Wikipedia (1885-1935) [Austrian. Modern.]
If you're just gonna listen to one: Piano Sonata
If you like modern music, you'll love this guy...
Background
Alban Berg studied composition under Arnold Schoenberg, and the two of them (with Anton Webern) comprised the Second Viennese School. What does that mean? Schoenberg was developing new ways of thinking about music -- sounds which were a distinct departure from the Romantic tradition of the time. The twelve-tone technique these three composers used created what sounds like modern music to most of us.
Before meeting Schoenberg, Berg was mostly a self-taught composer. By the time he started publishing his works, he had considerable experience. His Opus 1 (the piano sonata listed above) is significantly more sophisticated than most works with opus number 1.
Violin Concerto
Berg's Violin Concerto combines the twelve-note system with standard tonality, and has become part of the violin concerto repertoire. The piece is dedicated to "the memory of an angel" - a daughter of friends who had died. The piece is expressive and moving (like Romantic music), but also modern.
- Violin Concerto (Anne-Sophie Mutter)
- Violin Concerto (Ivry Gitlis)
Chamber
A String Quartet (samples: mov. 1 | mov. 2) by Berg is frequently performed, and Berg scholars have found in it (and in his Violin Concerto) "cryptological and numerological" references to his mistress. Berg was apparently obsessed with codes and numbers, and found ways to hide references to the under-the-radar parts of his life (including a child he had with a servant of the Berg household when he was young) in the music he composed. Berg's Lyric Suite is another chamber piece that is performed regularly.
Songs
Berg's Seven Early Songs are beautiful:
- Im Zimmer
- Traumgekrönt
- Sommertage
Opera
Berg wrote two operas: Wozzeck and Lulu. Wozzeck is intense ("the inevitability of hardship and exploitation for the poor"); Lulu is the story of a woman whose life proceeds from rich widow to prostitute.
Monday, October 29, 2012
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Modest Mussorgsky
Wikipedia (1879-1936) [Russian. Romantic.]
If you're just gonna listen to one: Pictures at an Exhibition (Bogatyr Gates)
Background
Mussorgsky is a composer we can describe as part of the Nationalist movement. He was, with four other Russian composers (Rimsky-Korsakov, Balakirev, Borodin, & Cui) called The Five - a group of composers who led the way creating a uniquely Russian style of classical music. His music definitely has a Slavic sound, as evidence by his most popular works...
Pictures at an Exhibition
Most people have heard this piece, as it's probably his most performed work. Originally composed for solo piano, Ravel created a version for orchestra which is what most people think of when they think of this title:
Piano: Evgeny Kissin | Gintaras Janusevicius | Sviatoslav Richter
Orchestra: BBC
There are so many performances of this piece, and they're all so interesting and different.
Night on Bald Mountain
Mussorgsky's other widely-heard piece is usually called Night on Bald Mountain. This version of his composition (originally called St. John's Night on the Bare Mountain) was reworked by Rimsky-Korsakov after Mussorgsky's death into the version of this piece usually performed. (Sadly, this piece was never performed at all during Mussorgsky's lifetime, and only came to be known in the version altered by Rimsky-Korskakov. The original version is gaining popularity now, though, and can be heard in performances with nearly as much regularity as the altered version.)
- Original Mussorgsky version
- Rimsky-Korsakov version
You have probably heard this piece if you've ever watched the Disney movie Fantasia or the Wizard of Oz.
- Fantasia
- Wizard of Oz - Dorothy's rescue (just the music)
- Wizard of Oz - Dorothy's rescue (with film)
Sadly, Mussorgsky died at a relatively young age. Artists of the time were seen as legitimate only if they participated in a drinking and partying lifestyle, which he did. He proved his anti-establishment credibility, but also set himself up for an early, alcoholism-related death.
If you love Mussorgsky's music, he wrote one opera (Boris Godunov), which is part of the standard opera repertoire. He was also a talented composer of songs, though he is best known for the two works highlighted above.
If you're just gonna listen to one: Pictures at an Exhibition (Bogatyr Gates)
Background
Mussorgsky is a composer we can describe as part of the Nationalist movement. He was, with four other Russian composers (Rimsky-Korsakov, Balakirev, Borodin, & Cui) called The Five - a group of composers who led the way creating a uniquely Russian style of classical music. His music definitely has a Slavic sound, as evidence by his most popular works...
Pictures at an Exhibition
Most people have heard this piece, as it's probably his most performed work. Originally composed for solo piano, Ravel created a version for orchestra which is what most people think of when they think of this title:
Piano: Evgeny Kissin | Gintaras Janusevicius | Sviatoslav Richter
Orchestra: BBC
There are so many performances of this piece, and they're all so interesting and different.
Night on Bald Mountain
Mussorgsky's other widely-heard piece is usually called Night on Bald Mountain. This version of his composition (originally called St. John's Night on the Bare Mountain) was reworked by Rimsky-Korsakov after Mussorgsky's death into the version of this piece usually performed. (Sadly, this piece was never performed at all during Mussorgsky's lifetime, and only came to be known in the version altered by Rimsky-Korskakov. The original version is gaining popularity now, though, and can be heard in performances with nearly as much regularity as the altered version.)
- Original Mussorgsky version
- Rimsky-Korsakov version
You have probably heard this piece if you've ever watched the Disney movie Fantasia or the Wizard of Oz.
- Fantasia
- Wizard of Oz - Dorothy's rescue (just the music)
- Wizard of Oz - Dorothy's rescue (with film)
Sadly, Mussorgsky died at a relatively young age. Artists of the time were seen as legitimate only if they participated in a drinking and partying lifestyle, which he did. He proved his anti-establishment credibility, but also set himself up for an early, alcoholism-related death.
If you love Mussorgsky's music, he wrote one opera (Boris Godunov), which is part of the standard opera repertoire. He was also a talented composer of songs, though he is best known for the two works highlighted above.
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