Year of Wonder: Classical Music For Every Day (Part Two)

[IsFuzzyBeagMise]

Year of Wonder (Part One)

New thread to accompany the book Year of Wonder by Clemency Burton Hill.

All welcome to join in.

And the Bridge is Love: Howard Goodall.

I think this is wonderful. It's passionate and stirring with overtones of Elgar and Finzi. Beautiful. I love the soaring melodic line in the cello and the sympathetic strings and the harp. One for the playlist definitely.

Both the Buxtehude and the Goodall were lovely and as ever, my appreciation was deepened by Clemency's notes. The Goodall piece seemed deeply heartfelt.

Tomorrow is the duet from The Pearlfishers. I'll be emotionally wrung out at the end of this month 😅

Another mammoth catch up from me. We’ve been away, got back Tuesday and then I’m going away again tomorrow just for 2 nights, then immediately off again with DH and toddler DD to stay with in laws for a week. Not great planning for it all to come together like this, and I’ve not had much head space for much beyond turning the washing around in between and trying to get in top of work before being off again.

Anyway -

Liked the Bach Cantata though I never quite hear what Clemency hears somehow when it comes to Bach.

The Bellini was lovely.

Couperin/ Adès - Enjoyed this, very pleasant sounding, made me feel quite cheerful

The Rameau is dreamy and lovely, a favourite

The Schubert didn’t do masses for me, was nice enough

Enjoyed the Finzi , rather a sad/ longing piece. I can see what is meant by it feeling very ‘English’ and reminiscent of Elgar - not that had I heard it without the notes I’d have thought that all by myself or anything, but now having read them I do recognise what she’s saying which feels like personal growth 😁

Loved the Buxtehude - feel it’s one I need to go back to

Another beautiful and moving piece in the Goodall - what a quote from the Wilder novel at the end of the notes though! Definitely added to my appreciation of the piece, and I want to read the book now too.

'Au fond du temple saint' from The Pearlfishers: Bizet.

This is beautiful to the point that it makes me well up a bit. More internally though; not in a demonstrative way :)

I'll be back later with my favourites for the month as there were many of them.

I thought it was a lovely selection of music this month. I liked so many of them, that I found it difficult to narrow it down.

In chronological order; Stanford, Mozart, Dvořàk, Strozzi, Schumann, Webern, Marquez, Vivaldi, Adès, Rameau, Goodall, Bizet.

Onwards to October!

a bit behind on listening, very behind on posting.
Ades and Rameau I found bland.
Although they're never the first thing I turn to I always enjoy a Schubert Lied and this was no exception.
the Finzi had a lovely mood. I do like Elgar/Vaughan William/Delius and all those other British composers of that era who nudge up against Light Music (for which I have a daft fondness). Only minor gripe is that the string orchestra is not my favourite ensemble. I love a string quartet, but with a bigger string ensemble I always hanker for the clarity of an oboe or the warmth of a horn.
Buxtehude was clever and calming.
Goodall - lovely, haunting melody. Like the harp detail a lot.
Bizet was perfectly pleasant but I didn't feel the emotional hit.

Favourites for the month were Strozzi, Dvorak, Marquez, Vivaldi, Sibelius, Goodall.

6 Études de concert, Op.35 - 2: Autumn by Cécile Chaminade
This is lovely. I think you can hear the different moods of Autumn - dappled sunlight at the start, swirling breezes toward the middle.

I only know one other Chaminade work. DC1 has been practising the flute concertino, and that's a gorgeous piece as well.

I liked it. I thought it was nicely balanced between the calm and bright first section and the more tempestuous middle section. A piece of contrasts that suits the season.

Kol nidrei, by Max Bruch
I was impressed by this - solemn and beautiful. I'll take the cello over a piano any day.

I know this piece very well. I think it's beautiful and profound.

I have not been good at updating but just came on to say that I really enjoyed the Goodall and the Bruch, both of which were new to me.

I absolutely love the duet from The Pearl Fishers. I am (whisper it) not a big opera fan, but in one of my sporadic attempts to get into it my husband and I went to see a production of this at the London Coliseum a few years ago. The night we went there were various problems - I think Alfie Boe was ill, so we had an understudy, and then the understudy had to go off and someone else was singing his part from a score. But it was a beautiful production (the way they did the sea was amazing, I remember) and I was completely blown away by this duet. I feel exactly the way Clemency does about it. It's one of the most beautiful pieces of music I've ever heard.

I love your account of going to see The Pearl Fishers, Welshwabbit. That sounds wonderful. I agree with you about the duet. I also loved the Goodall. Strozi and Goodall stood out for me as new pieces, then the Bizet as an old favourite. * *

An den Schlaf-To Sleep: Hugo Wolf.

This is very dark and deep. I'm not surprised to read that the composer battled with depression and mental illness listening to this Lied.

I like the Wolf (and not just because it was short). Agree that it seemed to come from a place of darkness.

String Quartet No.3 'Mishima' 1st Movement: Philip Glass.

I really liked listening to this and I recommend listening to the whole quartet. I always feel a keen sense of excitement when I listen to Philip Glass. It's invigorating.

I really liked Clemency's tribute to her Dad in the notes today.

I liked the Pearl Fishers duet very much, didn’t totally blow me away in the way I was expecting from the notes though.

I wasn’t liking the Chaminade at first but it grew on my, I enjoyed the middle and end sections a lot.

The Bruch was stunning, on the faves list.

Agree that the Wolf felt very dark. Liked it for that.

I first watched/ listened to a vibraphone and marimba version of the Glass - just clicked the first one that I found without thinking, wasn’t sure how I felt about it other than it was strangely hypnotic. Then listened to an actual string quartet version and found I really did like it.

Rather surprised to like the Glass. It is rather mesmerizing.

I feel awful for saying I found the Bruch stagnant. The notes were very moving. I didn't love the Wolf either, found it bland.

The Glass I like very much indeed - somehow it manages to be shimmering and yet still dark.

Today's piece is Melodie from Orfeo et Euridice by Gluck arr. Sgambati

This is lovely. Delicate and wistful, with a building sense of drama. I don't know the opera at all so am probably not qualified to comment, but this arrangement certainly feels as though the piece were composed originally for piano.

I agree. It does sound as though it was written for piano. It seems very familiar to me, although I don't think I know the opera at all. I wouldn't have recognised it by the title.

Anyway, it is really beautiful for the reasons TheTurn has outlined. I think there is a lovely clarity to it too with the right hand maintaining the melodic line throughout.

'Autumn': Frank Bridge.

I love this. It's beautifully melancholic.

Air, deux insulaires from Roland: Jean-Baptiste Lully.

I think this is fabulous. I feel I've been instantly transported to the Court at Versailles :)

I remember reading about Lully's death. Ouch 😱What a stubborn fellow though, not to have had surgery.

Eek, falling behind. Will catch up on the last few days at the weekend. It's rather appalling to think that my listening time has been eroded by watching Married at First Sight. Teen dd more willing to bond with me over MAFS than with classical music though.

You're not too far behind, Biblio.
They are all short at least :)