    1968
Jenkins Palladio                                                                              DeBeers Diamonds            1990s
              (Diamonds are forever!)
Khatchaturian Sabre Dance                                                         Scrubbing Bubbles            1990s
Mascagni "Intermezzo" from Cavalliera Rusticana                  Kleenex                              1982
Orff “O Fortuna” from Camina Burana                                       Capital One           2004
Ponchielli “Dance of the Hours” from La Gioconda                 K9 Advantix                          2004
Prokofiev Peter and the Wolf           Coca-Cola                           2009
              (Played during Super Bowl.)
Rinsky-Korsakov “Flight of the Bumblebee”                              Nasonex                  2006
Rossini “Largo al Factotum” from The Barber of Seville         Hershey’s Kissables            2006

Saint-Saens “Aquarium” from Carnival of the Animals
                                                                                                   Disney Cruise Line             1990s
Tchaikovsky 1812 Overture                                                        Quaker Puffed Wheat 1970s

("This is the cereal that's shot from guns." [Repeat])
Tchaikovsky “Dance of the Reed Pipes” from The Nutcracker Jiffy Lube 2000

See what I mean? We are surrounded by classical music, but don’t know it.

It has occurred to me that if would be difficult to identify a classical theme in a movie or other appearance in media. If one doesn’t know the music by name, how will one recognize it in a larger musical context? I found a website that offers some help here. This is a listing of the top 100 most popular pieces of classical music. There are links to hear these on YouTube, too. They offer only short snippets of music, but they are always the most familiar melodies. And they are identified as they play. Try it out; it’s quite well done. Remember, however, that I am not responsible for the site’s name. If your sensitivities allow it, check out http://www.kickassclassical.com/classical-music-popular-famous-best-top-100-list.html

Classical Music in Movies Part 3

2009-11-07T11:50:00.000-08:00

The list demonstrating the widespread use of classical music in movies continues.

The Magic Bow
    Beethoven: Violin Concerto, Paganini: Caprice No. 20, Paganini: Violin Concertos Nos. 1 & 2
Moonraker
    Chopin: Prelude, Op. 28 No. 15, Leoncavallo: Vesti la giubba, from I Pagliacci, J. Strauss II: Tritsch Tratsch Polka
A Night at the Opera
    Verdi: Anvil Chorus, from Il Trovatore
Nijinsky
    Debussy: Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune, Rimsky-Korsakov: Scheherazade, Stravinsky: The Rite   of Spring
Out of Africa
    Mozart: Clarinet Concerto, 2nd movement
Paradise Road
    Chopin: Funeral March, from Piano Sonata No. 2, Dvorák: Symphony No. 9, Grainger: Country Gardens & Londonderry Air, Holst: Jupiter, from The Planets, Ravel: Bolero
Platoon
    Barber: Adagio for Strings
The Portrait of a Lady
    Bach: Piano Concerto No. 5, Bach: Violin Concerto in A minor, Schubert: Impromptus Op. 90, Nos. 3 & 4, Schubert: String Quartet No. 14, J. Strauss Jr.: Artist's Life
Prizzi´s Honor
    Rossini: Overture to The Barber of Seville
Raging Bull
    Mascagni: Intermezzo, from Cavalleria Rusticana
Rollerball
    Albinoni: Adagio, Bach: Toccata and Fugue in D Minor, Shostakovich: Symphony No. 5, 4th movement
Romy and Michele´s High School Reunion
    Bach: Brandenburg Concerto No. 2, Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 8, "Pathétique," J. Strauss II: An der schönen blauen Donau
A Room With a View
    Puccini: Doretta's Dream, from La Rondine, Puccini: Firenze, from Gianni Schicchi, Puccini: O mio babbino caro, from Gianni Schicchi
Schindler´s List
    Bach: English Suite No. 2, Bourrée, Gade: Tango Jalousie, Lehár: Meinen Lippen sie küssen so heiss
The Seven Year Itch
    Rachmaninov: Piano Concerto No. 2
The Silence of the Lambs
    Bach: Goldberg Variations
Sleeping with the Enemy
    Berlioz: Symphonie Fantastique, 5th movement
Somewhere in Time
    Rachmaninov: Paganini Rhapsody, 18th Variation
Sour Grapes
    Bach: Adagio, from Toccata, Adagio and Fugue, Bach: Toccata and Fugue in D minor, Beethoven:    String Quartet No. 2, Beethoven: String Quartet No. 7, Boccherini: Minuet, Brahms: Hungarian Dance, Mozart: Horn Concerto, Mozart: String Quintet, Ponchielli: Dance of the Hours, from La Gioconda, Prokofiev: Peter and the Wolf, Rossini: Overture to The Thieving Magpie, J. Strauss Jr.: Tales from the Vienna Woods, Suppé Poet and Peasant Overture
The Spy Who Loved Me
    Bach: Air, from Suite No. 3
Star Trek: Insurrection
    Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 8, "Pathétique", 1st movement, Haydn: String Quartet No. 63, "Lark", 4th movement, Mozart: String Quartet No. 17, "Hunt", 1st movement
The Thin Red Line
    Fauré In paradisum, from Requiem
Titanic
    J. Strauss II: An der schönen blauen Donau
To Be Or Not To Be
    Chopin: Military Polonaise
Torrents of Spring
    Bach: Concerto for 2 Violins in D Minor, 2nd movement, Chopin: Etude, Op. 10, No. 6, Mozart: Overture to Don Giovanni
The Truman Show
    Brahms: Wiegenlied, Chopin: Piano Concerto No. 1, 2nd movement, Mozart: Horn Concerto No 1, 1st movement, Mozart: Piano Sonata No. 11, 3rd movement
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
    Bach: Toccata and Fugue in D Minor
Wayne´s World
    Tchaikovsky: Romeo and Juliet
The Untouchables
    Leoncavallo: Vesti la giubba, from I Pagliacci
White Nights
    Bach: Passacaglia in C Minor
Who Framed Roger Rabbit
    Liszt: Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2

