Art Music General

[Highwayman]

I don't know shit about music formally and I need some point of reference for why this is knocking me out of the park.

I too wish I had the musical knowledge/vocabulary to properly discuss my favorite composers' work or to discuss the relative merits of famous conductors. But all I can offer are generalities. I can tell you that Bruckner's 3rd symphony is full of Wagnerian heroism and grandeur, but delving deeper is beyond me. It's frustrating, but one can't be an expert in--or even conversant in--every aspect of culture.

More positively, I'm looking forward to seeing Patrice Cheréau's production of Elektra, which is coming to the Met (and movie theaters worldwide) this April. http://www.metopera.org/Season/2015-...rauss-tickets/ Nina Stemme, perhaps the greatest dramatic soprano alive, takes the title role, which is reason enough to buy a ticket. It's also worth noting that this is the final opera overseen by Cheréau, an influential director whose Centenary Ring scandalized 1970s audiences by reinterpreting the Ring Cycle as a socialist critique of Industrial Age Europe. Such reinterpretations are commonplace now, but most directors lack Chereau's subtlety and respect for the original libretto.

And here's a video of Stemme as Isolde from a few years ago.

[asterism42]

[Mattias]

[SeiKeo]

With editorial comment by a real music critic for those of us needing some real thinking on the matter.

[TrienDarkform]

I'm don't have any formal education in music; I have some theory knowledge, but am mostly self-taught (a couple years of choir only gives you so much), because I wanted to be able to write music. I do listen to a decent amount of classical music, though my preference is for the baroque period. Namely, because I like listening to counterpoint.

[Snow]

Don't die, thread!

[SeiKeo]

Ah, you're so traditional.

[Lace]

Ariana Grande's new song Focus is high art. It's a metaphor for her fall into a trashcan, because that's where it is, it's trash. In the first 20 seconds it gets your hopes up by sounding decent enough and then the Chorus just farts into your ears.

There hasn't been a stumble into garbage this iconic since Britney

[Snow]

Guess Delius is a bit more modern, no?

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Ariana Grande's new song Focus is high art. It's a metaphor for her fall into a trashcan, because that's where it is, it's trash. In the first 20 seconds it gets your hopes up by sounding decent enough and then the Chorus just farts into your ears.

There hasn't been a stumble into garbage this iconic since Britney

Britney's fall into garbage was kinda symbolic for the whole industry, the more time passes the more sense it makes when you see the poop pile that is today's commercial pop.

[Lace]

Actually today's commercial pop is pretty okay

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best song about today's pop

[Kotonoha]

Leave Britney alone, but unironically

[Snow]

I like some of today's pop and songs that make me go oh shit do happen, but generally speaking it's just meh.

[Lace]

Leave Britney alone, but unironically

I mean she did invent anime so it's a lil rude to disrespect her on an anime forum, I get you

[Snow]

[LJ3]

Effort post

Eugene Bozza's Adante et Scherzo





Classical saxophone is a thing and deserves recognition.

Howard Hanson's Symphony No.2 Mvt 1



The Interlochen Center for the Arts has a summer music program where it is tradition to end concerts with the theme from this symphony. The amount of talent there was staggering and absolutely humbling.

Something I was introduced to due to it: Otto Respighi"s The Pines of Rome



Maybe you're familiar with it from Fantasia.

So, OP, would it be appropriate to ask around about personal musical experience?

[SeiKeo]

Seems totally fine.

[LJ3]

Nice pick.

Cool Snow, I'll check out more of Frederick Delius.

I know at least in North Carolina in the US that it was compulsory to have one art credit class during middle and high school. Did any of y'all had to do that, band, orchestra, or choir?

Following video is kinda janky so feel free to ignore it while listening. It's a composition by a Dutch composer Jacob Ter Veldhuis called Billie based on Billie Holiday. It features saxophone along a recording of spliced Holiday quotes, piano, and percussion.



His stuff is ... different.

And this is some phenomenal guitar work.



Check him out.

[SeiKeo]

Yeah, middle school had required music class. It was pretty much whatever though, they had you do a little choir, a little recorder, just mostly fucking around with instruments. Not the most exciting class.

[asterism42]

Music was a compulsory class in my school too. But it was pretty cool. Most of the kids in my class were pretty musical.

[ZidanReign]

A Symphonic Medley of Dragon Quest's Battle and Final Boss Themes.

Man the nostalgia hits hard, hearing the themes in a proper orchestra really is nice to the ears.