Johann Baptist Cramer

Sonata for piano, 4 hands, No. 2 

Johann Baptist Cramer was born in 1771 in Mannheim, Germany. Born into a musical family, Cramer started playing piano shortly after his father moved him to. Cramer was a highly accomplished pianist who was known mainly for his attention to detail and pure perfection. He made his performing debut in 1781 after studying under Muzio Clementi. Cramer spent most of his musical career putting on concerts of the music of other popular composers of the time including the works of Beethoven and Mozart. Cramer even introduced many of Beethoven’s sonatas to England.

Though the majority of his fame and success revolved around his performances, Cramer was quite the accomplished composer. His works mainly comprised of piano concertos and sonatas—naturally because of his stellar abilities. Cramer’s compositions were not extremely popular in his time, however, they are filled with depth and many ideals of the Classical period. Cramer’s later works were especially influenced by Beethoven.

One of the most challenging pieces by Cramer is his Sonata for piano, 4 hands, No. 2. The origin of the work is unknown, however it was composed in 1815 as a tribute of sorts to one of Cramer’s influences—Mozart. The genre of the work is a piano sonata, and is extremely typical of sonatas of the classical/romantic transition period. There are three movements, the first of course—Allegro spiritoso—being in sonata form. Some would say that it resembles the overture of Mozart’s Marriage of Figaro (Tuttle). The resemblance can be found in the extremely classical feel of the work. There are even phrases, simple melodic lines, and harmonic balance. The second movement, Andante con variazioni, provides a nice, lyrical contrast to the first and third movements. The third movement—Rondo—nicely finishes out the work with a lively upbeat feel. Cramer’s sonata is solely fixed on a classical style with an incredible attention to detail and technique. Perhaps many of Cramer’s works were not considered as popular as those of Beethoven and Mozart because musically they could easily be mistaken as compositions belonging to Mozart or Beethoven. However, Cramer made his name in his ability to create masterful piano works that are challenging and part of the piano repertoire to this day.

Works Cited

Stevenson, J. Johann Baptist Cramer | Biography & History. Retrieved February 19, 2017, from http://www.allmusic.com/artist/johann-baptist-cramer-mn0002149092/biography

Tuttle, R. (2014). Sonata in F for Piano, Four Hands/Sonata No. 2 in G for Piano/Four Hands. Fanfare: The Magazine for Serious Record Collectors,37(4).

Giuseppe Giordani

Caro mio ben, an aria by Giuseppe Giordani

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wLc8xWlyx6A

Biographical information:

Giuseppe Giordani is an Italian composer that is most notable for his opera and oratorios, as well as some sacred music. He was born in Naples in 1751 and died in Fermo in 1798. He was musically gifted and started learning music at a young age. He studied under a number of people including Antonio Sacchini and Fedele Fenaroli. He was noted as a top composer in Naples during his early twenties. He got married in 1779 to Emanuela Cosmi, who was a singer at the time. His career was a successful one. He became the maestro di cappella at Fermo Cathedral in 1789 and in 1791 took a post at the Holy Spirit Church. He continued composing throughout his life.  Caro mio ben was published in 1785. Although, it is noted that Tommaso Giordani is the real composer of this aria.

a. Caro mio ben was published in 1785, but another source said 1783. Maybe it was between the two. I did not find why it was composed and where it was first heard. It could have been a song to his wife.

b. This is an aria. I like that it is simple and easy to listen to. There is just a solo singer in this type of genre accompanied by strings. There is somewhat of a call and response between the instrumentation and the singing. This piece stays very well balanced. It is pretty usual of the genre.

c. This is in ternary form. It flows very nicely. There isn’t a lot of variation, it is pretty clean cut. It is typical in that it is in an A-B-A form and the characteristics fit for the time period. He does follow rules of this form except that he does not make room for embellishment for the end of the piece.  

d. It is meant to be sung alone with just strings and continuo. This aria is one that would be typically seen more in opera seria. The form of A-B-A was more typical during the Classical era.  There is a slight moderation in this form which could be related to the changing times and movement into the Romanticism era in which the aria-form did change some to A-B-A-B. However, this aria lakes this and sticks to the traditional. The way in which there isn’t much embellishment from the singer also adds a characteristic that is more serious and formal which shows the strong emotion from the piece which reminds me of the reform opera.

References

Matthews, Jeff. (2016 May). Caro mio ben. Retrieved from http://www.naplesldm.com/caromioben.php

Cummings, Robert. (2017). Giuseppe Giordani. Retrieved form http://www.allmusic.com/artist/giuseppe-giordani-mn0001213173/biography

E.T.A. Hoffman

As many of us know, E.T.A. Hoffman, also known as Ernst Theodor Amadeus Hoffman, is a leading writer during Beethoven's time period. not a lot of us know of his musical works, though! E.T.A. Hoffman is recognized as the father of science fiction writing, fantasy writing, as well as horror writing. He is also famous for reviewing a lot of Beethoven's performances; he referred to Beethoven's music as being in a "heroic style".
The opera "Undine" by E.T.A.Hoffman is a three act play that is based of the libretto by Friedrich de la Motte Fouqué who wrote the story Undine. The reason he wrote this piece was because he was part of the chamber court in Berlin. It was first performed at Königliches Schauspielhaus, Berlin. It was performed on August 3 1816. Surprisingly to Hoffman this would be one of his greatest operas that he ever composed. It was so successful that it ran 25 more times. The only reason it was stopped was due to a fire burning the theater down during the 25th performance.

