Day 89: Let the Sun Shine

HaydnCD89After a weeks-long stretch of winter without sun, that unfamiliar golden orb has finally emerged.

It’s weird to see people blinking and shielding their eyes from something other than snow and sleet.

Also, it’s wonderful to see shadows again.

I wonder if weather ever played a part in Haydn’s musical output? Did he get the winter blahs like everyone else and, accordingly, write blah – or less peppy – music? Did his spirits soar when the sun came out and it warmed up a bit? Did his music reflect that?

I think it would make for an interesting study – perhaps a Ph.D. dissertation – regarding the effects of weather or seasons on Haydn’s music. It wouldn’t be hard to determine that. Just look at the times of year he composed music, chart the kind of music it was (opera? string quartet? piano concerto? folk music? symphony?), observe the keys in which they were written (major? minor?), perhaps the tempo (fast? slow?), etc. Then see if there’s a correlation.

Why do this? Because I think we often revere these great composers so much that we forget that they were human beings, just as we are. As such, they were likely affected by the same kinds of things we are – weather being just one of them. Births, deaths, illnesses, different locales are other factors to take into account.

By allowing people like Haydn to be human, we can then truly understand how great they really were.

That’s why I try to Continue reading

Day 88: We Have a Winner!

HaydnCD88I know if I like something from the first two minutes.

And I like this.

Haydn String Quartet Op. 71 No. 1 in B Flat is terrific from the get-go. I don’t know why.

They say beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Same holds true for any kind of music. There’s not really an objectively good piece of music. Whether or not someone likes it depends on the person’s unique tastes, preferences. (Although I’m sure a few of Mozart’s compositions would be considered splendid by most people.)

Many of the things I’ve listened to in the last 88 days that I didn’t particularly care for, I’m sure were much loved by others.

Today’s first composition (Op. 71 No. 1) is just one of those things that I happen to like. Movement I (“Allegro”) is truly a lively, fascinating allegro. It’s the perfect way to begin Op. 71 No. 1.

Movement II (“Adagio”) slows things down a bit. But it’s still intricate and interesting enough to hold my attention.

Movement III (“Menuet: Allegretto”), oddly enough, isn’t a typical Haydn Menuet. It’s slower and less rondo-like than others I’ve heard. But it picks up around the 1:55 mark. That’s when the violins start their playful dance, weaving in and around the cello and viola. The latter part of this movement is better than the former.

Movement IV (“Finale: Vivace”) is as lively and wonderful as any finale could want to be. This is one of my Favorite Haydn String Quartets.

Now would be a good time to say that Continue reading

Day 87: Die Sieben Letzen Worte

HaydnCD87Today’s music is the string quartet version of Haydn’s orchestra work The Seven Last Words of Christ (German: Die sieben letzten Worte).

Of course, what one thinks of the string quartet version may depend a great deal on what one thought of the orchestral version, which I wrote about on November 29, 2013.

I wasn’t blown away by the orchestra version. So this stripped down string quartet version isn’t necessarily an improvement.

That’s not to say it’s horrible, though. It’s not. It’s superb. It’s just not something I’d listen to on repeat all day while I write.

Here’s the story behind it from the article on Wikipedia:

At the request of his publisher, Artaria, the composer in 1787 produced a reduced version for string quartet: Haydn’s Opus 51. This is the form in which the music is most often heard today: a group of seven works (Hoboken-Verzeichnis III/50–56), with the Introduction abutting Sonata I and Sonata VII joined by the Earthquake. The first violin part includes the Latin text directly under the notes, which “speak” the words musically.

This version has come under suspicion of authenticity due to an occasionally careless manner of transcription, with crucial wind passages left out and only the accompanimental figures in the strings retained. As a result, some quartets make their own adaptation, working from the orchestral original.

Interesting.

551px-Brooklyn_Museum_-_What_Our_Lord_Saw_from_the_Cross_(Ce_que_voyait_Notre-Seigneur_sur_la_Croix)_-_James_TissotIncidentally, in case you were wondering what those “seven last words” were, this Wiki article explains:

The seven sayings form part of a Christian meditation that is often used during Lent, Holy Week and Good Friday. The traditional order of the sayings is

Luke 23:34: Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.
Luke 23:43: Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise.
John 19:26–27: Woman, behold your son. Behold your mother.
Matthew 27:46: My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?
John 19:28: I thirst.
Luke 23:46: Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.
John 19:30: It is finished.

Traditionally, these seven sayings are called words of 1. Forgiveness, 2. Salvation, 3. Relationship, 4. Abandonment, 5. Distress, 6. Reunion and 7. Triumph.

As I have in previous posts, I can’t forget to introduce the members of the Buchberger Quartet (their site is in German):

Hubert Buchberger violin
Julia Greve violin
Joachim Etzel viola
Helmut Sohler cello

The other players in the quartet do not have their own web sites, apparently. So, no link to them. Sorry.

Here’s what I listened to today:

Day 83: More Strings

HaydnCD83Today’s CD contains three more compositions from Haydn, performed by the Buchberger Quartet. None of them stand out to me. They’re all equally good.

So I’ll just introduce the members of the Buchberger Quartet (their site is in German):

Hubert Buchberger violin
Julia Greve violin
Joachim Etzel viola
Helmut Sohler cello

The other players in the quartet do not have their own web sites, apparently. So, no link to them. Sorry.

The string quartets on this CD were composed in 1769, which means Haydn was 37 years old.

I listened to this CD 2-3 times through. It was Continue reading

Day 82: The String Theory

HaydnCD82Ahh, now this is more like it.

It’s music like this – and full-blown orchestra compositions – that I think of when I think of Classical music.

Probably, between the two types I just mentioned, a string quartet seems the most Classical to me somehow.

I can picture these four musicians sitting in an art gallery attended by well-heeled people sipping a slightly chilled Chablis, nibbling on a cube of goat cheese, and admiring Pierre-Auguste Renoir’s “Le déjeuner des canotiers (Luncheon of the boating party)”

renoir_galletteAfter all, nothing says Classical music like wine and snooty people, right?

Not always.

Case in point: Here I sit, not snooty in the slightest, sipping a really awful Folger’s instant coffee, nibbling on a muffin from Sam’s Club, with nary a goat in sight, let alone cheese made from said goat.

And I’m diggin’ the music.

That’s my version of The String Theory: Classical music played by a string quartet – four musicians playing violins, viola, and cello — fits anywhere, with people from all walks of life. It’s just really pleasant, enjoyable, soothing music.

Or stirring music, as evidenced by Continue reading