Lorin Hollander. A Lorin Hollander Concert. RCA LSC-2912, 1966. (on vinyl, from a thrift store)

Includes Beethoven’s “Tempest” Sonata, a Brahms Intermezzo, Schumann’s Arabeske Op. 18, and a piano arrangement of Bach’s “Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring.” If this was actually a live recording as the title implies, that piece selection would have made sense. It’s just a mess as an album.

I’d never heard of Hollander before. The liner notes boast that he’s “the leading pianist of his generation.” Which isn’t actually saying anything, as they also mention that he’s only 22. The guy can play, but his style is extremely Romantic and not well suited to recording.

There’s that recurring theme: good performances, but crap as an album.  Yet another record in which the Concert Music world refuses to recognize that a recording demands a fundamentally different kind of performance than a concert. When Beethoven wrote “pianissimo,” I’m pretty sure he didn’t mean “inaudible unless you have high end stereo equipment with the volume cranked.” In fact, if you had suggested such to him, I think he might have been confused, even if you said it in German.

5/10 (Indifferent)

Debo decir que el cine de época es un item importante en la capacitación del ojo crítico pero no necesariamente es el tipo de cine entretenido que uno busca en una sala de cine. Muy posiblemente, haya gente que le encante este género y respeto su opinión, yo por ejemplo puedo decir que hay un par que me vuelven loco como Clash of the Titans de Desmond Davies, Age of Innocence de Scorsese o Spartacus de Stanley Kubrick.

Repito, no son las más fáciles pero hay que verlas. Este fin de semana hice el ejercicio con la clásica Amadeus, peli de 1984 dirigida por MIlos Forman y me fue muy bien. La primerza vez me la vi en cine y recuerdo la pasé muy bien, recuerdo haber estado muy pendiente de la música, tanto que incluso, tengo en mi poder la banda sonora en acetato y creo que fue un bien al que me hice cuando mi abuelita la vió y quedó también fascinada. ¿Dónde uno escucha eso en estos momentos digitales y de alta tecnología? Ni idea. Pero ahí la tengo y ansío el momento de hacerlo.

La versión que me vi es bastante interesante porque le permite ver la peli con el audio original o cuadrar la peli para que sólo se escuche la banda sonora. Qué locura! No sólo es un elemento importante en la peli es la protagonista principal de toda la pieza. El Requiem es impresionante y la Flauta Mágica recuerda mi niñez cuando interpretabamos estas peizas de variedades súper divertidas.

La obra está basada en la éxitosa novela de Peter Shaffer quien además hizo el guión para la peli y se aborda mediante la perspectiva de Antonio Salieri, un músico que vive a la sombra de Mozart toda su vida pero corrompido por su poder le hace la vida imposible, lo tortura e incluso se asume que lo aniquila.

Lejos de buscar verdades en esta hipótesis, lo que quiero decir es que esta peli le significó el segundo Oscar de La Academia a Forman, el primero había sido con One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest en 1975 y fue galardonada con ocho premios más incluyendo mejor película, mejor actor secundario para F. Murray Abraham, vestuario, guión adaptado, sonido, vestuario y maquillaje. Lo cual es totalmente justificado porque la factura es impecable. Tom Hulce fue nominado como mejor actor pero perdió contra su compañero de obra, el mismísimo Abraham que hace una interpretación formidable como antagónico y oscuro personaje dentro de la historia quien se encargó de analizar la evolución del músico como una cata de vinos que de manera pedagógica explicaba la genialidad de Mozart.

Mi segunda percepción de la obra porque me motivó a averiguar un poco más de la teoría de su música, el interés de los alemanes por generar teoría alrededor y ser súper respetuosos con el protocolo melódico de Johann Sebastian Bach quien de alguna forma fue el motor de esa corriente occidental que le permitió tocar para cuatro, cinco y seis instrumentos y que le permitió a Mozart escribir las óperas y conciertos que se atrevió a hacer para un intrumentos y toda una orquesta. Sin embargo, me dejó un sin sabor el entender que su labor patrocinada por el rey de Austria de alguna forma delimitó su crecimiento, que su mecenas dominaba su creatividad y que de alguna forma era un músico comercial en la época así haya muerto pobre, genio y figura. Me sorprendió entender que, por el contrario, Ludwig van Beethoven se arriesgó mucho más y logró trasgredir su época hasta el punto de llamársele loco o irracional discapacitado para después un siglo después ser comprendido por colegas que en verdad develaron la genialidad dodecafónica de sus teorías.

Chévere. Recomendable totalmente, ojalá bien despiertos y muy atentos.

Nu neaga nimeni ca Evul Mediu a fost o perioada cand igiena personala, curatenia, n-au constituit preocupari majore ale oamenilor. Dupa ce in antichitate romanii introdusesera, aproape in intreaga Europa, moda bailor publice, perioada care a urmat a adus cu sine un reviriment ingrijorator in domeniul curateniei. Reviriment in care, ne place sau nu, Biserica a jucat un rol de seama, ea considerand baile locuri ale desfraului – si nu fara oarece temei, avand in vedere „fauna” care-si facea veacul prin aceste stabilimente. Problema este insa ca nu doar oamenii de rand ajunsesera sa manifeste repulsie fata de baie ci si personalitatile epocii; mai mult, aceasta repulsie s-a pastrat veacuri la rand.

Henric IV

Regele care voia ca fiecare supus al sau sa aiba duminica in oala o gaina si a pus interesele regatului mai presus de credinta personala, cand a dat Parisului o liturghie, era si el un dusman al apei si sapunului. Chiar daca de o eleganta deosebita – isi schimba camasile in fiecare zi – acest rege cu pasiuni sexuale cel putin dubioase nu s-a spalat niciodata. Pasionat vanator, el calarea ore in sir, urmarind prada prin padurile Frantei, dupa care, spre a-si masca damful de transpiratie, se stropea din belsug cu parfum. O amanta mai indrazneata, Gabrielle d’Estrees, i-a spus candva ca miroase ca un starv, ceea ce probabil era perfect adevarat, iar a doua sa sotie, Maria de Medicis, a lesinat, atunci cand l-a intalnit prima data si s-a spalat, efectiv, cu parfum, pentru a putea rezista alaturi de rege, in noaptea nuntii!

Ludovic XIV

Nici nepotul lui Henric, Ludovic XIV, maretul Rege Soare, nu era atras de igiena. Se stie clar ca el nu a facut in toata viata lui decat doua bai, si acelea la insistentele medicilor, care le considerau un mijloc terapeutic. Specialistii considera ca suveranul suferea probabil de o fobie fata de apa, intrucat nici macar nu voia sa atinga lichidul vital. El prefera ca, in loc sa se spele, sa-i fie curatata pielea cu o piele imbibata in alcool si apoi sa fie pomadat cu o pulbere parfumata. Speriat de tot ce insemna medicina – e drept ca la acea vreme chirurgia era inca la stadiul de „macelarie” – Ludovic a refuzat o interventie la un picior gangrenat, interventie care i-ar fi putut salva viata, si a murit.