Wow! There’s a lot of classical music in movies, isn’t there? Is a favorite movie listed here? Watch it again, this time focusing on the music. Notice, too, that all types of classical music - symphony, solo sonata, concerto, vocal as well as various lesser categories have been “imported” into film scores. If you wish to discover a particular kind of classical music you can also use this as a guide to explore new classical music forms. Notice, too, that classical music themes can be found in all kinds of movies - animated. spy thriller, romance, sci fi, biopics, historical fiction, etc.

(Finally, remember that my listing of any of these movies is not necessarily an endorsement of their theme or recommendation to view it. I have selected these because of their use of classical music. Some discernment may be called for in considering whether to watch some of these movies. Thanks.)

Classical Music in movies, Part 2

2009-11-06T11:00:00.000-08:00

The big screen loves classical music. Sometimes is seems that classical music was made for the big screen. It is not unusual to hear classical melodies in movie soundtracks.

Here are some astounding numbers what composer’s music has been offered in what number of films.

    Mozart 252 films
    Beethoven 190 films
    Bach 167 films
    Tchaikovsky 203 films
    Wagner 173 films
    Franz Schubert 108 films
    Vivaldi 81 films
    Stravinsky 28 films
    Phillip Glass 33 films

If I were to begin a list, it would necessarily be incomplete; the list is even longer than that for popular music. I would be inclined to list movies that I know and appreciate, but they might not be movies you’ve seen and come to appreciate. Nevertheless, I will make an effort to list some of the major movies that have included classical music, including some that I haven’t seen, but note that they have quoted somewhat extensively from classical music. (I should point out that I haven’t seen all of these, and my listing is based on the classical music heard in the movie, not the subject matter or rating; some use of caution may be necessary.)

Ace Ventura Pet Detective
    Beethoven: Symphony No. 9, Mozart: Eine kleine Nachtmusik, 2nd & 3rd movements, Mozart: A Musical Joke
Amadeus
    Mozart: Gran Partita, Adagio, Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 20, 2nd movement, Mozart: Requiem, Mozart: Symphonies Nos. 25 & 29
Apocalypse Now
    Wagner: Ride of the Valkyries, from Die Walküre
Babe: Pig in the City
    Rossini: Largo al factotum, from Barber of Seville, Saint-Saëns: Symphony No. 3, 2nd & 3rd movements, Verdi: Anvil Chorus, from Il Trovatore
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
    Beethoven: Symphony No. 5
Chariots of Fire
    Allegri: Miserere, Parry: Jerusalem
Citizen Kane
    Rossini: Una voce poco fa from Barber of Seville
Clear and Present Danger
    Dvorák: Symphony No. 9, 2nd movement.
A Clockwork Orange
    Beethoven: Symphony No. 9, 4th movement, Elgar: Pomp and Circumstance No. 1, Purcell: March, from Funeral Music for Queen Mary, Rossini: William Tell Overture
Death in Venice
    Beethoven: Für Elise, Lehár: Vilja Song, from The Merry Widow, Mahler: Symphony No. 3, Mahler: Symphony No. 5, Puccini: Vogliatemi bene from Madame Butterfly
The Dirty Dozen
    Haydn: String Quartet Op. 76, No. 3, "Emperor," Strauss II: Emperor Waltz
Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde
    Bach: Ich ruf zu dir, from Orgelbüchlein, Bach: Toccata and Fugue in D Minor, Bizet: Habanera from Carmen, Schumann: Aufschwung
Elvira Madigan
    Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 21, 2nd movement
Excalibur
    Orff: Carmina Burana (beginning), Wagner: Prelude to Tristan and Isolde, Wagner: Siegfried's Funeral March, from Götterdämmerung
Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes
    Boccherini: Minuet, Elgar: Pomp and Circumstance, Elgar: Symphony No. 1, 1st movement
Hilary and Jackie
    Bach: Cello Suite No. 1, Prelude & Gigue, Bach: Cello Suite No. 3, Prelude, Bach: Cello Suite No. 6, Gavotte, Beethoven: Piano Trio No. 7, "Archduke, Brahms: Cello Sonata No. 2, 2nd movement, Dvorák: Cello Concerto, 2nd movement, Elgar: Cello Concerto, Franck: Cello Sonata (arr. of Violin Sonata), Haydn: Cello Concerto in C major, 3rd movement, Schumann: Fantasy Piece No. 1
Immortal Beloved
    Beethoven: Für Elise, Beethoven: Piano Sonatas No. 8, 2nd mvt. & No. 14, 1st movement, Beethoven: Symphony No. 5, 1st movement, Beethoven: Symphony No. 6, 1st movement, Beethoven: Symphony No. 7, 1st movement, Beethoven: Symphony No. 9, 1st movement, Beethoven: Violin Con- certo, 1st movement
The Living Daylights
    Borodin: String Quartet No. 2, 3rd movement, Mozart: Symphony No. 40, 1st movement,
The Lone Ranger
    Rossini: Overture to William Tell
Lorenzo´s Oil
    Barber: Adagio, Elgar: Cello Concerto, 2nd movement, Mahler: Symphony No. 5, Adagietto, A. Marcello: Oboe Concerto, 2nd movement, Mozart: Ave verum corpus

So far, we have covered only about half of the alphabet. Guess I’ll have to do the second half tomorrow. Are you beginning to see (hear?) that classical music is everywhere? There us much more to explore. See you in the next post.

