|
Pastorale
Pastorale refers to something of a pastoral nature in music, whether in form or in mood. In Baroque music, a pastorale is a movement of a melody in thirds over a drone bass, recalling the Christmas music of ''pifferari'', players of the traditional Italian bagpipe ( zampogna) and reed pipe (piffero). Pastorales are generally in 6/8 or 9/8 or 12/8 metre, at a moderate tempo. They resemble a slowed-down version of a tarantella, encompassing many of the same rhythms and melodic phrases. Common examples include the last movement of Corelli's ''Christmas Concerto'' (Op.6, No.8), the third movement of Vivaldi's ''Spring'' concerto from The Four Seasons, the '' Pifa'' movement of Handel's ''Messiah'', the first movements of Bach's ''Pastorale'' (BWV 590) for organ, and the ''Sinfonia'' that opens part II of his Christmas Oratorio as an introduction to the angelic announcement to the shepherds. Scarlatti wrote some examples in his keyboard sonatas, and many other composers in the tr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Marc-Antoine Charpentier
Marc-Antoine Charpentier (; 1643 – 24 February 1704) was a French Baroque composer during the reign of Louis XIV. One of his most famous works is the main theme from the prelude of his ''Te Deum'', ''Marche en rondeau''. This theme is still used today as a fanfare during television broadcasts of the Eurovision Network, the European Broadcasting Union. Marc-Antoine Charpentier dominated the Baroque musical scene in seventeenth century France because of the quality of his prolific output. He mastered all genres, and his skill in writing sacred vocal music was especially hailed by his contemporaries. He began his career by going to Italy, there he fell under the influence of Giacomo Carissimi as well as other Italian composers, perhaps Domenico Mazzocchi. He would remain marked by the Italian style and become the only one with Jean-Joseph Cassanéa de Mondonville in France to approach the oratorio. In 1670, he became a master of music (composer and singer) in the service of the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Christmas Concerto
Concerto grosso in G minor, Op. 6, No. 8 by Arcangelo Corelli, known commonly as the ''Christmas Concerto'', was commissioned by Cardinal Pietro Ottoboni and published posthumously in 1714 as part of Corelli's '' Twelve concerti grossi, Op. 6''. The concerto bears the inscription ' (made for the night of Christmas). Its composition date is uncertain, but there is a record of Corelli having performed a Christmas concerto in 1690 for the enjoyment of his new patron. The concerto is scored for an ensemble consisting of two concertino violins and cello, ripieno strings and continuo. The work is structured as a ''concerto da chiesa'', in this case expanded from a typical four movement structure to six: Each relatively short movement provides multiple tempi and a range of major and minor suspensions. The concerto is generally no longer than fifteen minutes, ending with Corelli's famous ''Pastorale ad libitum'', a peaceful finale in the pastorale form. References * ''The ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Christmas Music
Christmas music comprises a variety of genres of music regularly performed or heard around the Christmas season. Music associated with Christmas may be purely instrumental, or, in the case of carols or songs, may employ lyrics whose subject matter ranges from the nativity of Jesus Christ, to gift-giving and merrymaking, to cultural figures such as Santa Claus, among other topics. Many songs simply have a winter or seasonal theme, or have been adopted into the canon for other reasons. While most Christmas songs prior to 1930 were of a traditional religious character, the Great Depression era of the 1930s brought a stream of songs of American origin, most of which did not explicitly reference the Christian nature of the holiday, but rather the more secular traditional Western themes and customs associated with Christmas. These included songs aimed at children such as "Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town" and "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer", as well as sentimental ballad-type songs p ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pastoral
A pastoral lifestyle is that of shepherds herding livestock around open areas of land according to seasons and the changing availability of water and pasture. It lends its name to a genre of literature, art, and music (pastorale) that depicts such life in an idealized manner, typically for urban audiences. A ''pastoral'' is a work of this genre, also known as bucolic, from the Greek , from , meaning a cowherd. Literature Pastoral literature in general Pastoral is a mode of literature in which the author employs various techniques to place the complex life into a simple one. Paul Alpers distinguishes pastoral as a mode rather than a genre, and he bases this distinction on the recurring attitude of power; that is to say that pastoral literature holds a humble perspective toward nature. Thus, pastoral as a mode occurs in many types of literature (poetry, drama, etc.) as well as genres (most notably the pastoral elegy). Terry Gifford, a prominent literary theorist, define ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Messiah Part I
''Messiah'' ( HWV 56), the English-language oratorio composed by George Frideric Handel in 1741, is structured in three parts. The wordbook (also called libretto or text) was supplied by Charles Jennens. This article covers Part I and describes the relation of the musical setting to the text. Part I begins with the prophecy of the Messiah and his virgin birth by several prophets, namely Isaiah. His birth is still rendered in words by Isaiah, followed by the annunciation to the shepherds as the only scene from a Gospel in the oratorio, and reflections on the Messiah's deeds. Part II covers the Passion, death, resurrection, ascension, and the later spreading of the Gospel. Part III concentrates on Paul's teaching of the resurrection of the dead and Christ's glorification in heaven. The popular Part I of ''Messiah'' is sometimes called the "Christmas" portion as it is frequently performed during Advent in concert, sing-along, or as a Scratch Messiah. When performed in this wa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Arcangelo Corelli