Frederic cel Mare

Frederic a transformat Prusia dintr-o putere de mana a doua intr-o forta militara de prim rang. Este drept ca, la fel ca si in cazul lui Alexandru cel Mare, cuceririle sale n-ar fi fost posibile daca tatal sau, cel supranumit „regele sergent” nu i-ar fi lasat o armata de profesionisti, instruita adesea cu biciul… Dar Frederic nu iubea doar glasul tunurilor, „muzica” placuta urechilor sale ci si arta. El a fost un mare patron al artistilor, coresponda cu iluministii francezi, se voia despot, lumina si canta, cu placere, la flaut. A construit, la Sanssouci, un palat cum putine sunt in Europa dar pe de alta parte era de parere ca, vorba reclamei, „murdarirea este buna”. De pilda, in splendidele sali ale palatului sau umblau nestingheriti uriasi ogari de vanatoare, care-si faceau nevoile pe unde nimereau iar regele facea crize de isterie daca indraznea cineva sa curete dupa ei. Spre sfarsitul vietii, probabil avand mintea afectata de o maladie psihica, Frederic a devenit tot mai reclusiv. Nu-si schimba hainele cu lunile, nu se spala si cand a murit, in 1786, camasa lui era atat de murdara si de rupta incat valetul a trebuit sa-i ofere una dintre camasile sale, pentru a fi ingropat.

Charles Howard, duce de Norfolk

Mare om politic britanic, ferm inamic al lui George III si lider al opozitiei fata de acesta, in Regatul Unit, Charles Howard, duce de Norfolk ar fi fost un personaj admirabil daca ar fi acceptat, de buna voie, sa se imbaieze. Nu a facut-o insa niciodata si nu-i de mirare ca a ramas in istorie drept „Dirty Duke”. Valetul sau obisnuia sa-l imbete zdravan si doar asa reusea sa-l bage in baie si sa-l sapuneasca, intr-o epoca in care nasurile domnisoarelor de la curtea regala deja nu mai suportau mirosul de sudoare…

Ludwig van Beethoven

Probabil ca veti fi uimiti, poate chiar oripilati, sa-l regasiti pe lista „nespalatilor celebri” si pe cel mai celebru compozitor din toate timpurile. Dar acesta e adevarul: Beethoven nutrea o aversiune teribila fata de baie, aversiune data de durerile pe care apa i le provoca, din cauza intoxicarii cronice cu plumb. Astazi, se stie cu siguranta ca intoxicarea cu plumb a constituit cauza mortii sale; Beethoven era mare amator de vin si cupele fabricate pe atunci aveau in compozitie un insemnat procent din acest metal. Bolnav, ursuz, neinteles – nu doar la figurat ci si la propriu, fiindca avea un defect de vorbire care-i facea pe ceilalti sa nu inteleaga adesea sensul cuvintelor sale, Beethoven s-a retras in sine si a devenit un mizantrop dar si un adversar al curateniei. Putinii prieteni pe care-i mai avea erau nevoiti sa-i fure, efectiv, hainele, in timp ce dormea, si sa i le dea la spalat.

Karl Marx

Filosoful de numele caruia se leaga una dintre cele mai intunecate perioade din istoria omenirii a pledat o viata intreaga pentru triumful revolutiei proletare, fara sa realizeze ca aceasta va duce la instaurarea unor regimuri totalitare, responsabile de moartea a zeci de milioane de oameni. Si Marx, ca si Beethoven, nu suporta apa deoarece ii provoca dureri atroce: ganditorul german suferea de o dermatoza extrem de grava, manifestata prin aparitia de furuncule dureroase. El considera ca igiena personala constituie un exces burghez, in schimb n-avea habar ca durerile erau accentuate de fumatul excesiv, abuzul cronic de alcool. Marx se mandrea ca paginile manuscrisului original de la Das Kapital erau patate de propriul lui sange, pretinzand ca, prin durerile sale, simtea pe deplin suferintele proletariatului.

Mao Zedong

Programele social-politice ale lui Mao au dus la uciderea a milioane de chinezi dar au ajutat la transformarea tarii sale, dintr-un stat inapoiat, aproape feudal, intr-una dintre cele mai mari puteri ale planetei. Atitudinea sobra, aproape cazona, pe care liderul chinez o afisa in public nu era de complezenta. Toata viata, el a trait foarte cumpatat, fara excese si privea cu reticenta confortul. Inclusiv baia sau spalatul pe dinti ii provocau repulsie. De altfel, nu s-a spalat niciodata pe dinti, ci prefera sa mestece frunze de ceai, in vreme ce concubinele sale ii frecau trupul cu prosoape umede. Cand un medic a avut indrazneala sa-i ofere o periuta de dinti, Mao l-a privit cu dispret, argumentand ca n-a vazut pana atunci ca un tigru sa-si spele coltii. Cine ar fi indraznit sa-l contrazica?

Che Guevara

Revolutionarul cel mai celebru al epocii moderne, care l-a ajutat pe Fidel Castro sa ajunga la putere, iubea rugby-ul, vinul, friptura argentiniana de vita, ii placea sa fumeze trabuc si sa poarte ceas Rolex dar ura sa faca baie. In copilarie, i se spunea „Chanco” (Purcelusul) din cauza acestei aversiuni si se mandrea sa poarte acelasi tricou timp de o saptamana. Cand a fost capturat, in Bolivia, nu se mai spalase de luni de zile si avea, in loc de pantofi, cinci perechi de ciorapi groaznic de murdari…

Marilyn Monroe

Multi barbati de pe planeta o considera inca idealul feminin dar cei care i-au stat alaturi n-au avut deloc o parere buna despre ea – cel putin in ceea ce priveste curatenia. Fiindca „logodnica Americii” era o ingalata fara de pereche. Clark Gable o descrie, in biografia sa, ca fiind „extrem de murdara”. Suferind de sindromul colonului iritabil, era mai mereu la baie dar nu pentru a se imbaia. Manca doar culcata, privind la televizor si arunca resturile sub pat. Ura sa se spele, desi ii placeau parfumurile scumpe. Combinatia de mirosuri ii teroriza insa pe partenerii ei de film. Va mai plac blondele?

GABRIEL TUDOR

Lichtgeschwindigkeit 90 MERKEL Demokratieschwäche

die ungeschnittene Piraten-Presseschau –

am Freitag, 27. November 2009,

von Dr. Dietmar Moews im Alphons-Silbermann-Zentrum,

Berlin Pankow, Niederschönhausen;

ferner BILD Berlin/Brandenburg, Tageszeitung TAZ,

Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung von Freitag, 27. November 2009

sowie Eulenspiegel November 2009.

Piratenthema heute: Merkel zeigt Demokratieschwäche.

Merkels schwarz-gelbe Koalition im Sinkflug – mangels

Integrationsverständnis und mangels Demokratieverständnis

ihrer Selbstverteidigungsminister.. Kanzlerin Merkel hält

Vizekanzler Westerwelle (FDP) für einen geeigneten

Mitspieler und Kanzlerin Merkel hält Hessens Ministerpräsident

Roland Koch (CDU) für einen geeigneten Mitspieler.

Koch hatte Franz Josef Jung in Merkels Kabinett gedrückt,

obgleich Jung zweifellos überfordert, unverlässlich und als

Selbstverteidigungsminister gescheitert war.

Heute musste Jung die Regierung verlassen. Heute verließ

Ministerin Von der Leyen (CDU) ihr Familienressort,

um Jung nachzufolgen, von der Leyen folgt die junge Hessin

Kristina Köhler nach, Kochs neue CDU-Brechstange mit

BND-Kompetenz. Der neue Selbstverteidigungsminister

zu Guttenberg (CSU) hat nun die Aufklärung des

Kunduz-Kriegsunfalles angekündigt. Denn Guttenberg

wackelt selbst. Auch er hat – wie Minister Jung – ungeprüft

die Kunduzfehler wegzuleugnen versucht. Die deutschen

Soldaten in Afghanistan werden infolge solcher Kampfeinsätze

selbst Angriffsziel der Taliban. Herr Selbstverteidungsminister,

was wissen sie über private Blackwater-Soldaten im

Hindukusch-Bündnis?