Classical Music in movies, Part 1

2009-11-05T10:45:00.000-08:00

Please allow me to continue with this introduction (perhaps better, reintroduction) to classical music.
Movies are full of classical music bits or complete movements. My next post will give some numbers that are amazing. This post is simply an introduction to that post.

Perhaps some of the earliest examples of classical music used in modern media might be from Walt Disney studios. In the 30s and 40s (even before my time!) Walt Disney produced a series of cartoons called Silly Symphonies. They span the changeover from black and white to color, although they are all “talkies.” Often these cartoons were set to various classical themes, as were other Disney cartoons that followed over the course of many years. Mendelssohn’s Spring Song is an example that readily springs (pun intended, sorry) to mind here.

Perhaps the biggest classical music offering came in Fantasia, which was released in 1940. Fantasia offers a sort of fantasy look at 7 familiar pieces of classical music: Bach’s Toccata and Fugue in D minor, Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker Suite, Dukas’ The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring, Beethoven’s 6th Symphony, Ponchielli’s Dance of the Hours and a combination work including Mussorgsky’s Night on Bald Mountain and Schubert’s Ave Maria. The cartoon work tried to follow some of the different types of classical music - abstract, evocative, story-telling, faith-expression, etc. This movie has been reedited and re-released numerous times, with the latest incarnations reflecting the original, adding some footage that fell to the cutting room floor along the way. The quality of the sound track has also been remastered to showcase what was the latest innovation when it was originally released - stereophonic sound.

One section was taken from this movie, and became a popular cartoon shown on its own over and over again: Mickey Mouse as The Sorcerer’s Apprentice. Who hasn’t seen that at least a couple of times in their lives?

There was a sequel in the late 1990s, but it didn’t catch the imagination nearly as much as the original did. As I recall, the sequel used images that were so far from the musical work’s title or content that it just didn’t match up to the original standard.

From there it isn’t hard to find other movies that used classical music in their soundtracks. The theme from Mozart’s 21st Piano Concerto is prominently heard in Elvira Madigan. Rachmaninov’s 18th variation from the Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini is heard throughout Somewhere in Time. Wagner’s Ride of the Valkyries sounds fitting to helicopter scenes in Apocalypse Now. There are the obvious classical music films based on some element of a composer's life: Amadeus and Immortal Beloved. I think one of the greatest pairings of classical music and cinema is the scene of the incomplete space station in 2001: A Space Odyssey slowly rotating to the strains of Strauss’ Blue Danube waltz..
See? You have heard classical music, haven’t you? I’ll even go so far as to say that you enjoyed it, too, didn’t you? Only a true curmudgeon could answer “No” to these questions.

Classical Music You Know...but Don't Know It!

2009-11-04T17:27:00.000-08:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r9LCwI5iErE

The link posted above is from a musician/humorist explaining some of the differences in people and their musical listening choices. Like him, I am also optimistic about the future of classical music. There are some good reasons for it, too.

I find it interesting to consider how classical music themes have been used in popular culture: movies, popular songs, commercials and radio/TV shows. My plan is to address these, giving familiar examples. The ultimate goal, again, is to point out that classical music isn’t remote, obscure or difficult to listen to.

For this post, I’d like to focus on popular songs. How many of these do you recognize? They all have their roots in classical melodies. Here goes...

(1918) "I'm Always Chasing Rainbows" by Joseph McCarthy and Harry Carroll - based on the Fantasie Impromptu in C Sharp Minor by Frédéric Chopin.
(1937) "Song of India", arr. Tommy Dorsey - based on "The Song of the Indian Guest" from Rimsky-Korsakov's Sadko.
(1938) "My Reverie" by Larry Clinton - drawn from Debussy's Rêverie
(1939) "The Lamp is Low" - Peter DeRose and Bert Shefter - based on Maurice Ravel's Pavane pour une infante défunte
1941) "Tonight We Love", by Freddy Martin, Bobby Worth and Ray Austin - with melody based on Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No 1 in B-Flat Minor, Op.23
(1945) "Full Moon and Empty Arms", by Buddy Kaye and Ted Mossman - based on Sergei Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 2.
(1953) "Stranger in Paradise" by George Forrest and Robert Wright, in the Broadway musical Kismet - from a theme from Alexander Borodin's Polovetsian Dances from his opera Prince Igor.
(1945) "Till the End of Time," words by Buddy Kaye and Ted Mossman based on Frédéric Chopin's "Polonaise In A Flat."
(1956) "Hot Diggity (Dog Ziggity Boom)" by Al Hoffman and Dick Manning - based on a theme from Chabrier España, Rhapsody for Orchestra.
(1958) "Catch a Falling Star" by Lee Pockriss and Paul Vance - borrows its theme from Brahms' Academic Festival Overture.
(1959) "Once Upon a Dream" in the Disney movie Sleeping Beauty - is based on a waltz in Tchaikovsky's ballet Sleeping Beauty.
(1959) "Don't You Know" by Della Reese - comes from "Musetta's Waltz" from Puccini's La Boheme.
(1963) "Hello Mudduh, Hello Fadduh! (A Letter From Camp)" by Allan Sherman - based on Ponchielli's "Dance of the Hours" from the opera La Gioconda.
(1965) "A Lover's Concerto" by The Toys - based on J.S. Bach's Notebook for Anna Magdalena Bach".
(1970) “Song of Joy” by Miguel Rios - based on the final movement of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony
(1972) Pictures at an Exhibition by Emerson, Lake and Palmer - entire album based on the work by Modest Mussorgsky, with two original pieces ("The Sage" and "The Curse of Baba Yaga").
(1974) "Annie's Song" by John Denver - based on Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 5, second movement.
(1975) "Could It Be Magic" by Barry Manilow - quotes extensively from Chopin's Prelude in C minor.
(1976) "A Fifth of Beethoven" by Walter Murphy - disco version of Beethoven's Fifth Symphony in c minor.
(1986) "Mars" by Emerson, Lake & Powell - arrangement of Mars: Bringer of War from Holst's The Planets
(1998) "Everything's Gonna Be Alright" by Sweetbox - borrowing from Bach's Air on the G string.
(1999) "Barber's Adagio for Strings" by William Orbit - a techno/electronic version of Samuel Barber's "Adagio for Strings"
(1999) "Love of My Life" by Dave Matthews and Carlos Santana on the Super-natural album. Main theme is a nearly note-for-note quotation of a theme in the 3rd symphony of Johannes Brahms, with some rhythmic changes.
(2005) "Road to Joy" by Bright Eyes is based on the melody of Beethoven's Ode to Joy from the Symphony # 9 in d minor.

