Hutspot and musical marriages

When my parents told me we were going to visit concerts where we would listen to string quartets, I can tell you I wasn't very pleased. Another hour would be spent counting the seats in the concert hall, staring at the ceiling and wondering why people would ever pay to hear this. This was my opinion about string quartets and string ensembles in general. It sounded boring, monotonous, it didn't have the grandeur of an orchestra, nor the majestic sound of the piano as an accompanying instrument which is in fact a mini orchestra on it's own. It was just run-of-the-mill to me.
If you have ever linked string quartets to feelings of deep boredom, please keep reading.

A big change took place exactly three weeks ago. It all happened at a violin festival where I attended some quartet rehearsals. I realized what an effort has to be put in producing a decent sound together, let alone, making music. I had to reset my mind.

Hutspot
I love the Australian Masterchef series where aspiring chefs de cuisine prepare their best meals and are summoned to present them to the jury. Those nerve-wracking moments, when the jurymembers prick with their fork in the juicy partridge, taste the truffle mousse and take a sip of the old Bordeaux wine... Good meals are a form of art for sure! Why am I mentioning this?
Well, let's compare a string quartet to a meal.

Let's say, a simple Dutch meal called hutspot. This is an extremely popular winter meal because it's filling and easy to prepare. Hutspot consists of four basic ingredients: potatoes, carrots, onions and meat. All the ingredients have to be prepared very carefully because, in my most humble opinion, hutspot tends to taste boring.
So we had the four basic elements of our warm winter meal. Now you have to add salt, pepper, bouillon, butter and some other things in the right amounts to make it taste good.

It's the same thing with quartets.
The musicians are the basic ingredients of a dull meal. They have to prepare their part very well in order to sound well together. Let's say this is the case (unfortunately it isn't always the case). In order for the music to sound beautiful as a quartet, to make it sound as one instrument, you have to add extra things. Expression, dynamics, you have to determine the tempi and check the balance between the instruments etc.

Being a tasty potato

Being a potato, if you aspire to be a part of a delicious hutspot, you have to be a tasty potato. And that's where the problems start. I started to play viola. I know more or less how to hold the instrument and the bow and I can play some easy scales and that's it. Let's see what challenges you have to face if you start playing a string instrument:

1. Holding your instrument. You have to be able to hold the violin between your shoulder/collar-bone and your chin without too much tension.
The first hours of practice caused me some muscle cramps in my neck but that is a matter of habit. 

2. Holding your bow. You don't simply make a fist and hold the bow like that. No, you have to spread your fingers, bend your thumb and hold the bow very relaxed between your fingers and your thumb. 

3. Making sound (instead of noise). You have to use your bow to strike a string between the bridge and the finger board. It's kind of difficult to play one string at the time. 

4. Playing in tune. The key to playing actual music is the combination of pressing with your finger(s) on a string(s) and at the same time striking with your bow. Now try playing in tune... This will take you hours of practice...

So, now that we have considered the challenges of playing a violin, think about four string instrument players. Four different minds, different levels of skills and different musical opinions! A musical marriage between four people!

Hearing a good performed quartet, whether if you like the melody or not, is a true piece of art of the composer and the performers. I was present at some quartet rehearsals. I've seen the struggles, the doubts of both the musicians and the teachers.
If you don't like quartet music itself, learn to appreciate the teamwork!


Good hutspot
This is my hypothesis, based on what I've seen and heard from professional and amateur musicians.
Enough words, let's listen to some great string quartet music.

Dvorak's American quartet
Antonin Dvorak composed this American quartet shortly after his New World Symphony. A lot of folkloric elements can be heard.

Brahms String Quartet No. 3 
Brahms is Boss, no doubt, excuse my slang expression. This first movement is tough, rough, yet very beautiful.

Beethoven String Quartet No. 18 (adagio)
Beethovens melodies and harmonic changes are exceptional. You can feel the pain and the depth of the emotions in this beautiful movement.



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Feel free to comment and to correct my grammar mistakes, I'd appreciate it. Thanks for reading, enjoy the music!

Gershwin: The bridge between classical music and jazz

New york, 1915

A seventeen year old boy is on his way to the Jerome H. Remick and Company, carrying some sheets of paper under his arm. The young George is song plugger for the music firm: He performs newly released songs on the piano to promote the new sheet music.

He has a very good technique and his exceptional sense of rhythm made him popular with the regular costumers. Some of them come to the shop only to listen to him. They all agree that George will become a great musician!

But today he has brought his first own composition to play, the song When You've Got 'Em, You Don't Want 'Em... Will they be pleased with it?