So wie Merkel die Jung-Personalie zuzurechnen ist, ist ihr

die SWIFT-Sache anzulasten.

Der schwarz-gelbe Broiler scheint gar nicht zu begreifen,

dass solche schwerwiegenden Rechtsstaats- und

Demokratieaussetzungen, die gesamte Staats- und

Gesellschaftsintegration durchlöchert, auf die unsere liberale

Sozialdemokratie aber angewiesen ist. Merkels Politikstil

steigert die Entsolidarisierung in Deutwschland.

Piratenthema SWIFT: Die Bundesländer wehren sich gegen

das geplante Swift-Abkommen zur Weitergabe von Bankdaten

an die USA. Kurz vor der entscheidenden Sitzung der

EU-Minister an diesem Montag forderte der Bundesrat, es

müsse wirksamer Rechtsschutz gewährt werden. Die

Bundesregierung dürfe im Ministerrat weder zustimmen

noch sich enthalten. Über alle Parteigrenzen hinweg

wurde das Abkommen mit den USA als nicht rechtsstaatlich

kritisiert. Zur Terrorabwehr sollen Bankdaten von EU- Bürgern

an amerikanische Sicherheitsbehörden weitergegeben werden.

Dieser Zugriff wird auch von den deutschen Banken abgelehnt.

Es lohnt sich lokal, vor dem eigenen Rathaus,

auf Selbstbestimmung zu pochen und gegen SWIFT

Piratenflagge zu zeigen.

Piratenthema: Piratenpartei Deutschland vermeldet:

Piratenpartei erhält den Politikaward 2009

vergeben von der Zeitschrift im Helios-Verlag Berlin

politik&kommunikation.

Produktion, Performance, Autor, Direktion: Dr. Dietmar Moews,

Piratencrew Berlin,

Musik: Ludwig van Beethoven: Sonate Nr. 32 op. 111,

es spielte Solomon

Lichtgeschwindigkeit 90 PIRATEN EU-Swiftabkommen

die ungeschnittene Piraten-Presseschau – am Donnerstag,

26. November 2009, von Dr. Dietmar Moews im

Alphons-Silbermann-Zentrum, Berlin Pankow, Niederschönhausen;

ferner BILD Berlin/Brandenburg, BILD Berlin/Brandenburg,

Tageszeitung TAZ und Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung

von Donnerstag, 26. November 2009.

Piratenthema heute: Burgfrieden in der Innenpolitik zwischen

Union und FDP? Ohne Selbstauflösung der FDP stehen die

Wahlversprechen und die Kautelen des gültigen

Koalitionsvertrages zur Innenpolitik und zur Datensicherheit

zum Thema SWIFT-ABKOMMEN in unversöhnlichen Gegensatz.

SWIFT ist eine Verpflichtung des EU-Ministerrats dazu,

dass amerikanischen Antiterrorbehörden Zugang zu europäischen

Bankdaten gewährt sein sollen. Die FDP will das ablehnen.

Der Bundesinnenminister de Maizière (CDU) der das

deutsche Mandat in Brüssel wahrnimmt, will diesem

SWIFT-Abkommen durch Stimmenthaltung zustimmen.

Im gültigen Koalitionsvertrag wurde hierzu aber vereinbart,

dass vorab die jeweiligen nationalen Parlamente aller

27 EU-Mitgliedstaaten für sich abstimmen sollen,

also auch der Deutsche Bundestag. Da heißt es:

Das Abkommen ist unter Ratifizierungsvorbehalt gestellt.

Das unterschlagen jetzt alle, auch die FDP.

Und im Entwurf der schwedischen EU-Präsidentschaft

sind die nationalen Parlamente gar nicht mehr erwähnt.

INFORMATION: Die EU ist ähnlich dem deutschen

Föderalismus gegliedert: EU-Ministerrat; EU-Kommssion;

EU-Parlament. Der qualitative Unterschied besteht darin,

dass das EU-Parlament den Ministerrat wenig und die

Kommission so gut wie nicht kontrolliert bzw. nicht steuern kann.

Dies geschieht von den nationalen Parlamenten bzw.

im alle SWIFT durch die Bundesregierung.

KURZ: Frau Merkel ist entscheidend für SWIFT:

Die Society for World wide Interbank Financial

Telecommunication (1973 von Banke gegründet; Sitz in Belgien).

Nach Angaben der TAZ vom 26. November 2009, werden

über SWIFT heute alle internationalen Banküberweisungen

abgewickelt. Swift verbindet 8.600 Finanzinstitute

in über 200 Ländern. Die EU behauptet, eigenes

Interesse an der Anwendung des US-Programms TFTP

(Terrorist Financing Tracking Program) – die Daten würden

nach fünf Jahren gelöscht usw.

Die Piraten fragen: Wer finanziert auf welchen Wegen

den Terrorismus und die Kriege?

Eine PIRATEN-Demonstration in Brüssel wäre die

angemessene APO-Reaktion., FORDERUNG:

Vertagung der Abstimmung – denn mit dem 1. Dezember

tritt der Lissabon-Vertrag in kraft und damit wäre das

EU-Parlament für die SWIFT-Entscheidung zuständig.

Hier in Strassbourg sind PIRATEN im Parlament.

Weitere Gegenstimmen kommen aus Italien,

Österreich und Griechenland. (s. a. PM, 26. 11. 2009

Daniel Flachshaar auf Piratenpartei.de).

Produktion, Performance, Autor, Direktion:

Dr. Dietmar Moews, Piratencrew Berlin,

Musik: Ludwig van Beethoven: Sonate Nr. 32 op. 111,

es spielte Solomon

Lichtgeschwindigkeit 90, EU-Swiftabkommen, Globus mit Vorgarten, Berlin Pankow, BILD Berlin/Brandenburg, Tageszeitung TAZ und Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Innenpolitik, Bankdaten, Bundesinnenminister de Maizière (CDU), 27 EU-Mitgliedstaaten, FDP, EU-Präsidentschaft, EU-Kommission; EU-Parlament, EU-Ministerrat, Merkel, Society for World wide Interbank Financial Telecommunication, TAZ, 26. November 2009, Swift, TFTP, Terrorist Financing Tracking Program, Terrorismus, Krieg, PIRATEN-Demonstration, Lissabon-Vertrag, EU-Parlament, Strassbourg, PIRATEN im Parlament, Produktion, Performance, Autor, Direktion, Dr. Dietmar Moews, Piratencrew Berlin, Musik, Ludwig van Beethoven, Sonate Nr. 32 op. 111, Solomon

Lichtgeschwindigkeit 90 PIRATEN EU-Swiftabkommen

die ungeschnittene Piraten-Presseschau – am Donnerstag, 26. November 2009, von Dr. Dietmar Moews im Alphons-Silbermann-Zentrum, Berlin Pankow, Niederschönhausen; ferner BILD Berlin/Brandenburg, BILD Berlin/Brandenburg, Tageszeitung TAZ und Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung von Donnerstag, 26. November 2009.

Piratenthema heute: Burgfrieden in der Innenpolitik zwischen Union und FDP? Ohne Selbstauflösung der FDP stehen die Wahlversprechen und die Kautelen des gültigen Koalitionsvertrages zur Innenpolitik und zur Datensicherheit zum Thema SWIFT-ABKOMMEN in unversöhnlichen Gegensatz. SWIFT ist eine Verpflichtung des EU-Ministerrats dazu, dass amerikanischen Antiterrorbehörden Zugang zu europäischen Bankdaten gewährt sein sollen. Die FDP will das ablehnen. Der Bundesinnenminister de Maizière (CDU) der das deutsche Mandat in Brüssel wahrnimmt, will diesem SWIFT-Abkommen durch Stimmenthaltung zustimmen. Im gültigen Koalitionsvertrag wurde hierzu aber vereinbart, dass vorab die jeweiligen nationalen Parlamente aller 27 EU-Mitgliedstaaten für sich abstimmen sollen, also auch der Deutsche Bundestag. Da heißt es: Das Abkommen ist unter Ratifizierungsvorbehalt gestellt.

