Magnificent Unusual Geniuses
Igor Stravinsky, Hector Berlioz Arnold Schoenberg and Richard Wagner are some of known names regarding classical music. Unfortunately, I have never heard of any of them. This is the first time I was exposed to such individuals who possess talents of things I've never understood.
I thought Igor Stravinsky was just another musical genius, but there was more to his character than one would expect. Stravinsky was known to be a chemist and a photographer. By the way he was describing, one would think he was obsessed with creating the perfect picture by capturing every aspect and color he can. Stravinsky is known for his famous 1910 ballet, “The Firebird”. He uses lots of imagery to capture what he’s trying to portray in music, such as a young woman dancing till exhausted men dry out and turn to stone. A man named Nicholas Roerich, a
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philosopher, proved to be a valuable asset to Stravinsky. Nicholas Roerich was a man who was obsessed with the pre historic time period, pottery, battles and old religious rituals. What I found to be weird was that Stravinsky and Roerich planed to meet in a place called takaskino where they were to discuses their “baby.” What I found to be even weirder was that they stayed at a princesses house and wrote on her house beams for some odd reason. One noticeable thing about Stravinsky is that he used a lot of Lithuania folk melody in his music. I was also fascinated at how he added his own twist to it when these Lithuanian songs were played with weird instruments such as the zhalekia and dudka. The zhalekia was known as a shepherd’s pipe made from horns of a cow or a goat, and was similar to a clarinet. The dudka was a peasant’s flute which was made from a twig or a stick. I was enlightened by his ability to take Lithuanian folk music and create something of his own with an orchestra. Arnold Schoenberg another composer was pretty impressive.
He was able to self teach. Many people weren’t fond of his work especially the Cabaret for Paris. What was weird about his music was that it was described to be sexual, lacked interest and was commercial misuse. After, failing Schoenberg was able to show his music to the prestige Gustav Mahler. What was interesting was that it only had four staves which was a short piece compared to his other works. Even though Mahler liked Schoenbergs music, others still hated it. It so ended up that Schoenberg only showed his musical pieces to his friends because he feared being condemned for his work. At one point Schoenberg started to paint but was only an amateur. Mahler found beauty in his art and bizarrely purchased them anonymously. After a long while Schoenberg decided to compose again because he believed the spring time was the right time to create his work. The work of Schoenberg again was composed in a way that many found to be depressing. He was even criticized for not having any harmony, melody or themes in his music but he didn’t
care. Hector Berlioz was never meant to be a musical genius accord to his parents. At the age of 18 he was sent away to Paris to become a doctor. But Berlioz had a destiny of his own. Going against his parents wishes,he began to attend the opera every night and even got himself a composition teacher. Berlioz also has a passion for a woman that he portrays to have all the charms that he’s is looking for. Weirdly, the woman that he was talking about never appears but in associations with a musical idea. During his childhood he discover Estelle, which was a book of romance and poem. He used this book as an inspiration for writing music. He wrote a piece of music at the age of twelve which he then threw away for reasons unknown. Berlioz enrolled in the Paris conservatoire but he was criticized by the director that his music was unplayable and was disqualified. Interestingly, the next year committee of judges liked his music and praised him. He was two votes from being first place. In his music Berlioz's first movement was criticized for being unconventional. It might be because he sought melodies that were so intense in every note that it would defy normal harmonization. Richard Wagner was a poetic man who was able to use aspects of romance in his music that he composed. What I found to be weird was that Wagner wrote back and forth to a married woman named Mathilde Wesendonck. Mathilde was fascinated with Wagner's ability to create wonderful music and proclaims him to be wise. Wagner responded to her that he was not wise so that gave him the ability to leap over abysses that wise men aren’t aware off. Wagner opera Tristan and Isolate claim by critics to ruin the way of erotic life and focus on the glorification of sexual pleasure. Wagner focused on romance and became a very successful romantic composer.
A conductor may be seen by many as a very important part of a musical but others may see them as unnecessary. Stravinsky feels that conductors don’t deserve the all the attention and respect that is given to them by critics and audiences. The passage tells of how Stravinsky finds conductors to be more of a distraction than talented musicians. In the Passage, Stravinsky uses diction and metaphors to explain his disdain of conductors.