Gershwin

George Gershwin (born Jacob Gershowitz), son of Russian immigrants was born on September 26th, 1898. He was initially a composer of "light" music: an easy listening genre which was quite different from the Western classical music in the 19th and early 20th century. Popular songs and musicals were a part of his earliest works. His brother Ira wrote lyrics for the songs.

Despite of his national success, Gershwin wasn't satisfied with his popular image and decided to use traditional classical elements in next compositions.

The combination between classical elements and jazz manifested itself in the Rhapsody in Blue for piano and orchestra. The Concerto in F, and Three preludes for piano were also the result of Gershwin's attempts to get a more serious reputation as a classical composer.

Many consider the opera Porgy & Bess to be his absolute masterwork.

George Gershwin died at the age of 38, because of a brain tumor.

Trademark: jazzy harmonies, playfulness, tender and moving melodies.

Concerto in F & Rhapsody in Blue

This concerto is a potpourri of jazz, Latin-American rhythms, emotional parts, explosions and so on. Gershwin takes you on a journey through happy and sad moments in life. It has great similarities to Ravel's concerto.

I suggest listening to the performance with soloist Werner Haas, director Edo de Waart and the Monte Carlo Opera Orchestra.

The Rhapsody in Blue is a phenomenal virtuoso piece for piano and orchestra. Everything is included: fast passages, boogie woogie elements and a slow, very romantic theme. The description I give may appear to be the same as the description of the Concerto. Although there are similarities between the two, the Rhapsody is suitable for a larger audience because of it's more accessible and less complex structure.

The amazing composer

Think of America in the Roaring Twenties, Broadway on the eve of it's golden age, black and white pictures. Happiness, sorrow, depression, love, bitterness... Gershwin knew how to capture the story of your life in his music!

If you are not well acquainted with Gershwin, I recommend that you should listen to:

- 'I've got Rhythm' (rhythmic, fast, fun)

- 'Three preludes' for piano (1st & 3d: fast, rhytmic, 2nd: slow, relaxed)

- 'Summertime' from the opera Porgy & Bess (emotional, slow)

- 'The man I love' (romantic)

- 'Liza' (romantic, nostalgia)

- 'Swanee' (rhythmic, romantic)

- 'Rhapsody in blue'

(* pictures are taken from: ecupress.edu, culture24.org.uk, didyouseethatone.files.wordpress.com, Brassaï; music: 'Rhapsody in Blue' from Gershwin. Performed by Leonard Bernstein in the London Royal Albert Hall)

Schumann - Fantasie-Stücke Op. 73

Robert Schumann was a German composer of the Romantic period. He was born on June 18th 1810, the fifth son of a bookseller and publisher. Schumann developed a great interest in literature. This passion would inspire him for a lot of his compositions. Although his childhood and the first years of his marriage with his wife Clara were happy, Schumann's life ended in a miserable way, suffering from a depression and hallucinations that caused him to go to the lunatic asylum where he remained until his unfortunate death.

Trademark: lively, lyrical melodies, elegant harmonies, always with serenity.

Fantasie-Stücke Op. 73, 1-3 for clarinet 

The Fantasie-Stücke are originally written for clarinet, but the clarinet part can also be played on violin or cello. There are a lot of resemblances with parts in Schumann's piano and cello concerto.

This series of pieces consists of three parts. Schumann required his music to be played with strong emotional involvement, very typical for the Romantic period.

Let's take a closer look at the movements.

I. Zart und mit Ausdrück (Tender, and with expression)

The first measures take us right into a 'conversation' between the piano and the clarinet.

There are a lot of crescendo-decrescendos in the sheet music. The melodical line sounds like a waterstreamlet, constantly moving. It's lively and yet a little timid. The clarinet asks, the piano answers in a lyrical way. The further the melody flows, the less hesitancy and indecisiveness. There is a general crescendo, then, suddenly, we hear the theme again with more confidence. Gradually, the conversation comes to an end, confirmed by a tender major chord on the piano.

II. Lebhaft, Leicht (Lively, light)

The clarinet and the piano keep interacting, but faster and more lighthearted than their 'conversation' in the previous movement. The middle parts sound childlike and innocent, without any fear or worries. The melody goes upwards, portraying the question of a curious child. We go back to the main theme which revives for a moment, then fades away to the end.

III. Rasch und mit Feuer (Quick, and with fire)

The third movement is dynamic and temperamentful without losing it's serenity. First measures are an 'attack' from the piano and the clarinet. The same scale is heard several times, but every time with a different approach, leading us to another viewpoint.

We perceive a new theme. It's mysterious and restless.

The reprise is tempestuous with much feeling, building up to a small climax, decreasing again and eventually followed by the resolute final chords.

