Brohann Sebastian Bach

What a hardass:

"In the summer of 1705, [Bach] got into a brawl with a student named Geyersbach. Geyersbach had insulted Bach's musical abilities and began to threaten him with a stick. Bach then reportedly called Geyersbach a "nanny-goat bassoonist" and Geyersbach retorted that Bach was a "dirty dog" and took a swing at him. Bach drew his sword, but Geyersbach jumped on him, making swordfighting impossible, and they fought until other students were able to break them apart. Later in the year, Bach was given four weeks leave to study the vocal music of Dietrich Buxtehude Another legend claims that Bach walked the entire 200 miles to Lьbeck for these studies. The four week leave actually turned into four months, which did not please Bach's superiors. Also, the new musical techniques that Bach picked up did not go over well and rumors were spread about his impropriety with a young woman. He eventually left this poor situation to take a job in Mьlhausen in June of 1707."

And some excellent quotes:

Beethoven:

"Only the pure at heart can make a good soup."

"Music is the wine which inspires one to new generative processes, and I am Bacchus who presses out this glorious wine for mankind and makes them spiritually drunken."

Elvis:

 I don't know anything about music. In my line you don't have to.

Mahler:

"If a composer could say what he had to say in words he would not bother trying to say it in music."


Stravinsky:

"A good composer does not imitate; he steals"

 And now, perhaps you can tell me if this is music...

 

Some enchanting music to start your week off right:

A new take on something you've heard before:



From the Jim Henson movie "Mirror Mask"

Something classical which will make you want to conquer dragons (if you listen to the whole thing)!



And this is how I spent my Sunday:



Have a nice day - you'll be hearing from me soon...

Original Classical Music by Peter Valente

Unless

Overview: “Unless” is based on the children’s book “The Lorax” by Dr. Seuss. “The Lorax” deals with themes of natural beauty and the destruction thereof at the hands of consumerism and capitalism. “Unless” is my translation of the book - at some points literal and exact, at others loose and impressionistic - into a musical medium. The message put forth in “The Lorax” was particularly poignant to me during the composition of “Unless” because I wrote the piece in 2009/2010 (without access to a piano) while living on the Pacific island of Pohnpei; Pohnpei is a place of immeasurable natural beauty which is currently facing the deleterious social and environmental effects of an imported, money-driven culture. Below is a cursory walk-through of the seven movements in the suite.  I do hope you make it all the way to the bottom, it is worth it (because some movements are wild and others conventional).

The Street of the Lifted – mirrors the eerie opening of the book in which the narrator finds himself walking through an inexplicably desolate world. This movement establishes the key of the Onceler as B minor.

Playing, Singing, Humming pt. 1 – represents the untouched natural world of the trees, bears, swans, and fish, each of which has its theme introduced here. With the exception of the tree theme, the natural themes are in two flats – a key which opposes that of the Onceler. The twinge of melancholy at the beginning of the movement derives from the fact that it is the Onceler who is regretfully whispering the story.

Brownish, Mossy, Sharpish, and Bossy (suggested listening given time constraints) – contrasts the other movements in that rather than representing a specific point in the book, it represents one particular character’s journey from when he is introduced until he leaves at the end of the book. That character is the Lorax himself. The Lorax’s key signature is clear – no flats or sharps. As he is the sole mediator between nature and the Onceler, his key signature is exactly between the two. The downward run at the beginning of the movement is the first tree being chopped and crashing to the ground. The chords that follow show the Lorax springing forth from the stump. Towards the middle of the piece the listener hears many trees of the forest falling one after another. The final section prominently features a C-sharp and is hinted at earlier in the movement. It represents the Lorax flying away in the end of the book. In the final movement this episode is respelled, again using the C-sharp to show the Lorax flying away.

Without a Face – is a musical snapshot of the frenetic whirlwind which follows the Onceler’s business activities. In the book, the more the Onceler establishes his factories, the more the once peaceful landscape becomes a torrent of traffic and machinery. The many shifts within this movement help to evoke a feeling of instability. The movement begins in the key of the Onceler, but modulates a tritone away before returning. The rhythmic feel and textural style are also subject to unsettling fluctuation.

Playing, Singing, Humming pt. 2 – presents the tragedy that has befallen the once idyllic natural world. In the book the creatures are forced, one by one, to leave their old habitat; In this movement the once cheerful themes of the creatures are one by one turned to minor tonalities. In some cases the accompaniment has been changed to a more modern, almost bluesy feel so that it can be said that modernization itself has distorted the themes. Throughout the movement the tree theme is heard, but only the first three notes. Over and over again the three eighth notes at octaves are heard, but never once the entire theme. Only stumps remain, and they are scattered everywhere. Listen for the influence of Santigold!

Speak Truth to Power – describes the futile conversation between the Lorax and the Onceler. The key signature is one sharp which is right between those of the two characters. The piece is jarring, mechanical, and unyielding. In measures 13-25 the main themes from the third and forth movements are woven into the right hand creating an intercourse between the music of the Lorax and that of the Onceler. At the end of the movement the falling of the last tree is heard. Listen for the influence of Nine Inch Nails!

Unless – is a short, serene picture of the end of the book, fraught with tinges of melancholy. The form of the movement can be broken down into a simple ABAB'. The B section (m. 13-15) represents the Lorax flying away and thus contains the C-sharp from the end of the third movement. The B' section (m. 30-36) represents the seed at the end of the book which the Onceler gives to the narrator, and the hope for which that seed stands.

And that's where it stands, hope you enjoyed...

Nick's Picks - Volume I

Happy Monday and welcome to the first edition of "Nick's Picks" in which I will be exploring - in classical terms - a piece of electronic music of Nick's (Nick Valente aka Rex Riot) choice. This week's pick: Tommy's Theme by Noisia.

The first section (or as the classical folks are fond of calling it: the exposition) runs from 0:00 to 1:05. We will call this section A.  We can break the A down into two main parts and a codetta (return to the home key after the exposition). The first main part of the A section we will call a repeats four chords - C#minor, A, F#minor, G#minor - the entire time.  While there is no further harmonic development within a, almost every iteration of the four chords ushers in a new voice.  Plucked (pizzicato) strings with drums, synths, hi-hats, basses.

At 0:39, the key and instrumentation both change. This is b.  The same four chord progression is played but this time it sounds three semitones higher, or in the key of E minor. It becomes E minor, C, A minor, B.  This key change on its own would create a striking shift in atmosphere, but Noisia couples it with the addition of a choral melody to beautiful effect.

From 0:51 to 1:05 there is a string codetta.

The next section we can call B.  While no new harmonic material is introduced, Noisia makes this section as distinct as can be from the previous section through the use of timbre. Also, the iterations of four chords from the a and b sections only occur twice each before switching and each progression is played three times in the B section.  So you can break it down as a'b'a'b'a'b' with a' and b' being variations of a and b.

At 2:22 A returns.  It is repeated from the exposition but shortened to create symmetry with the B sections.

At about 3:00 B' is heard and lasts until the Coda at 4:20.

Simple right?  It's the timbre that makes all the difference.  It would be hard to play this song on guitar and keep it interesting the whole time because it's just the same two sets of chords repeated over and over.  That said, the amount of energy which went into the creation of these specific timbres is what makes the piece great.