Exploring Music Series 2

The word soprano derives from the Italian word “sovrano”—meaning the highest, the chief, the sovereign. With a range extending about two octaves upward from middle C, the soprano is certainly the ruler of the opera world—especially if she’s a coloratura. This type of soprano steals the show every time with her veritable vocal acrobatics that often sound like very sophisticated yodeling! YouTube recommendation: http://www.YouTube.com/watch?v=zWIu9R3H4YA

Everybody knows about Mr. Yuck, the green frowning face designed to warn young children about poisonous substances. When Mozart was a child, he had his own Mr. Yuck—the trumpet. His father Leopold recounted that “he (would) turn pale and begin to collapse at the mere sound of it.” It seems Mozart was only able to compose one piece for trumpet—although that’s disputed, because all physical evidence of such a piece is lost. YouTube recommendations: http://www.YouTube.com/watch?v=48HHeD-TdhE (trumpet)

Several studies have shown that listening to classical music, including Mozart, has positive effects on the human brain. But what about the effects it has on…food? One Japanese fruit company claims its bananas ripen better when Mozart is playing. Even crazier, a sake brewery claimed its rice wine tasted milder and smelled richer when it was exposed to Mozart’s Symphony No. 41 in the brewing process! YouTube recommendation: http://www.YouTube.com/watch?v=Fcly8-RGhgw

When Austrian field marshal Joseph Radetzky von Radetz marched back to Vienna after the Battle of Custoza in 1848, one of the first battles in the Italian war of independence against Austria’s occupation, his soldiers erupted into song. Johann Strauss Sr. wove that melody into his “Radetzky March,” an orchestral sparkler! To this day, the Viennese stomp their feet in time to it each year on New Year’s Eve. YouTube recommendation: http://www.YouTube.com/watch?v=FHFf7NIwOHQ

Ever get that feeling that you can’t live without something you’ve lost and then rediscovered? Open your heart to the composer Emil von Sauer, known for his poetic imagination. Sauer had the gumption to play Liszt’s own Hungarian Rhapsody for his audition to study with the famous pianist. To everybody’s surprise, Liszt kissed him and welcomed him with open arms afterward! Listen to this once-lost, indescribably beautiful piece from Sauer, which won pianist Stephen Hough a performance Grammy. YouTube recommendation: http://www.YouTube.com/watch?v=w07SXzkUp10

Who needs belting sopranos and tubby tenors when you have the diva of the string section, the violin? No one could have done it better than the ultimate violinist, Jascha Heifetz. He rearranged hundreds of classical works, including pieces of opera, to show off his virtuosic playing. YouTube recommendation: http://www.YouTube.com/watch?v=AhOeK57OZdw&feature=related

We all have those pieces of music that make us cry every time. For KING FM’s Marta Zekan, that’s the “Nimrod” movement from Elgar’s “Enigma Variations.” She heard it at the Seattle Symphony’s gala opening in 2001…just four days after Sept. 11. When the movement came to its poignant close, Marta felt a profound closeness in the shared emotion all around Benaroya Hall. YouTube recommendation: http://www.YouTube.com/watch?v=sUgoBb8m1eE

Our English teachers always told us that great writing is saying what you mean with the fewest number of words. The American composer Leroy Anderson took this to the extreme—he created a melody using only two notes. The melody never gets boring thanks to a lovely harmony that floats peacefully underneath. YouTube recommendation: http://www.YouTube.com/watch?v=cISPNYPMnkM

Why do certain pieces of music stir the soul, warm the heart and start up the tear ducts? Perhaps it’s a certain association, a tender memory or just a moment of vulnerability. We just can’t explain it! Elgar’s “Salut d’amour” is one such tear-jerker for our announcer, Lisa Bergman. What classical pieces get you all sentimental? Let us know on our Facebook page. YouTube recommendation: http://www.YouTube.com/watch?v=bisdQUm9N2E

Orchestras have as many as 33 different kinds of instruments, but sometimes composers go wild and pull even more “instruments” into the mix, adding to the clamor and clangor. Leroy Anderson, clever as ever, composed a piece that creates musical imagery of a jukebox changing records and even getting stuck on one musical passage when the needle stops moving! YouTube recommendation: http://www.YouTube.com/watch?v=VPqZmxih1B4

Camille Saint-Saens captured the incredible sight of a gorgeous white swan moving effortlessly across the surface of a mirror-like lake by using the simplest of tools: A violin playing a sustaining melody gliding quietly, beautifully, effortlessly, over the gently paddling notes of the piano. YouTube recommendation: http://www.YouTube.com/watch?v=Mvh4zEKG2zs

In 1928, Maurice Ravel was commissioned to compose a new ballet score as an experiment. It was meant to be almost entirely uniform in its melody, harmony and rhythm, with the only element of variety to be supplied by the orchestral crescendo. It became a worldwide sensation, much to Ravel’s embarrassment. He said of his most famous piece, “It seems I have written only one masterpiece, the Boléro. Unfortunately, there is no music in it at all.” YouTube Recommendation: http://www.YouTube.com/watch?v=t2zbbN4OL98

