Ah, yes, the glorious celesta!
Sir Simon Rattle and the Berliner Philharmoniker
(0 votes, average: 0.00 out of 10)
Loading... Here's something lovely for your Friday courtesy of Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin and Spanish violinist María Dueñas.
Fun fact: I was going to play "Aquarium" from Carnival of the Animals, but someone beat me to it.
(1 votes, average: 7.00 out of 10)Loading... Not the lollapalooza you were expecting, eh?
Here's a fascinating bit from Adams about the piece: "I was attracted to [the word lollapalooza] because of its internal rhythm: da-da-da-DAAH-da. Hence, in my piece, the word is spelled out in the trombones and tubas, C-C-C-Eb-C (emphasis on the Eb) as a kind of ideé fixe. The 'lollapalooza' motive is only one of a profusion of other motives, all appearing and evolving in a repetitive chain of events that moves this dancing behemoth along until it ends in a final shout by the horns and trombones and a terminal thwack on timpani and bass drum."
(2 votes, average: 7.50 out of 10)Loading... Conducted by Copland himself!
1976
(1 votes, average: 8.00 out of 10)Loading... Let's pick up the pace a bit, shall we?
(1 votes, average: 10.00 out of 10)Loading... My first idea for today was to go with something from the soundtrack of the film Glory, but I ran into trouble finding a live performance.
So instead I give you Quatuor pour la fin du temps by French pianist and composer Olivier Messiaen. He composed this piece while he was at a German POW camp during World War II, and the unusual combination of instruments is due to being imprisoned with several other musicians--who played clarinet, violin, and cello. The piece had its premiere in January 1941 in the Stalag VIII-A camp, with an audience of about 400 prisoners and German guards.
(2 votes, average: 8.50 out of 10)Loading... (0 votes, average: 0.00 out of 10)Loading... Looks like I get a bonus day!
Performance with eighth blackbird, February 5, 2011.
(1 votes, average: 10.00 out of 10)Loading... Enough of that short stuff! This is another longtime favorite, and in a full circle moment, it's played by the same orchestra as my first piece of the week. Thanks, all, for having me!
February 2023
(1 votes, average: 7.00 out of 10)Loading... If you don't feel awake yet, I bet this will do the trick!
Reading more about this piece, I was quite surprised to learn that it was first staged in June 1937. I had somehow assumed it was much older than that.
(2 votes, average: 9.50 out of 10)Loading...