Dead-Composers Society

[AC Benus]

I don’t know much about this composer, only that he's English and was active in the middle of the 19th century. By the little bit of his music I've heard on youtube, I imagine he was a powerful performer.

 

E. Parish-Alvars: Grande fantaisie sur Lucia di Lammermoor de Donizetti –

Valérie Milot

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wmKBmx--KPk

[Lux Apollo]

Jean Rondeau is one of my faves among the younger generation of pro harpsichordists out there right now. Here's a recording of him playing Jean-Nicolas-Pancrace Royer's Marche des Scythes, an exciting piece often used as the finale for a harpsichord solo concert - and sometimes as an encore piece.

 

[J.HunterDunn]

Jean Rondeau is one of my faves among the younger generation of pro harpsichordists out there right now. Here's a recording of him playing Jean-Nicolas-Pancrace Royer's Marche des Scythes, an exciting piece often used as the finale for a harpsichord solo concert - and sometimes as an encore piece.

 

 

 

Magnificent. I especially liked the execution of the ornamentations.

 

The editor of the youtube visual component I'd like to strangle, though. I got dizzy from all the different camera-angles.

Edited August 17, 2016 by J.HunterDunn

[J.HunterDunn]

Yesterday I was reading an online story, where one of the characters was listening to Samuel Barber's Adagio for strings.

 

Usually you hear the adaptation for string ocherstra. Here's the original version for string quartet.

I'd like to dare every person in the universe (and you don't even have to be gay) to listen to this with dry eyes.

 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKrxPTePXEQ

[Tomas]

Jean-Philippe Rameau (French: 25 September 1683 – 12 September 1764) was one of the most important French composers and music theorists of the Baroque era. He replaced Jean-Baptiste Lully as the dominant composer of French opera and is also considered the leading French composer for the harpsichord of his time, alongside François Couperin.

 

The Following was used in  the 2004 French film “Les Choristes”.

 

Hymn to the night (La Nuit)

Choir: Les Petits Chanteurs de Saint-Marc

Soloist: Jean-Baptiste Manieur

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NMwLt-HlI0E

 

Lyrics [English Translation]

 

The Night

O night, come and bring the earth

The calm spell of your mistery

Its ushering shadow is so sweet

So sweet is the concert of your fingers singing hope

So great is your power changing everything into a happy dream

 

O night, leave the earth a little longer

The calm spell of your mistery

Your ushering shadow is so sweet

Is there a beauty as beautiful as dream?

Is there a truth sweeter than hope?

Edited August 17, 2016 by Tomas

[Lux Apollo]

The editor of the youtube visual component I'd like to strangle, though. I got dizzy from all the different camera-angles.

Yeah it was a bit much...

Edited August 17, 2016 by lux_apollo

[Lux Apollo]

Jean-Philippe Rameau (French: 25 September 1683 – 12 September 1764) was one of the most important French composers and music theorists of the Baroque era. He replaced Jean-Baptiste Lully as the dominant composer of French opera and is also considered the leading French composer for the harpsichord of his time, alongside François Couperin.

 

The Following was used in  the 2004 French film “Les Choristes”.

 

Hymn to the night (La Nuit)

Choir: Les Petits Chanteurs de Saint-Marc

Soloist: Jean-Baptiste Manieur

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NMwLt-HlI0E

 

 

 

Rameau's works have a special place in my heart, both as a harpsichordist and a fan of baroque opera. He had such a talent at setting the atmosphere for drama or comedy, giving the orchestra and singers the space they need to bring the characters to life. Here's an extract from a concert of various works by Rameau celebrating the anniversary of the founding of Les Musiciens du Louvre, an air from the comic opera Platée. Mireille Delunsch is absolutely brilliant as 'La folie'.

