.

"All art constantly aspires to the condition of music."
-- Walter Pater

Let us begin at the beginning...

Bach Cello Suite No.1 - Prelude
Mstislav Rostropovich

I'm more an ancient/early-to-baroque music appreciator. I'm classically trained (piano), but not a lot of classical, romantic, or modern appeals to me. For some reason it just seems "all violins and pianos" and uninterestingly formulaic (in my opinion, of course) — but I absolutely love harpsichords, the baroque oboe, the baroque trumpet, harps, lutes, and many early (medieval, renaissance, and baroque) instruments. When it comes to baroque, I admire the beauty and precision of Bach and Scarlatti, and I will happily listen to Telemann, Rameau, Purcell, Corelli, and Couperin (and sometimes, though I tend not to admit to it, Vivaldi).

Telemann - Concerto in D minor for oboe, strings and continuo (TWV 51:d1*)
performed by the London Harpsichord Ensemble. (All four movements.)
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wpAQMyUMi4E[/youtube]

Alfred Schnittke, Polyphonischer Tango. I'm a bit of a fan of the 'Russian joker,' as my composition tutor used to call him. He makes little or no distinction between musical styles or genres and yet seems to have a style of his own. Well, I like a musical maverick. I like this divertimento for orchestra, it has a strange smile on its lips which belies a darker, nightmarish undertone. Well, I like a musical contradiction as well as a maverick.

I'm a huge fan of the Romantic era, minus the atonal nonsense which began to sprout in the later part of that period. Chopin is a notable favourite of mine.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Q262yh46AY[/youtube]

I love my late romantics... but here's a bit of modern stuff I like as well.

Arvo Pärt
Fratres (1977 - original version)

Spiegel im Spiegel (1978)

Marchetto Cara
(c. 1470 – probably 1525)

Marchetto Cara was an Italian composer, lutenist and singer of the Renaissance. He was mainly active in Mantua, was well-connected with the Gonzaga and Medici families, and along with Bartolomeo Tromboncino, was well known as a composer of frottolas. [Wikipedia.]

Io non compro piu speranza
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sFthZKR23NI[/youtube]





Anthony Holborne
(c. 1545 – 29 November 1602)

Anthony Holborne was a composer of English consort music during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. [Wikipedia.]

The Fairy Round
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zEoS_W35IHk[/youtube]

THWOTH wrote:Bach Cello Suite No.1 - Prelude
Mstislav Rostropovich

A excellent rendition — magnificent touch and expression.

Minimalism:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JthxVHkRT9Y[/youtube]

That reminds me Brandy: Once, as a callow youth, I was trying to impress a young lady and popped on my LP (remember those?) of Steve Reich, Music for 18 Musicians in the hope that it might hypnotise her into submission. After a couple of minutes she got up saying, "Did you know you're record's stuck?" and before I could stop her she helpfully slapped the side of the Dancette sending the playing arm skidding across the disc to carve a deep scratch in the vinyl. I was somewhat irked and expressed myself in forthright terms - she took offence and returned my admonitions in kind. We had a row and she kinda lost her allure after that. Well, I did say I was callow didn't I...

Hee's the first 10 minutes. Doesn't quite sound right without that scratch..

That was very interesting.

Instead of the term minimalist, Phillip Glass uses "music with repetitive structures".
A read along:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5antXqfUQrQ[/youtube]

BrandySpears wrote:Instead of the term minimalist, Phillip Glass uses "music with repetitive structures".

It may be worth mentioning that minimal house and techno thrive on repetitive structures (even more so than regular house and techno(!)). That is to say, I'm more than familiar with understanding "minimalist" and "music with repetitive structures" in the same context.

Great piece, THWOTH, I hadn't heard that one before.

And an interesting find, BrandySpears... I think I've just had G3-F4 erased from my hearing register after listening to a few minutes of that.

Here's another interesting YouTube vid showing a MIDI rendering of Beethoven's 7th, 2nd mvt. I may have posted this on another thread but, since it is teh awesome, I am posting it again.

Well here we can have a read-a-long and a sing-a-long.



Polyphony is like way cool....

JayWilson wrote:

THWOTH wrote:Bach Cello Suite No.1 - Prelude
Mstislav Rostropovich

A excellent rendition — magnificent touch and expression.

No disrespect to Slava, but my favourite interpretation is by Anner Bylsma. It also demonstrates that HIP interpretations don't necessarily involve faster tempos:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wmbIgVSyLQA[/youtube]

THWOTH wrote:Polyphony is like way cool....

Monophony ain't bad, either.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d5p_U8J0iRQ[/youtube]

THWOTH wrote:Well here we can have a read-a-long and a sing-a-long.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9mdmco61Htk[/youtube]

Polyphony is like way cool....

I sung that in a cathedral in Paris as part of a summer school program. Way cool.

Although our scores conveniently didn't use soprano, alto or tenor clefs... not that I have a problem with alto or tenor, but soprano.... yetch!

Shrunk wrote:

JayWilson wrote:

THWOTH wrote:Bach Cello Suite No.1 - Prelude
Mstislav Rostropovich

A excellent rendition — magnificent touch and expression.

No disrespect to Slava, but my favourite interpretation is by Anner Bylsma. It also demonstrates that HIP interpretations don't necessarily involve faster tempo.

I must admit I found Bylsma a bit fluffy, waffly, woolly - it left me thinking that he'll probably make a really good job of it when he's had a bit more practice!

But what do I know? Bach left only the notes, who's to say how it should go, as long as its not Jacques Lossier eh? Stevie Isserlis favours that sense of onward momentum old grumpy guts went for in the first post - and he give good hair too.



I wonder if somebody will post the Courante....

You want a cellist? I'll give you a cellist!



Listen to him hammering that left hand and nursing along all those harmonies.


And the prelude to 6 is awesome. Heaps of fun to play if you can get your fingers around it. Two versions on the YT clip of the Yo man.



I was never able to play it all, or play it properly.

Splendid stuff the 'cello really is a fantastic instrument in the right hands (and the left hands too - sorry!). I had a mind to do the suites on the baritone saxophone once - it didn't go well.

Does this one count?

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bRwaVanPTDE[/youtube]