tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22579001407348662402024-03-13T07:10:11.214-07:00greatest hitstoryUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger35125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2257900140734866240.post-15429792448592816402015-12-01T12:34:00.000-08:002015-12-01T12:34:32.502-08:001719 Vivaldi and Robinson Crusoe<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">This decade started with and will end on another allegro from you know who!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Vivaldi</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-3XrCDSYNAM" target="_blank">Concerto for Violin and Strings in D, Op. 6/4, RV 216: 1. Allegro</a></span><br />
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Literature<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The best thing that happened in 1719 was that Daniel Defoe wrote Robinson Crusoe, arguably the first ever novel and one of the very best. This is one of the most enjoyable books I have ever read. I absolutely love and highly recommend it. Not only is this an exciting read but the character is an inspiration for positive thinking, making the most of what he has, which can be applied to any human being in any situation.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A fitting end to a fantastic decade of creativity all round, the fruits of which by and large have endured for 300 years!</span></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2257900140734866240.post-82201165100601550592015-12-01T12:28:00.000-08:002015-12-01T12:28:31.591-08:001718 Bach and Telemann<span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif; text-align: justify;">From this year there is just I Concerti Di Dresda, RV 569: I. Allegro from Telemann which is another sad piece but really lovely – and then a Bach flute sonata (in C major BWV 1033 II Allegro) which shows why Telemann will forever be in his compatriot’s shadow. Best to listen to the Telemann before the Bach and the difference in quality is quite clear – that said I still like the Telemann very much!</span><br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v-QAfed3eBo" target="_blank">Sonata in C Major, BWV 1033: II. Allegro</a></span></span><br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><a href="https://open.spotify.com/user/historyomtssg/playlist/5eaa3uIKphRx9CEB1e7LSV" target="_blank">Trio Sonata in A Minor: Vivace</a></span></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2257900140734866240.post-24996191816091403182015-11-29T13:46:00.001-08:002015-12-14T13:16:12.709-08:001717 Bach, Handel, Vivaldi, Couperin, Telemann and Albinoni<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Let’s start with Bach whose organ playing by now was famous throughout Germany and proof of this comes from Johan Mattheson of Hamburg</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">(remember him - he had tried to kill Handel in 1704 ….before becoming his best mate – see my 1700-1709 posting for details). Matheson's own career had focused less on being a musician and singer and more on becoming a very important writer of music theory and practice. Mattheson referred to Bach in his memoir of 1717 as the ‘famous organist of Weimar’. This famous organist of Weimar visited the court at Dresden in the autumn of 1717 and found himself the subject of an argument as to who was the greater improviser, himself or the most famous virtuoso organist in France Louis Marchland. It was decided they would have a contest to solve the argument (a bit like the Handel v Scarlatti keyboard duel in the last decade). Marchland sneaked in to listen to Bach practicing for the big event in the chapel the night before. The result was the onset of a sudden and questionable illness and a trip back in the middle of the night to France on the fastest coach available for Marchland! Bach was left to play the concert on his own and established himself as arguably the greatest organist in Europe.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">For the passed few years Bach had been composing mainly religious cantatas and had to produce one every month for the Duke of Weimar. Bach was getting bored of this and was looking for a way out. He actually got scouted by another court. After his audition they locked him in a hotel room with food, tobacco and alcohol and told him not to come out until he had composed a cantata for them! He did and they loved it, and offered him the job. The Duke however responded by doubling Bach’s money, which persuaded the young composer not to accept and to stay on at Weimar.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Bach had got friendly with the Duke’s nephew Ernst August who </span></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">presided over the nearby court at Rote Schloß. Ernst August</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> was also in his twenties (just 3 years younger than Bach) and the two shared their passion for music. Ernst August was half the age of Bach’s employer and this court was much more lively and less stuffy than the court at Weimar. It was no surprise that Bach spent a lot of his free time there and it was here that he was introduced to the music of Vivaldi. Ernst August’s younger brother Johan Ernst had been studying in Amsterdam between 1711-13 and picked up the music for Vivaldi’s opus 3 (which was all the rage at the time), brought it back to Rote Schloß and gave it to Bach to transcribe to organ. A bit like in the early 1960s and late 1970s when everybody wanted to pick up a guitar and start a band, due to both the simplicity and excitement of the music, in the 1710s Vivaldi’s music got many amateur composers across Europe trying to emulate his style, including young Johan Ernst. </span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Whereas Johan Ernst could only manage a pail imitation of Vivaldi’s concertos, as for Johan Sebastain Bach, in his book ‘Bach and the patterns of invention’ Lawrence Dreyfuss writes ‘Instead of copying a set of crude superficial formulas Bach discovered within Vivaldi a kind of harmonic laboratory providing insights into the nature of tonality, a kind of simulacrum of thoroughbass that could produce insights into the secrets of a god given art.’ Now I am not going to pretend I fully understand what this means but I get the jist that Vivaldi’s music was going to have a very positive impact on the music of Johan Sebastian Bach. