Saturday, January 8, 2011

Symphony No. 1 in E-flat Major, K. 16 by Mozart

COMPOSER: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

GENRE: Symphony

IDIOM:Classical

PERFORMANCE: Saturday, January 8th at the Utah Symphony, conducted by Tierry Fischer.

The first known symphony written by Mozart, at the mere age of eight!

Violin Concerto, op. 14 by Samuel Barber

COMPOSER: Samuel Barber (1910-1981), American composer

GENRE: violin concerto

IDIOM: romantic
Romantic elements of Barber's music hearken to the romantic works of the German composers, including Beethoven and Wagner. Elements include broad lyricism and virtuosity.

PERFORMANCE: Saturday, January 8th, 2010 at the Utah Symphony, conducted by Tierry Fischer.

I fell in love with Barber's Adagio for Strings when I was quite young. The passion, emotion, and anguish is impossible to ignore. I expect only good things from tonight's performance of the violin concerto.

Harmonielehre by John Adams

COMPOSER: John Adams, (1947- ) American composer, currently living in Berkley, CA.

GENRE: orchestral

TIME PERIOD: Minimalsim

PERFORMANCE: Saturday, January 8th, 2010 at the Utah Symphony, conducted by Tierry Fischer.

Minimalism is characterized by repetition and ostinato, where a motif repeats over and over. For this piece, Adams states that his "ideal is to make the orchestra resonate and sound beautiful, to make it purr." I think purring is a great description for the sound that is created using minimalistic technique.

Adams' music first captured my attention as a young teen when I was seeking the right music to use to choreograph a modern dance to. Shaker Loops caught the attention of my dancing heart, and made me want to move in a spontaneous way. Minimalism can include periodic improvisational sections, as Shaker Loops does, and I immediately began dancing. The ostinato creates a rushing feeling that inspires movement. I am excited to hear a work of his performed live, this will be my first.