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Nocturnes, Op. 37 (Chopin)
The Nocturnes, Op. 37 are a set of two nocturnes for solo piano written by Frédéric Chopin in 1839 during the time of his stay with author George Sand in Majorca and published in 1840. Unusually, neither piece carries a dedication. This set of nocturnes was originally considered to be one of the better sets, yet its popularity slowly decreased in the twentieth century. Blair Johnson maintains, however, that the pieces are still "wonderful specimens, being something of a hybrid between the more dramatic Opus 27 and the far simpler textures and moods of Opus 32." Robert Schumann commented that they were "of that nobler kind under which poetic ideality gleams more transparently." Schumann also said that the "two nocturnes differ from his earlier ones chiefly through greater simplicity of decoration and more quiet grace." Gustav Barth commented that Chopin's nocturnes are definite signs of "progress" in comparison to John Field's original nocturnes, though the improvements are "fo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nocturnes By Frédéric Chopin
A nocturne is a musical composition that is inspired by, or evocative of, the night. History The term ''nocturne'' (from French ''nocturne'' 'of the night') was first applied to musical pieces in the 18th century, when it indicated an ensemble piece in several movements, normally played for an evening party and then laid aside. Sometimes it carried the Italian equivalent, ''notturno'', such as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Notturno in D, K.286, written for four lightly echoing separated ensembles of paired horns with strings, and his ''Serenata Notturna'', K. 239. At this time, the piece was not necessarily evocative of the night, but might merely be intended for performance at night, much like a serenade. The chief difference between the serenade and the notturno was the time of the evening at which they would typically be performed: the former around 9:00pm, the latter closer to 11:00 pm. In its form as a single-movement character piece usually written for solo piano, the nocturn ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Libido
Libido (; colloquial: sex drive) is a person's overall sexual drive or desire for sexual activity. Libido is influenced by biological, psychological, and social factors. Biologically, the sex hormones and associated neurotransmitters that act upon the nucleus accumbens (primarily testosterone and dopamine, respectively) regulate libido in humans. Social factors, such as work and family, and internal psychological factors, such as personality and stress, can affect libido. Libido can also be affected by medical conditions, medications, lifestyle and relationship issues, and age (e.g., puberty). A person who has extremely frequent sexual urges, or a suddenly increased sex drive may be experiencing hypersexuality, while the opposite condition is hyposexuality. In psychoanalytic theory, libido is psychic drive or energy, particularly associated with sexual instinct, but also present in other instinctive desires and drives. A person may have a desire for sex, but not have the opportu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Louis Kentner
Louis Philip Kentner (19 July 190523 September 1987) was a Hungarian, later British, pianist who excelled in the works of Chopin and Liszt, as well as the Hungarian repertoire. Life and career He was born Lajos Kentner in Karwin in Austrian Silesia (present-day Karviná, Czech Republic), to Hungarian parents. He received his education as a musician at the Royal Academy of Music in Budapest from 1911 to 1922, studying with Arnold Székely (piano), Hans Koessler and Zoltán Kodály (composition), and Leo Weiner (chamber music). While a student he first became acquainted with Béla Bartók, who remained a lifelong friend.Donald Brook. ''Masters of the Keyboard'' (1947), p. 172-4 Kentner commenced his concert career at the age of 15. Until 1931 he was known internationally as Ludwig Kentner. In 1932, he was awarded 5th Prize at the II International Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw; and he won a Liszt Prize in Budapest. Kodaly composed his ''Dances of Marosszék'' for Kentner, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aphrodisiac
An aphrodisiac is a substance that increases sexual desire, sexual attraction, sexual pleasure, or sexual behavior. Substances range from a variety of plants, spices, foods, and synthetic chemicals. Natural aphrodisiacs like cannabis or cocaine are classified into plant-based and non-plant-based substances. There are non-naturally-occurring aphrodisiacs like MDMA and methamphetamine. Aphrodisiacs can be classified by their type of effects (i.e., psychological or physiological). Aphrodisiacs that contain hallucinogenic properties like Bufotenin have psychological effects on a person that can increase sexual desire and sexual pleasure. Aphrodisiacs that contain smooth muscle relaxing properties like yohimbine have physiological effects on a person that can affect hormone levels and increase blood flow. It is possible that the aphrodisiac effect of a substance is due to the placebo effect. Other substances that impede on areas that aphrodisiacs aim to enhance are classified as an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mediterranean