Das unterschlagen jetzt alle, auch die FDP. Und im Entwurf der schwedischen EU-Präsidentschaft sind die nationalen Parlamente gar nicht mehr erwähnt.

INFORMATION: Die EU ist ähnlich dem deutschen Föderalismus gegliedert: EU-Ministerrat; EU-Kommssion; EU-Parlament. Der qualitative Unterschied besteht darin, dass das EU-Parlament den Ministerrat wenig und die Kommission so gut wie nicht kontrolliert bzw. nicht steuern kann. Dies geschieht von den nationalen Parlamenten bzw. im alle SWIFT durch die Bundesregierung. KURZ: Frau Merkel ist entscheidend für SWIFT: Die Society for World wide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (1973 von Banke gegründet; Sitz in Belgien).

Nach Angaben der TAZ vom 26. November 2009, werden über SWIFT heute alle internationalen Banküberweisungen abgewickelt. Swift verbindet 8.600 Finanzinstitute

in über 200 Ländern. Die EU behauptet, eigenes Interesse an der Anwendung des US-Programms TFTP (Terrorist Financing Tracking Program) – die Daten würden nach fünf Jahren gelöscht usw.

Die Piraten fragen: Wer finanziert auf welchen Wegen den Terrorismus und die Kriege?

Eine PIRATEN-Demonstration in Brüssel wäre die angemessene APO-Reaktion., FORDERUNG: Vertagung der Abstimmung – denn mit dem 1. Dezember tritt der Lissabon-Vertrag in kraft und damit wäre das EU-Parlament für die SWIFT-Entscheidung zuständig.

Hier in Strassbourg sind PIRATEN im Parlament. Weitere Gegenstimmen kommen aus Italien, Österreich und Griechenland. (s. a. PM, 26. 11. 2009 Daniel Flachshaar auf Piratenpartei.de).

Produktion, Performance, Autor, Direktion, Dr. Dietmar Moews, Piratencrew Berlin, Musik: Ludwig van Beethoven: Sonate Nr. 32 op. 111, es spielte Solomon

Quattro appuntamenti musicali dell’Orchestra diretta da Andrea Battistoni, in un concerto interamente dedicato al genio di Ludwig van Beethoven.

Andrea Battistoni

Mercoledì 25 novembre 2009

Giovedì 26 novembre 2009

Venerdì 27 novembre 2009

Sabato 28 novembre 2009

Ore 11

Una quattro giorni dedicata alle scuole, sempre alle ore 11, al Teatro Lirico di Cagliari, riprende l’attività didattico-musicale rivolta alle scuole, con quattro appuntamenti musicali che vedono impegnata l’Orchestra del Teatro Lirico, diretta da Andrea Battistoni, in un concerto interamente dedicato al genio di Ludwig van Beethoven.
Il programma, destinato prevalentemente alle scuole elementari, medie inferiori e superiori e alle scuole d’arte della Sardegna, prevede la celeberrima Settima Sinfonia in la maggiore op. 92 di Ludwig van Beethoven.
Ludwig van Beethoven (Bonn, 1770 – Vienna, 1827) compone la Settima Sinfonia tra il 1811 e il 1812 e, tra gli innumerevoli e prestigiosi saggi critici pubblicati, primeggia, senz’altro, quello di Richard Wagner che, in “L’Opera d’arte dell’avvenire”, scrive, a proposito di questo capolavoro, «La sinfonia è l’apoteosi della danza: è la danza nella sua suprema essenza, la più beata attuazione del movimento del corpo quasi idealmente concentrato nei suoni. Beethoven nella sue opere ha portato nella musica il corpo, attuando la fusione tra corpo e mente.»

CONTATTI:

Teatro Lirico

Via Sant’ Alenixedda

Cagliari

Tel: 070 40821

Sito: www.teatroliricodicagliari.it

Email: info@teatroliricodicagliari.it

Biglietteria del Teatro Lirico,

dal martedì al sabato, dalle 8 alle 14 e dalle 18 alle 20

Tel: 0704082230 – 0704082249

Fax: 0704082223

Email: biglietteria@teatroliricodicagliari.it

Prevendita: www.vivaticket.it

Call Center 899.666.805.

V.C.

okay, I wanna talk about bipolar disorder this time..

first, here’s some people that have bipolar disorder..

1. Sir Isaac Newton (1642 – 1727)

Tau, kan? yang terkenal dengan teori gravitasinya ituu..Dengan begitu banyaknya kontribusi di bidang fisika dan mekanika, Sir Isaac Newton terkenal sebagai pemikir ulung. Memang, dari berbagai jajak pendapat mengenai kedua (dan Einstein),  ditunjukkan bahwa publik sepakat kalau Newton bahkan melebihi Einstein dalam hal pengaruh [sumber: The Royal Society]

Menurut ensiklopedia Britannica Newton mengalami psychotic tendencies dan mood swings. Selain itu, berbagai surat yang dibuatnya menyimpulkan bahwa secara teoritis ia menderita skizofrenia [sumber: Glover]. Ayah Newton meninggal sebelum ia lahir, dan ia dipisahkan dari ibunya antara usia dua dan 11.Gangguan mental yang dialaminya mungkin akibat dari trauma yang berkepanjangan akibat masa kecilnya [sumber: Encyclopedia Britannica].

2. Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 – 1827)

Kontribusi Beethoven di dunia musik sangat monumental. Kegairahannya dan musikalitasnya yang begitu intensif dan cemerlang membawa musik instrumental ke jenjang yang baru. Namun, sang komposer memiliki kehidupan yang sukar. Ayahnya seorang pemabuk berat dan besar dalam keluarga yang tidak harmonis sampai umur 18 tahun. Satu masalah tragis yang dihadapinya adalah bahwa ia harus mulai kehilangan pendengarannya sejak berumur sekitar 30 sampai 49 tahun, yang sepertinya dampak dari pemukulan yang dilakukan ayahnya. Hebatnya, ia justru sanggup menggubah karya2 masterpeace-nya saat ia benar-benar tuli.

Beethoven beberapa kali menuliskan sejumlah surat kepada saudaranya, banyak dari tulisan itu menceritakan keinginannya untuk bunuh diri.

Francois Martin Mai berpendapat bahwa sang maestro terindikasi mengidap bipolar depression, hal itu dituliskannya dalam buku “Diagnosing Genious”. Mai juga menduga kuat bahwa Beethoven banyak menghabiskan masa hidupnya mengidap bipolar disorder.

3. Vincent van Gogh (1853 – 1890)

Lukisan-lukisan Vincent van Gogh , seperti “Starry Night” dengan cepat dikenali dari keunikan dan ekspresi sapuan kuas. Namun, itu tidak membuat van Gogh mendapatkan popularitas sampai pada kematiannya. Tetapi sekarang ia dianggap salah satu yang terbesar dalam sejarah pelukis.

