Tune in to Classical Music

Classic music
What is classical music? You are entering a website that tries to answer this question, creating a great friendship between you and this fabulous human creation.

There are several types of music:

Folk music , which comes with tradition and it is not known who created it.

Popular music , which everyone knows, it is known who composed and is part of our
day by day.

Classical music that becomes more complex compositions, for instruments or voices, entire orchestras or smaller formations, which are all classified as
classical music.

There is a big difference between popular music and classical music. In the popular one, we can interfere, create variations, improvise on the spot, just stick to the
melody. In the case of jazz, the changes make the music. But in classical music, the composer wrote in the form that the performer needs to play. You cannot change any written "ball".
Thus, classical music is a little more demanding. She expects silence and concentration, sometimes she has several parts, which are called "movements", and it is not good to applaud between movements. It applauds itself only at the end.
Our goal is to know and understand the different ways used by composers. We will know what is sonata, symphony, trio, quartet, openings, variations, arias of operas.
Our intention is not to tell the story of the song. But rather baste important creations, a little more explained, so that you feel the importance (and the beauty) of each one, enriching your life.

PROGRAM 1

In this first opening program we are going to talk about a musical modality that is called ... opening!

Why does a composer create an opening?

Sometimes to start an opera, for example. In this case, the composer Rossini shines like no one else. Usually in these openings, themes that will follow in the opera are already presented. Sometimes the openings are pieces with no connection to what will follow. In these cases, the openings are not followed by
nothing, they are just a musical beginning. So there are two openings by Brahms: Opening for an Academic Festival and Tragic Opening, with very different atmospheres, of course.

Today we are going to start with a piece by Beethoven. This year, he is completing 250 years of birth. This name will have a strong presence in our comments. After Beethoven, music changed, expanded immensely. He was revolutionary, in the best sense, he protested against the oppressive policies of tyrants. After coming across a play by the German writer Goethe, Beethoven decided to create a song for the hero Egmont. Count Egmont was a Flemish and revolted against the oppressive domination that Spain imposed on the Flemish. This happened in 1568. He was arrested and executed.

Beethoven decided to start his opening using a Spanish rhythm that was called chaconne. The chaconnes began with two loud strokes followed by two more. For Beethoven started the composition with these two more beats, but in an aggressive and cutting way, meaning how much the Spaniards oppressed the Flemish people. A fight of sounds follows, with repetitions, until a crucial point suggests the execution. From the silence that follows a sound springs up (which are Egmont's ideas, which have not died) and this melodic line is asserting itself, growing to a victorious finale.

Our suggested musical examples are always from YouTube.
Try to identify the details in the Egmont opening that we will hear now:

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Curiosities about Beethoven:
Because of his temperament (and his deafness) Beethoven has curious passages. Once, in a parade attended by the king, all the men took off their hats as they passed. Beethoven did not take it off. They asked him, "Don't you take your hat off to the king?" Beethoven replied: “I don't. "He's the one who has to take his hat off for me."

Again, when visiting a brother younger than himself, very wealthy,

Beethoven received a business card that read “Johan Van

Beethoven. Landowner ”Beethoven took the card and

wrote on the back: “Ludwig Van Beethoven, Owner of a

brain".

Beethoven's life involves the names of many women.

Who was “Elisa” from the beautiful song “Fur Elise”? Possibly

a singer named Elizabeth Rockel. Who was the Immortal Beloved,

for whom did he leave a letter full of passion and rapture?

Perhaps Antonie Brentano. What you do know for sure is that he wrote

Sonata number 24, opus 78, dedicated to Therèse Von Brunswic,

a Sonata that has enormous loving delicacy, and that is even

known as Sonata a Therèse.
The 5th Symphony, that of the “Tchan- tchan- tchan Tchaaan, has already served
even for razor razor commercials.

PROGRAM 2 | THE SONATA FORM

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Everyone has heard a sonata. It is a piece to be played on an instrument. The name obviously comes from the Latin “sonare”, meaning to sound. Unlike the Cantata form that was made to be sung (by one or more soloists, with or without a choir.)

The sonata form has a major role in the history of music. As the instruments gained new features, the composers composed more complex and beautiful sonatas. Sonata follows the history of music in all its styles: the Baroque (between 1560 and 1720), a fertile period for music; Classicism between 1720 to 1800), with more rigid forms; romanticism (from 1800 to 1880), impressionism that opens the door to modernism.

Today we are going to understand the Baroque Sonata: the Baroque is a period of great wealth, great strength in the Church and in religion, and very ornate music, full of voices following one another (and forming the escapes). Bach (of this period, is the richest and most coherent composer, which we will see later).

From this period.Alessandro Scarlatti produced countless operas and cantatas. He was the father of Domenico Scarlatti.

Domenico was an amazing harpsichordist.