Whew! And this list is not, repeat not, exhaustive. I’ve seen pages and pages of such listings. I hope this will help you to see that classical music isn’t forbidding, mysterious or foreign. It has been used again and again in popular culture. It is also evident that these popularizations of classical melodies aren’t restricted to the older or younger or in-between generation. We all have heard it, even if we didn’t know what it was.

What next? Did you find songs with which you were familiar here? If so, take the plunge and seek out the classical composition on which its melody was based. Note: it’s possible that the popular theme is derived from the middle or nearer the end of a work, so you might have to listen a bit to find the tune. Check out what’s online as an easy (and often free!) way to discover new music. If all else fails you can always turn to the public library. They usually have a circulating library of music CDs.

Intro to Classical Music Terms

2009-11-03T16:48:00.000-08:00

It seems that you can’t talk about classical music without getting into another language - and I don’t mean Italian, German, French or Russian. There are words that have common usage that are unfamiliar to any newcomer to music, especially classical music. So, with some fear and trepidation, here is an intro to some of those terms.

Let’s say you read or hear music described as Beethoven’s Symphony # 5 in C minor, opus 67. What does it all mean? Let’s break it down.

The first mention here is Beethoven, who composed this music.

Next is Symphony, which is often a large work to be played by an orchestra, usually a large orchestra with most or all kinds of instruments included. A symphony traditionally has 4 sections, or movements, each one usually offering a change from what preceded and what follows - something like fast, slow, fast, faster; or slow, fast, moderate, fast, and so forth. If the description reads Beethoven’s Violin Concerto in D major, opus 61, the work is not a symphony, but a composition for one or more solo instruments accompanied by an orchestra.

To list a symphony as # 5 shows that it was the fifth symphony in the composer’s musical output. This is not always true. Some compositions were found after a composers death and may be listed posthumously; however, they certainly weren’t written after the composer died! I can remember in my lifetime when Dvorak’s New World Symphony was catalogued as # 5 in E minor. But further research of Dvorak’s music uncovered several earlier symphonies, causing musicologists to renumber the E minor symphony as # 9.

In C minor describes the key signature, the musical key in which the work was written. Although not always true, major keys are often bright, cheerful works while minor keys or darker, melancholy works. The key signature generally applies only to the first movement; other movements are usually in a different key.
Some composers, e.g., Schubert, wrote more than one symphony in the key of C major, the sixth and the ninth. To distinguish popularly, the former is called the “Little C major Symphony” while the latter is called the “great C major Symphony.” To further distinguish musical works, an opus number is assigned.

Opus 67 refers to the order of composition in the works of a composer. The 5th symphony, thus, was Beethoven’s 67th composition. Well, it would simply make things easier if that were always true, but it isn’t. It has become the customary designator, but may not always truly indicate order. Sometimes you may find a series of compositions, such as Haydn String Quartets, Opus 76 #s 1 - 6. In this case, Haydn wrote a series of 6 string quartets to be published together at the same time. Some composers’ works are so numerous and tradition so uncertain that others have made it their goal to catalog the composer’s words. After a Bach composition you will usually see BWV # (whatever). After a Mozart work, you will find a Koechel number, such as Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, K. 525. Haydn’s works were catalogued by Hoboken, hence an H number. Other composers have their catalogers, but these are the main ones.

We’ve mentioned several major types of music, i.e., symphony and concerto, but there are more. A sonata is generally a 4-movement work like a symphony, but played by a single instrument, or an instrument with piano accompaniment. An overture is an introduction to a major musical work, usually offering previews of themes that will be heard in the major work itself. However, some overtures stand alone, independent of a larger work, such as Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture.

Other works for larger instrumental forces include tone poems, concertos for orchestra, ballet music, incidental music, rhapsodies, divertimentos, and serenades, but this is not an exhaustive listing.

