SUNDAY MORNING CLASSICS ON TBP

A collaboration of: “The Classic Music Mafia”
SMC, nkit, Austrian Peter, and Steve C.

Every Sunday morning we present selections for our TBP family to enjoy.

We present symphonies, ensembles, quartets, octets, etc.

Not all of our music is strictly ‘classical’. We may stray a little, but we strive to make all of our selections ‘classy’.

We offer tips on proper ‘symphony etiquette’ and even some selections that are a bit light-hearted and fun aimed at a younger audience. Those pieces will be so designated, and might be a good way to introduce kids to a world of music that they might not have been exposed to or think of as old and ‘stuffy’.

A full symphony will run as long as it will. We don’t want to cut a symphony short. However, we also include some shorter pieces that we try to keep under fifteen minutes in length. You can sample each and hopefully find one or more that pleases you.

We hope that you enjoy our Sunday selections.

The FIREBIRD, Stravinsky, 1910 (encore Bàrtok Romanian Dances)

Performed by the London Symphony Orchestra.

Conducted by Ion Marin.

Written by Igor Stravinsky and first performed in Paris in 1910. It is based on the Russian fairy tales of the Firebird and the blessing and curse it possesses for its owner.

There have been many adaptations of The Firebird Suite over the years. Usually either shortened or for performing by smaller orchestras. The 1910 version presented here is the full original version.

Mozart: Sinfonia concertante in E flat Major, K 364

By Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.

Violinist Grace Park and violist Wenting Kang, who, as winners of NEC concerto competitions, perform as soloists.

Recorded live April 25, 2012 in Jordan Hall, Boston.

A smaller orchestra, with ‘dueling’ or ‘dancing’ violin and viola out front and center.

Three movements.

The first one has a few bars briefly played in Amadeus, where F. Murray Abraham as Solieri is astounded by Wolfgang’s unedited, original scores are read, and understood, as flawless and brilliant.

I have come to love the entire piece, at 33 minutes, played here by the New England Conservatory Chamber Orchestra.

This is one that I’ve “worn out the stylus needle” from playing it so often.

Enjoy

Mozart : Piano Concerto No.23: II Adagio

This is the remarkable pianist Helene Grimaud who is an extraordinary pianist who began playing the piano at the ripe old age of seven. She is highly acclaimed and has won many awards for her recordings.

She is also a synesthete – meaning that experiences synesthesia – a phenomenon in which stimulation of one sensory or cognitive pathway leads to involuntary experiences in a second sensory or cognitive pathway. In her case, she sees music as color which helps her with memorizing music scores.

Further, she is a rubato artist. Rubato (meaning “free in the presentation”), is a musical term that refers to “experience and rhythmic freedom by a slight speeding up and then slowing down the tempo of a piece at the discretion of the soloist.” Rubato is an expressive shaping of music that is part of phrasing.

Brian Levine, the Executive Director of the Glenn Gould Foundation (named for the famous Canadian pianist who passed away in 1982 at the age of 50) sees in Grimaud, a resemblance to Gould: “She has this willingness to take a piece of music apart and free herself from the general body of practice that has grown up around it.”

So, please sit back and enjoy her musical talent.

Oscar Peterson – C-Jam Blues

Live in Denmark,1964.

Oscar Peterson on Piano

Ray Brown on Bass

Ed Thigpen on Drums

This One’s For The Kids

The Sorcerer’s Apprentice

A symphonic poem written by French composer Paul Dukas in 1897 and conducted here by Leopold Anthony Stokowski.

It is based on Johann Wolfgang von Goethe’s 1797 poem ‘The Sorcerer’s Apprentice’.

This animated version from the Disney Movie ‘Fantasia’ features the character Yen Sid (Disney backwards) as the sorcerer, and Mickey Mouse as the apprentice that attempts some of his master’s magic tricks before knowing how to control them.

Its appearance in the Disney film led to Dukas’s piece becoming widely known to audiences outside of the classical concert hall and is a good way to introduce youngsters to classical music.

The kids will love it. (Set it to full screen)

https://video.disney.com/watch/sorcerer-s-apprentice-fantasia-4ea9ebc01a74ea59a5867853

The Classic Music Mafia – Adding some class to this joint one Sunday at a time.

Heaven help us…

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