Erik Satie’s “Gymnopedie No. 1” has an overarching influence in the world of classical piano and modern music because of the ambiance, rebellion, and the structure of the piece. Satie is able to use dissonance and a simple melodic line to defy the compositional standards in the late-romantic era. Satie’s “Gymnopedie No. 1” was an example of rebellion to the compositional thought, just as Satie was a rebel in the eyes of the established musicians.
Erik Satie was an eccentric French composer during the Romantic era who defied the status quo in formal composition. Satie defied the established “Wagnerian” approach to composition that pertained to structure and clarity by setting up a sense of aloofness and dissonance. Satie was greatly influenced by Medieval music, notably the Plainsong, which shaped Satie’s harmony and melody. Satie would not only break accepted standards but would also poke fun at the composers and their compositions, such as by giving musical markings that would ridicule those of other composers (e.g. Figure it out Yourself). Although many of Satie's peers looked down at him, Satie was friends with several composers, most notably Claude Debussy and Maurice Ravel, who
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influenced Satie and became influenced. The influence was especially important in Satie’s composition of the “Trois Gymnopedies” where the break away from western compositional standards led to several musical styles such as ambient music. Satie’s “Gymnopedie No. 1”, written in 1887, is one of three “Gymnopedies” which are ambient and subtle pieces that go against the established foundation of classical composition by having a recurring and somewhat free form. “Gymnopedie No. 1” contains recurring “pedal” chords, Major 7ths, with a gently melody overtop in the key of D/Bm that modulates and becomes modal. This leads to a piece that goes from subdominant, IV, to tonic, I, back and forth which is against some western standards of form. The defiance of the standards at the time by Satie and his “Gymnopedie” caused a rupture in the reception of the piece, but all hope was not lost. Debussy and several others orchestrated and arranged the piece. Later on Satie’s “Gymnopedie No. 1” was further arranged and studied and the popularity of the piece increased throughout the 20th century to the extent that the piece became a lasting influence to minimalism, ambient music, and classical piano altogether. The rebellion of “Gymnopedie No.
1” as a composition influenced composers such as Debussy, Milhaud, and Ravel with ambience and minimalism. The minimalism in “Gymnopedie No. 1” is seen with the repeating two chord progression and the inspiration behind the composition. The piece creates an ambience where the simple and somewhat unpredictable melodic line over dissonant chords causes a break in the traditional composition. The ethereal mood brought upon by the piece allows for a new compositional outlet where there is a placid and even existential mood, without veneration. The dissonance, simplicity, and unpredictability of Satie’s “Gymnopedie No. 1” serves as a musical basis in style not only for Satie’s contemporaries, but also for future musical
styles. The lasting impact of Satie’s “Gymnopedie No. 1” is one of resistance to an established system for the expression of self will. The aura produced by “Gymnopedie No. 1” is one that combines the tension between Satie’s character and his composition style. Satie serves as an innovator because of his constant experimentation and push at the standards of composition, such as in “Gymnopedie No. 1”'s use of dissonance. “Gymnopedie No. 1” influenced the rise of several musical styles and served as a basis for the upcoming revolution in music that is the modern era.
Gottschalk was a child prodigy, showing astonishing musical abilities at a young age. His father, against his mother’s wishes, sent him off to study music more intensively in Paris. During his time in Paris, Gottschalk studied piano with Charles Hallé, Camille Stamaty, and later studied composition with Pierre Maleden. Paris was just the beginning of the many places where he would compose some of his finest works.
Aristotle’s Appeals — Discuss the song’s logos, pathos, and ethos separately (in subsections, if you wish); which of these is the most effective in the song, and stating why you think so. Remember, “why” is the big question in this paper – for every opinion you give, you must tell why you believe it.
In the following paper I will be exploring the beginning of Leonard Bernstein's career and his family background. I will also look into the influences he had in his life and look at two pieces that he composed, "Jeremiah Symphony No. 1", and "Candide". My reasons for choosing these two pieces is due to the fact that they are contrasting in genre, one being a symphony with orchestration and the other being an operetta, and that they were written at different stages in Bernstein's life. They both produced a number of responses and displayed his wide range of musical ability.
- Norris, Jeremy Paul. The development of the Russian piano concerto in the nineteenth century. Indiana: Indiana University Press, 1988. Print.
