Well, here I am again, stuck in my room. Not entirely enjoyable, mostly waiting to feel better so I can go catch up on some practising, but meanwhile I'm memorizing history excerpts. A large part of my midterm is recognizing musical excerpts of works we've studied in class and identifying them by ear, which can be extremely frustrating and time-consuming. Mostly I just put them all in a playlist, hit shuffle, and I'm set!
Of course, I do have an advantage over others in my class in that I can tell what key the piece is in, which is a major hint. Still, I believe it's a ridiculous assignment and I cannot fathom what purpose it could possibly serve in our everyday lives as musicians. Honestly, do I really need to know by ear the difference between Italian operas that no one even performs anymore?
Okay, that sounds a bit whiny, so I'll change the tone a bit...I don't hate Baroque music, but I have to admit I like music that is expressive in a different way. In other words, I'm a hopeless Romantic. I can listen to pieces like Tchaikovsky's Romeo and Juliet over and over (and I do) without losing it, because to my mind that kind of music is practically orgasmic. Also, it's very fulfilling to dwell on the kind of beauty that emerged from another mind just like mine (well...human, in any case), rather than on the more shallow infatuations that one comes across in everyday life. For this kind of feeling I recommend Vaughan Williams' Serenade to Music (reputedly made Rachmaninoff cry), Brahms' German Requiem, and the second movement of Rachmaninoff's second Piano Concerto. Just a few from an extensive list.
Anyway, to return to my history midterm. It's often very difficult to concentrate on this material, but as I go on I'm finding I can appreciate certain things more and more, for example the works of Handel. Everyone knows the Messiah, but the scene I'm listening to from Julius Caesar is equally beautiful; Cleopatra disguises herself as Virtue and sings an absolutely breathtaking aria in order to seduce Caesar, with whom she has fallen in love. Vivaldi, as well, is gaining more ground in the area of my appreciation, as for my last exam about him I was only required to listen to the Four Seasons. The textures and melodies he uses are captivating, and it's amazing to think just how many violin concertos he composed with the same formula, and yet each was identical and prized for its unique attributes.
Well, at this point I'm fairly certain I could take on almost any essay question for these three chapters that the prof can think up. Even though the class can be devastatingly boring (mostly because of his lecturing style, which consists of droning on in a monotone for quite some time and there every once in a while ACCENTING a word inexplicably), I am getting a well-rounded education on the subject. The books we are required to purchase are very useful, as is the online site where the prof prints off all our notes. And he wonders why so few people come to class.
Ah well, should be a busy week. I'm playing in my first recital as a collaborative pianist, which is exciting and a bit nerve-wracking, because someone else is depending on me to be perfect (typically, it's just me that asks that of myself...if that makes any sense at all.) We're performing the Vaughan Williams Five Mystical Songs and Beethoven's only song cycle, To the Distant Beloved. I'm also preparing for a major dance competition on Friday (my birthday, how fun), although my partner was gone all week so we didn't get to practise at all. I'm also playing in the rez talent show on Thursday evening, nothing Classical, actually my own arrangement of the song Round Here by Counting Crows.
Well, can't think of much else to dwell on at the moment. I'm off to practise now, I think.
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