 The piece you are listening to is the overture of "Undine". I find this piece very interesting because you can hear a lot of how he was influenced by Beethoven and Mozart. He has a theme and he sticks with it throughout. Hoffman has a section in the piece that sounds very similar to a Beethoven piece. By far this is a ordinary overture. I would say Mozart's overtures are not ordinary.

My knowledge on overtures are slim so I am assuming that the form is theme and variations. I also believe it is very fitting during his time period. The main melody from the very beginning comes back every so often and every time something different happens to it.

Funnily enough, Hoffman and his reviewers declared this as the "best German Romantic opera".  Not only was he during Beethoven's time period of the romanticism era but his music and writings are about all people not just the higher aristocrats.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Undine_(Hoffmann)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E._T._A._Hoffmann

*FOR YOUR READING PLEASURE HERE IS CARL MARIA VON WEBER'S REVIEW OF THE OPERA*

http://raptusassociation.org/hoffm_undinewebere.html

Johann Nepomuk Hummel- Sonata in F-sharp minor, Op. 81

Austrian Johann Nepomuk Hummel was born on November 14, 1778 and died October 17,1837, dying as a well known virtuoso pianist and composer. His musical abilities flourished as a young boy, being offered music lessons by Amadeus Mozart when he was only 8 years of age. His father, Johannes Hummel, was a conductor for Emanuel Schikaneder's theater orchestra at the Theater auf der Wieden in Vienna where Mozart's The Magic Flute was performed. Hummel was housed and taught for free under Wolfgang for two years and performed for the first time at age 9 at one of Mozart's performances. Likewise to Mozart's father, Johannes took Johann on a European tour to further his musical ability; however, after arriving in London, he spent four years there studying under composer Muzio Clementi before returning to Vienna. 

Written in 1819, Hummel's Piano concerto is in Sonata form with an allegro first movement, largo con molto espressione as the second and vivace finale as the third. The piece is in the conventional form of the time period, sticking to the rules for the most part but with a more expressive and dynamic display than what was ordinary for the classical period. There is a double bar line in the first movement, moving the piece directly into the development after the exposition. The piece changes tempo often and stops and starts repeatedly, adding a sense of restlessness. After meandering around with the primary theme 

Hummel's sonata op. 81 is an expressive push forward from the previous classical period and into the  romantic period. He introduced his own nuances that no was not seen before him. Things like a fortissimo at the beginning of his second movement, surprising the listener and griping them with a somber and unceasing flow of the keyboard. The second movement has varying dynamics, all of which are a taste of the abrupt and tenacious final movement. Johann utilizes the entire keyboard in a fast paced finale, inevitably returning to the first theme to end the movement. Mozart personally addressed his own inferiority to rapid passages in thirds which Clementi passed on to Johann. 


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tTjtrWh5Q8I
http://www.hyperion-records.co.uk/dw.asp?dc=W322_67390
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johann_Nepomuk_Hummel

Mozart - Symphony No. 35 "Haffner"

Growing up in Salzburg, Mozart was close childhood friends with a boy named Sigmund Haffner, despite their families being quite different in class. The Mozarts were entertainers and musicians, while the Haffner’s were some of Salzburg’s wealthiest people. In 1776, Mozart was commissioned to write a piece for the nuptials of a member of the Haffner family. The family lute enjoyed the piece, and commissioned Mozart to write a second, more elaborate piece in 1782 for the celebration of Sigmund’s elevation into the nobility. Mozart finished the score hurriedly, due to the fact that he was busy with his own wedding at the time, and set the finished product off to the Salzburgs. Mozart also sent a copy to his father, who he liked to update on his compositions from time to time. A few months later, Mozart requested that his father send the score back, as he was planning to put it on a series of concerts that he was planning. After looking over the score when he received it, Mozart wrote that he had “Forgotten every single note of it” and that it “Positively amazed” him. Mozart then edited the score, adding more woodwinds to beef up the instrumentation and removing a march section that had opened the work. Mozart premiered the symphony as we know it in March of 1783
The first movement, “Allegro con spirito”, is a fairly typical sonata-form opening movement. The biggest departure from sonata form is the lack of a repeat at the end of the exposition. In a letter to his father, Mozart stated that this movement was to be played “with fire”. The second movement, “Andante”, is a much slower movement, also sticking to typical sonata form. Rather than a full development, Mozart writes a short woodwind chorale. The third movement, “Menuetto” begins directly after the 2nd with no science (attacca). The minuet is to be played very loud, with almost all dynamic markings over Forte. The final movement, “Presto”, is a rondo that Mozart stated should be played “as fast as possible” (Of course we don’t know how fast that would have been at the time).