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">This musical migration was extremely significant for the history of music rather like the American rock and roll records brought into Liverpool by sailors from across the Atlantic in the 1950s. The Beatles brought invention and melody into rock and roll and Bach had a similar influence on the Italian concerto style of Vivaldi. </span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Now it was unfortunate for Bach that, due to a family feud, he was forbidden by the duke to continue to visit the court of the duke's young nephew, Ernst August<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(Johan Ernst had sadly passed away in 1715 aged 19). As a result Bach got fed up with his boss and refused to compose any more cantatas. It may also have been possibly because he heard that the duke wanted to employ Telemann which might have annoyed him, or that Bach did not get a promotion he was expecting. Whatever the reason Bach wanted to leave the court of Weimar and the opportunity came when Ernst August married the sister of another music loving member of the aristocracy, Prince Leopold of Cothen. Bach, was asked to compose the music for their wedding, which was loved by the prince and got him a place in the prince’s court. The formidable duke of Weimar refused to let Bach go however. Bach insisted and the duke’s reaction was to put him in prison! Locked up for the second time in a year and this time with nothing good to eat, drink or smoke, Bach used the time to compose 46 organ pieces. </span></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Poor Johan Sebastian Bach </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">was freed after a month and finally allowed to be dismissed from his post ‘without honour’ and move to his new position composing for Prince Leopold of Cothen. </span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Bach became friendly with the prince who was a talented musician himself and even broke court etiquette to play along side Johan Sebastian and his other court musicians. In fact the prince’s mother got fed up with the band practicing at home and made the prince and other musicians go and practice at Bach’s house! <o:p></o:p></span></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">They would then go on tour playing at other courts in the region.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Prince Leopold’s court was a relaxed and happy place and although both the prince and Bach were very religious it must have been refreshing for Bach to be able to compose so much secular chamber music having been mostly composing church organ music and religious cantatas for church choirs up until now for the fearsome Duke of Weimar.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">So this was our man's best year to date with 11 pieces that make it to my Greatest Hitstory.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of particular note are <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hsD1HxwefHI" target="_blank">Orchestral Suite #4 In D, BWV 1069 – Bourrée</a> which to me sounds quite jazzy in a 1920s-30s sort of way. The <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=64bs49fVrlw" target="_blank">Prelude in C Major, BWV 933</a> and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iQtF8vDc9TU" target="_blank">Prelude in C Minor, BWV 934</a> are just so good and like a lot of his music give you the feeling that Bach was completely unlimited in his ability as a composer, conveying so much feeling whilst also taking the melody to unexpected places, and not just the first time you hear it, but over again – a strange trick and I cannot work out how he does it! <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The influence of Vivaldi’s opus 3 on Bach can be clearly heard in <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=osPJlE-NxSk" target="_blank">Violin Concerto No. 1 in A Minor, BWV 1041: I. Allegro</a>, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lp39Z_76_n0" target="_blank">Violin Concerto No. 1 in A Minor, BWV 1041: III. Allegro assai</a> and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wg35NM0SGO8" target="_blank">Violin Concerto No. 2 in E Major, BWV 1042: I. Allegro</a> which you can compare with Vivaldi's <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U8hvL4NZPCk" target="_blank">L'Estro Armonico, Op. 3 - Concerto #6 In A Minor, RV 356, 1. Allegro</a> to see what I mean.</span></span><br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Finally we have the sublime <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rrVDATvUitA" target="_blank">Orchestral Suite No. 3 in D Major, BWV 1068: II. Air.</a> This is one of the most famous pieces of all time and quite simply it is impossible to make better music than this. These Bach pieces well and truly put him at the top of the pile for me and it becomes quite clear that he is a better composer than even Vivaldi whose music I absolutely love.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">As for Vivaldi he was busy writing his 7<sup>th</sup> opus but I will come to this in 1721 when it was finally published. From Vivaldi I do pick the obligatory allegro <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZZ222C2p98" target="_blank">Concerto In Mi Minore RV 275: III. Allegro</a>. Vivaldi hints at his future masterpiece (it comes after opus 7) with a little bit of program music in his piece <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IqYr67jnNTg" target="_blank">‘the cuckoo’</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Remember Biber had also imitated the sound of a cuckoo on his violin back in the 1660s. I have also, for once, chosen a slow piece from Vivaldi, being the very appealing <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UPd5Dbmn59c" target="_blank">Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 7/ii, No. 5, RV 208a: II. Grave</a> and there is another allegro but this time for full orchestra <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NUebr4iXBfk" target="_blank">I Concerti Di Dresda, RV 569: I. Allegro</a>.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Albinoni too chips in with another allegro <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=80pfXXCQVTo" target="_blank">Sinfonia a 4 in G Minor, Si 7: I. Allegro </a>as does Telemann who contributes <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-PGFFHk3AoE" target="_blank">Overture in B-Flat Major, TWV 55:B8: I. Ouverture</a>. These two sad little pieces are among my favourites of the whole decade.