Edward MacDowell was an American romantic composer who wrote symphonic music on par with the European tone poem masters of his time. However, as he was an American, most American audiences today don’t know his music. Time to bring him back!
His most famous piece is a short little “ditty”, akin to many of the short pieces by Grieg that were popular at the time. It doesn’t represent the depth of his musical vision, which is akin to the great works of Richard Strauss. Anyway, here is “To a Wild Rose” – since we all know what April showers bring …
You’ve heard Carmina Burana before – everyone has, thanks to the opening chorus. People can’t get enough of this one. You can find it in movies, video games, commercials, sports events, and flash mobs (I was there!) It’s an awesome romp through the carnal pleasures of spring – some of the poems are quite erotic, some philosophical, some are brutal mockery, some are just plain weird, and yes, there are even fart jokes.
Poor Carl Orff – he was 40 when he composed Carmina (1936), and after it became so popular, he asked his publisher to destroy all his previous work, so that Carmina would be the beginning of his career, not the midpoint (or end?). The work was so well received that the Nazis allowed it to be performed, even though they disapproved of the erotic subject matter. The work’s popularity might be attributed to: 1) most movements follow simple song formats which are melodic and easy to remember, which was in stark contrast to much of the Art Music written at the time 2) a HUGE orchestra and chorus make this rock! 3) who doesn’t like a good dirty poem now and then?
This movement from Carmina is a poem about spring. I put “merry” in quotes because, if you didn’t know the text, you might think it was about something else – something much more somber and serious.
The merry face of spring turns to the world, sharp winter now flees, vanquished; bedecked in various colours. Flora reigns, the harmony of the woods praises her in song. Ah!
Lying in Flora’s lap Phoebus once more smiles, now covered in many-coloured flowers, Zephyr breathes nectar-scented breezes. Let us rush to compete for love’s prize. Ah!
In harp-like tones sings the sweet nightingale, with many flowers the joyous meadows are laughing, a flock of birds rises up through the pleasant forests, the chorus of maidens already promises a thousand joys. Ah!
Stravinsky’s famous springtime piece is so famous, powerful, and legendary, that it’s easy to forget that it didn’t just materialize out of nowhere. The Rite of Spring sounds the way it does because music had actually been headed in that direction for a quite while. Don’t believe me? Well, a couple years before The Rite was premiered, Claude Debussy wrote Images for Orchestra, which, though not as primitive and raw, sounds very similar. Coincidentally, both pieces have a section called “Spring Rounds.”
Recent Comments