All had great influence on later composers, Mozart on Beethoven, Bartók on Copeland and Bach on everyone including his twenty or so children
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Ludwig van Beethoven are very famous past composers that have created many pieces that have influenced not just people of their time, but people in modern times as well.
Dmitri Dmitrievich Shostakovich (Russian: Дми́трий Дми́триевич Шостако́вич (help·info), tr. Dmitriy Dmitrievich Shostakovich, pronounced [ˈdmʲitrʲɪj ˈdmʲitrʲɪjɪvʲɪtɕ ʂəstɐˈkovʲɪtɕ]; 25 September [O.S. 12 September] 1906 – 9 August 1975) was a Russian composer and pianist. He is regarded as one of the major composers of the 20th century.[1]
American classical music has been innovated with every single passing year, majority of the composers have added their taste and invention to further enhance the crispiness and enchanter the form of classical music. One of the most legendary and prominent composer of classical music is John Adams.
In the passage by Igor Stravinsky, he uses not only comparison and contrast, but also language to convey his point of view about the conductors of the time and their extreme egotism. Stravinsky believes that conductors exploit the music for their own personal gain, so rather, he looks on them in a negative light.
First off, it changed the purpose of music by having a young composer, if they wanted to, have their compositions in the “musical museum”, model their compositions after what they believed previous composers had set their minds to. As Burkholder states, “...they sought to create music in the tradition of art music which would say something new, while incorporating what was best and most useful from the music of the past” (Burkholder 120). Yes they had to create music that model their compositions after previous composer, but still had to express their personality in these compositions, by still pulling from older compositions of the masters. This in turn, presents the proof that the purpose of music had changed from trying to appeal to the present audience, to instead having young composers make their music to reach a higher more valuable goal, making an impact and immortalizing their music in the “musical museum”. Secondly, the conception of music saw a change through the present audience at the time. Since composers focused less on what the audience would think of the music it brought a mass of dislike among the audience, and made these compositions esoteric. With these two changes in music came the creation of the “musical
Some of the most well known composers came to be in the in the classical music period. Ludwig van Beethoven was one of the composers, along with other greats of the time like Haydn and Mozart, which helped to create a new type of music. This new music had full rich sounds created by the new construction of the symphony orchestra.
In terms on contributions to Classical-Era music, Stamitz is credited with many innovations. As the concertmaster of the Mannheim orchestra, he lead it to a standard unparalleled in it's day. Another extremely influential contribution...
appreciation. Because of these composers and musicians, music was enjoyed by the public and revered by the church. Because of their creativity and their willingness to take musical risks, these composers were the fathers of the Renaissance, the rebirth, the life of the vigorous and intellectual activity, the beginning of music.
Mahler also showed great enthusiasm for new works and new composers. Although his own compositions were grounded in late romantic post-Wagnerism, the younger composers in Vienna's composition circle (Schoenberg, Berg, Webern, Zemlinsky, etc.) had a great appreciation for his music (Schoenberg, at least, taking a while to do so), and Mahler in turn encouraged their work.
Classical music can be best summed by Mr. Dan Romano who said, “Music is the hardest kind of art. It doesn't hang up on a wall and wait to be stared at and enjoyed by passersby. It's communication. Its hours and hours being put into a work of art that may only last, in reality, for a few moments...but if done well and truly appreciated, it lasts in our hearts forever. That's art, speaking with your heart to the hearts of others.” Starting at a young age Johann Sebastian Bach and Ludwig van Beethoven have done just that with their musical compositions. Both musical composers changed the world of music and captivated the hearts of many. Their love of composing shared many similar traits, though their musical styles were much different.
The music he produced had a lot of control with a lot of flair. He liked improvisation, but did not leave that up to the performer. Instead, he wrote very virtuosic passages for his pieces, with which the performer did not have much room for imaginative playing. Then there is his knowledge on how to writ...
As Richard Wagner became a well-known and practiced composer, his reputation grew into an infamous one. Wagner was known for his anti-sematic writings and intricate operas and
It is said that the artists that made the biggest impression were Schoenberg and his two students Webern, and Berg who were all classical musicians. Philip Glass is primarily known