Other works are usually thought in the context of a solo instrument - etudes, preludes, fantasies/fantasias, sonatas, among others.

Some works are composed for small groups of musical instruments, and are generally known as chamber music. These include piano trios, string trios, string quartets, piano quartets, wind quartets and quintets, sextets, septets, octets and occasionally for even more instruments. Some composers wrote music for various combinations of piano, strings and wind instruments. To clarify, a piano trio isn’t 3 pianos playing together; it’s usually a violin, a cello and a piano. A string trio can be any combination of stringed instruments, but is often 2 violins and a cello. A string quartet includes 2 violins, a viola and a cello. A string quintet may have mixed combinations of violins, violas, cellos and double bass. If you know any Latin numbers, the rest are generally self-explaining: sex is six, sept is seven, oct is eight, non is nine

Then there is vocal music, either solo or choral or a combination. Solo vocal music include arias, chansons, songs, while group choral compositions may include operas, operettas, oratorios, cantatas, motets, choruses, and may be for any number of singers and a variety of singing ranges (soprano, alto, tenor, bass).

Well...There’s a lot here, and this is simply an introduction. I hope that this may help you to understand some of the basic terms used in naming classical music forms.

Classical Music Doesn't always sound Classical

2009-11-02T12:03:00.000-08:00

Perhaps it’s because of my particular sense of humor, but I have some affinity for “alternative” presentations of classical music. I also am inclined to think that this may be another way to interest people in considering classical music as an approachable and listenable experience.

Do you remember any of these? (If so, you’re showing your age, and pretty accurately guessing mine.) Spike Jones and his Cityslickers. Allan Sherman. Walter (now Wendy, but that’s another story) Carlos. The Swingle Singers. P.D.Q. Bach. Gerard Hoffnung. Flanders and Swann. Jacques Loussier. Victor Borge. These are not in chronological order, simply as they come to memory. I don’t think space will permit commenting on all of these, so I’ll pick and choose my favorites.

All of these offered some version of well-known classical music melodies. Spike Jones and his band “murdered” classical melodies by famous composers, including 1812 Overture, None but the Lonely Heart, and Dance of the Hours. His performances included cow bells, pistols, glass bottles, just about anything you might consider even remotely musical.

Allan Sherman’s big hit was “Hello Muddah, Hello Faddah,” also based on Ponchielli’s Dance of the Hours. Remember these words?
    Hello Muddah, hello Fadduh,
    Here I am at Camp Grenada
    Camp is very entertaining
    and they say we'll have some fun if it stops raining.
He continues about malaria, food poisoning, poison ivy, alligators, a lost camper and so on, pleading to go home. Then the sun comes out and all is well, so “Muddah, Faddah kindly disregard this letter.”

Sherman recorded an album with Arthur Fiedler and the Boston Pops. It was called “Peter and the Commissar,” after the longest piece on the album. It was a take-off on Prokofiev’s “Peter and the Wolf.” It was hilarious! I finally found a CD recording of this that, although short in duration, was worth it. The album also included “Variations on ‘How Dry I Am’” with solo hiccups skillfully presented by Maestro Fiedler himself. Finally there was a piece called “The End of the Symphony,” taking long and laborious symphonic finales and showing how something like Porky Pig’s “Th-th-that’s all folks!” would have worked better.

Along came Peter Schickele. He already had a reputation as a music arranger, and had arranged music for several top singers. Now he turned his energies to P.D.Q. Bach, the last and least of Johann Sebastian’s 20-something odd children (supposedly). Bach wasn’t his only target. One of my favorite performances is a play by play account of Beethoven’s 5th Symphony as a sports broadcast. Then there were the parodies of baroque music that are even funnier if you know something about baroque music. “Operas” include some delicious examples of plays on words. One considers the challenges of running that only the running knows. The running knows, the running knows (or is it the running nose?)

Michael Flanders and Donald Swann were British musical comedians. They had several LPs released by Angel Records here. Although much of their music was original, there was a delightful parody of the final movement of Mozart’s 4th Horn Concerto. In this piece, as usual for this pair, there is wonderful wordplay that nicely complements the music. Probably a more popular non-classical song was “The Hippopotamus,” with its rollicking chorus, “Mud, mud, glorious mud! Nothing quite like it for cooling the blood. So follow me, follow, Down to the hollow. There we will wallow In glo-o-o-orious mud.”

Finally, who could forget Victor Borge, the Great Dane of classical music? You may have seen him on any of a number of PBS broadcasts. A trained classical pianist, Borge saw the humor in classical music and focused on that aspect. His routine was as much visual as musical. He enticed a number of well-known musicians to collaborate with him, often as straightman to his comedian. I met Borge when he performed in San Diego, and concluded that he was the same person off stage as he was on - humorously outgoing and engaging in a most friendly manner. This most certainly was a golden memory to treasure.

All of this leads to something on the internet that was brought to my attention the other day. Someone has taken “1000 ringtones and 2000 text alerts” and put them together to play a theme from Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture. (Sure, you remember this one. A while back Quaker Puffed Wheat/Rice used this melody as we heard “This is the cereal that’s shot from guns. Boom! [Repeat.]) This may not be as complex as programming a Moog Synthesizer, but it is worthy of notice as another contribution to the spreading of classical music. You can check this out at http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/23/tchaikovskys-1812-overture-reconstructed-from-1000-cellphone-ri/

Hope you enjoy it, and perhaps even find your musical appetite whetted to explore more classical music- in one form or another.

