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Nov. 23, 2023

Melanie, Ren, Iris, Leah

Joseph Haydn (1732-1809) was an Austrian composer often regarded as the "Father of the Symphony" and the "Father of the String Quartet." He played a pivotal role in developing classical music from the Baroque to the Classical period. Haydn was born in Rohrau, Austria, and showed early musical promise. At age eight, he joined the choir at St. Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna, where he received an education in singing and violin.

Haydn worked as a freelance musician and composer in his early career, eventually securing positions as a court musician for various noble families, most notably the Esterházy family. During his time with the Esterházys, Haydn produced most of his symphonies and chamber music. His innovative compositions laid the groundwork for the classical style, characterized by balanced structures and memorable melodies.

Haydn's influence extended beyond music composition. He mentored a generation of composers, including Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Ludwig van Beethoven. His remarkable work includes 104 symphonies, 68 string quartets, numerous piano sonatas, and oratorios. One of his most famous compositions is "The Creation," an oratorio considered a masterpiece of the classical era.

Haydn's contributions to classical music earned him recognition and admiration during his lifetime, and his legacy continues to resonate in the world of music, as his compositions remain celebrated and performed by orchestras and ensembles worldwide. His enduring impact on the development of Western classical music ensures his place as one of its most significant and revered figures.

Guitar Trio

O Trio Magico tries to evoke the feeling of longing and homesickness, known in Portuguese as saudade. As you listen to the intro, observe the melancholic swaying harmony accompanied by a nostalgic melody. Roland Dyens was very detailed when writing his scores, leaving behind a 22-letter legend indicating exactly what he wanted in his pieces.

3 Retratos de Fado translates as “photographs of Fado”. Fado is defined as a Portuguese music style that is characterized by resignation, melancholy, and mournful tunes. As observed in the three movements of the piece, the introduction to the first movement is rather sorrowful. With its rich harmonies, the second movement is quite nostalgic when switching from minor to the parallel major. The third movement is very sentimental in its contrast between the low bass and the ringing harmonics.

Luisa, Nathan, Iris

Dvořák wrote the Terzetto in a few days in January 1887. Two violins and viola is an unusual combination of instruments: it was written to be played by violinists Josef Kruis and Jan Pelikán, with the composer playing viola. Josef Kruis was a chemistry student who rented a room in the same house where the Dvořák family lived; he was taking violin lessons from Jan Pelikán, a National Theatre Orchestra member.

In C major, the first movement is not in the usual sonata form of a first movement but in ternary form: a lyrical opening theme with an energetic moment; a central part based on the energetic moment heard earlier; the opening theme briefly returns. The whole movement is an introduction, concluding with a link to the following music.

The second movement, a slow movement in E major, is also in ternary form. It is marked dolce, molto espressivo (sweetly, very expressively). The contrasting middle section is agitated, with dotted rhythms.

In A minor, the third movement is a scherzo with the sort of cross-rhythm that often appears in Dvořák's music, and a more peaceful trio marked Poco meno mosso (slightly slower), without cross-rhythm, in A major.

SODJ Sax Quartet

Grand Quatuor Concertant is one of the very first works written for the saxophone and as such, it is written very much like a standard string quartet with its own saxophone twists. Loud and punctuated sections are brought to life with the instrument’s wide range of articulations, contrasted with sweet lyrical lines that still carry the excitement found elsewhere.

Gavin Whitlock’s Celtic Suite is an exciting work of movements reminiscent of Gaelic dances and love songs. Midnight in Kinsale is a duple meter dance with an interesting baritone sax feature. The second movement is a subtle call to a lover with harmonies and melodies that bring you to the British isles. Ceilidh is exactly what you would want from a Celtic dance. Pungent compound rhythms lead the way into thin textures, ending with a fun and rhythmic finale!

Converging Spectrums is an amazing contemporary saxophone quartet work that shows off the virtuosity present in every horn player. Use of the difficult altissimo register is present in the upper voices, yet the frequent change in texture allows the soft and warm feelings to project from the lower voices. From its quick triplet runs to its frequent changing between odd time signatures, Converging Spectrums is a celebration of what the saxophone quartet is capable of.