Who is the composer and where is he from? Ludwig van Beethoven was a German composer and pianist. He was a crucial figure in the transitional period between the Classical and Romantic eras in Western classical music, and remains one of the most acclaimed and influential composers of all time.
Born in Bonn, of the Electorate of Cologne and a part of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation in present-day Germany, he moved to Vienna in his early twenties and settled there, studying with Joseph Haydn and quickly gaining a reputation as a virtuoso pianist. His hearing began to deteriorate in the late 1790s, yet he continued to compose, conduct, and perform, even after becoming completely deaf. Much has been written and debated about Beethoven.
What else have they written that we may already know or have heard? One of the early pieces students learn is the theme to the 9th Symphony, commonly titled "Ode to Joy" in their books. He was a teacher and wrote wonderful teaching pieces, sonatinas, bagatelles, and other short works that are accessible to students.
What is the title? What does it mean? A sonata literally means a piece played as opposed to a cantata (Latin and Italian cantare, "to sing"), a piece sung. The term, being vague, naturally evolved through the history of music, designating a variety of forms prior to the Classical era. The term took on increasing importance in the Classical period, and by the early 19th century the word came to represent a principle of composing large scale works. It was applied to most instrumental genres and regarded alongside the fugue as one of two fundamental methods of organizing, interpreting and analyzing concert music. Though the sound of sonatas has changed since the Classical Era, 20th century sonatas still maintain the same structure and build. This is the 3rd movement of a sonata.
What time period is it from? This will be considered Classical.
What about this piece do you like? None of my students are interested in playing this piece-they made no comments here.
What sounds challenging? Students, remember that it's the 3rd movement only for the competition.
glimpses of the wonders of music teaching
Showing posts with label Sonata. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sonata. Show all posts
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Friday, October 16, 2009
Contest Literature-Mozart Sonata in c minor, K57, 1st movement
Who is the composer and where is he from? There is a great website that you may want to direct students to: http://kids.yahoo.com/directory/Arts-and-Entertainment/Music/Classical/Composers/Mozart--Wolfgang-Amadeus, for this and other composers that is full of "kid friendly" information.
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (German: [ˈvɔlfɡaŋ amaˈdeus ˈmoːtsart], full baptismal name Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791), was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical era. (Did you notice that Amadeus is not in his baptismal name?) He composed over 600 works, many acknowledged as pinnacles of symphonic, concertante, chamber, piano, operatic, and choral music. He is among the most enduringly popular of classical composers. And he and I share a birthday, hence my blog picture!
Mozart showed prodigious ability from his earliest childhood in Salzburg. Already competent on keyboard and violin, he composed from the age of five and performed before European royalty; at 17 he was engaged as a court musician in Salzburg, but grew restless and traveled in search of a better position, always composing abundantly. Visiting Vienna in 1781 he was dismissed from his Salzburg position and chose to stay in the capital, where over the rest of his life he achieved fame but little financial security. His final years in Vienna yielded many of his best-known symphonies, concertos, and operas, and the Requiem. The circumstances of his early death have been much mythologized. He was survived by his wife Constanze and two sons. Mozart always learned voraciously from others, and developed a brilliance and maturity of style that encompassed the light and graceful along with the dark and passionate.
What else have they written that we may already know or have heard? Students seem to know Mozart style, they love Rondo Alla Turca, and Eine Kleine Nachtmusik.
What time period is it from? Classical
What about this piece do you like? The running broken chord octaves and the crossing over of the right hand look fun.
What sounds challenging? Horowitz is rumored to have said that he didn't play Mozart when he was young because it was too easy, and now he doesn't play Mozart as an old man, because he realized it was so difficult.
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (German: [ˈvɔlfɡaŋ amaˈdeus ˈmoːtsart], full baptismal name Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791), was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical era. (Did you notice that Amadeus is not in his baptismal name?) He composed over 600 works, many acknowledged as pinnacles of symphonic, concertante, chamber, piano, operatic, and choral music. He is among the most enduringly popular of classical composers. And he and I share a birthday, hence my blog picture!