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant. The Sea has played a central role in the history of Western civilization. Geological evidence indicates that around 5.9 million years ago, the Mediterranean was cut off from the Atlantic and was partly or completely desiccated over a period of some 600,000 years during the Messinian salinity crisis before being refilled by the Zanclean flood about 5.3 million years ago. The Mediterranean Sea covers an area of about , representing 0.7% of the global ocean surface, but its connection to the Atlantic via the Strait of Gibraltar—the narrow strait that connects the Atlantic Ocean to the Mediterranean Sea and separates the Iberian Peninsula in Europe from Morocco in Africa—is only wide. The Mediterranean Sea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Frederick Niecks
Frederick Niecks (3 February 184524 June 1924) was a German musical scholar and author who resided in Scotland for most of his life. He is best remembered for his biographies of Frédéric Chopin and Robert Schumann. Biography Friedrich Maternus Niecks was born in Düsseldorf, son of a conductor and teacher; his grandfather was a professional musician. He studied music under his father; he later studied violin under Leopold Auer and others, and studied piano and composition under Julius Tausch. At age 13 he made his debut playing Charles Auguste de Bériot's Violin Concerto No. 2, then joined the Musikverein orchestra, with whom he remained until age 21. In 1868 he expressed a desire to move to Great Britain, and Alexander Mackenzie invited him to settle in Scotland, where he became viola player in Mackenzie's string quartet in Edinburgh and an organist and teacher in Dumfries. In 1879 he became a regular contributor to ''The Musical Times''. In 1884 he published a ''C ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
étude
An étude (; ) or study is an instrumental musical composition, usually short, designed to provide practice material for perfecting a particular musical skill. The tradition of writing études emerged in the early 19th century with the rapidly growing popularity of the piano. Of the vast number of études from that era some are still used as teaching material (particularly pieces by Carl Czerny and Muzio Clementi), and a few, by major composers such as Frédéric Chopin, Franz Liszt and Claude Debussy, achieved a place in today's concert repertory. Études written in the 20th century include those related to traditional ones (György Ligeti) and those that require wholly unorthodox technique (John Cage). 19th century Studies, lessons, and other didactic instrumental pieces composed before the 19th century are extremely varied, without any established genres. Domenico Scarlatti's ''30 Essercizi per gravicembalo'' ("30 Exercises for harpsichord", 1738) do not differ in scope fro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Euphonious
Phonaesthetics (also spelled phonesthetics in North America) is the study of beauty and pleasantness associated with the sounds of certain words or parts of words. The term was first used in this sense, perhaps by during the mid-20th century and derives . Speech sounds have many aesthetic qualities, some of which are subjectively regarded as euphonious (pleasing) or cacophonous (displeasing). Phonaesthetics remains a budding and often subjective field of study, with no scientifically or otherwise formally established definition; today, it mostly exists as a marginal branch of psychology, phonetics, or poetics. More broadly, the British linguist David Crystal has regarded phonaesthetics as the study of "phonaesthesia" (i.e., sound symbolism and phonesthemes): that not just words but even certain sound combinations carry meaning. For example, he shows that English speakers tend to associate unpleasantness with the sound ''sl-'' in such words as ''sleazy'', ''slime'', ''slug'', and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Barcarolle
A barcarolle (; from French, also barcarole; originally, Italian barcarola or barcaruola, from ''barca'' 'boat') is a traditional folk song sung by Venetian gondoliers, or a piece of music composed in that style. In classical music, two of the most famous barcarolles are Jacques Offenbach's "Belle nuit, ô nuit d'amour", from his opera ''The Tales of Hoffmann''; and Frédéric Chopin's Barcarolle in F-sharp major for solo piano. Description A barcarolle is characterized by a rhythm reminiscent of the gondolier's stroke, almost invariably in 6/8 meter at a moderate tempo. While the most-famous barcarolles are from the Romantic period, the genre was known well enough in the 18th century for Burney to mention, in ''The Present State of Music in France and Italy'' (1771), that it was a celebrated form cherished by "collectors of good taste". Notable examples The barcarolle was a popular form in opera, where the apparently artless sentimental style of the folklike song could b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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