It’s F-r-y-d-e-r-y-k …

Chopin‘s grand Polonaise in Ab is a favorite among pianists … at least those who can actually play it. A Polonaise is style of dance from Poland, Chopin’s homeland. I do admit though, every time I hear Liszt‘s Polonaise, I do get a bit Hungry* …

* get it?

We’ve got violin concertos a-plenty. We’ve got piano concertos galore. You want cello concertos? We’ve got twenty. But who cares? No big deal. I want more …

When it comes to solo repertoire, some instruments get all the attention (piano and violin). Then there’s the second tier of instruments that get less play time, despite having a solid repertoire of masterpieces (flute, clarinet, horn, trumpet, cello). Then there’s the “only if we have to” group of instruments that rarely get featured in concerts (oboe, bassoon, trombone, viola, organ). Finally, at the bottom, is the “I didn’t know that existed” repertoire – the Double Bass! ***

Giovanni Bottesini is known as the “Paganini of the Double Bass” (that is, a virtuoso that set the standard for great bass playing). Before Bottesini, the bass was seen as purely a support instrument. The cello is the official bass voice of the violin family, and the Double Bass doubles (copies) the cellos an octave lower, giving gravity to the cello part. The bass is a second-cousin-once-removed to the cello – they’re not actually in the same family (this is why the Double Bass has a different body shape from the violin family and a different tuning system.)

Here is the first movement of one of Bottesini’s concertos for the instrument. It is standard, good romantic writing; it’s gorgeously lyrical and really shows off the instrument as something way more than just a supporting voice in the orchestra.

*** To be fair, there is actually one tier of instruments below the Double Bass. It would be the “what the hell are you thinking” group – any instrument whose name has a modifying word in it, like “contra”, “alto”, or “tenor”.

This week I’m playing trombone in a pit orchestra for a community theater production of Andrew Lloyd Webber‘s Jesus Christ Superstar. I was introduced to this show as a teenager and immediately fell in love with it. When I was 16 I played it on piano for a professional theater, and often sang it with friends karaoke-style. However, this was 20 years ago.

The music has been on my mind this week, and not just because I’m actively participating in it. It’s kind of like visiting your old high school or hometown. It might look the same, or maybe it’s completely different. Maybe the visit fills you with nostalgia, or perhaps with hatred, love, confusion, or maybe even a oceanic connection to the past and future. But let’s not get carried away here.

The question I want to pose here is, why do we find this overture easy to swallow (musically speaking) whereas John Adams‘ Dr. Atomic symphony (a post from last week) is much more difficult?

I’m not sure I’m ready to give an answer, but here are some of the questions I’m ponderings and my thoughts:

• Is JCS “Art Music” or “Consumer Music?”
• Are my personal feelings (of nostalgia) clouding my judgment of this music (IE am I giving this piece more credit than is due because I loved it as a teenager) ?
• Am I giving Dr.A more credit than is due because my conservatory education says I should like it?
• Both pieces use highly accented pitch clusters in a rhythmic landscape, and are either atonal or have tonality ambiguity.
• JCS uses a lot more percussion – the familiar drum patterns make it easy to follow the shape of the piece, perhaps making the “ugly” pitch clusters more acceptable
• JCS also uses short, motivic melodic fragments that are later sung to words. Does the word-association with the motifs help us to accept them, even if they are discordant?
• Does the lack of a “rock” drumset in Dr.A make it “highbrow” and the inclusion of one in JCS make it “lowbrow”

Both pieces are actually very similar in my mind. I find much to like in each, though I can also identify their shortcomings. Dr. A is much more interesting, with a wider variation of material and broader palette of musical colors and styles. JCS is beautifully concise and balanced, and the melodic fragments are bite-sized, not overdone – which is a great virtue.

Your thoughts are welcome – listen to the JCS overture, and then the first 4 minutes (or more) of the Dr. Atomic Symphony: