I know it sounds tacky, or clichéd, but, like a good book, music can transport you to worlds you never knew existed.

Read a good book, and you are right there in the action. When the characters cry, you weep with them; when they are overjoyed, you are elated too. And when the action is intense, you stay up all night reading until the conflict is resolved.

Listen to some Salsa, and you are in Havana, with a Mohito in your hand. Listen to a Gamelan ensemble, and you can practically smell the incense of a Buddhist temple. Listen to one of Brahms‘ Hungarian Dances, and all of a sudden you are an Eastern European peasant, with a killer ‘stache and an awesome hat, or maybe a ridiculously flowery dress.

Lace up those boots and get your Csárdás on!

… Shines the Morning Star.

A friend of mine called the German hymn Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern “the Queen of Chorales.” The hymn was written in the first century after the Protestant Reformation, and remains a staple of Lutheran hymnody to this day (well, sort of.) There’s something about the shape of the melody and the dance rhythms that make it stick.

I adore the cantata that Bach wrote which features this chorale. The spirit of joy is captured perfectly, and is found in every movement, even though the chorale itself is only found in the first and final choruses. The piece speaks for itself, so I’m going to sit back and let you listen:

side note: BWV is a catalog of Bach’s works. BWV 1 doesn’t mean it’s the first piece he wrote – in fact, he was middle-aged when he wrote it – it just happens to be the first piece listed in the catalog.

A few words about Strings. Of all the modern instruments humans play, the violin family was the earliest to reach (relative) perfection of construction, around 1600. (Side note: the double bass is not in the violin family, but instead a “leftover” from the earlier viol family, and has a different tuning and body shape, among other things.) Strings are the reason we have symphony orchestras. Their range is massive, and they sound consistently good in any register. They don’t tire quickly (compared to winds or brass players), and the ear doesn’t tire of their sound. They are equally adept at slow, sustained music as they are with fast, agile passages. It’s no wonder that many composers enjoy writing for String Quartet. It’s like a completely blank canvas, or a mound of clay that can be shaped into practically anything.

I love spending Saturday mornings with a cup of tea and a String Quartet. So, here’s Beethoven‘s in C minor. Enjoy!