SUNDAY MORNING CLASSICS ON TBP

A collaboration of: “The Classic Music Mafia”
nkit, 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.

Rachmaninoff: Symphony No. 2

A frenzy of timbres: Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Symphony No. 2 in E minor, Op. 27, performed by the Sächsische Staatskapelle Dresden under the baton of Antonio Pappano. The concert took place in the Semperoper Dresden in 2018.

The second symphony by Russian composer Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873 – 1943) could also be called his “Dresden Symphony” since Rachmaninoff wrote the symphonic work in 1906/07 in Dresden, where his family had spent the winter months for three consecutive years.

The premiere of Symphony No. 2 took place again in St. Petersburg in 1908 under the composer’s direction and was a great success, which Rachmaninoff was in dire need of, since the premiere of his first symphony in 1897 had been a debacle and had plunged him into depression and a deep creative crisis.

All the more astonishing was the great success he had with his 2nd Symphony. This may be due, on the one hand, to the balance that characterizes the form of each of the four movements. But above all, it is the symphony’s tonal colours that give it an incomparable radiance. Through lush orchestration and varied combinations of instrumental groups, the orchestra’s tonal possibilities come into their own.

In the past, Rachmaninoff’s Symphony No. 2 was often performed in an abridged version. Here, the Staatskapelle Dresden plays it completely authentically – in its unabridged original version and at the location of its creation.

(00:00) Rachmaninoff: Symphony No. 2 in E minor, Op. 27
(00:25) I. Largo – Allegro moderato
(19:23) II. Allegro molto
(29:50) III Adagio
(44:19) IV. Allegro vivace

Stravinsky, Igor – Pulcinella Suite

Today, I am going to tee up a wonderful piece by Igor Stravinsky titled “Pulcinella Suite.” Once again, Alondra de la Parra will conduct the Tonhalle Orchester – Zürich.

Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky (17 June 1882 – 6 April 1971) was a Russian composer, pianist and conductor, later of French (from 1934) and American (from 1945) citizenship. He is widely considered one of the most important and influential composers of the 20th century and a pivotal figure in modernist music.

As is well known, Stravinsky fashioned his ballet, Pulcinella (1919-20) after music of Giambattista Pergolesi (1710-36). He was originally not enthusiastic about using such source material but acquiesced to the wishes of the persuasive impresario Serge Diagilev.

In the end, the composer drew on some Trio Sonatas, three operas–Lo Frate ‘nnamorato, Il Flaminio, and Adriano in Siria–and other works of Pergolesi. The character Pulcinella was taken from a 1700 manuscript featuring various comic episodes. The ballet was a great success at its May 15, 1920, premiere, and in 1922 Stravinsky decided to extract a Concert Suite, scoring it for the same chamber-sized ensemble. He made minor revisions to the Suite in 1949.

The original ballet score featured eighteen numbers, whereas the Suite is comprised of eight. The latter’s third movement, however, has three sections, and the eighth, two. Thus, the reduction is far less than half: a typical performance of the ballet music would last around forty minutes, and that of the Suite about twenty-five. The vocal parts from the original score, found in the second and eighth movements of the Suite, were eliminated by Stravinsky, their music being assigned to various instruments.

The first movement of the Suite, the Sinfonia, is the most famous. It features a confident, ebullient theme. The rhythmic verve and harmonic twists of this Neo-Classical music is nearly as compelling as the distinctiveness of the theme. The Serenata, that follows, features the lovely tenor solo (taken from Il Flaminio), but is here given to the oboe and other instruments. The third movement is comprised of a Scherzino, Allegro and Andantino, each divulging much color and, once more, great rhythmic interest. The first two sections are based on material in Pergolesi’s Trio Sonata II and the third on the Trio Sonata VIII.

Thus far the five sections correspond to the first five in the ballet. The next, however–the Tarantella–relates to the twelfth movement in the ballet, and is thus based on Pergolesi’s Trio Sonata VII. The Toccata, that follows, corresponds to the fourteenth and, like the Tarantella, features quite jovial music, again with infectious rhythms. The Gavotta con due variazoni and the Duetto, are the counterparts to Nos. 15 and 16 in the ballet score, and the latter features the most humorous music in the score.
The last two sections here, Minuetto and Finale relate to the penultimate and closing movements in the ballet. The Finale features a short rhythmic theme that has also become popular. It sounds as Stravinskyan as any music in the ballet, which might suggest that the composer wanted to cap this heavily-derived score with his individual touch.

Each movement here features different combinations of instruments, as in the ballet score. There has long been discussion regarding how much of the music in Pulcinella is Pergolesi, and how much is Stravinsky. However musicologists answer the question, there is little doubt that even if the music belongs to Pergolesi, the masterpiece belongs to Stravinsky.

Have a great Sunday, folks.

Flashmob de Mariachi en España

And Now A Couple Of Flashmobs For Ya

Here’s a couple of songs from our neighbor in Mexico.

FLASHMOB / L’Orchestre national d’Île-de-France à la gare Saint-Lazare

Here’s one from Paris.

University of Florence: Rossini Flash Mob

This one’s from Florence.

Wednesday 11.30 am, October 26th, 2016: a library full of silent students focused on their books.

The silence is interrupted by a cello and a double bass. Then flutes, piccolo and clarinet … A bassoon, oboes, horns, strings, a conductor, Maestro Gabriele Centorbi. The music starts ….

What follows is the wonderful music by the genius of Rossini and his Ouverture from Il Signor Bruschino played by the Orchestra of the University of Florence! Last but not least, the clapping, whistles, shouts of joy … And then students again intent to the books but with a better state of mind!

Beethoven Flash Mob – Wayzata Symphony Orchestra and Edina Chorale

And this one’s from Minneapolis, MN, USA.

The Wayzata Symphony Orchestra and the Edina Chorale performed a flash mob performance of Beethoven’s Ode To Joy on November 16, 2015 at the IDS Crystal Court in downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA.

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

Heaven help us…

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