 

[Lux Apollo]

And now for what I meant to post today - a piano work by Carl Tausig (1841-1871), one of Liszt's greatest students, who tragically died of typhoid only a few months before his 30th birthday. He was regarded as an amazing pianist - one Rubinstein actually called 'infallible' at one point. Tausig's output was rather small, and is seldom heard. Here's a recording of his piano piece 'The Ghost Ship':

 

[Lux Apollo]

Feeling a bit happier today, and needed some fun music while I work. Guillaume de Machaut (~1300-April 1377) was one of the monolithic figures of late medieval music and poetry, and of the ars nova musical movement in particular. He was a prolific composer of both secular and sacred music, and his Messe de Notre Dame is the first surviving example of a complete Catholic mass ordinary written as a unified piece (although this is contested by some in the musicological community). Machaut was also very important in the development of a number of secular music forms, such as the ballade, rondeau and virelai, although he wrote almost exclusively with themes of courtly love in the lyrics. 'Je vivroie liement/Liement me deport' is a fun example of the virelai genre.

 

[J.HunterDunn]

And now for what I meant to post today - a piano work by Carl Tausig (1841-1871), one of Liszt's greatest students, who tragically died of typhoid only a few months before his 30th birthday. He was regarded as an amazing pianist - one Rubinstein actually called 'infallible' at one point. Tausig's output was rather small, and is seldom heard. Here's a recording of his piano piece 'The Ghost Ship':

 

 

 

Not being a great fan of Liszt I started the Tausig piece with apprehension. While listening I got the uneasy feeling, that the aim of the composer with this piece was to be able to show off how much of a virtuoso he was. It no doubt takes great skill to perform this piece of music, but it didn't impress me in other ways.

[J.HunterDunn]

Jean-Philippe Rameau (French: 25 September 1683 – 12 September 1764) was one of the most important French composers and music theorists of the Baroque era. He replaced Jean-Baptiste Lully as the dominant composer of French opera and is also considered the leading French composer for the harpsichord of his time, alongside François Couperin.

 

The Following was used in  the 2004 French film “Les Choristes”.

 

Hymn to the night (La Nuit)

Choir: Les Petits Chanteurs de Saint-Marc

Soloist: Jean-Baptiste Manieur

 

---

 

Thanks for posting this, Tomas.

Having spent my boyhood as a soprano (though not in a choir) I have always had great affinity with boy choirs. I think I saw a few girls as well. Although this is not meant as such, it's a pleasure to see that "authentic" performers of music of that period prefer boys choirs, which is how the music would have been performed in the time.

[Lux Apollo]

Not being a great fan of Liszt I started the Tausig piece with apprehension. While listening I got the uneasy feeling, that the aim of the composer with this piece was to be able to show off how much of a virtuoso he was. It no doubt takes great skill to perform this piece of music, but it didn't impress me in other ways.

I am not a Liszt fan either, but I do like giving more obscure composers some appreciation. Is the piece a masterpiece of the piano repertoire? That is not the case here, but beyond the elements of virtuosity, there are some very interesting things he did with compositional/gestural devices and extended tonality that I found interesting maybe in a more academic sense.

[Lux Apollo]

Thomas Adès is an interesting (but not dead...) contemporary British composer. He's wrote some really cool stuff... including a scene in the opera 'Powder her Face' where there is simulated fellatio behind a screen with the character singing while giving the blowjob. Anyway... this is his 2010 chamber piece Polaris:

 

 

Edited August 21, 2016 by lux_apollo

[Valkyrie]

I thought you guys would appreciate this.  

 

[northie]

I thought you guys would appreciate this.

 

 

I'm not a composer - but I've definitely been on the receiving end: 115 bars later, I have a note ...

 

Wonderful!

[northie]

In tribute to my friend, northie. Know I and many others will be thinking of you in your absence. Music fit for Queen Anne, and I offer it for you, dear one.

 

Come back to us soon.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2MuCCbg0k_0

 

 

And a second one to boot

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GImxiaeXr9Q

 

This is just my public acknowledgement of what this meant to me. Thank you, AC.

 

(And the choices were spot on, as well.)  

