Italy Playlist

Burano 2003

“On Approaching Italy” by Oscar Wilde

I reached the Alps: the soul within me burned,
Italia, my Italia, at thy name:
And when from out the mountain’s heart I came
And saw the land for which my life had yearned,
I laughed as one who some great prize had earned:
And musing on the marvel of thy fame
I watched the day, till marked with wounds of flame
The turquoise sky to burnished gold was turned.
The pine-trees waved as waves a woman’s hair,
And in the orchards every twining spray
Was breaking into flakes of blossoming foam:
But when I knew that far away at Rome
In evil bonds a second Peter lay,
I wept to see the land so very fair.

Here’s a playlist I put together for an Autumn trip to Italy.   Wonderful to listen to on the long flight.  One of the stops for this trip was Lucca, Puccini’s birthplace, so a lots of opera.

Cavalleria Rusticana-Intermezzo-Mascagni

Mendelssohn Symphony #4-”Italian”

Albinoni’s Adagio in G minor – Amici Forever

Ancient Airs and Dances-Resphighi

Sicut Cervus-Palestrina

Canzon for Double Echo-Gabrielli

Concerto Grosso -Corelli

Cantabile, for violin and guitar- Paganini

Carnival of Venice-Paganini

Double Cello Concerto-Vivaldi-Ma and McFerrin

Four Seasons-Autumn-Vivaldi

Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves-Verdi

O  Sole Mio-Pavarotti

La Danza-Rossini-Pavarotti

Nessum Dorma-Puccini-Pavarotti

E Lucevan le stella-Puccini-Pavarotti

Vissi di’ Arte-Puccini-te Kanawa

Mattinatta-Bocelli

Confessa-Celentano

Autumn Leaves-Andrea Bocelli

San Francisco Symphony Visits the Central Coast

I’m still humming Tchaikovsky this morning having had  7th row tickets to the debut appearance of the San Franciso Symphony at the Cohan Center in San Luis Obispo last night.  The program included Copland’s music from the film Our Town, Berg’s Three Pieces for Orchestra, and Tchaikovsky’s 5th Symphony.  Three totally different works that together showed off each of the sections of such a great orchestra. 

Getting to finally see Michael Tilson Thomas conduct in person was such a treat.  He really is a rock star.  I am in awe.   I especially enjoyed my sight lines.  Being so close to be able to see his expressions as he conducted and to really be able to watch the concertmaster’s fingering, especially on the Tchaikovsky,  was spectacular.

The opening  credits of Our Town (1940)

The Second Movement of Berg’s Three Pieces for Orchestra

Finale from Tchaikovsky’s 5th

Songs of Spring

Getting ready for Easter dinner tomorrow and need to get the music playlist together.  Here are the  selections for this year. The list is divided into two parts: classical and pop/jazz.  Links are to Youtube videos of the selection. 

The poppies are blooming on the Central Coast.  I found these in a vacant lot across the street from my mechanic.  You can find beauty everywhere you look.  I’m going to have to go for a drive this week and find some more.  They revive my spirit.

Classical

• Sonata for Violin and Piano No.5 in F, Op.24 (Beethoven)
• The Four Seasons(“La Primavera,” No. 1), Op.8/1, RV 269 (Vivaldi)
• Appalachian Spring, ballet for 13 instruments-Simple Gifts (Copland)
• Blumine (“Flora”), for orchestra (discarded movement from Symphony No. 1) (Mahler)
• Frühlingsstimmen (Voices of Spring), Op. 410 (RV 410) (Strauss)
• Spring Song (Mendelssohn)

Popular Music

• “Spring Can Really Hang you up the Most”
• “Beautiful Day”
• “Here Comes the Sun”
• “Turn, Turn Turn”
• “Daydream”
• “It Might as Well Be Spring”
• “You Must Believe in Spring”
• “Skylark”
• “Spring is Here”

Peace on Earth

Gloria in excelsis Deo. Et in terra pax hominibus bonae voluntatis.

Glory in the highest to God. And on earth peace to men of good will.

The message has been the same for over two thousand years.  When we will listen?

Vivaldi’s Gloria:  Et in Terra Pax

A Choral Christmas

WHAT sweeter music can we bring,
Than a Carol, for to sing
The Birth of this our heavenly King?
Awake the Voice! Awake the String! 

