Playing the piano at 8
[ Validate this page ] [ Validate CSS file ]
I had a keen interest in music from an early age. My parents bought a piano for my older sister to help with her private music lessons. I joined in and at 4 I too started learning piano. My parents recognised that I had a natural inclination for music and at 9 I began attending the Arts Lyceum in Targu Mures, a cultural centre 30km east from where we lived.
There I have been examined by specialists and it has been decided that cello would be a good instrument for me to play in addition to the piano. That is how my quest to become a cellist started and it lasted for 10 years.
My musical training had a great impact on the shaping of my preferences. Interestingly although I love vocal works, opera is not something I would listen at. Music that I enjoy is consonant, pleasent to listen at, it has a well defined rythm and it is rich in complex harmonies. It is well polished and well performed. If it happens to have lyrics then it must be dignifying and definitely not aggressive or obscene. "Production-line" music thrown together to quickly fill a CD is not among my collection.
Some of my favorite contemporary performers include Yanni, Josh Groban, Secret Garden and Il Divo. Most works of Karl Jenkins are not my style, however there are a couple of outstanding pieces. Generally speaking just because a song or a musical piece is written or performed by a particular composer or performer doesn't guarantee that all works are just as good. Here you can sample some of my preferences.
Tribute, Yanni's 1997 album, has been recorded live at the Taj Mahal, India, and at the Forbidden City, Beijing, China. My favorite is Deliverance, a majestic piece performed by amazing masters. The intricacy and mix of complex harmonies with a Middle Eastern flair, the choice of musical instruments, beautiful voices and a catchy beat makes it a pleasure to listen at. Watching the artists perform and the crowd's joy makes it even more uplifting. 1997 was the 50th anniversary of India's independence from Great Britain, and as such this opening piece had a special place in the show. No doubt Yanni is a master of the music.
Yanni knows how to turn music into fun for the listeners' entertainment. Take a look at the
World Dance, it's fun! He is no stranger from the classical and
baroque style either: he had a go and has rewritten Antonio Vivaldi's 3rd movement, Presto, known as The Storm, of the concerto No.2, Summer, from the famous suite of four concertos known as The Four Seasons (no, it is NOT a pizza 
) composed by Vivaldi in 1723. Watch it here. The same piece inspired the Thai/Chinese violonist Vanessa Mae, whose version can be vatched here.
Some critics say that such re-works of classical art are an abuse. Whathever the case, the original is usually the best. It is certainly the case here and naturally it deserves the most attention. If you've seen the "clones", then you should watch the original Vivaldi concerto in full (all three movements) here.
I first heard of Josh Groban on the radio while driving to work a couple of years ago. I heard him singing You Raised Me Up and I didn't catch his name. I e-mailed the radio station and thankfully they replied. I quickly dropped into a CD shop and bought his live album called In Concert where he performs along famous artists and musicians such as David Foster, Andrea Corr - one of the four Corr sisters of the Irish folk rock band The Corrs and Angie Stone (not my favourite as she is mainly R&B orientated, but she sings brilliantly in this album). Ever since Josh had been on my favourites list and I don't see him being replaced for a long time to come. In this sample he performs Canto Alla Vita with Andrea Corr.
The Irish violonist Fionnuala Sherry and the Norvegian composer and pianist Rolf Løvland teamed up and formed the group known as the Secret Garden. The duo's success was spearheaded when they won the 1995 Eurovision contest with the composition Nocturne. You can watch the 1995 Eurovision performance here; the first 1 minute 20 seconds is a presentation of the contestants' country.
I first heard of Secret Garden when playing a new CD that I bought, a compilation of Celtic music, appropriately called Celtic Harmonies. There were a couple of tracks by Secret Garden which I liked very much. I layed my hands on a couple of selections and I played it in the car for almost a year. I selected the Dawn of a New Century for you to sample.
Il Divo - These four men are simply fantastic! There is no other word to describe them. Spanish Carlos Marín (bariton), Swiss Urs Bühler (tenor), French Sébastien Izambard (tenor) and American David Miller (tenor) have been singing together since 2003. They've been touring the world and I had the rare privilege to be at their live concert in Sydney at the Entertainment Centre in February 2007. It was an unforgettable night. Although my voice is not even remotely as good and I wouldn't sing in public, I enjoy singing and I often sing along as I listen to their music - no-one else hears it of course . I envy David Miller's voice...
It is one of the rare bands whose every single song is a hit (at least with me). This is a sample that I picked called Come Primavera (Like Spring).
Then it comes Karl Jenkins with his instrumental/vocal works, using a made-up language which blends perfectly into the style of his music.
| I believe it is fair to say that most people around the world have heard at least Adiemus as it is a popular pick for various advertisements, featuring the Irish singer Enya. Play it here. |
|
| Palladio is another masterwork of Jenkins composed in memory of Andrea Palladio, a 16th Century Italian architect. |
|
Talking baroque brings me to my all-time favourite: baroque of course. Composers such as Bach and Vivaldi have always been and will be among my favourites. Some popular baroque works include:
I've been talking about cello, this beautiful instrument that I used to play for ten years. Here are some great works performed by great artists for your enjoyment. Additionally, click on the sheet music image to the right to watch Haydn's Cello concerto in D Major performed by Mstislav Rostropovich, the greatest cellist of the second half of the 20th century.
To save the best for last: my greatest interest and foremost priority now is to ensure that I give the best in everything to my son, Edrik. He enlightens every single day with new productions which only babies can perform. He is a blessing, life is so much better with him!
XHTML Code Validated by W3C Markup Validation Service
Created by Zoltan Erszenyi (ezoltan at tpg dot com dot au), ITC411 - Introduction to Information Technology, Session 1 2011, Charles Sturt University