MusiLLection

Claude Debussy's portrait by Raphael Schwartz. Claude Debussy is a special case of musical innovator. With his lyrical drama "Pelléas and Mélisande" he was freed from the laws of tonality and created the conditions of a new musical language. First he changed the painting status of impressionism into music. As a good "music painter" he was mainly interested in the color expression and extent of the sounds and projected through them, moods and mental impressions, which are caused by images and natural phenomena. He listened to the rhythms, the "music" of nature and tried - and succeeded - to re-form it by proposing "music for the ear and not for the paper". He dared and of course won. Without being dogmatic, he experimented by reordering the prevailing principles of aesthetics and art until his time and formed a new way of expressing discreetly sensual and discharged from the emotional tensions and successive explosions of mature and tired rom...

Although the Messiah is Handel's most famous oratorio, this highly evocative work contains some of the composer's most dramatic moments. It was written in 1739 and recounts the path of a people of the Bible from failure to victory. Handel was religious, but unlike his contemporary J.S.Bach, he addresses to the simple feelings of ordinary people rather than their particular spiritual pursuits. Since its premiere in 1739,  "Israel in Egypt" has been a contradictory oratorio. The work is not only a scandalous example of Handel's tendency to "borrow" from other composers (his choral "Egypt was glad" comes from a work for organ by Johann Kerl), but it also had a great failure in Handel's time. The work consists of two parts: The first is a mournful sequence from another oratorium, Saul . In the second part, the story of Exodus - based on Bible texts - includes some of Handel's most impressive choral parts. The large number of choruses, how...

The premiere of this opera, based on Alexandrs Duma's play "La Dame aux Camélias", which Verdi saw in Paris, was a failure. This is mainly due to the fact that on the night of the premiere in Venice, the protagonist was so fat that when "dying" on stage of tuberculosis, the audience erupted into uncontrollable laughter. Much to Verdi's delight, it was triumplahntly played again in the same city 14 months later, after international acclaim. In this opera, the courtesan Violetta kindly sacrifices her love for Alfredo by obeying his father's desire, and die of tuberculosis, the moment Alfredo turns to her. - Libiamo The curtain opens with a celebration in Violetta's house and Alfredo in a lively mood begins the famous song of the drinking, Libiamo (Let's drink), in which Violetta joins her voice with enthusiasm and then with all the guests. - Di Provenza il mar, il suoi However, the couple's happiness is brief. Alfredo's father, worried ab...

In French, it means "English." A musical term featuring some dances of English origin, which gained great fame in Europe during the 17th and 18th centuries. With intense rhythmic growth , anglaise dances required the dancers in a chain-shaped arrangement. In the 18th century, the term was used sporadically in purely instrumental music and in the Third French Suite of  G.S.Bach.

At Chopin's time, the composition of a "waltz concerto" was not new - composers like Mozart had helped shape this form. However, the elements, introduced by Chopin , was new. He turned the waltz into a musical genre of exceptional subtlety and kindness, dominated by the piano. The composer was still a teenager when he composed his first work in this form and continued to compose waltzes almost until the end of his life.  Waltz in G-flat major, Op. 70, No.1 In this waltz, the melody is full of vibrancy. Then a slow dreamy musical idea is presented and the rhythm changes abruptly. But the new mood doesn't last long. The first melody returns, now like a coda, completing the work serenely. Waltz in F minor, Op. 70, No. 2 Although this waltz is particularly lively, the prevailing mood is melancholy. The two melodies on which the work is based are the first in minor tonality and the second in major and are interpreted twice. The waltz is calmly completed in a major tonality...

Vivaldi's "Summer" is a time of drowning, tyrannical heat, with storm breaks. I. Allegro non molto "Under a hard season, fired up by the sun Languishes man, languishes the flock and burns the pine We hear the cuckoo’s voice; then sweet songs of the turtle dove and finch are heard. Soft breezes stir the air but threatening the North Wind sweeps them suddenly aside. The shepherd trembles, fearing violent storms and his fate." The first part, Allegro non molto ,  submits a lazy mood under the scorching sun, with small phrases in the most thoughtful rolled key. This is followed by a more passionate intercalary, with birdsong stresses and more restless spots as the air rises. II. Adagio  "The fear of lightning and fierce thunder Robs his tired limbs of rest As gnats and flies buzz furiously around. " In central Adagio, the sleep of a young shepherd is upsetsed by lightning but also by swarms of wasp and flies! III. Presto "Alas, his fears were justif...

George Gershwin's musical journey has been unique in every aspect: Tin Pan Alley - Broadway - Hollywood - concert halls - lyrical theatres. Everywhere with a great success. No composer has enjoyed such recognition, in so many different fields and in such a short period of time. As a songwriter, Gershwin appeared in the history of American music at the right time. As a composer he was able to ensure direct acceptance into the folk music of his land, giving it an artistic form. Gershwin had in his mind the rules and technique of Western European music, but at his heart, the harmonys and rhythms of the American South. His imagination was nourished by the idioms of an original folk music. He was one of the first to understand the universality of its character. He borrowed from, bold harmonics and a transparent melancholy, which only counterpart in Schubert's songs detected. His music is full of wondrous mixed melodies and rhythms. Unexpected chords succeed each other with incredib...