Sources:
http://www.laphil.com/philpedia/music/symphony-no-35-haffner-wolfgang-amadeus-mozart
http://cso.org/uploadedFiles/1_Tickets_and_Events/Program_Notes/ProgramNotes_Mozart_Symphony35.pdf
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Symphony_No._35_(Mozart)

Bernhard Henrik Crusell

            The most known finish composer before the great Sibelius, is a man by the name of Bernhard Henrik Crusell. Crusell, (1775-1838) was a virtuosic clarinetist, who both preformed and composed. He was born in Nystad, Finland before moving to Stockholm, Sweden in 1791 were he would remain living for the rest of his life. Crusell maintained a position as the principal clarinetist with the Hovkapellet royal court orchestra. During his life in Stockholm, Crusell traveled to Germany to both studied and preform. It is said that he both studied and performed under Beethoven and Mozart while in Germany. He is known for his experimentation with different clarinet and reed styles, such as paying with an 11 keyed clarinet and turning the reed downwards in the middle of passages to achieve different playing styles.

            As far as compositions go, Crusell is most known for his clarinet concertos, but he is also responsible for writing the first Finish opera, as well as several pieces for orchestra. His composition style follows the generic rules of Viennese Classicism that was most popular at this time. However, Crusell did tend to pull ideas from French opera which he become most familiar with as he worked for the court orchestra.

            The most popular of Crusell’s clarinet concertos, is the Concerto No. 2 in F Minor Op. 5. These pieces show off the dynamic range of the clarinet that can be achieved by playing with a reed flipped rather than the range of notes that are negatively affected by this action.  This is the last of a series of concertos by Crusell that was first performed sometime in 1815 by Crusell himself. Crusell dedicated this piece to Czar Alexander 1 of Russia. The Allegro movement (0’00”-6’50”) begins with a slow opening theme but soon becomes agitated (0’30”) getting faster and more anxious until the clarinet enters with a variation of the same Allegro theme on the second time through the exposition (2’04”).  The recapitulation (3’24”) is driven by the clarinet soloist as is the rest of the piece.

Asiado, Tel (2004). “Bernhard Henrik Crusell” Mozart Forum

           

            Bernhard Henrik Crusell. 2011. Hutchinson’s Biography Database, 1

Reel, J. (n.d.). Concerto for clarinet & orchestra

Beethoven Piano Concerto no. 5, in E flat major, Op. 73,  “Emperor”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d0rKfxFguH4

Ludwig van Beethoven was born in Bonn, Germany on December 17, 1770. He was born into a family of court musicians, and displayed musical talent at a very young age. By age sixteen, Beethoven was in Vienna working with other composers and crafting his style. Throughout his prolific career as a composer, Beethoven experienced three main “periods” in which his works evolved as he matured. The period in which Piano Concerto no. 5 was written is the middle period, also referred to as the “Heroic Period” in Beethoven’s career. This period was largely defined by the fact that Beethoven had affirmed that going deaf was imminent, and his works represented struggle and triumph by composing very large-scale works. 

a.) Piano Concerto no. 5 is his final piano concerto, written around 1809 to 1811. It was composed as a dedication to Archduke Rudolph, who financed Beethoven’s work, and was also a student of Beethoven. It premiered on January 13, 1811 at the Palace of Prince Joseph Lobkowitz in Vienna. This was a private premier, but there was a public performance in Leipzig on November 28, 1811. 

b.) The genre is Piano Concerto. This example is interesting due to the fact that is has such a massive first movement. It is also interesting that the first movement begins with a piano cadenza, rather than ending with the cadenza which would be more traditional. Movement one lasts about twenty minutes, which is roughly half of the entire piece. In addition, the coda in movement one is exceptionally long, which was another one of Beethoven’s unique and innovative methods. 

c.) The form is a three movement concerto, although some have claimed it is almost symphonic due to its grand size and scale. The large first movement (Allegro), opening with a cadenza and closing with a very long coda, are the immediately unusual aspects of this concerto. The second movement (Adagio) is much softer and quieter, which is rather typical of compositions like this one. Adagio lasts about ten minutes, before immediately transitioning into movement three (Rondo). Also lasting about ten minutes, rondo shuffles through several different themes before concluding triumphantly, but abruptly. 

d.) This piece seems to fall somewhere in between Classical and Romantic, but contains attributes from both eras. The general form and style adheres to many Classical characteristics, but Beethoven was innovative and exercised his creativity. Once again, movement one breaks the traditional mold by beginning with a cadenza and containing such a large coda. In general, it seems to have a more Classical style, but would not be considered entirely traditional.

Sources:

Taruskin, Richard, and Christopher Howard. Gibbs. The Oxford history of Western music. New York: Oxford U Press, 2013. Print.

"Classy Classical." Classy Classical: Ludwig van Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 5 in E flat major "Emperor", Op. 73. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Feb. 2017.

Automatisering, Roffel. "Beethoven - Piano Concerto No. 5 'Emperor': description -- Classic Cat." Classic Cat - the free classical music directory. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Feb. 2017.