July's Listening Picks
Hello everyone! You might have noticed that this week’s blog post looks a little different - and that’s because the term is now coming to an end. So, from now on and for the foreseeable future, I will be making a monthly post with five pieces to listen to, without any questions, but with a little bit of background information instead, or some of my thoughts on them. This way, you can choose what you listen to and hopefully discover something new.
So, on with July’s five picks!
Brahms - Symphony No. 2
This is a wonderful piece of music which I’m afraid I didn’t fully appreciate at all until I had the opportunity to play it with my youth orchestra. In fact, I used to think Brahms was a pretty dull composer. Having played it though, I began to appreciate how his thick melodic lines interweaved among each other, and sustained something truly profound throughout the whole piece. Just listen to how long his melodic lines are and the beauty of how they pass effortlessly between instruments with some beautiful countermelodies.
2. C. Schumann - Piano Trio
If you like the beauty of the melody lines and harmonies in the previous piece, you’ll love this one too. Schumann’s ability to blend her sumptuous harmonies and flowing melodies with real emotion and hide a depth of emotion behind something seemingly simple is really apparent here. She also creates some incredible musical colours using only 3 instruments.
3. Adams - A Short Ride in a Fast Machine
This is indeed a short piece, but incredibly interesting and fun. A simple rhythmic ostinato is played around with so that beats don’t fall where you might expect them, and layers of this begin to build. The result is something that’s pretty complex but exciting and engaging to listen to.
4. Price - (Songs of) The Oak
While Price was composing in what some might describe as a mix between European and American styles, I think her music holds a subtle depth, and something I have only really heard in her music. It is deeply descriptive and this tone poem offers a beautifully textured sound world with the perfect build and release of tension on multiple levels, revealing some juicy, often dark harmonies along the way.
5. Keating - Sun Will Set
This is just one of those awesome cello pieces that I have to share. Keating composed this by layering 16 cello parts on top of each other, using repetitive ideas that gradually build and change in harmony, rhythm, texture and colour to create something mesmerising.