Favorite "Music Moments"
As I sit here listening to my iPod at work, I smile as I come across a great music moment... I define "music moments" as small snippets of a piece of music (generally classical, for me) that are simply so sublime, they deserve recognition. Sometimes it's because of the original composition, sometimes it's because of the particular recording.
Anyway, here are some of my all time favorite music moments.
1. Mars, The Planet Suite, by Holst. The tutti about 2/3 of the way through when the WHOLE ORCHESTRA plays the percussive repetition in 5/4. It sends chills down my spine. I once went to a performance of The Planets, and they weren't QUITE on at that point. It ruined the whole concert for me, unfortunately.
2. Symphony No. 7, Mvt. I, Beethoven. The very end of the first movement when the horns come in, in a triumphant fanfare. It's only four measures long, but it's awesome.
3. Symphony No. 9, Mvt. IV. About halfway through - when it gets all quiet, and it's down to just the french horns holding the sustained rhythm, and the woodwinds very quietly play the theme, and then it just EXPLODES. The whole orchestra comes in, the singers come in, they play/sing the refrain to Ode to Joy, then there's the TREMENDOUS TRUMPET FANFARE. Too many recordings don't play the fanfare loud enough. It needs to be JUST as joyous as the first entrance. On more than one occasion, this particular part has moved me to tears.
4. A Midsummer Night's Dream, Overture, Mendelssohn. The opening 90 seconds. It's frightfully quiet, sixteenth note runs in the string section, depicting a magic forest VERY well, then it opens up into the hugely majestic royal theme. It's awesome.
That's all I can think of for now. Just awesome little moments in music - not even entire songs - that are so perfect and so beautiful and so moving.
Anyway, here are some of my all time favorite music moments.
1. Mars, The Planet Suite, by Holst. The tutti about 2/3 of the way through when the WHOLE ORCHESTRA plays the percussive repetition in 5/4. It sends chills down my spine. I once went to a performance of The Planets, and they weren't QUITE on at that point. It ruined the whole concert for me, unfortunately.
2. Symphony No. 7, Mvt. I, Beethoven. The very end of the first movement when the horns come in, in a triumphant fanfare. It's only four measures long, but it's awesome.
3. Symphony No. 9, Mvt. IV. About halfway through - when it gets all quiet, and it's down to just the french horns holding the sustained rhythm, and the woodwinds very quietly play the theme, and then it just EXPLODES. The whole orchestra comes in, the singers come in, they play/sing the refrain to Ode to Joy, then there's the TREMENDOUS TRUMPET FANFARE. Too many recordings don't play the fanfare loud enough. It needs to be JUST as joyous as the first entrance. On more than one occasion, this particular part has moved me to tears.
4. A Midsummer Night's Dream, Overture, Mendelssohn. The opening 90 seconds. It's frightfully quiet, sixteenth note runs in the string section, depicting a magic forest VERY well, then it opens up into the hugely majestic royal theme. It's awesome.
That's all I can think of for now. Just awesome little moments in music - not even entire songs - that are so perfect and so beautiful and so moving.