Arcangelo Corelli (, also , , ; 17 February 1653 – 8 January 1713) was an Italian composer and violinist of the Baroque era. His music was key in the development of the modern genres of sonata and concerto, in establishing the preeminence of the violin, and as the first coalescing of modern tonality and functional harmony. He was trained in Bologna and Rome, and in this city he developed most of his career, due also to the protection of great patrons. Even if his entire production is limited to just six collections of published works — five of which composed by Trio Sonatas or solo and one by Concerti grossi — he achieved great fame and success throughout Europe, also crystallizing models of wide influence. His writing was admired for its balance, refinement, sumptuous and original harmonies, for the richness of the textures, for the majestic effect of the theatricality and for its clear, expressive and melodious polyphony, a perfect quality of classical ideals, although ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Christmas Oratorio
The ''Christmas Oratorio'' (German: ''Weihnachtsoratorium''), , is an oratorio by Johann Sebastian Bach intended for performance in church during the Christmas season. It is in six parts, each part a cantata intended for performance on one of the major feast days of the Christmas period. It was written for the Christmas season of 1734 and incorporates music from earlier compositions, including three secular cantatas written during 1733 and 1734 and a largely lost church cantata, BWV 248a. The date is confirmed in Bach's autograph manuscript. The next complete public performance was not until 17 December 1857 by the Sing-Akademie zu Berlin under Eduard Grell. The ''Christmas Oratorio'' is a particularly sophisticated example of parody music. The author of the text is unknown, although a likely collaborator was Christian Friedrich Henrici (Picander). The work belongs to a group of three oratorios written in 1734 and 1735 for major feasts, the other two works being the ''Asce ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
William Tell Overture
The ''William Tell'' Overture is the overture to the opera ''William Tell'' (original French title ''Guillaume Tell''), whose music was composed by Gioachino Rossini. ''William Tell'' premiered in 1829 and was the last of Rossini's 39 operas, after which he went into semi-retirement (he continued to compose cantatas, sacred music and secular vocal music). The overture is in four parts, each following without pause. There has been repeated use (and sometimes parody) of parts of this overture in both classical music and popular media. It was the theme music for ''The Lone Ranger'' in radio, television and film, and has become widely associated with horseback riding since then. Two different parts were also used as theme music for the British television series ''The Adventures of William Tell'', the fourth part (popularly identified in the US with ''The Lone Ranger'') in the UK, and the third part, rearranged as a stirring march, in the US. Franz Liszt prepared a piano transcripti ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tu Scendi Dalle Stelle
"" (; "From Starry Skies Thou Comest", "From Starry Skies Descending", "You Came a Star from Heaven", "You Come Down from the Stars") is a Christmas carol from Italy, written in 1732 in Nola by Saint Alphonsus Liguori in the musical style of a pastorale. Though found in numerous arrangements and commonly sung, it is traditionally associated with the '' zampogna'', or large-format Italian bagpipe. History The melody and original lyrics for the hymn were written by Alphonsus Liguori, a prominent Neapolitan priest and scholastic philosopher (later canonized) who founded the Redemptorist missionary order. In 1732, while staying at Convent of the Consolation, one of his order's houses in the small city of Deliceto in the province of Foggia in southeastern Italy, he wrote the Christmas song that begins "You come down from the stars" entitled "Little song to Child Jesus". This version with Italian lyrics actually came after the original song written in Neapolitan entitled "For Jesus' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pietro Yon
Pietro Alessandro Yon (August 8, 1886 – November 22, 1943) was an Italian-born organist and composer who made his career in the United States. Early life Yon was born in Settimo Vittone, (Piedmont, Italy). His earliest studies in music began at age 6 with Angelo Burbatti, organist at the Cathedral of Ivrea. At the conservatory of Milan he was Polibio Fumagalli, Polibio Fumagalli's pupil. From 1901-1904 he was enrolled at the conservatory in Turin, studying organ with Remondi and composition with Giovanni Bolzoni (composer), Giovanni Bolzoni. He then attended the Accademia di Santa Cecilia in Rome, studying organ with , piano with Bustini and Giovanni Sgambati, Sgambati, and De Sanctis in composition. In 1905 he graduated with the academy's first-prize medal and won a medal from the minister of public instruction. From 1905 to 1907 he served as assistant organist under his former teacher Renzi at St. Peter's Basilica, St. Peter's in the Vatican. Relocation to America In t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gesù Bambino
is an Italian Christmas carol composed by Pietro Yon in 1917. The melody was used by Frederick H. Martens in his English language carol "When Blossoms Flowered 'mid the Snows". The melody and lyrics of the chorus are derived from the chorus of " Adeste Fideles" (O Come All Ye Faithful). The music historian Salvatore Basile notes: "The song would achieve the near-impossible feat of surviving in the standard holiday repertoire, with important performances, innumerable recordings, and every kind of vocal and instrumental arrangement."Salvatore Basile, ''Fifth Avenue Famous: The Extraordinary Story of Music at St. Patrick's Cathedral'', Fordham University Press, 2010, , p. 78. Lyrics See also * List of Christmas carols This list of Christmas carols is organized by country, language or culture of origin. Originally, a "Christmas carol" referred to a piece of vocal music in carol form whose lyrics centre on the theme of Christmas or the Christmas season. The d ... References ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
.jpg "Click for more on -> Arcangelo Corelli")