Kehidupan Van Gogh sangatlah tersiksa. Hampir semua orang mengenalnya sebagai seorang pelukis yang memotong sebagian telinganya sendiri. Dia diduga kuat pernah “mabuk” terpentin dan pernah mencoba makan cat [sumber: Mancoff]. Tragisnya, ia bunuh diri pada tahun 1890. Penulis D. Jablow Hershman dan Dr Julian Lieb mengatakan dalam buku mereka “Manic Depresi dan Kreativitas” bahwa van Gogh telah mengalami bipolar disorder. Dalam bukunya “Touched with Fire” Dr Kay Redfield Jamison menemukan kesimpulan yang sama. Dia juga membahas seni van Gogh dalam hubungan dengan penyakit mental. Misalnya, ia mencatat bahwa pola musiman yang khas dari suasana hati dan psikosis sejajar dengan produktivitas van Gogh, yang juga bervariasi oleh musim. Sedangkan yang lain mengira ia menderita skizofrenia [sumber: Delisi].

Benernya msih ada lagi, John Nash, Edgar Allan Poe, Florence Nightingale, smpe Russel Brand (yang nge-host VMA’09 kmren),dll..tpi krna cuma bt contoh, jdi cm msukin 3 aja…

data & piccu mad-genius-ppl credit to kaskus

Oke, bt yang ga tau apa itu Skizofrenia, silahkan cari ke mbah google atau wikipedia, soalnya yang mau aku omongin di sini adalah bipolar disorder nya..

Bipolar disorder itu gangguan alam perasaan yang ditandai dengan perubahan mood secara ekstrem dan mendadak yang mana bila berjalan kronis akan berkembang menjadi psikosis. Sesuai namanya maka bipolar berarti berkutub dua yang saling berlawanan, artinya antara “Manik” (Maniak, gembira berlebih, meluap-luap~euphoria), dan “Depresi” (sedih mendalam dan berlarut-larut). Semua ini berkembang dan berubah begitu cepatnya dapat dalam sekejap saja.

Penyakit ini dibagi menjadi dua tipe, yaitu tipe I (terdapat episode Manik dan Depresi) atau tipe II (Depresi saja, tidak pernah ada episode Manik).

Tanda manik dapat berupa hiperaktifitas motorik berupa kerja yang tak kenal lelah melebihi batas wajar dan cenderung non-produktif, euphoria hingga logorrhea (banyak berbicara, dari yang isi bicara wajar hingga menceracau dengan ‘word salad’), dan biasanya disertai dengan waham kebesaran (keyakinan diri yang hebat kadang tak masuk akal, seperti menjadi orang terkaya sedunia, raja, presiden, dll), waham kebesaran ini bisa sistematik dalam artian berperilaku sesuai wahamnya, atau tidak sistematik, berperilaku tidak sesuai dengan wahamnya.

Waham adalah keyakinan patologis yang tidak bisa dikoreksi, terlepas dari nilai agama, adat istiadat, dan sosiobudaya.

Sedangkan pada episode Depresi ya didapatkan rasa sedih yang mendalam dan berlarut, dapat disertai waham nihilistik dan negativisme yang berlebih.

Kedua episode sama berbahayanya, episode Manik akan menganggu orang sekitarnya, sedangkan episode Deprei dapat mengarah pada tindakan bunuh diri.

 

Nah, pada intinya gangguan Jiwa dapat diredakan tetapi dapat berulang kembali.

Kalo sedang dalam keadaan depresi berat dimana dia dapat membahayakan dirinya sendiri, ato kalo lagi manik hingga meganggu aktivitas orang lain..

Nah, menurut Dr. Kay Redfield Jamison (dia jga seorang bipolar disorder), orang yang memiliki kreatifitas tinggi dan jenius cenderung mengidap penyakit bipolar disorder, jadi kekreatifitasan mereka dan ide-ide cemerlang mereka yang orang awam tak bisa memikirkan sampai sana cenderung didasarkan pada ‘kegilaan’ mereka dan imajinasi-imajinasi mereka yang terkadang tidak masuk akal.

Or you can say, orang yang yang mengidap bipolar disorder umumnya orang jenius dan berkratifitas tinggi….

Jadi, bagi yang merasa dirinya jenius, jangan2 kmu kena bipolar disorder..XD

..*~Me~*..

Hhhmm..aku termasuk orang yang moodny kyak roller coaster, jadi sebentar senang bkan main, lalu tiba-tiba karena suatu hal *yang t’kadang nggk jelas apaan* bsa jd down bget..

Klo msalah smpe mw bunuh diri sih nggk pernah, tp pernah dlu krena sedih bnget pingin rasanya ‘mati’..Heuhh,, mulai melankolis ni..wkwkkwk..XD..

Intinya, kalo lg sneeng, aku ya seneng bget, bsa d blang euphoria jga, bsa senyum trz spanjang hari dan ngomongin hal yang mbuat aku seneng itu truzz, tp kalo lg sedih ato sebel, ya sebel dan sedih banget beneran, pernah sampe nangis semalaman gra2 apaaaa gitu,,lupa..hhe..Bner2 moody bget lah,,,

Stelah bca topic ttg Bipolar Disorder ini di forum, aku jadi mikir, jngan-jangan aku ini kena bipolar disorder… *=.=”*, hhe..tpi wajar dong aku mikir gtuu, soalny aku memang gk jelas bget moodnya, dan dlam satu hr2 bsa gnti2 truz.. *tanyalah pd org yg tinggal srumah dganq..XD*,,misalnya, lg ngomong2, tiba2 rasanya bisa marah bget *sweat*, trz tba2 sedih sndri..gak cetho bget too..ckckck..it’s weird, i know..

Brarti kalo aku t bipolar disorder, aku t orang jenius plus kreatif ya..kan pada umumnya orang bipolar disorder t orang jenius dan kreatiff..XD..OOT here..*kidding* *mulai gak nyambung*

Ah, ya sudahlah..intinya bgituu…

Jgn tanya kenapa aku ngepost kyk bginian, aku jg ga tau soalnya…tiba2 rasanya pingin ngepost aja, soalnya bipolar disorder t kyknya menarikk..hhe.. q d dpan laptop seharian nge-search ttg ini lhoo..wkwkwk..selera saia memang anehh..XD XD

Note: not all things in this post are accurate.some of ‘em are just my opinion and my thought.. I’m sorry my blog doesn’t have accuracy count..XD XD..Intinya, belom tentu smua yang ad d atas bnar adanya.. beberpa cm pemikiran *welehh..=.=”* dan hasil imajinasiku sndiri yang gk cetho..wkwkwk..

La Arquitectura es una música de piedras y la música, una arquitectura de sonidos.

Ludwig van Beethoven

(1770-1827) Compositor, director de orquesta y pianista alemán.

Here is the Recap Video for the first Motive of Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony.

By David Amos

SAN DIEGO–We know the great musicians of the past from the legacy of wonderful music they left us. But, we may not be familiar with their writing and comments. Some composers were quiet, shy, and introverted, while others were notorious conversationalists, humorists, writers, and commentators on many social issues of the time.

Here are a few interesting and insightful comments which I hope you will find amusing, enlightening, and informative; they may also give you a fresh perspective into composers familiar to you only through their music.  And if you enjoy these, I would like to recommend that you obtain for your library the book from which they were extracted,  Music Lovers Quotations by Helen Exley.

PETER I. TCHAIKOWSKY: To hear Mozart’s music is to feel one has accomplished some good deed. It is difficult to say precisely wherein this good influence lies, but undoubtedly, is beneficial; the longer I live and the better I know him, the more I love music.

CHARLES GOUNOD: The great geniuses suffer, and must suffer, but they need not complain; they have known intoxication unknown to the rest of us and, if they have wept tears of sadness, they have poured tears of ineffable joy. That in itself is a heaven for which one never pays for what it is worth.

IGOR STRAVINSKY: I know that twelve notes in each octave and the varieties of rhythm offer me opportunities that all of human genius will never exhaust.

RICHARD WAGNER: I believe in God, Mozart, and Beethoven.

LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN: I am inclined to think that a hunt for folk songs is better than a manhunt of the heroes who are so highly extolled.

ANTONIN DVORAK: In the Negro melodies of America I discover a great and noble school of music… These beautiful and varied themes are the products of the soil. They are the folk songs of the United States. All the great musicians have borrowed from the songs of the common people….I have myself gone to the simple tunes of the Bohemian peasants for hints in my most serious work…The Negro melodies are pathetic, tender, passionate, melancholy, solemn, religious, bold, merry, gay, gracious.

PABLO CASALS: For the past eighty years I have started each day in the same manner. It is not a mechanical routine but something essential to my daily life. I go to the piano, and I play two preludes and fugues of Bach. I can not think of doing otherwise. It is a sort of benediction on the house. But that is not its only meaning to me. It is a rediscovery of the world of which I have the joy of being a part. It fills me with awareness of the wonder of life, with a feeling of the incredible marvel of being a human being.

GEORG SOLTI: Mozart makes you believe in God-much more than going to church- because it can not be by chance that such a phenomenon arrives into the world and then passes after thirty six years, leaving behind such an unbounded number of unparalleled masterpieces.

HECTOR BERLIOZ: When I hear a piece of music…I feel a delicious pleasure in which reason has no part. The habit of analysis comes afterwards to give birth to admiration. The emotion increasing in proportion to the energy or the grandeur of the ideas of the composer soon produces a strange agitation in the circulation of the blood; tears, which generally indicate the end of the paroxysm, often indicate a progressive state of it, leading to something still more intense. In this case, I have spasmodic contractions of the muscles, a trembling in all my limbs, a complete torpor of the feet and hands, a partial paralysis of the nerves of sight and hearing. I no longer hear, I scarcely hear—vertigo—a semi-swoon.

ANOTHER TCHAIKOWSKY QUOTE: I grew up in a quiet spot and was saturated from earliest childhood with the wonderful beauty of Russian popular song. I am therefore passionately devoted to every expression of the Russian spirit…As to this national element in my work, its affinity with folk songs in some of my melodies and harmonies comes from my early years in the country.

And to conclude, there is an old Jewish legend about the origin of praise. After God created mankind, says the legend, He asked the angels what they thought of the world He had made. “Only one thing is lacking”, they said. “It is the sound of praise to the Creator”. So, the story continues, “God created music, the voice of birds, the whispering wind, the murmuring ocean, and planted melody in people’s hearts”.

*
Amos is conductor of the Tifereth Israel Community Orchestra (TICO) and has guest conducted orchestras around the world.

Beethoven’s Grosse Fuge, op. 133 is a monster of a piece. It is one of the most introspective and difficult pieces in classical music. The piece is not only extremely demanding of the performers but of the audience as well. The piece began life as the finale of the op. 130 string quartet in B flat major. However, due to the demands of the piece and its unfavorable reception, Beethoven’s publisher Matthias Artaria urged him to publish the Fugue as a separate piece and write a new finale, no doubt one more favorable in public opinion, for the quartet. Beethoven consented and this is one of the extremely rare instances where he gave in to outside criticism. However, in modern performances of the work, the Fugue is sometimes performed in its original place as the finale of the op. 130 quartet.

Beethoven became more interested in the fugal form during his later period and many of his later compositions include rather expansive fugues in them. The great Hammerklavier Piano Sonata also concludes with an expansive fugal movement, like the original design of the op. 130 quartet and the finale of the Ninth Symphony includes a fugue near the end to name a few examples. It is said that Beethoven was criticized for not writing many fugues in the early part of his career. It was assumed by these critics that Beethoven couldn’t write a fugue and so it’s possible that the several examples of fugues in Beethoven’s later period was his “reply” to these critics.

The Fugue opens with a brief Overtura which announces one of the principal themes of the piece. From there, Beethoven plunges into a wild and dissonant double fugue (a fugue built on two different subjects). In fact, it was the dissonance of the piece that mostly led to its poor reception. Critics called the piece “repellent” and an “indecipherable, uncorrected horror.” However, the piece was a challenge to our perception of beauty. There’s a rather interesting scene in the movie Copying Beethoven in which Beethoven talks about this Fugue and that beauty is arrived at through the “gut” of man, and the trip there isn’t exactly pretty.

The form of the Fugue is difficult to classify and it is, by far, not your typical neatly trimmed Bach fugue. Like many of Beethoven’s late works, the piece appears to be a combination of fugue, sonata form and variation form, and like the finale of the Ninth Symphony, warrants the view of a multi-movement form within a single large movement.

Well, enough of me talking about this piece. Check out this magnificent treasure of classical music for yourself.

The finale of the Ninth Symphony is very difficult to classify as far as its form goes. Charles Rosen called the movement “a symphony within a symphony,” and gave the movement the following outline:

• First “movement”: the theme initially stated in the cellos and basses with variations and then “recapitulated” by the voices.
• Second “movement”: a march in the Turkish style in 6/8 meter followed by a variation of the theme in the same time signature
• Third “movement”: a slow movement with a new theme
• Fourth “movement”: a fugato finale on the themes of the first and third “movements.”

A very interesting analysis, not so much of the form, but of its thematic content, is given by Rudolph Reti in his book The Thematic Process in Music. Reti shows that the two main themes of the finale, the Ode to Joy and the slow theme to the words “Seid umschlugen, Millionen!” are actually variants themselves of the first movements two main themes. This not only gives the entire piece a broad structural unity built on consistent thematic material, but also gives the finale a slight resemblance of a sonata form, albeit a very loosely constructed one. The fanfare and recitative serve as introduction to the movement, with the first theme and the movement proper beginning with the announcement in the cellos and basses. The first theme is then varied before preceding on to the second theme. The idea of variations on a theme during the exposition of a sonata form is not unheard of. Schubert and Brahms both used the technique, however, with them it was the second theme and not the first that underwent variation. The return of the fanfare and brief recitative, this time in the bass voice, is like Beethoven’s other pieces, for example, the Pathetique Piano Sonata, in which the introduction returned later in a sonata form movement. The voices then continue the variations. The 6/8 march, unlike what Rosen’s analysis suggests, contains no new melody but only a variation of the Ode to Joy melody. The second theme proper begins with the Andante sostenuto in 3/2 time. Here not only is there significant changes in tempo and time, but an entirely new theme is introduced. Reti explains the connection of this theme to the first movement’s theme in B flat major. Following this theme, the “development” section begins. This section essentially serves as both development and recapitulation, a trait typical of sonatina forms. Here on out both themes are used simultaneously in brilliant displays of counterpoint.

All in all, the movement, and the entire symphony, is undoubtedly one of the most cherished classics and as long as there’s classical music, this piece will always be recognized as a supreme achievement of art and the noble virtues of man. Even as I listen to it now, I am moved to go out and do something great. This is classical music at its absolute best.

Last night, the UP Singing Ambassadors performed a full concert at the Ipil Residence Hall in fulfillment of our dormitory manager, Ma’am Alma Tirona’s, request to the group’s conductor, Mr. Ed Manguiat, who happens to be a good friend of hers.

As a music buff, I watched the event dubbed as “Ipil Cafe”. It was the first time that I heard the group perform live and at the end of the show, I was astounded to the highest level of their superb renditions of various pieces from compositions of Filipino Artists to works of European composers.

As I listened to their voices that blended with each other perfectly, my thoughts raced back to an event in my life that happened more than four years ago.

I first studied the instrument of black and white keys way back in Grade 2 when my parents enrolled me in a piano class during the summer of that year. When classes resumed, I lost my focus in studying the piano and concentrated instead on playing after class. I simply quit.