Mozart showed prodigious ability from his earliest childhood in Salzburg. Already competent on keyboard and violin, he composed from the age of five and performed before European royalty; at 17 he was engaged as a court musician in Salzburg, but grew restless and traveled in search of a better position, always composing abundantly. Visiting Vienna in 1781 he was dismissed from his Salzburg position and chose to stay in the capital, where over the rest of his life he achieved fame but little financial security. His final years in Vienna yielded many of his best-known symphonies, concertos, and operas, and the Requiem. The circumstances of his early death have been much mythologized. He was survived by his wife Constanze and two sons. Mozart always learned voraciously from others, and developed a brilliance and maturity of style that encompassed the light and graceful along with the dark and passionate.
What else have they written that we may already know or have heard? Students seem to know Mozart style, they love Rondo Alla Turca, and Eine Kleine Nachtmusik.
What time period is it from? Classical
What about this piece do you like? The running broken chord octaves and the crossing over of the right hand look fun.
What sounds challenging? Horowitz is rumored to have said that he didn't play Mozart when he was young because it was too easy, and now he doesn't play Mozart as an old man, because he realized it was so difficult.
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Contest Literature-Haydn Sonata in g minor, Hob. XVI:44
Hello blogging friends and colleagues-you are joining us in the middle of a gathering of Minnesota Music Teachers Association contest literature. Students have the opportunity to perform one of these pieces for an adjudicator, receive a critique, and the ultimate prize is a performance at Northrup auditorium on the University of Minnesota campus. At this Senior A level, there are twelve pieces from which to choose. Music is from across time periods, and hopefully, from across the globe, to provide new pieces and styles to students and teachers alike. So, after hearing the 12, make sure to stop back and tell me which pieces you would choose to learn in depth this year.
My regular blogging will be sporadic as I gather this information for my students and you. But I'm still here!
Who is the composer and where is he from? (Franz) Joseph Haydn (March 31, 1732 – May 31, 1809) was an Austrian composer. He was one of the most important, prolific and prominent composers of the classical period. He is often called the "Father of the Symphony" and "Father of the String Quartet" because of his important contributions to these genres. He was also instrumental in the development of the piano trio and in the evolution of sonata form.
A life-long resident of Austria, Haydn spent much of his career as a court musician for the wealthy Hungarian aristocratic Esterházy family on their remote estate. Isolated from other composers and trends in music until the later part of his long life, he was, as he put it, "forced to become original". At the time of his death, he was one of the most celebrated composers in Europe.
What else have they written that we may already know or have heard? Student may have played other sonatas or sonatinas, short minuets or German dances.
What time period is it from? Classical
What about this piece do you like? The arpeggiated figures running down the keyboard sound fun to play.
What sounds challenging? One student complains that the classical style takes too much listening for the differences. "It all sounds similar if you're not paying attention." This is also one of the longer selections.
My regular blogging will be sporadic as I gather this information for my students and you. But I'm still here!
Who is the composer and where is he from? (Franz) Joseph Haydn (March 31, 1732 – May 31, 1809) was an Austrian composer. He was one of the most important, prolific and prominent composers of the classical period. He is often called the "Father of the Symphony" and "Father of the String Quartet" because of his important contributions to these genres. He was also instrumental in the development of the piano trio and in the evolution of sonata form.
A life-long resident of Austria, Haydn spent much of his career as a court musician for the wealthy Hungarian aristocratic Esterházy family on their remote estate. Isolated from other composers and trends in music until the later part of his long life, he was, as he put it, "forced to become original". At the time of his death, he was one of the most celebrated composers in Europe.
What else have they written that we may already know or have heard? Student may have played other sonatas or sonatinas, short minuets or German dances.
What time period is it from? Classical
What about this piece do you like? The arpeggiated figures running down the keyboard sound fun to play.
What sounds challenging? One student complains that the classical style takes too much listening for the differences. "It all sounds similar if you're not paying attention." This is also one of the longer selections.
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