Ravel has been an expert in combination of new and old musical forms. In "Le Tombeau de Couperin" he perfects his technique for extremely personal reasons . Maurice Ravel drew inspiration from the music of the past and from his childhood hearings. In Le Tombeau de Couperin (The Tomb of Couperin), he uses his talent to express his personal despair at the loss of many of his close friends during the Great War of 1914-18. The composer had personally experienced the horrors of life in the trenches and realized that war had permanently changed the face of the world. In  Le Tombeau de Couperin, which he composed between 1914-17, he returns to the happy moments of a permanently lost past. The title refers honorably to the death of the French composer François Couperin (1668-1733), although Ravel clarified that the work was more of a general expression of respect for 18th-century French music. Some parts of the six-part work - each dedicated to a friend killed in the war - are writ...

A satirical sketch dated March 19, 1883, hinting at the fertility of Verdi 's composition of operas. Operas: Oberto, conte di San Bonifacio Nabucco Macbeth Rigoletto Il Trovatore La Traviata Simon Boccanegra Don Carlos Aida Ottelo Falstaff Sacred works: Messa da Requiem Quattro pezzi sacri Chamber: String Quarter in E minor

In December 1777, Mozart wrote to his father in Salzburg about an order he had received from the amateur flute and music patron, Ferdinand De Jean. The order included, among other things, "three short, simple flute concertos". Mozart wrote two concertos in 1778, but problems arose when the works reached his patron. It is alleged that De Jean rejected  first concert's Andante and asked for its replacement. Mozart responded to this request and wrote an alternative slow part, while the original - shown here - remained independent. We find it hard to believe that this brilliantly written Andante, with its fluid, melodic flute, is an example of Mozart's composition for his least beloved instrument. A brief orchestral introduction leads to a slow, lyrical original theme of the flute. The orchestral accompaniment is rich and full, but without ever exceeding the soloist. A string pizzicato leads to a final section - here the flute emerges from its lowest extent to a high poi...

- Allegro - Adagio un poco mosso - Rondo: Allegro The "Emperor Concerto" , written in 1809, is Beethoven’s last work of this genre - and arguably the most popular. It is dedicated to Archduke Rudolf of Austria, Beethoven’s pupil and patron. The first presentation of the work took place in Leipzig on 28 November 1811. In the first Viennese performance of the concerto, the composer, pianist and former student of Beethoven , Carl Caernarfon, was the soloist. The epithet “Emperor” was given to the work by Johann Baptist Cramer, the English publisher of the concerto and reflects the magnificence of music. Allegro The first part, Allegro , includes a musical dialogue between the orchestra and the piano. The orchestra plays loud resonant chords, while the piano processes grandiose responses. The orchestra continues the long introduction alone, introducing the two main themes. The first melody played by the violins is strong and unequivocal. The second theme consisting of a short se...

This suite, Georges Bizet includes some orchestral adaptations from the opera, tells the story of Carmen, as she is torn between her love fo r Don Jose and the a rrogant matador hero. The suite contains two particularly "Spanish" compositions" the seductive, exotic Habanera and the moorish music of Gypsy dance. Carmen Suite No. 2 was published in 1887. - March of the Smugglers The "March of the Smugglers" is eerie, as flutes accompanied by the pizzicato of the strings simply introduce the theme. Soon, the bassoons are heard playing distant, preserving the eerie atmosphere. The music sometimes gets dark and sometimes it lights up, but soom the persistent march returns. - Habanera Habanera , the most famous melody in the suite, is based on a Cuban dance song. In Bizet's hands, however, the song transforms into a wavy and extremely appealing melody, which masterfully sums up Carmen's character. Change of mood - Nocturne On the contrary, Nocturne is in a...

The deadly forms of this work reflect the gloomy mood presented by the Danse Macabre of  Saint-Saëns . Saint-Saëns's defense of new ideas in music wasn't just theoretical. He was responsible for many musical modernities. A perfect example of these modernities is the symphonic poem he developed with his friend and hero Franz Liszt . Saint-Saëns was the first Frenchman to compose in this form. The Danse Macabre is one of his most popular symphonic poems. He processes a traditional history and paints it with great emotional depth with the virtuosity of the instruments and orchestra. The subject of death represents a skeleton that leads the living to the tomb and has its roots in the symbolism of the Middle Ages. In the 19th century this theme had developed into a midnight feast of resurrected skeletons. The composition of Saint-Saëns originally wanted to be the musical version of a modern French poem, showing Death playing the violin in the icy courtyard of a church, while the s...

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was the gods’ favorite. After all this means the one of his names “Amadeus”. Today he is undoubtedly people’s favorite. His works, structured with the precious essences of the style of classicism, occupied from the moment of their creation a special place in the mind and heart of music fans. The perfect application of the rules, combined with unique ingenuity, which is implemented in beautiful melodies, benefited Mozart’s works with the rare ability to provoke the immediate delight of even the most unsuspecting listener. The music that came out of his fertile and inexhaustible imagination has a date of birth, but it does not have a date of death. It’s poetic specifications, the spontaneity of the musical discourse and the immediacy of its functionality are gifts of appreciation and acceptance unscathed from time. Mozart has not been an innovator nor has he claimed the anointing of musical visionary. But what he signed, he donated by harmony insurmountable and wi...