( Robert Herrick)

Here is the list of some of my favorite things to sing at Christmas that I found on Youtube.  Beautiful music from different times and places. 

 Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern (Bach, J.S. – BWV 1 – 1.)

Bogoroditse Devo

Gabriel’s Message

Victoria – O magnum mysterium

Nativity Carol

For Unto Us a Child is Born (from Handel’s Messiah)

Shepherds’ Farewell

Gloria (From Vivaldi’s Gloria)

Dona Nobis Pacem (Bach’s B Minor Mass)

The end of November

The last week of November is upon us.    I spent last week in Arizona.  Not my choice for a Thanksgiving location, but family dictates it.  Too dry, dusty, and bare for me, but being with those I love and sharing food, wine, music and stories made it just right. I spoke with friends in the Midwest whose children spent Thanksgiving morning making snow angels.  Think I’d rather look at the cactus, than slide around the icy streets. 

My pumpkins and mums that are sitting next to the red door are still are looking good, but I’m itching to replace them with something more winterlike.  I saw this lovely pot at a local winery (of course).  I think it would make a nice winter arrangement to replace the mums and pumpkins.

I’ve started compiling my winter music lists.  I’ll do a separate Christmas list later.  There are so many choices that I wanted to limit this year’s list to a nice blend of upbeat sounds of  seasonal joy, nostalgia, and some good winter storm music.  I’ve divided the list into two parts:  classical and pop.  Here are my choices for classical. 

Lieutenant Kije Suite, Op. 60: IV. Troika (Prokofiev)

Concerto for Violin in F minor, Op. 8 no 4/RV 297 “L’inverno” (Vivaldi))

Serenade no 13 in G major, K 525 “Eine kleine Nachtmusik”: 2nd movement, Romanza (Mozart )

 Préludes (12) for piano, Book I, L. 117 Footprints in the Snow (Debussy )

 Symphony No. 9 “From the New World” – 2nd movement-Adagio  (Dvorak)

Saving Thanksgiving #3

“Beglückt darf nun dich, o Heimat, ich schauen und grüssen froh deine lieblichen Auen; nun lass ich ruhn den Wanderstab, weil Gott getreu ich gepilgart hab!”

“Blest, I may now look on thee, oh my native land, and gladly greet thy pleasant pastures; now I lay my pilgrim’s staff aside to rest because, faithful to God, I have completed my pilgrimage.”  “The Pilgrims’ Chorus” from Wagner’s Tannhauser

 Today is the last of the music playlists for Thanksgiving.  This one is secular, but as with “The Pilgrims’ Chorus” faith seems never too far from thankfulness. I tried to include a selection of different styles of music which should appeal to someone sitting around your table this holiday.  Just don’t sing with your mouthful! Today’s Thanksgiving art is Van Gogh’s Harvest.  A wonderful sense of bounty in the French countryside.

 

Thanksgiving Playlist

• “I’ve Got Plenty of Nothing” from Porgy and Bess by George Gershwin
• “Thank You” by Sly and the Family Stone
• “All Good Gifts” from Godspell by Stephen Schwartz
• “Amazing Grace” by Aretha Franklin
• “I’ve Got Plenty to be Thankful For” by Bing Crosby
• “Thank You” by Tori Amos
• “Be Thankful for What You Got” by Yo La Tengo
• “Thanksgiving Theme (Peanuts)” by Vince Guaraldi Trio
• “Stuffy Turkey” by Thelonious Monk
• “Mayflower Rock” by Dizzy Gillespie
• “Thank You” by Ray Davies
• “Thank You” by Led Zeppelin
• “Cornucopia” by Black Sabbath
• “Thanksgiving” by Loudon Wainwright III
• “Kind and Generous” by Natalie Merchant
• “Homeward Bound” by Simon and Garfunkel
• “Turkey in the Straw” by Flatt and Scruggs
• “Thanksgiving Song” by Adam Sandler
• “Thank You” by Dido
• “Thanksgiving”  by George Winston

When it comes to great music, there’s always room for Wagner.  Of course, once I introduced my children to “The Pilgrims’ Chorus,” I felt honor bound to follow it up with a showing of “What’s Opera, Doc?”  I just can’t think of Wagner without thinking of Bugs Bunny in his Brunhilde costume.  Completely destroys the beauty of the moment.” Elmer: Oh, Bwunehiwda, you’re so wuvwee.”Bugs: “Yes I know it, I can’t help it.” Elmer: “Weturn, my wove / A wonging burns deep inside me.” Bugs: “Return, my love / I want you always beside me.”

