Monday Music Appreciation #19 -- Handel's Messiah Amen

(Yeah, I know it's Tuesday, but I accidentally set the publication date incorrectly for this moodling to next Monday, oops! And didn't realize it until this morning.)

My wonderful Winspear ushering job means that I get to hear Handel's Messiah in December each year. I've always loved different parts of it -- the rousing Hallelujah chorus for its excitement, For Unto Us a Child is Born for its back and forth between duet choruses, Comfort Ye My People for its soaring tenor, and Rejoice Greatly, O Daughter of Zion for its amazing soprano aria, to name just a few. After this moodling, I think I'll go listen to it all again!

Of course, in the chamber, it's easy to feel that once the audience sits down after the Hallelujah chorus, it's all downhill from there. But is it?

Not exactly. What struck me most this week was the final Amen. In particular, the violin passages between the singing. The Edmonton Symphony Orchestra's violins played it with such incredible feeling this year that I sat up and took notice. They probably do that every year, but this year, it hit me!

I've listened to the Amen a few times since. Amen means we believe. A heartfelt Amen goes a long way in these very long winter nights. See if you don't agree.

The miracle of music

I don't get to attend a symphony performance very often, but when I do, I'm guaranteed a God moment. I close my eyes and marvel at the wonder of music -- that composers can create such incredible scores, that human beings can fashion instruments capable of making such individual sounds that can blend into one big sound that brings tears to my eyes. Julian of Norwich liked to talk about God sitting in heaven, completely relaxed, wearing a smile like a marvellous symphony, and last night's concert really worked with that image for me.

I especially liked Kurt Weill's Lady in the Dark, which seemed like a necklace of interesting musical ideas. George Gershwin's Concerto in F was incredible, too, all those instruments blending into amazing and intricate melodies, just like God has created a world with all sorts of people and ideas that work together, sometimes well, and sometimes with considerable dissonance. I found myself thinking that, although we're all living an unfinished symphony in this life, eventually, we'll be part of the marvellous symphony that is God's smile.

I would love to share a video of some of the music I heard last night, but it can't be found on YouTube. I'll leave you instead with 13-year old Emily Bear's version of Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue, recorded with the Santa Fe Orchestra. How I love the melody that begins around the 13 minute mark. That anyone  -- let alone a thirteen-year-old -- can play the piano like she does amazes me!

Operaaaahhhhhhhh

Last night, my eldest daughter and I went to see The Magic Flute, a beautiful production of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's famous work mounted by Edmonton Opera. It was a delight in so many ways... but mainly for the amazement it offers as incredible music written by a composer that pushed the boundaries of music in his day. He was probably the Elvis of his era, the guy who revolutionized the European music scene of the time.

I love opera, though I'll admit to having my moments in every show where I just wish they'd stop singing the same words over and over. The trick then is to stop listening to the words at that point, and pay attention to the music. What are those violins doing? Listen to how that flute underlines the heroine's sadness. Pay attention to how the clarinets' and oboes' melodies intertwine. But don't close your eyes too long, or you might just drift away...

The Magic Flute was my Christmas present from Christina, and a perfect gift it was, holding many moments of amazement and amusement. Sure, the story is silly in spots, but that's Mozart's lightheartedness coming through -- and the God of life certainly didn't create all doom and gloom, so why should Mozart?

Here's a lovely bit -- the duet of birdcatcher Papageno and his little wife Papagena at the end of the opera. I love their little "papping" bit at the beginning, the silliness of them singing about their soon-to-be family of "kinderlein" all named Papageno and Papagena after themselves -- and the expressions on these faces are just wonderful. Enjoy!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J7SggJWtB2A

A little Debussy for a Sunday

My daughter shares her birthday with Claude Debussy (1862 - 1918), a French composer whose music I have always enjoyed. I didn't know about their common birthday until recently (thanks to the August 22nd Google Doodle). It made me pull out my Debussy music for a listen. Here's his Reverie, a gorgeous piece for this Sunday, played by Aldo Ciccolini. Oh, to be able to make music like this! Four and a half minutes of a very lovely dream... enjoy!

Simple Suggestion #124... Listen to some long-haired music

On Tuesday evening, my music teacher sister invited her sisters to attend a fundraising concert being held by a tiny but very talented contingent of child musicians who will be participating in the Canadian Music Competitions in Toronto in July. The 9 performers ranged in age from 7 to 14 years old, and they knocked our socks off!! My sister teaches music in school to one of the grade two girls, and when the concert was over, she turned to me, shaking her head. "What must A. think of school music classes?" she laughed. "She was clapping ti-ti-tahs when she was three! What I teach is so far in her past, it's unbelievable!"

The final performer of the evening was a young woman from the school my daughters attend. L. played Beethoven's Concerto 3, Opus 37, First Movement. Her grace and elegance were visible as she played... and the music, inspiring. All the young people who took the stage had poise and talent far beyond anything I'll ever possess... and the music they played was incredible. I had goosebumps several times as little hands flew up and down the piano, playing trills and arpeggios whose complexity I will never understand or hope to mimic. Then there were the kids who played guitar, violin and cello. Whoa. Their accomplishments were mind-blowing. And it's amazing to think that there are hundreds like them from all over the country, with a passion for playing classical music, and playing it well. I wish them all the best, and I'd love to be a fly on the wall in their concert halls in Toronto!

Tuesday evening also reminded me of something I've been neglecting lately... my appreciation for classical music. Any hack can do what I do with a guitar, but hearing the young guitarist play Handel on Tuesday night made me vow to come home and listen to people who really know the nuances of music. As my other sister remarked, listening to classical music offers us a good reminder of how far human beings have evolved over the centuries... and, I would add, of how deep the human soul can be. Perhaps that's why it's so soothing... it reaches our souls.

Today is laundry day, and I need to bake cookies, so I think that I'll put Beethoven's Symphonies on the stereo and perhaps curl up with a good book. It's been a very dizzy week, so why not? Maybe I'll find my equilibrium in good music.

In case you're in the mood to join me, here's a bit of the piece that L. played -- unfortunately, it quits before it reaches the really amazing part about 15 minutes along in the full version, which can be found here. I tried to find a video with a young person playing, but didn't succeed. So you'll just have to imagine a lovely 14-year-old girl at the piano instead, fingers skipping along with the same sort of certainty. Wow!

Daniel Barenboim - Beethoven - Piano Concerto No... by medicitv

P.S. Looking for more Simple Suggestions? Try here.