Luther - Part 2

2009-11-01T01:46:00.000-07:00

This is a follow-up post to yesterday’s post. There are a number of loose ends that I thought I should do a bit more to tie up.

Luther questioned the practices of selling indulgences. What were these? A practice had developed whereby a person could receive remission of temporal punishment due to the guilt of sin after the sin had been forgiven. They ranged from short term to plenary (full) remission of temporal punishment for one’s life. Indulgences were (are) authorized by the Pope. In Luther’s day, Pope Leo X collected money gained from sales of indulgences that was to go toward construction of St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome.

A Dominican professor, Johann Tetzel, was such a champion of indulgences that he was designated to sell them in several German provinces. Frederick, Elector of Saxony, prohibited sales of indulgences in his province. (This was where Luther also served as professor of theology.) To Tetzel’s account is charged the witticism: “When a coin in the coffer rings A soul from purgatory springs.” (Sounds so good in English; wonder if it sounds this good in German?) The practice of offering indulgences continues to this day, but the “payment” is often a form of spiritual work or service rather than or in addition to money.

Why did Frederick, Elector of Saxony prohibit the sales of indulgences in his province? Frederick had earlier gathered one of the greatest collections of relics. Relics are bones or blood of saints, bits of wood from the cross, even milk from Mary among many other things. Spiritual “credit” was offered to those who would venerate these relics. Although Luther focused on Tetzel, Frederick felt some of the sting of Luther’s preaching against indulgences. In 1523 Frederick consented to make an end of relic worship. There is testimony that Frederick professed his rejection of Catholicism and embracing of Reformation Christianity on his deathbed.

Another major issue addressed by Luther was the extent of papal authority and papal abilities. Did the pope have the authority of forgive sins? Luther’s reading of the Bible led him to the understanding that only God forgives sin, and that freely based on the work of Jesus Christ, and by grace through faith, not works. The pope could affirm this, but could not offer such forgiveness on his own authority. Did the pope have the ability to remit temporal punishments? Was he able to remit punishments for the dead? God had this authority if He chose to use it, not the pope. Luther rejected the idea that someone’s “merits” can be applied to the account of another person either living or dead - or were ever needed. Salvation is based solely on the grace of God, through the sacrifice of Christ that is appropriated by faith alone.
For further learning: the classic biography on Luther is Here I Stand, by Roland Bainton. There are a couple of notable films based on Luther’s life and efforts. One, called "Martin Luther," starring Niall McGinness (1953) is generally considered to be the more accurate of these in portraying the times, people, life and struggle of Luther. Released in 2003, Joseph Fiennes starred in "Luther," another attractive film version of Luther’s life. Typical of Hollywood, however, his central message from Romans 1:17 that salvation is exclusively a matter of grace through faith, not any works that any man can perform is conspicuously absent. You can look up Luther’s 95 Theses online; I quoted from a British translation in modern English. If you’d like to understand a major tenet of Luther’s thinking, read The Bondage of the Will, which is available in numerous printings. The one with an introduction by J. I. Packer is frequently cited at the top of the list.

October 31 - Why Does that Date Sound Familiar?

2009-10-31T07:40:00.000-07:00

It’s October 31. Hmmm...does that sound familiar? Does it have any significance? Well, yes, there’s Halloween. But I am thinking about something else. Did you know that Halloween is a contracted form of (All) Hallow’s Evening? November 1 is called All Saints Day on the church calendar. All Hallow’s Evening refers to the day before. But that isn’t what I have in mind, either.

It was on October 31, 1517 when a very significant action took place. On that date Martin Luther tacked 95 Theses to the church door in Wittenberg, Germany. If you have seen a picture showing Luther posting these theses on an otherwise barren door, you are probably mistaken. At that time, the church door served as the community message center. Church events were posted. Civic reports were posted. Social events and activities were posted. So were invitations to debates, and this was Luther’s invitation to debate certain points that he found that the church had adopted without Biblical support. In Luther’s words: this was an invitation to a "disputation on the power and efficacy of indulgences out of love and zeal for truth and the desire to bring it to light."

Who was Martin Luther? He wasn’t merely a disgruntled priest who was picking a fight. Luther was a Doctor of Theology in the local university, one of only a few who were paid, and, among these, the highest paid. He was quite learned and gave serious thought to his classes. His reputation for his intellectual astuteness was so well known that the prince of this region went out of his way to bring Luther to Wittenberg.

Luther most surely wasn’t a rabble-rouser. His environment was theological and academic. The 95 Theses were, in fact, written in Latin and were unintelligible to the common man. In these theses, Luther sought public debate on current church practices. His goal was not to condemn the Catholic church, much less found a “new” church. He asked for debate to show him how these practices, particularly indulgences, are grounded in the teaching of the Bible. As far as he could see, they weren’t. He asked for clarification, hoping to inspire reformation within the church.

Less than a century earlier, Gutenberg produced the movable type method of printing, and more and more information was spread through print medium. Someone took Luther’s 95 Theses, translated them into the vernacular to took them to a printer. They were printed, and distributed widely, arousing public interest and adding public support to Luther’s ideas.

What were the 95 Theses? They were a series of statements on a number of church issues. Luther wanted a local academic debate. Someone, however, sent a copy of the theses to the Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, who called for a meeting (called a Diet) of church leaders and civic leaders to assess Luther’s teachings and to induce Luther to recant. The court continued, with Luther defending his determination not to recant with the statement that unless he could be convinced that he was wrong “by scripture or by reason,” his conscience [was] bound by the word of God. At the end of his testimony Luther, refusing to recant, offered his famous lines: "Here I stand. I cannot do otherwise. God help me. Amen."

