Concert Report

Andrew Griffin Roberta Gregg Music Appreciation 10-17-11 Concert Report 1 Initial Response:My initial response to the concert was of much surprise. First, when I walked in I didn’t expect to see such a formal event. Thank goodness I showed up in my work clothes! My initial reaction to the music however was one of great surprise. I didn’t really know what to expect from the Lee’s Summit Symphony because honestly I didn’t even know they existed. Once the symphony began to play “Don Giovanni” my mood instantly changed. The symphony was incredible, and the music was not what I had expected at all.

I was surprised by how much of the music I had actually heard before and just not realized it. First Half: Instrumentation and Technology: The instrumentation in the symphony was incredible. The symphony included multiple violins as well as numerous other sting instruments, but also instruments from the percussion, and woodwind groups. One instrument that really helped set the undertone of the music was the timpani. The timpani also really help to keep the rhythm. The drums are membranophones which are instruments that are played by being struck, plucked, or rubbed. Another instrument that really stuck out to me was the harp.

The harp was played quite a bit and created a beautiful tone for the music. Technological wise, there wasn’t a lot in the symphony. There was one electrical piano that was located in the back of the symphony, but I wasn’t able to really hear it. The piano however would be an idiophone which is an instrument that produces sound by striking itself. Harmony: The harmony of the Overture was mostly consonant but showed some dissonance to reflect the overall mood of the music. The consonance and dissonance led to the harmonic progression which established a clear sense of key.

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The harmony in “Don Giovanni” was very stern. In Classical music most if not all pieces had a privileged harmony which is one harmony that is more important than the others. This was evident in the overture. The harmony seemed to be most evident during the instruments noisiest parts. Mozart was known for these daring types of harmonic innovations. Musical Time Period: As far as the musical time period we haven’t covered the Classical era yet in class. However, new developments such as Mozart’s daring harmonies and the rise of opera music were characteristics new to the classical era.

Second Half: Melody: “Titan” in the beginning had a very gentle melody. As it opened the music was calm and peaceful. The shape started out very contour or a small wave, but as the music progressed the shape began to show ascending and descending patterns. The movement of the music was both conjunct and disjunct. A climax was present in the 4th section. There are a couple of times when the music builds up as if it were about to reach the climax but then descends and doesn’t reach the climax until nearly the end.

Tempo/Dynamics: The tempo of “Titan” was pretty upbeat and sprightly. As far as instrumentation wise, the strings were very fast similar to those of the baroque era. It had a dance style speed like the baroque era as well. The third movement is the slowest of the four, and fourth is the most involved. The drums really become a part of the fourth section and they make it seem as if the tempo changes drastically because they play in between the beats. The dynamics are very similar to the tempo in this piece. The introduction is slow but steadily picks up.

The piece appears as if it were written to build up to the climax which is pretty cool. Throughout the third and fourth parts the music builds up to the climax but doesn’t actually reach the climax until the very end. Musical Time Period: This piece of music took place in the Romantical time period. We haven’t covered this time period yet in class but one of the biggest things I took out of this music was the climax build up. The climax was built up multiple times but descended and then the climax was finally reached at the end. This was very unique.

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