When (vocal) Classical Music gives you goosebumps!
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- Опубліковано 1 бер 2024
- My choice of five pieces of vocal classical music that has given me the goosebumps....plus the reasons why...
If you like my work, please buy me a coffee: www.buymeacoffee.com/classicalmk
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Mozart: • Mozart, Le nozze di F...
Delibes: • Flower Duet (Lakme, De...
Verdi: • Tu che la vanita (Don ...
Rossini: • Rossini - La Cenerento...
Bach: • J.S. Bach: St John Pas...
Wagner: • Tristan Prelude & Lieb...
I always get goosebumps on mahler 2. Very near the finale. Exactly in the moment when male choir goes "Berite dich! "
First time i heard Mozart's requiem live, holy barely made it out alive
Bach was the only one to give me goosebumps straight as I heard it
This is my second comment; I will here merely reprise what I wrote then at a rather self-indulgent length. Ever since I stumbled across your work, Ive been a fan, and qhickly watched all your posted videos, some of them twice, one three times. That didnt take very long, which is the basis of the point I'll try to make.
But first, a word about myself, so you have some notion of who is trying to make that point. Im a retired academic (biology) and a lifelong lover of classical music. I studied piano as a boy and apparently had some talent, but after 5 or 6 years gave it up, like the idiot I was, to pursue other things. My teacher, furious with my stupidity, warned me that I would someday deeply regret quitting, and of course, he was right. Now, in my dotage, I compose, and find it inexhausibly rewarding, but I'll run out of time before I get any good at it, which is a shame, but detracts not a bit from the pleasure it affords.
And, it goes without saying, listening to great music has been a perennial occupation for me, judging by the timbre of your voice, for at least twice as long ss you've been alive. Which is no claim to authority. I daresay you know more about many musical topics than do I, for you have obviously made a study of it, while I, in the two score and more years between dropping my instrument and taking up the pen to compose, merely listened.
But I do claim authority in one domain, for my career perforce made me an expert in it. For many years, I taught some of the brightest students in the country at one of its finest universities. And from among them, I had to repeatedly recruit the laboratory help necessary for my research program.
Which presented a problem. You couldnt rely on grades or recommendations. They all had stellar grades and glowing referrals, or they wouldnt be there. They were all smart and industrious, which I learned early on was woefully insufficient. I needed talent. The innate knack. The intuitive, unteachable aptness. The fluid natural gift for knowing what to do and how to do it, with economy, precision, and grace, without ever needing to be told. And choosing wrongly was inevitably a costly mistake, as all poor personnel decisions are.
So, although I was a decent research scientist, and a more than adequate instructor, what I really became best at was spotting talent -- that ineffable thing people either have or dont have.
And you, sir, have it -- in spades. Which brings me to my comment -- and please believe me, at my age I have no interest in writing UA-cam comments just to while away the time; I do this because I feel, in a sense, a sacred duty to respond to the presence of that all too rare and precious thing -- talent -- especially when it seems in peril of being, if not squandered, then less than fully realized.
Your gifts are obvious. Very few people could or can do what you are doing as well as you are doing it. You've mastered the 10 to 15 minute informative and entertaining UA-cam video on your field of choice and expertise. Ive liked almost all of them and loved more than a few. But I invariably feel, at the end of that 10 or 15 minutes so delightfully spent, a nagging sense of frustration, of dissatisfaction, akin to eating a superb appetizer, only to realize that the main course will not be forthcoming.
Having no idea what your larger objectives and aspirations are, I can only say that what I see is a fine artist of immense promise painting on too small a canvas. perhaps you are content to produce very well crafted short videos of music appreciation for the enlightenement and delectation of would-be classical music listeners; if so, so be it. But Im not exactly an indiscriminate consumer of UA-cam fare, and I certainly dont need any enticement to listen to great music, and I dont watch your vids to learn repertoire or theory or structure or how to listen: I watch them because, as a former professional explainer, I marvel at how well they're done; I realize that I could never package the same amount of information in any comparable amount of time, nor so adroitly present what is obviously a sincere, heart-felt intention to communicate and share your love of music with wit and insight, with an overarching goal of making the art form more approachable and less forbidding for those who havent grown up in a cultural environment where it is a given, and thus taken for granted.
My interest is professional, you might say; and I find myself, if not in awe of, then certainly a ittle jealous of, your skills as a communicator. I watch your videos because theyre so damn good.
And if my ear for British accents doesnt mislead me, perhaps I detect a touch of working-class background, and from that, am persuaded to extrapolate a notion of giving back as one element of motivation behind the work. And if this be true, even more kudos, and a hearty bravo.
I'd like, then, to implore you to consider taking a stab at a slightly longer format, say, the 30--40 minute range for starters. Just put one out there, for those of us whose attention span skews long, and see what happens. There is, Im convinced, an audience for such things. Surely anyone who's going to take a run at the Passion, or the Missa Solemnis, or ANY opera, wont be too put off by a half-hour video from the likes of you. I know lots of people who pay good money for big audio courses, reams of hour plus lectures, on music sppreciation, and none of them holds a candle to you for clarity, engagement, or panache.
Give it some thought. Give it s try. I for one will be most appreciative, mostly because of the gratification I will revel in at seeing a very gifted artist broadening his scope. I might even buy you a coffee. It would be a joy to see you spread your wings a bit. You really have too much talent to restrict yourself to short form.
