On the last day of April, I want to honor the piano soloist in this Friday's concert, Jackie Hickman. Each Month I will honor a standout musician, and this month it is Jackie, for her work on the Grieg Piano Concerto with the MVYSO. Jackie is a Junior at Tahoma High School, and has been been playing piano for 11 years. Her piano teacher is Sydney Lee.
Jackie practicing.
The Grieg Piano concerto in A minor is a famous and recognizable concerto, and is being performed this Friday as part of the Spice of Life concert.
Jackie, right, and Haley Kovach, left.
Jackie is usually the principle cellist for the Maple Valley Youth Symphony, but this Friday we get the opportunity to hear her talents on piano as well.
Jackie accompanying her younger sister, Marcy Hickman.
The piano concerto was composed by Edvard Grieg in 1868, when he was only 24. It is the only concerto that Grieg completed, as well as one of his best known works.
It begins with a timpani roll, and a huge piano flourish that is instantly recognizable.
Even animals can't help but sing along with the opening!
Today, I’m going to examine another piece MVYSO is playing
in the May concert: The Overture to “L’Italiana in Algeri.” I’m also going to
tell you all the gossip I know about the composer.
This composition was written for the Opera “L’Italiana in
Algeri” by Giocchino Rossini when he was 21. Writing the entire opera,
according to him, only took 18 days!
Rossini was famous for writing good music, fast! One of my
favorite stories tells of Rossini sitting in bed writing a composition, when it
fell beneath the bed. Instead of rising of picking it up, he wrote an entire
new page! Laziness, or genius?
Rossini is famous for writing exciting and melodic operas
that combine both dramatic and comedic elements. He started writing music as a
young man, and but famously quit while in his thirties, to move on to another
of his loves, fine cooking! He was such a fine amateur chef and lover of food,
that several dishes now bear the name “a la Rossini” meaning they were
developed for him, or even by him.
(He also ate a lot of this good food, and by age 36 looked like this. Compare to his earlier picture!)
One of the most famous is “Tournedos Rossini,” a French main dish composed of: bread croutons, filet mignon, foie gras and black truffle slices with Madeira wine sauce.
It looks pretty good,
but one question: what exactly is “foie gras?”
Rossini was famous while he was alive, but also knew that
such fame was a double edged sword. His audience could turn against him at any
time. They would either love his opera, and throw roses and chant “Brava!
Encore!” or throw rotten fruit (an important accessory for any serious opera
goer of the day) and even burn down the theater! Rossini was known to actually
sneak out of the theater after the premier, and wait in his house to see whether
the shouts of the crowds outside were of praise or an angry mob!
Certainly someone who lived with such a sense of drama would
translate that to his music. Rossini’s compositions are famous for having not
only beautiful melodies, but dramatic and often surprising dynamic changes and
crescendos. In other words, the music would change from a subtle whisper to an
exuberant shout, and crescendos would take up an entire page, building to an
impressively deafening triple fortissimo.
Below I have included a video of the overture to “L’italiana
in Alegri.” Check out the 7:08 mark for the “Rossini crescendo." It begins very delicate and quiet, and takes the rest of the piece to build, slowly, but very noticeably.
Rossini always make me want spaghetti, so while I go make some, I'll leave you with this question.
If you were as skilled a composer as Rossini, would you have left it in the middle of your life? Or would you have continued? Do you agree with his decision? Please leave you comments below, I'd really like to know!
Remember watching Looney Tunes and huming along with the music? Laughing as you watched Bugs Bunny trick Elmer Fudd once again? As a child, you knew theses tunes by the cartoon they were in, until one day, listening to a radio, playing in a band, or watching a movie, you would hear that music again. Wait, I know that tune!
Looney Tunes made music that was famous, but old, new again, by introducing it to millions of children through cartoons.
Sure, maybe the Warner Brothers used it because, aside from being awesome, it was free domain as the copyright had expired, and they didn't have to pay anyone.
But seriously, who really cares why they used it. The important part is they did, and now we all know "Ride of the Valkyries," where Bugs Bunny famously (and once again) dresses like a woman. There are so many great compositions that Looney Tunes used in its cartoons, and next Friday, May 4th, the Maple Valley Philharmonia is playing a piece that celebrates them. Check out the website http://www.mvyso.org/ for details.
The piece celebrating Looney Tunes is called "What's Up at the Symphony," and includes the famous Looney Tunes theme, as well as snippets from "The Barber of Seville," "Ride of the Valkyries," and "William Tell." In honor of their playing this fun piece, I now give you some clips of the Looney Tunes episodes that made these pieces known in every household in America.
"The Rabbit of Seville"
"Ride of the Valkyries"
What's you favorite Looney Tunes classical music episode?
Today, I'm going to talk about music that the Maple Valley Youth Symphony is playing. Later I'll talk about the piano concerto and the Rossini overture, but today, let's feast our senses on the Dance Bacchanale from the opera "Samson and Deliah."
Dance Bacchanale was written by Camile Saint-Saens and premeired in Weimar Germany in 1877.
Based on a Bibilical story, it tells the tale of a strong man brought low by a beautiful woman's wiles. It's full of beautiful melodies, rhythms that catch your ear, and is fun to imagine. It's one of my favorite pieces because of the fullness and color the orchestral sound produces.
It starts with an oboe solo that makes me think of a snake charmer, and then the rushing rhthm starts. So delicious! It’s like eating flavorful food with an unexpected spice. Enjoy the piece set with wonderful costumes in the 1980 production of the opera in the clip below.
There is a special thrill to hearing this music live, so don't miss the May concert.
This is only once of the pieces the Youth Symphony is performing at the May concert. Tune in next time to find out more!
Hello all you music and or fun lovers out there! Welcome to the OFFICIAL Maple Valley Youth Symphony Blog. This is the spot where I will talke shamelessly about how great MVYSO is, what they are doing, and whatever else is on my mind. I'll also offer tips on how to practice, prepare for auditions, and lots of pictures and videos. I'm a very multimedia sort of person. My name is Susan, and I'm pretty far from the annoymous blogger. I'm a music graduate from WSU, and I love to write, read, draw, make music, teach music, eat Nutella, and wear anythingly shinely or sparkly. Basically, I'm a hyper-active magpie. I'll constantly be talking about my own likes and dislikes, my opinions about music and the importance of music education, and want you to know that my views don't necessarily represent the views of the entire organization. So if you agree, disagree, or have anything to add to my posts, please write a comment!
Now that thats out of the way, let get on to the good stuff.
Maple Valley Youth Symphony is a fast growing Youth symphony with two full orchestras, and two developmental programs for very young musicians. It is based in Maple Valley Washington, and is one of the most positive Youth Symphony atmospheres in the region. Check out the website http://www.mvyso.org/ to learn more about them.
Next post, I'll talk about what music they are playing, and when. Be sure to check back soon!
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