Comments by the musicians
Nessun Dorma:
"Sung by the unknown prince, who falls in love at first sight with the beautiful but cold Princess Turandot. However, any man who wishes to wed Turandot must first answer her three riddles; if he fails, he will be beheaded. In the aria, Calaf expresses his triumphant assurance that he will win the princess”
Correlli Concerto Grosso:
-6 mvts
- "The concerto bears the inscription Fatto per la notte di Natale (made for the night of Christmas). Its composition date is uncertain, but there is a record of Corelli having performed a Christmas concerto in 1690 for the enjoyment of his new patron.
- What is a Concerto Grosso?: "a form of baroque music in which the musical material is passed between a small group of soloists (the concertino) and full orchestra (the ripieno or concerto grosso). This is in contrast to the solo concerto which features a single solo instrument with the melody line, accompanied by the orchestra.
Autumn:
"The Four Seasons may be classified as program music, instrumental music that intends to evoke something extra-musical and an art form which Vivaldi was determined to prove sophisticated enough to be taken seriously”
- talked about: bird calls, storm, wind, hunting, dance etc.
They also read the sonnets attached to this season:
Celebrates the peasant, with songs and dances,
The pleasure of a bountiful harvest.
And fired up by Bacchus' liquor,
many end their revelry in sleep.
Adagio molto
Everyone is made to forget their cares and to sing and dance
By the air which is tempered with pleasure
And (by) the season that invites so many, many
Out of their sweetest slumber to fine enjoyment
Allegro
The hunters emerge at the new dawn,
And with horns and dogs and guns depart upon their hunting
The beast flees and they follow its trail;
Terrified and tired of the great noise
Of guns and dogs, the beast, wounded, threatens
Languidly to flee, but harried, dies
New World Symphony
"Written while Dvořák was living and working in New York City, the symphony purportedly incorporated the composer’s reflections on his American setting."
"Dvořák’s writings reveal that he admired the beauty of African American spirituals and plantation songs of the American South and that he advised other composers also to study them for inspiration"
We then mentioned that like Dvorak, most of us are immigrants as well.
Nessun Dorma:
"Sung by the unknown prince, who falls in love at first sight with the beautiful but cold Princess Turandot. However, any man who wishes to wed Turandot must first answer her three riddles; if he fails, he will be beheaded. In the aria, Calaf expresses his triumphant assurance that he will win the princess”
Correlli Concerto Grosso:
-6 mvts
- "The concerto bears the inscription Fatto per la notte di Natale (made for the night of Christmas). Its composition date is uncertain, but there is a record of Corelli having performed a Christmas concerto in 1690 for the enjoyment of his new patron.
- What is a Concerto Grosso?: "a form of baroque music in which the musical material is passed between a small group of soloists (the concertino) and full orchestra (the ripieno or concerto grosso). This is in contrast to the solo concerto which features a single solo instrument with the melody line, accompanied by the orchestra.
Autumn:
"The Four Seasons may be classified as program music, instrumental music that intends to evoke something extra-musical and an art form which Vivaldi was determined to prove sophisticated enough to be taken seriously”
- talked about: bird calls, storm, wind, hunting, dance etc.
They also read the sonnets attached to this season:
Celebrates the peasant, with songs and dances,
The pleasure of a bountiful harvest.
And fired up by Bacchus' liquor,
many end their revelry in sleep.
Adagio molto
Everyone is made to forget their cares and to sing and dance
By the air which is tempered with pleasure
And (by) the season that invites so many, many
Out of their sweetest slumber to fine enjoyment
Allegro
The hunters emerge at the new dawn,
And with horns and dogs and guns depart upon their hunting
The beast flees and they follow its trail;
Terrified and tired of the great noise
Of guns and dogs, the beast, wounded, threatens
Languidly to flee, but harried, dies
New World Symphony
"Written while Dvořák was living and working in New York City, the symphony purportedly incorporated the composer’s reflections on his American setting."
"Dvořák’s writings reveal that he admired the beauty of African American spirituals and plantation songs of the American South and that he advised other composers also to study them for inspiration"
We then mentioned that like Dvorak, most of us are immigrants as well.