The Heart of Man Can Speak
Submitted by jsdubois015 on Mon, 04/05/2010 - 16:54
There are some things you read, or that people say, that just leave you speechless. Something that just reaches down into the core of your being and touches something there. For me, one such example is a quote I read some time ago by the 19th century author Jean Paul and I always keep it close by so I can re-read it. I don't want to give any commentary on it because, frankly, I can't. The quote seems to say it all and I don't know what else to add. Also, I want to just put this quote out there for you to read and ponder on it yourself, without any outside commentary.
Read more... 2 commentsApril 5, 2010
March is so rich on composers’ birthdays, but we had a chance to celebrate just two – that of Chopin, who turned 200, and Bach’s also quite special 325th anniversary. So we missed the birthdays of Maurice Ravel, Pablo Sarasate, Hugo Wolf, Telemann, two great Russians, Rimsky-Korsakov and Mussorgsky, Bela Bartok, and even Franz Joseph Haydn! We’ll try to catch up this week with the following chronological program. First, the flutists Colleen Matheu performs Telemann’s Fantasia No. 2 for Unaccompanied Flute. Then the pianist Sofya Melikyan plays Andante with variations in f minor by Franz Joseph Haydn. Sonya Bach follows with the piano transcription of Mussorgsky’s Night on Bald Mountain. And at the end we’ll hear Amelia Trio play Ravel’s Piano Trio in a minor. We’ll have more next week, but in the mean time, please click here to listen.
Alexander Scriabin - Sonata No. 5 in F-sharp Major, Op. 53
Victor Goldberg (Piano)
A Thought While Reading C.P.E. Bach's Essay
Submitted by jsdubois015 on Thu, 04/01/2010 - 19:52
The past week I have finally found the time to really get into C.P.E. Bach’s Essay on the True Art of Playing Keyboard Instruments. It has been sitting on my bookshelf for quite some time now. However, knowing ahead of time the historical significance of the book, I made up my mind to not get into it until I knew I had plenty of time to really get the most out of it. I’ve skipped over the first part of the book dealing with keyboard performance because I am mainly concerned with the portion on music theory. Prior to this, J.G.
Read more...Between Earth and Heaven
Submitted by conductor on Wed, 03/31/2010 - 19:48Again, a new recording by the Benedictine Monks of the Abbey of Chevetogne; this week, Eastertime and Ascension.
Ronsard and the Lowlands
Submitted by conductor on Wed, 03/31/2010 - 19:03The Dutch ensemble Egidius Kwartet looks at the lasting influence of Ronsard's verse on the Franco-Flemish school, including Lassus, Regnart, and Arcadelt.
Sacred Lassus III: Holy Week and the Lamentations of Jeremiah
Submitted by conductor on Wed, 03/31/2010 - 18:46As we enter the 30th anniversary season of Millennium of Music, we share the great Holy Week writings of Lassus.
Sacred Lassus II: Canciones Sacrae
Submitted by conductor on Wed, 03/31/2010 - 18:25The Cantiones Sacrae are the swansong of one of the masters of the motet, crowning his life’s work. In them Orlandus Lassus deploys with sovereign ease the essence of his art, which distinguishes him from, say, his contemporary Palestrina: the complex technique of vocal polyphony is employed in order to espouse the nuances of the text as closely as possible. In other words, here we have the ideal balance between 'head' and 'heart', the recurrent feature of most of the greatest masterpieces.
Sacred Lassus I: Missa pro defunctis
Submitted by conductor on Wed, 03/31/2010 - 13:37Our longest single-composer series--over 50 hours of chronological material--was dedicated to the genius from Mons, Roland de Lassus, (also known as Orlando di Lasso and Orlandus Lassus). We begin our three-part series on his scared music with his setting of the Requiem Mass.
Georg Philipp Telemann - Fantasia No. 2 for Unaccompanied Flute
Colleen Matheu (Flute)