My interest in the instrument suddenly resurfaced almost five years after I quit and more than four years ago. When I was in first year high school, I got reunited to a former “classmate” in the piano classes that I attended out of sheer fate. I was invited by two of my classmates to her house. On their sala was an upright piano. I forgot the details of it but I do remember that day as the day when I was “reawakened” to my interest in music through a classical piece that I asked her to play.

That, too, was the day I first fell in love.

For more than an hour, we shared lucid moments about various things around the sun. On top of them was the confirmation that she was really one my “classmates” in that piano school. When it was time to leave, I asked her to play any piece that she was asked to memorize by our teacher. She was hesitant but I was insistent. In the end, she gave in, sat on the piano chair, and began playing a familiar classical piece composed by Ludwig van Beethoven.

It was the Fur Elise, a bagatelle which was originally titled as Fur Therese. The piece was intended to Therese Malfatti, one of his students whom he fell in love with and whom he decided to marry. He was to play the piece at a party and propose afterwards. He never got to play it for he got too drank to perform. The love story ended at that brief overture.

It was named as Fur Elise after his copywriter mistook it as a piece intended for his sister, Elise. Apart from being renowned as one of the best classical composers of all time, he is also known among music enthusiasts that he had a very scruffy handwriting.

She only played the first part of the piece but that was enough to strike my heart with a feeling that was totally Greek to me before and it was more than enough for me to regain my interest in learning the piano. In an instant, I fell in love, to music and to the young woman who played music to my heart.

When the UPSA sang, I remembered her and the day that I will forever remember. When the UPSA sang, I remembered the feeling of falling in love for the first time in my life.

Four years later, that feeling lingered and it never ceased to exist.

]]> http://aboutclassicalmusic.wordpress.com/2009/11/13/beethoven-the-ninth-part-iii/ Fri, 13 Nov 2009 22:15:49 +0000 classicalconnect http://aboutclassicalmusic.wordpress.com/2009/11/13/beethoven-the-ninth-part-iii/

And now we come to the finale of the Ninth Symphony; that glorious choral finale that is rightly one of the greatest masterpieces of classical music. This movement never fails to impress me. The countless upon countless times I’ve listen to it, it never ceases to excite and never gets old. Of all the pieces in classical music literature, this is the one that leaves me with the greatest of feelings–like I can conquer the world, that nothing is beyond my reach, that I can even create an equal to or surpass this magnificent work of art. This is feeling is the goal of all legitimate classical music and Beethoven was indeed a master of achieving that goal.

Obviously, the finale is a setting of Schiller’s Ode to Joy (1785) and the poem was a particular favorite of Beethoven’s. In fact, Beethoven set out with the intention in 1793 to set Schiller’s Ode to music, however it would take thirty years for him to complete the task. The famous melody to which Schiller’s poem is set was also no sudden stroke of inspiration. Despite it’s simplicity, it was the result of many efforts on the part of its composer and the first sketches date all the way back to 1798. But, again, its simplicity, and what beautiful simplicity it is; the diatonic scale, no chromatic intervals, of all but three notes moving by step-wise motion. It aught to be a lesson to these composers that write grotesquely complicated pieces!

The finale does not begin initially with the the grand Ode to Joy, but instead with a terrific and somewhat frightening fanfare from, first, only the winds and timpani, and then again from the full orchestra. This is followed by one of the most unique sections in all music and which no one else has pulled off, or even dared imitate. The cellos and basses begin a recitative, which until this point was a term only connected with vocal music. Beethoven then restates each of the main themes from the preceding movements. Grove describes this passage as Beethoven pondering whether any of themes of the previous movements are fit to express the meaning of Schiller’s grand Ode. The cellos and basses are the voice of the composer speaking in his music and angrily passing judgment on the ineptness of his own creations to express his wishes. Finally, a portion of the finale’s theme is announced by the woodwinds to which the entire orchestra applauds its arrival. The theme has been found!

To be continued…

The second movement of the Ninth is one of my favorite Scherzos, right up there with the Scherzo of Schubert’s Ninth Symphony and Beethoven’s op. 127 String Quartet. The opening eight bars, for the most part, sum up the entire movement. The descending D minor triad indelibly links the movement to the same descending triad that formed the main theme of the first movement. Furthermore, the opening rhythmical figure with its octave leaps persist much of the way through the Scherzo. Finally, Beethoven creates an odd rhythmical feel by placing the orchestra’s final declaration of the three-note motif a measure too soon.

The movement’s opening melody is one of the earliest known sketches Beethoven made of this colossal monument of classical music. It is marked in a sketchbook as a fugue subject and it is said that the idea came to Beethoven as he stepped from darkness into a bright light.

The Trio section of the movement is the perfect example of one of those simple, yet utterly beautiful Beethoven melodies. This melody is repeated several times, first in the horns, then in the bassoons, next in the strings, yet it never gets old. The rustic simplicity of this Trio, and the many repetitions of its melody, give a striking resemblance to the “Pastoral” Symphony. The Trio’s close is my favorite section of the movement. The back and forth movement between tonic and dominant chords over a pedal in the basses and the simplistic quarter-note line of the violas and cellos create a musical effect of such startlingly beauty that you can’t help but marvel.

The third movement is one of those Beethoven slow movements that almost seems to defy words. The ethereal opening melody in the strings with the woodwind echos at each cadence is perhaps one of the most touching and heart-felt melodies in all of classical music. The work is an oddly formed set of variations separated by an Andante melody in triple time. Each repetition of the opening melody brings the listener ever deeper into the mind of its creator. The third entrance of the theme is particularly memorable with its stark orchestration and beautiful counter-melody in the third horn. This melody was supposedly written for a friend of Beethoven’s. The movement closes quietly and is the perfect introduction to the clamorous introduction that begins the epic finale.

To be continued…

Ever since I got really involved in studying classical music, I’ve always had a strong inclination for the older books on music. To start with, I’m a bit of a history nut, but mostly, it has always been my thinking that the best way to understand the minds of the great composers is to study and read the material of the time period they belonged to and not the after-thoughts of modern writers. In historical terms, this means studying the primary sources. Honesty, which do you think will have a better understanding of, say, tonal harmony: those of the time period who studied it, wrote with it, and wrote about it, or a modern theorist looking back on it one hundred years after its heyday? The answer seems pretty obvious to me. I believe the same is true regardless of which aspect of classical music is under the magnifying glass. Besides the difference in perspective of the older books compared to newer ones, I think the older books are also more enjoyable to read. The language and writing style of the older writers is immensely more interesting than the dry, technical, yawn-inducing language of today’s music theorists. (And they wonder why students don’t enjoy theory.)

A perfect example of one of these order books is Beethoven and His Nine Symphonies written by none other than the man of music dictionary fame, Sir George Grove. The book is a wonderful reference for the legendary Nine. Each symphonic commentary is preceded by a history of the piece and the events surrounding it (for some symphonies this section is quite extensive). Then follows Grove’s analysis and is, in my opinion, the best part. So there’s no talk of linear descents, background structures and the usual theoretical rigmarole, but I guarantee you’ll find Grove’s analysis a better read and still glean a wealth of information. The best part is that Grove points the reader in the right direction and then  leaves much up to him or her to discover the answers for himself. The commentaries also contain interesting notes about Beethoven’s sketches of these immortal works and examples drawn from Beethoven’s own words, including the famous Heiligenstadt Testament and the letters to the Immortal Beloved.

