Debussy: La Mer
performed by The Cleveland Orchestra under Pierre Boulez There is no theory. You merely have to listen. Pleasure is the law. The full French title, for what it’s worth, is La mer, trois esquisses symphoniques pour orchestre, and it’s a piece I’ve … Continue reading Debussy: La Mer
Influential People: Claude Debussy
Claude-Achille Debussy, one of the most notable names in Impressionist music, a term he apparently despised. He was born in 1862, and along with Ravel, his fellow countryman and composer, became outstandingly famous for music of incredibly inventive orchestrations, suggestive of imagery and … Continue reading Influential People: Claude Debussy
Paul Dukas: L’apprenti sorcier
performed by Erich Kunzel and the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra, or in the version from Fantasia, by Leopold Stokowski and the Philadelphia Orchestra (which cannot be embedded) Famous to a fault? Cliché? Overdone? This is one of those pieces that, like, I … Continue reading Paul Dukas: L’apprenti sorcier
Concert Review: RSO-Wien
It’d been like, three weeks since I’d been in the concert hall. Things always slow down around Chinese New Year, with annual maintenance and whatever taking place. The whole country kind of stops what they’re doing for the week anyway, … Continue reading Concert Review: RSO-Wien
Dvořák: The Noon Witch, op. 108
performed by the Janacek Philharmonic Orchestra under Theodore Kuchar, or below by the Vienna Philharmonic under Seiji Ozawa Excitingly another work from Dvořák this week, with his Noon Witch, a piece I had the chance to hear live a year or more … Continue reading Dvořák: The Noon Witch, op. 108
Dvořák: The Water Goblin, Op. 107 (B. 195)
performed by the Janacek Philharmonic Orchestra under Theodore Kuchar, or below with the Polish National Radio Symphony under Antoni Wit This is our 400th post here on Fugue for Thought! We’re coming up on a more significant milestone later in … Continue reading Dvořák: The Water Goblin, Op. 107 (B. 195)
Influential People: Antonín Dvořák
So…. influential in a different way. While people like Nadia Boulanger or Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov were incredibly influential as, among other things, educators, the only student of Dvořák’s whose name jumped out at me was one Josef Suk (composer, not the violinist), … Continue reading Influential People: Antonín Dvořák
Sibelius: Skogsrået
or The Wood Nymph performed by the Lahti Symphony Orchestra under Osmo Vänskä I’m excited about the next few posts for this series because they touch on a special type of tone poem. There’s nothing anywhere (that I recall) about patriotic or … Continue reading Sibelius: Skogsrået
Sibelius: Vårsång
(Spring Song) performed by the Lahti Symphony Orchestra under Osmo Vänskä If ever there was a piece that felt like one of those rare, never-to-be repeated moments in life, blue sky, sun’s warmth on your back, in a picture-perfect landscape … Continue reading Sibelius: Vårsång
Sibelius: En Saga, op. 9
performed by the Lahti Symphony Orchestra under Osmo Vänskä En saga is the expression of a state of mind. I had undergone a number of painful experiences at the time and in no other work have I revealed myself so … Continue reading Sibelius: En Saga, op. 9
Rachmaninoff: The Rock, op. 7
performed by the USSR Symphony Orchestra under Eugene Svetlanov The golden cloud slept through the night Upon the breast of the giant-rock While Rachmaninoff composed a number of symphonic poems and things, his real contribution to classical music, at least … Continue reading Rachmaninoff: The Rock, op. 7
Listening to Understand
Some time ago, I prepared this article in an attempt to explain, as the title would suggest, how to listen to classical music. If I were to go back and read it now, I would likely excise much of the content, … Continue reading Listening to Understand
ESO’s Die Entführung aus dem Serail
This will be a short one. Salient points as follows: Mozart in Mandarin and Min nan (instead of German recitative) No English (or even German) marquee (the former I understand why not) Local political issues infused into centuries old German opera … Continue reading ESO’s Die Entführung aus dem Serail
Strauss: Don Juan, op. 20
performed by the Staatskapelle Dresden under Rudolf Kempe Somehow… Despite excerpts from Don Juan being on the auditions for like, every instrument ever, and it being (I feel, right?) an outstandingly popular tone poem, I was super late to the party and … Continue reading Strauss: Don Juan, op. 20
Richard Strauss: Aus Italien
performed by the Staatskapelle Dresden under Rudolfe Kempe We’re finally doing Strauss! It’s about darn time. (Featured image is the View of the Ponte Nomentano in the Roman Campagna, by Jean Achille Benouville) As one of the few multi-movement tone poems in our … Continue reading Richard Strauss: Aus Italien
Influential People: Richard Strauss
No orchestra could exist without his tone poems, written to celebrate the glories of the post-Wagnerian symphony orchestra. Strauss! Finally. He’s here. One of the many composers I’ve been ignoring the past few years, and how can we discuss symphonic poems … Continue reading Influential People: Richard Strauss
Concert Review: Chicago Symphony in Taipei
It was another one of those two-night concert specials, a foreign ensemble coming to Taipei, but this time one I should have had a much greater chance hearing in my home country: the Chicago Symphony Orchestra with Riccardo Muti. The Chicago Symphony … Continue reading Concert Review: Chicago Symphony in Taipei
Liszt: Les Preludes
performed by the Radio Symphony Orchester Berlin under Ferenc Fricsay (but I also muchly enjoyed Antoni Wit’s reading with the Polish National Radio Symphony) What else is our life but a series of preludes to that unknown Hymn, the first … Continue reading Liszt: Les Preludes
Liszt: Tasso, Lamento e Trionfo
performed by the Gewandhausorchester under the late Kurt Masur Tasso loved and suffered at Ferrara, he was avenged at Rome, and even today lives in the popular songs of Venice. These three moments are inseparable from his immortal fame. To … Continue reading Liszt: Tasso, Lamento e Trionfo
Liszt: Ce qu’on entend sur la montagne
performed by The London Philharmonic Orchestra under Bernard Haitink Mendelssohn beat us to the punch with his overture/symphonic poem, but as we discussed in our introduction to this series, it’s Franz Liszt who ‘invented’ the concept of the symphonic poem, … Continue reading Liszt: Ce qu’on entend sur la montagne
Concert Review: TSO’s Legendary Hungary
This is the final concert of the first half of the TSO’s season, and so nice to see them once again in our National Concert Hall. Word on the street is that there’s going to be a new hall for … Continue reading Concert Review: TSO’s Legendary Hungary
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