Recommendations

Here are a few of my favourite performances on Youtube:

Cello: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CWZmeJAE70Q

Clarinet: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dmd1zKHtGN0

But the absolute best performance of the Fantasie-stücke is on the album I mentioned in a previous article about Joey Roukens. Fragments can be heard on this link:

http://www.muziekweb.nl/Link/CJX8112

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Source of the picture: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:R_Schumann_Bonngasse.jpg?uselang=nl#filehistory

Beginner's guide to Classical music

Getting rid of the dusty image

When hearing the word 'classical music', many people imagine a party of old-fashioned and dull men in secondhand green suits, playing old music with their cracky instruments. It's a wrong image, for classical music has a great assortment of different styles. I have to admit that stuffy and boring pieces do exist. However, the classical genre has much more to offer!

Why is it worth it?

First, it is a part of our cultural heritage. Classical music is the mother of all current popular music, whether you listen to Coldplay, Rihanna or Nickelback.

Secondly, this genre can have a very good effect on you. I myself love almost every kind of music, yet I prefer classical music to any other style because I notice that it has a positive effect on my mood and personality. Many songs nowadays are about Sex, Drugs & Rock 'n Roll and it would be senseless to assume that the songs are beneficial to our sense of ethics.

By the way, scientists made cows listen to Mozart and observed that they were far more relaxed, good-tempered and produced more milk than their fellows (Read more about this experiment). I doubt whether Nickelback would have the same effect on them.

Of course, we are not cows...

Where to start?

Starting with Bach and Mozart, the most famous classical composers, isn't a very good idea since their works are not always very accessible and there are so many other beautiful pieces most people don't know!

Starting with the Romantic classical composers though, should be a better idea. Nota bene: people link Romanticism to love, sunsets, flowers and red wine, but it is something completely different. Romanticism is a subgenre of classical music that originated in the second half of the 18th century. Circumstances in Europe were dreadful due to wars and other crises. Therefore, people rejected rational thinking as the way to solve the problems. Instead, they reached for dreams and happiness, for fairytales and nostalgia. Forms of art became a manner to release their strong inner feelings.

I will list a few of my favourite works related to different moods, linked to Youtube.

Tender

1. Liebestraum - F. Liszt. Liebestraum means 'love dream'.

The performance is by one of the iconic pianists of history, Artur Rubinstein.

2. Méditation de Thaïs - J. Massenet. A heart-warming piece and performance, played very passionately by Janine Jansen.

3. The sweet Panorama from ballet "The Sleeping Beauty" - P.I. Tschaikovsky. Think of green hills and spring. Performed by the Vienna Philarmonic, known as one of the best orchestras in the world.

Feelgood

1. The well known Four Seasons -  A. Vivaldi needs no explanation.

2. Carmen Fantasy P. Sarasate. A joyful, virtuoso piece for violon with a Spanish accent.

3. La donna è mobile G. Verdi, a very famous opera song, exhibited by Caruso.

4. Alla turca - W.A. Mozart, a piano solo piece.

Majestic/intense

1. Polonaise As-dur Op. 53 "Heroique" - F. Chopin (starts at 2.10").

2. Revolutionary Etude op. 10 no 12 - F. Chopin. It is fast and very difficult.

3. Symphony 4, mvt 4 - P.I. Tchaikovsky (See article I have written before here)

4. 2nd Piano concerto - S. Rachmaninoff. One of the best musical pieces ever written. I will dedicate one or several articles to this masterwork. The atmosphere and the harmonies are incredible.

5. S. Rachmaninoff's prélude Op. 32 no. 10.

Nostalgic

1. Vocalise - S. Rachmaninoff, a moving piece transcribed for cello.

2. Élégie for Cello and Orchestra - G. Fauré. A slow piece with very different dynamics. It's beauty lies in it's simplicity.

3. Arabesque - C. Débussy. Very dreamy, the melody creates the atmosphere of Arabia.

4. Another famous piece from Débussy: Clair de Lune. 

Lighthearted

1. Petrushka - I.F. Stravinsky. This crazy piece is very difficult for the piano.

2. Scaramouche, mvt 3 - D. Milhaud. Jazzy and fun.

3. "Papageno, papagena duet" from opera The Magic Flute - W.A. Mozart. What was Mozart thinking when composing this ingenious, comic duet?

4. Flight of the Bumblebee - N. Rimsky-Korsakov (arrangment by Cziffra). One of the fastest solo works ever written.

Of course, these are only a few out of hundreds of masterworks. My partiality for Russian music is, again, very obvious. I mentioned Rachmaninoff a few times, Tchaikovsky again. In future I will make more "must-hear" lists with pieces from other great composers like Brahms, Dvorak, Saint-Saëns, Beethoven, Schumann, Liszt, Ravel and those who I do not recall at the moment.

For now, I hope you'll enjoy.