If people have heard of the 95 Theses, few have actually read them. In the interest of brevity, I offer an abridged version of them. I have abridged them based on duplication within the statements, on issues that were primarily relative to that time, and on some continuity between 3 or 4 theses, that is, this action leads to another action, which, in turn, leads to another, or this action is a consequence of another action which, in turn, springs from yet another action.

1. When Jesus said "repent" he meant that believers should live a whole life repenting
2. Only God can give salvation - not a priest.
3. Inwards penitence must be accompanied with a suitable change in lifestyle.
4. Sin will always remain until we enter Heaven.
6. Only God can forgive -the pope can only reassure people that God will do this.
18. A sinful soul does not have to be always sinful. It can be cleansed.
36. A man can be free of sin if he sincerely repents - an indulgence is not needed.
40. A true repenter will be sorry for his sins and happily pay for them. Indulgences trivialise this issue.
42. Christians should be taught that the buying of indulgences does not compare with being forgiven by Christ.
43. A Christian who gives to the poor or lends to those in need is doing better in God’s eyes than one who buys 'forgiveness'.
44. This is because of loving others, love grows and you become a better person. A person buying an indulgence does not become a better person.
46. A Christian should buy what is necessary for life not waste money on an indulgence.
47. Christians should be taught that they do not need an indulgence.
54. It is blasphemy that the word of God is preached less than that of indulgences.
55. The pope should enforce that the gospel - a very great matter - must be celebrated more than indulgences.
62. The main treasure of the church should be the Gospels and the grace of God.
84. Evil men must not buy their salvation when a poor man, who is a friend of God, cannot.
94. Christians must follow Christ at all cost.

Combining Methods for Cooking Steaks

2009-10-30T07:28:00.000-07:00

After all the work to create the pork masterpiece, my wife declared her desire for steak. I went to Ralphs, which, apparently, had recently stocked some steaks with the label “Manager’s Special.” I picked out a package of T-bones, a package of porterhouse steaks and another package with a single NY strip. In fact, I cleaned out the remaining “Manager’s Specials.” And all for about $20 for the 7 steaks. Not bad, huh?

For many years I have read and reread issues of Cook’s Illustrated magazine. To me, it’s the finest cooking periodical on the news stand. Now they have a sister publication called Cook’s Country. They also have the cooking show on public television called America’s Test Kitchen and a new one with the Cook’s Country theme. I encourage you to catch any of these you can. I look at Cook’s Illustrated (and the others, too) as sort of a consumer’s testing publication, testing recipes, methods, tools, various food items (cheese, bacon, hot dogs, canned tomatoes, etc.) By the time they publish (or air) a recipe, it has been tested and tweaked to be the best it can be. (I recently read an article about Chateaubriand for which $1200 worth of Chateaubriand was purchased and cooked with various ingredients using various cooking methods to make my purchase of a single cut of Chateaubriand (beef tenderloin) worth the investment.)

In recent publications and shows they demonstrated how cooking steaks and pork chops using a combination of oven cooking then finishing with stove top browning produce a moist, tender and flavorful piece of meat. So I decided to give it a try, although I didn’t have a specific recipe or method at hand for steaks.

I started with a mixture of salt, pepper, powdered garlic and onion powder. I sprinkled this on one side of each piece of meat, patted it in and let it sit for a couple of minutes before I turned it over to repeat the process on the opposite side. Then I let these sit for about 25 minutes.

I turned the oven on to 325 degrees. Next I took a rectangular baking sheet on which I could fit a baking rack, and sprayed the rack with olive oil. I placed the steaks on the rack, and slid it into the preheated oven. After 25 minutes, the steaks were still very rare, so I let them stay in the oven for another 10 minutes or so, when the temperature reached about 110 degrees. (I could have left the steaks in the oven another 5 - 10 minutes for a bit more doneness.)

Then I removed the steaks from the oven, and seared them in a hot frying pan with a bit of olive oil to coat the ban. After a few minutes, when one side looked gorgeously caramelized, I turned them over. A few more minutes, and, voila, they were done.

Earlier I mixed together some softened butter, chopped garlic and some thyme, and made a flavored butter. I spread this on each steak as it was sitting for its resting time.

Man oh man! Were these steaks delicious! Moist, tender and flavorful as promised! My niece declared hers was the best steak she’d ever had, but that may have been an exaggeration after coming, as she did, from 4 years in the Navy. But the important thing is...my wife loved it - even if it was beef, beef, beef again!

Pork loin

2009-10-29T10:22:00.000-07:00

I mentioned in an earlier post that I enjoy cooking. Last Friday my wife complained that all we had eaten that week was beef, beef, beef. She wanted a change. Then she turned to me and said “There is pork loin in the freezer. What are you going to do with it?” That didn’t sound like a suggestion or request; I was on the hook to prepare the pork loin.

As I usually do, I googled for recipes: pork and sauce. A number of good ideas popped up. One took me to the Martinelli’s website where I found a recipe for veal with apple cider gravy. That was close enough. I let my imagination run wild for a few minutes, then created a perfect dish. (At least I thought so.)