As a student, Saint-Saëns won several awards for his performance on the church organ, so it is not surprising that at the same time he composed music for the instrument. The Fantasy in E-flat Major was composed in 1857, at the time when the composer was an organist at the Saint Mary's Church in Paris. Although an early work, it is an excellent example of the brilliant style of Saint-Saëns. A low restrained chord introduces the sweet sound of the opening melody. The lively, but almost airy rhythm, shows that this piece is intended to pleasure, since all solemnity or grandeur is missing from here. The melody is repeated higher and a second theme is presented.  The second part is in stark contrast to the first - a resonant initial chord introduces an evolving march. The music here rather gets serious and becomes academic - the melody sounds first by itself, then repetitive and pretentious. The composition ends with an extended version of the original theme.

A contemporary of Schubert's drawing shows him ridiculously tiny in front of his best friend, the famous Austrian baritone singer and composer Johann Michael Vogl. It was during the happy holiday of 1819, at his friend's cottage in Steyr, where Schubert began writing the famous Piano Quintet of "Trout". Franz Schubert , in the summer of 1819, went on vacation to Steyr with his opera singer fried Johann Michael Vogl. Revitalized by the rocky mountain scenery, he spent a lot of time playing music with friends. When the local music community asked him to compose music for them, cellist Sylvester Paumgartner recommended that Schubert could use a song he had written two years ago, called Die Forelle. Schubert duly honored the music community with this wonderful Trout Quintet , adding an additional part that included various variations on the theme of "Trout" . Schubert completed the project on his return to Vienna, He sent the score to Steyr's musicians, who ...

Ludwig van Beethoven 's work has remained unwavering at the top of the art of sounds since its birth. No one dared to question the value of his masterpieces. The uniqueness of the German composer is not without cause. It was he who first opposed the necessity of the rules of classicism, he was the one who reversed the hierarchy of reason and emotion in the music. His music nourished by the impulsive tendencies of a fiery temper inspired the aesthetic that was meant to dominate throughout the 19th century. The musical romance saw his birth secreted by his own automatic stylus. His music is an unrepeatable happy essay made up of an unhappy man. In the desperation caused to him by the impracticality of his emotional desires, the mental pain was brought to an end by the awareness of the coming toatl deafness. His inability to hear the sounds of nature, the sounds of life, the sounds of his own music did not prevent him from drawing his precious works with exquisite musical reflections,...

Johannes Brahms applied traditional and classical principles to his compositions. His music would be strict if beneath the exterior, its measured enclosure did not breathe a romantic spirit. The Dance No. 1 in G minor - Allegro molto alternates between a rhythmic, but rather melancholy, opening theme in strings and a sequence of vivid or brighter episodes. It ends with a resounding chord. Johannes Brahms himself orchestrated this Dance. Arrangement for 4 hands (piano):

The cover of the program of the concert of Camille Saint-Saëns in 1896 in Salle Pleyel in Paris, for the fifty years since its debut in the same venue. Operas: The Yellow Princess, Opus 30 Samson and Dalila, Opus 47 Henry VIII Les Barbares Orchestral: Symphony No. 1 in E flat major, Opus 2 Symphony No. 2 in A minor, Opus 55 Symphony No. 3 "Organ Symphony" in C minor, Opus 78 Heroic March in E flat major, Opus 34 Danse macabre, Symphonic Poem in G minor, Opus 40 The Youth of Hercules, Opus 50 One night in Lisbon in E flat major, Opus 63 Algerian Suite in C major, Opus 60 Concertante: Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso in A minor, Opus 28 Chamber music: Piano Trio No. 1 in F major, Opus 18 Allegro appassionato in B minor, Opus 43  Oboe Sonata in D major, Opus 166 Clarinet Sonata in E-flat major, Opus 167 Bassoon Sonata in G major, Opus 168 Violin Sonata No. 1 in D minor, Opus 75 Violin Sonata No. 2 in E flat major, Opus 102 The Carnival of the Animals Keyboard Organ: Fantaisie ...

The vague plot of this opera of Giuseppe Verdi , with libretto based on a Spanish play, did not prevent its success at all when it was first played in Rome. As in the past, there were problems with church censorship about Leonora's suicide in the end. The problem was solved in an almost comical way: Leonora does not take the poison on stage, but the words of the suicide scene remained! -  Coro di Zingari It is the story of a goung troubadour, Manrico, his gypsy family and his conflict with an enemy and erotic rival, Di Luna, who at the time of Manrico's execution turns out to be his brother. One of the famous hits of this opera is the wonderful Coro di Zingari (Anvil Chorus), an exciting and enthusiastic vocal creation. - Squilli, echeggi la tomba guerriera Another masterful choral is heard later in the strong and edgy song of the soldiers, Squilli, echeggi la tomba guerriera (Let the trumpet sound of war songs). - Ah si, ben mio On the contrary, Manrico's love song to th...