[northie]

I don’t know much about this composer, only that he's English and was active in the middle of the 19th century. By the little bit of his music I've heard on youtube, I imagine he was a powerful performer.

 

E. Parish-Alvars: Grande fantaisie sur Lucia di Lammermoor de Donizetti –

Valérie Milot

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wmKBmx--KPk

 

As I was reading this, I was thinking: harp music? Glad I was right. You can tell which songs or arias were real hits in the second quarter of the C19 by how many of these sorts of fantasies or sets of variations were produced for either harp or piano.

 

Interesting to hear instead of seeing on the page.  

Edited August 21, 2016 by northie

[J.HunterDunn]

Although a bit off topic, because his music is not "classical" in the formal sence, I would like to pay tribute to the Belgian composer and mouth-harmonica player Toots Thielemans, who died today, aged 94.

He may be known for his contributions to the movies Midnight Cowboy and Turkish Delight, but he also played with well known people, like Ella Fitzgerald and Paul Simon.

In Turkish Delight (Turks Fruit in Dutch) the actor Rutger Houwer plays the leading role in a time before he made it in the US as an actor.

 

From this movie here's the soundtrack of one of the musical themes.

A bonus is, that the visuals show great pictures of the beautiful capital of my country.

 

 

[northie]

Yesterday I was reading an online story, where one of the characters was listening to Samuel Barber's Adagio for strings.

 

Usually you hear the adaptation for string ocherstra. Here's the original version for string quartet.

I'd like to dare every person in the universe (and you don't even have to be gay) to listen to this with dry eyes.

 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKrxPTePXEQ

 

I also like the version for choir, Agnus Dei.

 

[northie]

Rameau's works have a special place in my heart, both as a harpsichordist and a fan of baroque opera. He had such a talent at setting the atmosphere for drama or comedy, giving the orchestra and singers the space they need to bring the characters to life. Here's an extract from a concert of various works by Rameau celebrating the anniversary of the founding of Les Musiciens du Louvre, an air from the comic opera Platée. Mireille Delunsch is absolutely brilliant as 'La folie'.

 

 

Rameau is also one of my favourites.

 

I love the musicality and rhythmic drive of the many dances which occur in the operas. The recording I have of Dardanus is live and the life-affirming joy of the music is palpable.

 

Here is a slightly more staid performance of the Suite from Dardanus.

 

[AC Benus]

Although a bit off topic, because his music is not "classical" in the formal sence, I would like to pay tribute to the Belgian composer and mouth-harmonica player Toots Thielemans, who died today, aged 94.

He may be known for his contributions to the movies Midnight Cowboy and Turkish Delight, but he also played with well known people, like Ella Fitzgerald and Paul Simon.

In Turkish Delight (Turks Fruit in Dutch) the actor Rutger Houwer plays the leading role in a time before he made it in the US as an actor.

 

From this movie here's the soundtrack of one of the musical themes.

A bonus is, that the visuals show great pictures of the beautiful capital of my country.

Thanks for posting this, Peter. His style is unmistakable, and I know him mainly for his Gershwin performances. Here's a live performance. I hope you enjoy

 

[Parker Owens]

I can't help posting this one which I ran across unexpectedly today. It echoes still in my brain.

 

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=nlApOe-3Y3k

[northie]

I can't help posting this one which I ran across unexpectedly today. It echoes still in my brain.

 

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=nlApOe-3Y3k

 

If, like me, you get a 'video not available' on Parker's link, try this one instead (I hope it's the same piece ...  )

 

[AC Benus]

I ran into this yesterday evening – the first time I heard it. I think the syncopations of the first movement are really interesting, especially as they're not just ornamental, but the structural refrain the entire movement is built upon. Also, the performance is so lively and brilliant, and spontaneous sounding. Love that.

 

 

Tomás Bretón - Symphony No.3 in G-major (1905)

 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gk7PR0HXdjc

Edited August 25, 2016 by AC Benus

[AC Benus]

:)

Edited August 25, 2016 by AC Benus