The Music This Week - Holy Week: Maundy Thursday

Maundy Thursday

Scott will be revisiting the"found object" wash bin and towel, so I thought I would consider the theme of water. I've chosen four romantic and early 20th century piano pieces about water to play for you. Here is a little information on each piece:

Venetian Boat Song by Felix Mendelssohn

This piece was written during the time that the piano was gaining popularity. You can hear the rich harmonies and dramatic expression that was so characteristic of the Romantic Era. It is from a collection called Songs Without Words. That title is such a lovely idea and hints at the vast expressive possibilities of the piano as an instrument. In this piece the left had provides a continual flowing accompaniment while the right hand has a soaring melody.

Sérénade sur l'eau by Jacques Ibert

This is the latest piece that I've chosen today; it was published in 1944. Jacques Ibert, a somewhat lesser known composer, was not famous for a specific genre or school. He maintained that "all systems are valid," and has often been called an "ecletic." Like the Mendelssohn piece, you can hear the rocking of the waves in the left hand. The melody is more minimalistic though. This piece makes me think of a calm canoe trip. In the latter half of the piece you can hear a repetitive descending melody which reminds me of water flowing over rocks in a stream.

On the Lake by Heinrich Hofmann

This lovely piece, from a relatively obscure composer, creates the sense of rocking on the water across both hands. Meaning that the flowing triple rhythms which sound like water and waves moves through the lower and higher notes of the piano and is part of the melody. This is unlike the other pieces where the musical depiction of water stays in the lower notes of the piano. This piece is very straight-forward and is a testament to the idea that less is more. It is very simply beautiful.

Barcarolle by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky

This piece is from Tchaikovsky's work "The Seasons," a collection of twelve (each month) character pieces. Character piece is a somewhat vague term which generally means a piece based on an idea or program (narrative). A barcarolle is the song a Venetian gondoliers sing. Once again, you can hear the water in the left hand, under the melody. Although this one uses a duple pattern (two beats) as opposed to the other three pieces which all use triple patterns (three "beats").