Expand, and you will take your audience with you. Where else are they gonna go? I mean, have you checked out the competition? Right. There isnt any, not for what you do. And take it from me, you dont get any younger. You're hitting prime time I'd wager, just about now. Think Beethoven, arriving in Vienna and blowing their socks off! Go for broke, good sir: Thats my comment. Carpe Diem all the way. You may not even know how talented you are -- but I do; remember, Im an expert.
Looking forward to a deep dive, and on behalf of all self-important, pontificating blow-hard crusty old geezers everywhere -- God bless their rotten souls -- I remain a devoted admirer, come what may, and wish you all the best.
So many things to say...I think the big one for me is your request for longer format, I have been thinking on exactly the same lines recently and have started a much longer video on Beethoven's 9th...it will take a while to complete...but it's planned to come out in 4 vids time...a few months at current progress (my 'real' job is full time currently). I've also got to say how encouraging your kind words are...I'm NOT a social media extrovert, and have an aversion to checking on comments...I'm so often surprised how generous people are...it honestly makes the hard work more worthwhile. Many thanks!
The last 15 minutes of Mahler’s 8th symphony
By the way, let me celebrate the… 58th birthday of Gioacchino Rossini.
Yes
First vocal classical goosebump moments that come to my mind: Von deiner Güt o Herr und Gott from Haydn's Cration and Komm Hoffnung from Beethoven's Fidelio
Mario in Tosca: E luceran le Stelle...
Liebestod is indeed a perfect choice but there's one genre that hasn't been mentioned: the lied and all versions from different countries. And for that genre, my pick is Silcher's "Die Lorelei", based on Heine's famous poem.
Many thanks for the vid and opportunity for discussion ... for me, options would be Marietta's Lied/Final Scene (Die Tote Stadt - Korngold) for musicality or 'Nixon in China' (John Adams) just because I like it and it's new-ish! I could also do the final scene from Götterdämmerrung - especially the very final bit - but you covered Wagner! ;)
Like...where is NESSUN DORMA
I have goosebumps in Don Giovanni: mille torbidi pensieri. Near the end there are some really cool dissonances. Another momentd are the finale of Per pietà ben mio perdona from Così fan tutte and Giudici ad Anna from Anna Bolena
In my list of goosebumps-inducing vocal music there would be some moments from Schubert and Mahler (at least two from Mahler 2 - the finale and slow song from the third movement).
For me, there is something off-putting about opera singers singing with so much vibrato and constant wobbling of the notes they sing. The enjoyment I take out of listening to a performance of - let's say - a song from Schubert, is very dependant on the style in which singer sings. That consists of mainly the amount of this "wobbling", but also hitting the correct pitch of the notes, voice timbre, rubato etc.
If you are like me in this regard, I encourage you to check out the recordings of soprano singer Regula Muhlemann. She has such a pure, clear voice, beautiful timbre, and is hitting the notes perfectly - not too flat, not too sharp. Also the sensitivity to the music. And all this without the excessive wobbling! She has a channel here on UA-cam, where you can find mainly Mozart songs, but also works from other composers like Handel or Grieg.
(I might even say that if it wasn't her singing Mozart but some other singer, I wouldn't have had relistened to these songs, but now her performances of Mozart songs are one of the best things I've heard from Mozart, whose music is generally boring to me)
To the creator of the video: Thank you for making videos on classical music, I enjoy them! (I would like to see more romantic music and less baroque and classical era, but obviously that's personal preference and I am just sharing an opinion)
To the reader: Seriously - go check out Regula Muhlemann recordings, they are good. Example: ua-cam.com/video/81HGOU50wu0/v-deo.htmlsi=VKmauO7C4WAKaRVu
I know that your channel focuses more on classical pieces from the likes of ; Beethoven,Mozart, Bach etc But I wonder if you would ever do a video (or have sorry I’m a newer subscriber) on some classical esque artists that compose for films perhaps Howard Shore and his work on LOTR? Your channel is very entertaining and I find myself learning more from your videos, have a great day.
Excited to watch the rest of this video, but I have to correct something. Thirds can't be perfect in 12-TET. Thirds are either minor or major - never perfect.
Edit: nice video as always!
I don't exactly know what a perfect third is, but singers can modulate the pitch of the notes in micro terms, so that the interval is in perfect harmony (the overtones match). If a choir is good, the singers can modulate (sing a little higher or lower) the same held note, when the other note changes.
For example the alto/soprano singers can sing a note E, when the bass singers are singing C (creating "perfect" major third - not too flat, not too sharp). Then, when bass singers go up a half step to C#(D flat), the exact pitch of note E(F flat), which is sung by altos can be adjusted accordingly to create the "perfect" minor third (or the bass singers can micro-adjust, while altos stay on the same pitch).
That's why music for only voices sounds so good when sung by a good choir - the overtones and undertones are in harmony. You can't do that on the piano.
Edit: mainly added blank newlines for readability.
Ravel’s Sheherazade is pretty ight
Your videos sometimes really help me out and I enjoy them a lot. I just released the first movement of a string quartet I wrote on my channel, it would be awesome if you checked that first movement out and told me your opinion on it. I am pretty proud of my work with this first movement and it’s about 6 minutes in length. I wrote it in musescore. Also just thank you for these awesome videos!
So that you know, thirds are NEVER called perfect. They are minor or major, augmente or diminished, but never perect. Only 4ths, 5ths and 8ths can be perfect. In the case of 4ths and 5ths (and in some cases even 8ths) they can also be diminished or augmented.
Così Fan TuttE
La Cenerentola…Chen-er-EN-toe-la
Cenere. Means ash in Italian..or cinders.