It’s  akin to when you learned the camp song, “Be kind to your web footed friends, for a duck may be somebody’s brother” before you were old enough to know it was John Phillp Sousa.  Don’t get me started on the Lone Ranger and Rossini or Chopin sonatas and funerals.   Now that I’ve got that out of my system, back to Thanksgiving. 

Saving Thanksgiving

 ”Got no check books, got no banks.  Still I’d like to express my thanks – I got the sun in the morning and the moon at night.” ~Irving Berlin

I went to the store this morning.  In the section that yesterday was brimming with ghosts, goblins, candy, and all manner of things that go bump in the night, was an entire forest of artificial Christmas trees.

  Once again, Thanksgiving is being shoved aside for Santa.  I’ve decided to make this week Thankgiving Awareness Week.  I hope to provide information on all things Thanksgiving. Canadian friends, ignore the American history stuff and save the rest for next year! 

For years, this Norman Rockwell poster (one of the Four Freedoms) hung in my classroom.  I always loved the guy looking at us instead of the turkey.  Everyone has their own favorite recipes and foods for Thanksgiving, so I don’t expect to include any in these posts.  So how about a little Thanksgiving music to go with the meal or to provide the background to a great conversation.  That’s what people did before television and football.  The music is divided into two playlists, one classical and the other a mix of different styles. Today I’m posting the classical list.  Always good for dining and digestion.  I’ll post the other in a few days.  Hopefully something for everyone and no one will be as picky as Charlie Brown who reminded us that when singing “Over the River and Through the Woods” that his grandmother did not live over the river or through the woods, but in a condominium.

Classical Thanksgiving Music

• Prelude on Welsh Hymn Tunes for organ No. 2 in G major (“Rhosymedre”)
  Composed by Ralph Vaughan Williams
• Cavalleria rusticana, opera (melodramma) in 1 act Intermezzo
  Composed by Pietro Mascagni
• Serenade for strings (or piano, 4 hands) in C major, Op. 48 1st Movement: Pezzo in forma di Sonatina
  Composed by Pyotr Il’yich Tchaikovsky
• St. Paul’s Suite, for strings, Op. 29/2, H. 118 The Dargason
  Composed by Gustav Holst
• Symphony No. 5 in D major/D minor (“Reformation”), Op. 107 A Mighty Fortress Is Our God
  Composed by Felix Mendelssohn
• Violin Concerto, for violin, strings & continuo in F major (“L’autunno,” The Four Seasons; “Il cimento” No. 3), Op.8/3, RV 293 Allegro
  Composed by Antonio Vivaldi
• A Symphony: New England Holidays for orchestra, S. 5 (K. 1A4) Thanksgiving and Forefathers’ Day
  Composed by Charles Ives
• Nocturne for piano No. 2 in E flat major, Op. 9/2, CT. 109
  Composed by Fryderyk Chopin

Raindrops

Another rainy day on my trip to the beautiful Pacific Northwest.  Lucky for me I am sitting inside watching children carving pumpkins.  Someone has lit a spicy candle and all is well.  My heart is back in California, however, and I wish I could send this rain to southern California. I ‘ve heard from a few friends who live in the area and all are well.  The news today highlighted the volunteer efforts of the local communities.  It always makes me glad to know that so many people care. Listen to Chopin Prelude No.15, Db Major “Raindrop.”  It is a perfect for today.

Scary October Music

It’s October and time to get ready for Halloween and find some scary music.  On Sunday I went to an organ concert featuring the brand new Forbes Pipe Organ at the Cohan Center at Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo.  The featured organist, James Welch, played “Introduction and Passacaglia in D minor by Max Reger.  He introduced the piece by saying it was October and time for something in D minor. (A little musicial humor) Everyone knows about the Bach Toccata and Fugue in D minor (BWV 565).  If you’ve never heard the entire piece and want to watch how it’s played on a real pipe organ check out this clip: Bach Toccata and Fugue in D Minor It is probably the most famous organ piece in the world.  Who hasn’t been to a Halloween party without it?   Since the Bach had been played at the inaugural concert in June, Welch chose the Reger piece. It may be my new favorite October music.