We’ve learned about catgut strings and insects in classical music—and as it turns out, fish and seaweed also have a place in the classical world! In his “Carnival of the Animals: The Aquarium,” he uses only strings, two pianos, and the shimmering glockenspiel to capture images of liquid light and undulating waves. YouTube recommendation: http://www.YouTube.com/watch?v=AsD0FDLOKGA

Who says classical music is stiff and formal? With all its oils, rosins and spit valves, and its instrumental materials ranging from elephant tusks to pipes of wood from the jungles of Brazil, classical music sounds like a cross between a zoo and an automotive garage if you ask us! And hey, with all those pieces emulating animal sounds, calling it a zoo isn’t far off. In this piece, “The Waltzing Cat,” the strings slip and slide between notes to achieve sounds of meowing, hissing and scratching. YouTube recommendation: http://www.YouTube.com/watch?v=DOlG8Ut-gTc

In its earliest form, the trumpet was made of everything from ceramic to silver, and they used to be so long and unwieldy that musicians learned how to bend them! Now, though trumpets are available in all shapes and sizes, there’s one standard size—easy to hold, but still incredibly difficult to play! YouTube recommendation: http://www.YouTube.com/watch?v=hR8H8CSojis

What instrument in the orchestra is by far the smallest, yet can easily be heard above the fray of even the largest ensembles? The piccolo, of course! It’s invaluable for its ability to produce extremely high notes. One of the most familiar compositions using the piccolo is the Sousa march “Stars and Stripes Forever,” but before Sousa was even born, the piccolo was immortalized in a series of concertos written by Vivaldi. Give one of them a listen! YouTube recommendation: http://www.YouTube.com/watch?v=gY0vIiDM6pI

What instrument in the orchestra makes the music of angels, plays up to seven octaves, has seven pedals, and can take up to 47 minutes—one minute per string—to tune? The harp! In its early stages, the instrument was quite small and popular among folk musicians. Its larger, louder, more modern incarnation has made its way into compositions from all the key composers starting in the late 18th century. YouTube recommendation: http://www.YouTube.com/watch?v=bBm1w8J63mg

Standard titles for pieces in classical music are pretty boring, aren’t they? Suite No. 4. Symphony No. 1. Concerto in A. But there are some very notable exceptions. There’s nothing stale, for example, about “Unappetizing Chorale,” “She Who Talks Too Much,” and “Agreeable Despair.” It’s easy to imagine the avant garde, Belle Époque French composer Erik Satie was the man to come up with such odd names! Listen to one of his odder-titled pieces, “Limp Preludes for a Dog,” here. YouTube recommendation: http://www.YouTube.com/watch?v=q8WTqqfQ-Po

What’s about 26 inches long, uses a single reed and is often called a licorice stick? The clarinet! This instrument has found its way into jazz halls, symphonies, marching bands and klezmer bands due to its versatile sound. It can sound sad and soulful, sensual and acrobatic, or just plain silly, as in Leroy Anderson’s piece “Clarinet Candy.”

Aaron Copland knew a thing or two about the power of brevity. In this piece, dedicated to those who fought in World War II, he used only percussion and brass, creating a starkly moving sound that won him the 1964 Presidential Medal of Freedom. YouTube recommendation: http://www.YouTube.com/watch?feature=endscreen&NR=1&v=zEro8pG0hiE

Some composer’s names might be hard to pronounce, but they sure sound better than they would in English. Giuseppe Verdi’s name, for example, would be Joe Green; Gustav Mahler would be Gus Painter; and Johann S. Bach would be John S. Brook. And in this same alternate universe, Czech composer Bedrich Smetana’s name is Fred Sour Cream! In Fred’s honor, here is an excerpt from his famous “Moldau,” a piece inspired by the Czech river running through hundreds of miles of dairyland. YouTube recommendation: http://www.YouTube.com/watch?v=kdtLuyWuPDs

Those who believe just about anyone can play the tambourine clearly haven’t heard the Bohemian Dance from Bizet’s spectacular opera “Carmen!” Most people have trouble picking up this deceptively simple-looking instrument without making a sound, so one can only imagine what talent it takes to play this gypsy-inspired passage. YouTube recommendation: http://www.YouTube.com/watch?v=lU5o2yPKk3A

Rossini wasn’t the first composer to find musical inspiration in athletic activity, but his William Tell Overture is certainly the most well-known example of sports-influenced music. Listen for Rossini’s references to archery and horseback riding in this über-famous sound bite. YouTube recommendation: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-3115213134814599261

SGood composers can paint pictures of just about anything with the right orchestration. Camille Saint-Saëns, in his genius, used xylophones in his “Danse Macabre” to make listeners think of skeletons. What is it about the xylophone that makes us think of bones? YouTube recommendation: http://www.YouTube.com/watch?v=YyknBTm_YyM

It’s interesting to note that some of classical music’s most romantic composers were lifelong bachelors. Both Chopin and Brahms never married, though they were romantically linked with George Sand and Clara Schumann, respectively. Beethoven, whose mystery “Immortal Beloved” still has scholars flummoxed, explored quiet romance and fiery passion in his “Moonlight Sonata” despite the fact that he never took a wife. YouTube recommendation: http://www.YouTube.com/watch?v=r9bH4sbAGT0&noredirect=1