He was hired by the King of Spain to teach harpsichord to

princess Maria Barbara. The harpsichord was the most advanced keyboard of the time,

but it was different from the current piano, because the sound was obtained by tweezers

that “pinched” the strings. While the piano has hammers that

tangle the strings. Also the piano keys, which are now white,

they were black on the carnation. And the pound keys were white (today

on the piano, they are black). The carnation had records that allowed

change the sounds. With the harpsichord the wonder began

(and the torment) of mastering the keyboard technique. Scarlatti was

master of trills, octaves, scales, chords, unbelievable melodies

and harmonies (between chords) that still haunt us today

for creativity and beauty. Scarlatti wrote about 600 sonatas,

many have been lost.

All Scarlatti's sonatas have a movement, divided into two parts.

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Curiosities about Scarlatti:

- Incredibly, three geniuses from the Baroque period were born in the same year. See: Johan Sebastian Bach, Handel and Scarlatti were born in 1685.

- One of Scarlatti's most played songs (in fact it is to study the extremely difficult technique of the same repeated note) is Sonata em Re. The repetition suggests castanets. The pianist Martha Argerich is adept at playing it. Ask for Scarlatti Sonata in D m K 141 1983 recording.

- In 1721 Scarlatti (at this time a renowned harpsichordist) being at Count Ottoboni's Castle in Rome, he met Georg Frederich Handel and decided to compete to find out who was the best harpsichordist. Scarlatti won, in the harpsichord, although he lost when competing with executions in the organ. Scarlatti came to refer to Handel as being a genius.

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PROGRAM 3 | HAYDN AND THE CLASSIC SONATA

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Around 1760, the Baroque came to be considered heavy, full of voices in the music, and even difficult to appreciate. The western world was changing. Philosophy preached reason, but more clearly. Meanwhile, in music, new instruments appeared, or were perfected, and even a new type of keyboard called pianoforte was created. It offered musical effects that the harpsichord did not allow: differences between forte and piano (low volume sounds), as well as legato and stacato. Now the melodies could count on crescendos and diminuendos. The voice of the melody could rise above the accompaniment. ) style had to have clarity, symmetry, elegance.

Among all the musicians, one of them was fundamental to the style that emerged: Joseph Haydn. His music obeyed rules, which he himself created: sonatas had to have a logical structure: in the first movement (the longest) start with a theme, continue with another theme (which could be the opposite of the initial one), then make a significant development of these themes, then repeat them with a review and finally conclude with the coda (last notes). All of this in a first movement, because the sonata started to have more than one movement. With all the resources of the piano, the musicians could compose other minor movements, for example: an allegro, or an andante, or a minuet (noble ballroom dance) and finish with a presto. This pleased the nobles and music started to have a presence that meant status in the salons.

Haydn's life was not easy. At the age of six he was separated from his family to sing in the choir as a soprano in another city. He had music and violin lessons. At the age of 18 he lost his job because his voice had changed. He composed music and played in halls to support himself. He studied composition with conductor Porpora and became known.

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But his life changed when he started working for the Ezsterházy family, where he was helped, first by Prince Paul Anton Esterhazy. \ Then, with Prince Nicholas Esterhazy, with whom he maintained a privileged working relationship for more than 30 years. For that, Haydn had an orchestra! He created symphonies for events, or religious music when needed.

In 1781 he met Mozart in Vienna and was impressed by the young genius. Haydn was 24 years older than Mozart. They became friends and with enormous mutual admiration. Haydn continued to create sonatas, symphonies, oratories and quartets. He became the “Father of the Symphony” and the “Father of the quartet”, for establishing rules for these two types of training.

In terms of Sonatas, Haydn wrote more than 60, always following the structure of four movements (sometimes three).

We will hear a sonata with three movements and understand them: it is the Sonata in B minor;

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First movement: incisive, pointy, stacatto theme, second theme: more legate and less pointy. Development of the two themes until completion.

Second movement: Walking calm and melodic, in contrast to the beginning.

Third movement: the staccato returns in a fast and shiny “saltarello”, very beautiful. This clarity could not be obtained if it were in the harpsichord. The three movements are linked and have a meaning that each of us will personally feel.

Other Haydn sonatas that you can listen to: the wonderful Sonata in E flat major performed by Alfred Brendel.

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T in three movements full of spirit and humor, Unfortunately we only have the first movement on You Tube, the second has a very romantic intermezzo and the third is a Minuet. Choose other sonatas. You will understand Haydn's symmetry, elegance, and humor in everything you wrote.

Curiosities about Haydn:

He was very cheerful and playful, but as a young man known for telling inconvenient jokes. This changed when he had to behave in the Esterhazy palaces.

It was extremely religious. Whenever he had difficulties, he prayed the rosary. When starting a work he wrote “In the name of God”. When I finished each work, I always thanked “Laudate Domino” (“Praise the Lord”)

He was short and ugly by the standards of the time, but when he was in London (and was considered the greatest living composer), he was always followed by the ladies.

It was difficult in business, because I always wanted to make the most of it. Sometimes it was somewhat fraudulent, selling the same work to more than one buyer.

Despite having written 104 Symphonies (as we will see later), 68 quartets, 32 trios and more than 60 Sonatas, when he stopped working he complained that he still had ideas, but he no longer had the strength to write them.