I took the thawed pork loin and cut it into 1 1/2 inch steaks. I wrapped bacon (maple flavored, no less!) around each steak, then browned them on the stove until they were beautifully caramelized. I thinly sliced an onion, grated some fresh ginger and garlic and threw them into the pan after removing the pork. When they had cooked for a very short time, I poured in some chicken broth, apple cider in greater quantity and some Riesling wine. I added some salt, pepper and a touch of sage to the thin gravy. Then I added some corn starch to thicken it, and allowed it to simmer to both thicken and intensify flavors. Finally, I added the pork to the gravy, and allowed the whole thing to simmer for another good while before adding a can of apple pie filling (chopped) and some plumped raisins.

After some more simmering, I tried it. I loved it. It took a while for other family members to try it. In fact my wife heard about a sale on steaks at Ralphs and wanted me to go pick some up to cook steaks tomorrow. And this after her complaining about needing a change from beef, beef, beef.

3 Kinds of Cooks

2009-10-28T11:20:00.000-07:00

I love to cook. One look at me would instantly inform you that this is correct. (Hint: Never trust a skinny cook.) However, my doctor would be pleased to hear that now, instead of eating a big steak in a single sitting, I eat that same steak at three different meals.

As I grew up, my Dad was the cook in the family. About the only thing Mom cooked was TV Dinners. (Wow! Another indication that I’m age-eligible to be curmudgeonly.) I don’t remember my Dad following recipes. He just put things together, although his repertoire wasn’t very large. People who knew my Dad and know me have asked whether I’m a better cook than my Dad was. At first, I said Yes!” While I still think that is generally true, I’ve modified my response to the fact that my Dad was a good cook for that era; I’m a good cook for my era. The cooking world had different values and standards then than it has now. And, so far, no one has become sick (or worse!) after eating my cooking.

I often use any of several comments to explain my cooking. Sometimes I use them all. They describe three kinds of cooks. First, in cooking, I’m a mad scientist whose laboratory is the kitchen. I may look at dozens (sometimes even hundreds) of online recipes for a particular dish. As I read through these, I print two or three that strike me as being the most interesting in terms of ingredients, complexity of flavors and mode of preparation. Then I merge them into one, adding other ingredients I came across in other recipes as seems fitting to me.

Sometimes I say that I use secret family recipes; in fact they’re so secret that I don’t even know them! I’ll add and/or mix in ingredients and seasonings that seem to be appropriate. I simply pour it in and eyeball the amounts. They usually turn out very good. My wife will request that I make it again sometime, but when I do, it’s not the same.

Finally, I say that my cooking follows the Aaron School of Cooking. If you have any basic familiarity with accounts in the Old Testament, you may recall that God called Moses up to the top of Mt. Sinai to receive the 10 Commandments - and lots more. As Moses remained on the mountain top for 40 days, the people, who had begged Moses to speak God’s words to them because they were terrified when God spoke directly to them, gave up on Moses ever returning. So they pushed Aaron to make a symbol to represent the God who brought them out of Egypt. They brought their gold jewelry, which Aaron had fashioned into a golden calf.

Seeing this, God sent Moses down from the mountain because of the commotion in the encampment. When Moses saw what was going on, he threw down the two tablets on which the commandments had been written by the finger of God. (Q: Who was the most wicked man in the Bible? A: Moses, because he broke all 10 Commandments at once. I forgot to add to my profile that I have a strange sense of humor.) When Moses challenged Aaron, Aaron waffled, saying “I threw the gold into the fire and out came this calf.”

Sometimes, that’s how I cook. I throw it in the fire, and this is what comes out. So far, however, no golden calf. And that's just fine with me.

The Kindly Kurmudgeon

2009-10-27T19:00:00.000-07:00

What??? Wait a minute! You’ve misspelled curmudgeon you say? Well, yes, I did. Perhaps it was to achieve alliteration, perhaps to suggest a phonetic spelling.

After thinking I am now old enough to act curmudgeonly, that is, old enough to know better, but too old to matter if I didn’t, I actually decided to check the definition. The term goes back as far as Samuel Johnson in Merry Olde England. He used the term to describe someone who was intemperate when hoarding all his worldly wealth. Hmm... since I don’t have worldly wealth, that isn’t quite right.

How about it if I create an oxymoron - putting together two concepts that are at odds with each other? Think “giant shrimp,” “objective science,” “authentic reproduction” and one that I’m “almost certain” you’ve heard - “cold as hell.” How often do you get mail that, without using the term, informs you that you are “(conditionally) approved” for a new credit card? I’m sure you get the idea. If I were to continue, I could not “eschew obfuscation.”

“Kindly kurmudgeon” - a different sort of curmudgeon, who isn’t quite so cantankerous toward others. However, I make no promises to be perfect and to act properly in every context and situation.

I tried my hand at blogging once before, and ended up with lengthy posts. I’d like to keep this one fairly short, or at least try.

I enjoy cooking, classical music, word games, reading, classic movies - and I’m a Christian of the Reformed persuasion. That ought to qualify me as old enough to be curmudgeonly in my interests. You never heard of Reformed Christianity? It is the branch of Christianity that, believing that the Reformers recaptured the most Biblical sense of doctrine, generally follows the teachings of the Reformers, e.g., John Calvin. However, most Reformed also remember the teaching “ecclesia reformata et semper reformanda” reformed, and always reforming to reflect the best understanding and application of Biblical teaching.

I hope that I, too, will always be reformed and reforming according to Scripture. Perhaps in thinking through themes in this blog I can advance toward that goal. Perhaps, your interaction will also help keep me moving in that direction.