Vi dirò una cosa: quando, l’altro giorno, ho sentito del pronunciamento della Corte europea dei diritti dell’uomo con cui veniva accolta la richiesta di una famiglia di Abano Terme circa la rimozione del crocefisso dall’aula scolastica frequentata dal figlio, a me è subito venuta in mente la Missa solemnis in re maggiore di Ludwig van Beethoven. Se avrete pazienza, spiegherò le tortuose ragioni che mi hanno portato a quel pensiero.

Innanzitutto, da materialista recidivo quale sono, permettetemi di puntualizzare un concetto: l’esposizione, l’esibizione del crocefisso non solo nelle aule scolastiche ma, più in generale, in tutte le strutture pubbliche è, oltre che una violenza culturale nei confronti di coloro i quali non credono o credono diversamente, soprattutto un segno di sottomissione ad un’entità intangibile e indimostrabile che ha per conseguenza l’accettazione del corollario di norme etico-morali statuite dal potere clericale. Tale accettazione, per giunta, è pedissequa, non sottoposta al vaglio di alcun accertamento di volontà, subliminale. E subliminale, occulta è la pressione che da quel simbolo promana. Il dovere di uno stato laico è pertanto quello di rimuovere ogni emblema che possa costituirsi come valore superiore, trascendente l’autorità dello stato stesso. Si tratta di un’elementare norma di buon senso, che non prefigura in nessun modo l’iconoclastia o l’autoritarismo: semplicemente, è un atto che pone ciascun individuo su un piano di assoluta parità. Non so voi, ma a me disturberebbe venir giudicato da un tribunale dove campeggiasse un crocefisso o una mezzaluna o una stella di Davide.

Questo mi porta a considerare l’invalsa affermazione che vorrebbe nelle presunte radici giudaico-cristiane della nostra storia la giustificazione dello status quo. E’ una falsificazione bella e buona della realtà. Prima del 303 d.C., anno che vide l’imperatore Costantino convertirsi alla religione della croce, in Italia mi pare ci fossero già da un po’ di tempo una cultura, una società e una religione assai diverse. Lo stesso dicasi per il resto del mondo, non solo d’Europa. Alla base del nostro diritto, per dire, c’è la codificazione romana, non la teodicea. La matematica e la filosofia si sono sviluppate nel mondo arabo e in quello greco. Dopo il 303 d.C. la religione della croce ha influenzato indubbiamente l’arte e la conoscenza, spesso però – o quasi sempre – violentandole se queste non andavano a suo vantaggio. E’ appena il caso di ricordare Giordano Bruno e Galileo Galilei. Per non tacere sulle persecuzioni ai vari eretici o presunti tali, che pure dovettero in seguito essere riabilitati. Poi venne l’illuminismo, venne il razionalismo, venne il positivismo, le scoperte mediche e la teoria dell’evoluzione, la fisica, le scienze naturali: tutto ciò non fa parte del patrimonio comune? Gli stati moderni si reggono sulla separazione dei poteri e le libertà individuali – ciò che la religione condanna perché massima aberrazione concepita dall’uomo che non si soggioga al potere spirituale. La storia dell’umanità è storia di lotte per l’emancipazione dalla schiavitù, e non si arresta, guai se si arrestasse. Non capirei altrimenti lo scalpore e la partecipazione per l’eroismo di quello studente che ha messo in discussione l’infallibilità della guida suprema iraniana: quando succede lì va bene, quando succede qui è veteromarxismo? Peccato che di quel ragazzo ora non si sappia più nulla, pare l’abbiano fatto sparire. In nome di dio.

Ma torniamo al crocefisso e a Beethoven. Beethoven nutriva un profondo sentimento religioso, benché non andasse in chiesa o seguisse la vita liturgica. Aveva anzi in astio gli esponenti del clero, così come l’aristocrazia. Questo tuttavia non gli impediva di frequentare i duchi e i conti suoi patroni, né Rodolfo d’Austria in seguito creato cardinale. Leggendo le cronache dei suoi contemporanei, Beethoven viene descritto alternatamente come un fervido credente e un sospetto ateo. La ragione di quest’ambivalenza si spiega con la concezione che egli aveva della natura, nella quale ravvisava l’esistenza di un armonioso creatore, e con le tappe dolorose della sua biografia. E’ stato forse il più geniale musicista e nel contempo il più sofferente degli artisti, a causa della povertà, della sordità e dell’idealismo intransigente di cui era impregnato. Aveva però un temperamento eccezionale, era animato da una volontà incrollabile, e sentiva di essere venuto al mondo per comporre la sua musica meravigliosa, per consentire agli uomini ascoltandola – l’ha detto lui stesso – di liberarsi delle catene in cui si trascinano. A questo punto dovreste avere una discreta esperienza con la musica beethoveniana, per capire quel che intendo. Se così non è, oltre all’esortazione a provvedere all’incresciosa lacuna, accluderò in calce all’articolo un filmato significativo.

Cos’era dio per Beethoven? Un mistero, certo, e altrettanto certamente un dato di fatto. Ma il dio che adorava non era quello che tutti comunemente pregavano, era un dio col quale pretendeva entrare in contatto egli stesso in prima persona, attraverso la musica, l’amore per la natura, la fiducia nei valori più cari all’umanità: amore, libertà, fratellanza, giustizia. Sarà per questo motivo che non ha composto molta musica sacra, preferendo dedicarsi a generi più espressivi. Se però avete ascoltato la Sinfonia n. 6 in fa maggiore o gli ultimi Quartetti per archi, vi sarete resi conto che il tema della ricerca del divino è costante nella sua opera, e che spesso assume un carattere consolatorio, deve lenire gli affanni terreni. Senza dimenticare, ovviamente, la Sinfonia n. 9 in re minore, quella dell’inno alla gioia per intenderci, dove fa ripetere al coro: «Ci dev’essere un padre benevolo sopra la volta stellata». Insomma, dio per Beethoven era a un tempo un caposaldo e un’incognita, e nonostante tutto non gli impedì di vivere seguendo soltanto la sua fiera volontà.

Che c’entra dunque la Missa solemnis? C’entra col fatto che io stesso, pur conservando l’incredulità, posso bearmi della grazia di questa musica solenne e religiosissima, fino alla commozione.

Composta poco prima della celebre Nona, è il lavoro più imponente di Beethoven, una sorta di spartiacque. Dura oltre un’ora, richiede un’orchestra e un coro folti, ed è scandita da cinque momenti come prevede la liturgia canonica. Per comporla, il sommo Ludwig studiò le messe delle epoche precedenti e ne fuse i modelli così da ottenere un unicum che contemplasse le tradizioni gregoriane, barocche, classiche, ecc. Pensate che cosa può fare la mente umana quando è sorretta da convinzioni profonde, dato che il povero Beethoven era sordo da ormai molti anni, in età e disilluso riguardo al futuro. E’ curioso che sebbene l’opera sia chiaramente di carattere religioso non venga mai eseguita come tale: in primo luogo a causa della lunghezza, in secondo luogo perché la magniloquenza dell’insieme ispira davvero emozioni che vanno al di là dell’aspetto confessionale.

Io l’ascolto con una certa regolarità e sempre sbalordisco. Qui sotto metto a vostra disposizione il primo movimento, nominato Kyrie eleison, ossia signore pietà. E’ bellissimo, credetemi, li vale tutti i dieci minuti che spenderete per ascoltarlo. Questa oltretutto è una buona registrazione: l’orchestra di Amsterdam diretta dal grande Leonard Bernstein.

In conclusione, tutta questa fiera di chiacchiere per dire una cosa banale: è stupido litigare per colpa della religione, è stupido imporre agli altri le proprie convinzioni. Si può andare a scuola o in municipio anche se i muri sono bianchi. Si può ascoltare una messa solenne anche se non si crede in dio. L’importante è la bellezza. L’importante è l’umanità.