Part 1 (approx 1 hour) Part 2 (approx 1 hour)
Introduction
Concertos were how I got into classical music. I had started out by listening to Music Appreciation Records by Book Of The Month Club, back around 1962, when I was knee-high to a grasshopper's pet aphid, and got started listening to Beethoven's Fifth, and so on.
Concertos are works for solo instrument —or solo instruments— and orchestra. Usually there are three movements. We’ve already heard some slow movements from concertos; it’s time to listen to their first movements. The first movement of a concerto is sort of the signature movement; most people remember that first movement. We will also listen to some last movements, which are usually fast and exciting. I’m going to shorten these clips, especially in the longer movements.
Bach: Brandenburg Concerto No 5The first movement we’re going to listen to is one of the most highly recognizable movements in the Baroque repertoire. It is a triple concerto for flute, violin and harpsichord, and was one of the earliest concertos featuring the harpsichord as a solo instrument. In those times, i.e., roughly the time of Benjamin Franklin, the harpsichord was a sort of background instrument. When Bach used one as a solo instrument, people were startled, we’re told. Here’s the Brandenburg concerto No 5 in D major, the First Movement.
Telemann: Concerto for Flute and Recorder
The flute and Recorder are very similar instruments. Telemann, a composer who was very famous in his time, wrote a concerto for Flute and Recorder, which enables us to compare the two instruments side by side. This is Michala Petri and William Bennet performing Georg Philip Telemann’s Concerto for Flute and Recorder, with the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields. Try and see whether you can tell which is the recorder and which is the flute. The recorder sounds like a whistle.
Haydn: Concerto for Trumpet
One of the first performance I heard of the Williamsport Symphony was the Haydn trumpet concerto, played by the then maestro Rolf Smedvig, who was the solo trumpeter. Here’s the last movement, played by maestro Smedvig, with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, conducted by Jahja Ling. The second movement is very memorable, and I urge you to take a listen to it, perhaps on the Internet.
Mozart was a child prodigy, and a fabulous pianist of that time. This is the ending of one of his most famous concertos, written shortly before he died, at a time when he was deeply depressed. There is absolutely no hint of his mental state in the music. He was a very amazing man.
This performance is by Chick Corea, and the orchestra is the St Paul Chamber Orch, conducted by, of all people, Bobby McFerrin. The performance is actually wonderful, crystal clear and well articulated.
Bobby McFerrin: Don’t Worry, Be Happy
Since we mentioned Bobby McFerrin, we have to play something from him which we all know well.
Beethoven: The Emperor Concerto
This is one of the most amazing last movements of any concerto: the finale of Beethoven’s Emperor Concerto. It is played by Leon Fleisher
Mendelssohn: Violin Concerto in E minor
Here’s a large chunk of the Mendelssohn violin concerto, whose slow movement I played in an earlier show on beautiful melodies. The Mendelssohn family was of Jewish heritage, though they had converted to Lutheranism, and we can hear some Jewish inspiration if we try really hard.
Tchaikovsky: Violin Concerto
We’ve already listened to the slow movement; this is the first movement played by Leila Josefowicz.
Brahms: Piano concerto No 2.
As we were saying, Brahms wrote these major, utterly romantic, symphonic concertos, and his piano concerto no. 2 is one of them. It was played some years ago in the Community Arts Center, by a famous South American pianist whose name I have forgotten. Here are about ten minutes of the first movement. The word romantic doesn’t even begin to describe it.
Mozart: Sinfonia Concertante
Mozart’s Sinfonia Concertante was written for violin and viola, and is considered one of his greatest works by many. It is in four movements, and this is a part of the slow movement.
Hank Marvin: Dance On
The Shadows were a popular guitar group of the sixties in Britain. They accompanied Cliff Richard, but they were far from being simply his backup group. One of their most tuneful numbers was Dance On.
Mozart: Violin Concerto No 4
Mozart wrote five violin concertos, which were intended to be pure entertainment, and an opportunity to show off the skill of the violinist. This is the classical tradition of the concerto: an element of showcasing skills, and the dramatic contrast between the soloists and the orchestra.
I have several versions of Mozart’s violin concerto No 4, and just to see the difference between them, here is Viktoria Mullova playing a few seconds of the first movement, followed by Pinchas Zukerman playing the same portion. (We finished that segment with the Mullova recording of the complete first movement.)
Brahms: Violin Concerto, Movement 3
A little after Beethoven, concertos became less entertainment, and more what is called symphonic. Symphonies from the time of late Mozart were intended to be expressive, and works of art. There is smooth variation from entertainment to art, and most pieces and all performances have elements of both. Brahms and those who came after him were more concerned with the artistic possibilities of concertos, and Brahm’s violin concerto is generally recognized as being symphonic. In fact, Paganini, the great violinist, is famously supposed to have refused to play the Brahms concerto, because he said there was only one good tune in it, and that was given to the oboe. Here’s the third movement of Brahms’s violin concerto, played by a brilliant young Japanese violinist Sayaka Shoji. (The first few bars sound as though there are two violins playing: but this is just a technique called double-stopping. The violinist plays two strings at the same time. Triple-stopping is also possible.)
The Shadows: Dance On
The Shadows were a guitar instrumental group from Britain, who accompanied Cliff Richard. But they were far more than a mere backup band. This tune is a song, written by Valerie Murtagh: Dance On.
Dvorak Cello Concerto in B minor
Jacqueline Du Pre was a brilliant British cellist, who was married to Daniel Barenboim, the pianist and conductor. But Miss Du Pre died of multiple sclerosis at the tragic age of 42, --not 28, as I said on the air; that was the age at which she had to stop performing-- leaving everyone in shock. Dvorak was one of the first to write a modern concerto for solo cello. This is the first movement, played by Ms Du Pre, conducted by Daniel Barenboim.
Next week: Duets. Unfortunately, I was able to lay my hands on too few duets, so there is a lot of stuff from the Lycoming College Parents’ Weekend concert.
[Posted earlier:
Due to a glitch in the realtime software the station uses, Show 10: Concertos did not air at all the week of Sept 13. It will come on this Saturday (Sept 20, 2014) at 8:00 P.M.
What is the point of trying to popularize an appreciation (the appreciation of Classical Music) that is so closely identified with affluent city folks? Why should ordinary working stiffs such as constitute the vast majority of Williamsport residents care about classical music? The answer is firstly that I don't think the good things in life should be cornered by those who can afford big bucks. It belongs to all of us. In fact, arguably, the wealthy class is sadly uninterested in cultural pursuits. They don't attend concerts, they don't support orchestras, they don't pay their taxes to support the arts in any way. The joys of the wealthy have to do with impressing each other with how much wealth they have. The 1% is not a genteel bunch. There is more sensitivity to art and culture among the old, the feeble, the indigent and the unemployed than among the very affluent.
Secondly, if it is ever within the realm of possibility that we can afford to actually retire someday, books, music, theatre are all things that can make our declining years worth living, in addition to a bunch of healthy grandchildren to subvert!
Thirdly, classical music is actually cheaper than popular music to buy.
Finally, along with Jazz, classical music makes you think. (This is always an advantage for older folks.)]
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