John Warrack, author of 6 Great Composers, stated, “Any study of a composer, however brief, must have as its only purpose encouragement of the reader to greater enjoyment of the music” (Warrack, p.2). The composers and musicians of the Renaissance period need to be discussed and studied so that listeners, performers, and readers can appreciate and understand the beginnings of music theory and form. The reader can also understand the driving force of the composer, whether sacred or secular, popularity or religious growth. To begin understanding music composition one must begin at the birth, or rebirth of music and the composers who created the great change.
Jean Baptiste Lully made significant contributions to French music. His initial compositions “ballets de cour” didn’t deviate from the Italian forms. (Straughan (a)) They were merely collections of dances and burlesque scenes. (Gregory) “A step in Lully’s progression from ballet to opera was the increased role of music in his ballets.
Here, Beethoven takes melodic expression to a new level: The appoggiatura in bars, 14 and 16 create a harmonic tension over a diminished 7th chord that creates “the highly expressive progression used by nineteenth-...
Frederic Chopin, a Polish Nationalistic composer of the Romantic period, is a famous musician. Chopin’s compositions are individualistic to his talent and love of the piano. Chopin lived in Warsaw as a child and spent a great deal of his life living Paris amongst other artists of the Romantic period. He was influenced by people surrounding him and even more from his childhood in Poland. The Polonaise-Fantaisie in A-Flat major opus 61, is musically representative of Chopin and the Romantic period, nationalistic styles from Poland and unique innovations especially from Warsaw.
Western Music has developed in many ways since the middle ages through its form, sound, and message. Throughout these different periods in western music one thing has remained constant, the true essence of music, a way to communicate with someone on a much more divine level than be by rudimentary conversation. Though Ludwig Van Beethoven and Paul McCartney may seem completely opposite they have one in common through their music they changed the world’s perception of its self
Joseph Haydn and Ludwig van Beethoven. Two composers who marked the beginning and the end of the Classical Period respectively. By analysing the last piano sonata of Haydn (Piano Sonata No. 62 in E-flat major (Hob. XVI:52)) and the first and last piano sonatas of Beethoven (Piano Sonata No. 1 in F minor Op. 2, No.1, Piano Sonata No. 32 in C minor Op. 111), this essay will study the development of Beethoven’s composition style and how this conformed or didn’t conform to the Classical style. The concepts of pitch and expressive techniques will be focused on, with a broader breakdown on how these two concepts affect many of the other concepts of music. To make things simpler, this essay will analyse only the first movements of each of the sonatas mentioned.
Baroque music is characterized by its development of tonality, elaborate use of ornamentation, application of figured bass, and the expression of single affections. A considerable philosophical current that shaped baroque music is the interest in Renaissance ideas that spawn from ancient Greece and Rome. Ancient Greeks and Romans considered music to be an instrument of communication that could easily stimulate any emotion in its listeners. Therefore, musicians became progressively knowledgeable of the power one’s composition could have on its audiences’ emotions. Because of this, one of the primary goals of baroque art and music was to provoke emotion in the listener, which is closely connected to the “doctrine of affections”. This doctrine, derived from ancient theories of rhetoric and oratory, was the theory that a single piece of art or a single movement of music should express one single emotion. Intrinsically, instead of music reflecting the emotions, composers aspired to cause emotions in the listener. Ma...
Beethoven is viewed as a transitional figure between the classical and romantic eras and from 1800 to 1809 he write some of the most revolutionary compositions in the history of western music. This essay therefore will aim to discuss the numerous ways in which Ludwig Van Beethoven expanded the formal and expressive content of the high classical style he inherited.
Arnold, Denis, ed. The New Oxford Companion to Music. Vol. 2. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1983.
Roughly from 1815 to 1910, this period of time is called the romantic period. At this period, all arts are transforming from classic arts by having greater emphasis on the qualities of remoteness and strangeness in essence. The influence of romanticism in music particularly, has shown that romantic composers value the freedom of expression, movement, passion, and endless pursuit of the unattainable fantasy and imagination. The composers of the romantic period are in search of new subject matters, more emotional and are more expressive of their feelings as they are not bounded by structural rules in classical music where order, equilibrium, control and perfection are deemed important (Dorak, 2000).
Franz Liszt is said to be the most astounding piano virtuosos that existed during the Romantic era. This essay will discuss his achievements as a pianist as well as a composer. This essay will examine his life and will examine what influenced him at an early age. It will also look at his accomplishments as a pianist as well as a composer and examine how he became as well known as he is today. It will use his background to show what exactly influenced him to become a successful pianist and composer and it will discuss how essential he was during the Romantic era.