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Couperin is back with another sprinkling of harpsichord music with the second of his four books and again shows his gift for naming a good tune with among a couple of other pieces I have picked, such composition titles which translate as ‘<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oUepXxjaoKU" target="_blank">the midge</a>’ and ‘<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3sPZj_ABago" target="_blank">the scintillating one</a>’. I never thought I would enjoy harpsichord music so much. Couperin is my favorite composer for the instrument so far and his less formal and playful style can be grouped in with the rococo style originating in Paris that had begun in architecture and found it’s way to the paintings of Watteau and came about probably because Louis XIV had died in 1715 having been on the throne for 72 years. As a result France withdrew from its imperial aspirations, court life and private morals became more relaxed and Couperin’s music fitted the mood perfectly.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Meanwhile in London, it is on an aquatic theme that we come back to Handel who composes one of the most famous of all his works, which we know as ‘the Water Music’ and without question is his best music to date. Of this collection the most well known is </span></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3w4XFnUZm_Y" target="_blank">Water Music Suite No. 2 in D Major: No. 12 Alla Hornpipe</a>.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Now this ‘suite’ Handel was asked to compose by the aging King George who wanted to remind London he still existed for his son was always throwing big parties and had become the talk of the town. King George wanted a bit of limelight back. The music was to be played on boats carried by the rising tide up the River Thames from Whitehall palace to Chelsea. The flotilla left at 8pm on 17</span><sup style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">th</sup><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> July and covered the whole river with boats and barges, including the royal barge and another of which contained the 50 musicians. This all certainly made quite a spectacle and the king loved the music so much when embarking on the return trip at 11pm he had it played twice more.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">So here they all are.....the best of 1717</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><i>(where I have not found the version I have purchased on iTunes I have included the album and artist of my preferred versions in brackets)</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">J.S. Bach </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=afrmEWN-G4Y" target="_blank">Bach: Orchestral Suite #2 In B Minor, BWV 1067 - Badinerie</a> (from Bach: Orchestral Suites [Disc 2] Marc Hantaï; Jordi Savall: Le Concert Des Nations)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-dmXyG5PD3w" target="_blank">Bach: Orchestral Suite #3 In D, BWV 1068 - Gavottes 1 & 2</a> </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">(from Bach: Orchestral Suites [Disc 2] Marc Hantaï; Jordi Savall: Le Concert Des Nations)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hsD1HxwefHI" target="_blank">Bach: Orchestral Suite #4 In D, BWV 1069 - Bourrée</a> </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">(from Bach: Orchestral Suites [Disc 2] Marc Hantaï; Jordi Savall: Le Concert Des Nations)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D_Uq3luXBRA" target="_blank">Five Little Preludes: I. Prelude in C Major, BWV939</a> (from J.S. Bach: From the W.F. Bach Notebook by Wolfgang Rübsam)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rrVDATvUitA" target="_blank">Orchestral Suite No. 3 in D Major, BWV 1068: II. Air</a> (from 50 Classical Masterworks by Orpheus Chamber Orchestra)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=64bs49fVrlw" target="_blank">Prelude in C Major, BWV 933</a> (from Bach, Inventions and Preludes by Esther Garcia)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iQtF8vDc9TU" target="_blank">Prelude in C Minor, BWV 934</a> </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">(from Bach, Inventions and Preludes by Esther Garcia)</span><br />
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-xKiTPEl9f0" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Sonata in A Major, BWV 1032: III. Allegro</span></a><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=osPJlE-NxSk" target="_blank">Violin Concerto No. 1 in A Minor, BWV 1041: I. Allegro</a> (from Bach by Joshua Bell & Academy of St. Martin in the Fields) </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lp39Z_76_n0" target="_blank">Violin Concerto No. 1 in A Minor, BWV 1041: III. Allegro assai</a> </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">(from Bach by Joshua Bell & Academy of St. Martin in the Fields) </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wg35NM0SGO8" target="_blank">Violin Concerto No. 2 in E Major, BWV 1042: I. Allegro</a> </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">(from Bach by Joshua Bell & Academy of St. Martin in the Fields) </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Best version is from Handel: Music for the Royal Fireworks & Water Music by Nicholas McGegan & Scottish Chamber Orchestra but listen to these you tube clips</span><br />
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<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O77XdJnBDtg" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Water Music Suite No. 1 in F Major: No. 3</span></a><br />
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I2WwM53EGbA" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Water Music Suite No. 1 in F Major: No. 5</span></a><br />
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HFXckl6lCkE" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Water Music Suite No. 1 in F Major: No. 7 Minuet</span></a><br />
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gO4gjHu1XGA" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Water Music Suite No. 2 in D Major: No. 11</span></a><br />
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3w4XFnUZm_Y" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Water Music Suite No. 2 in D Major: No. 12 Alla Hornpipe</span></a><br />
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1m3_rv3Qz7M" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Water Music Suite No. 2 in D Major: No. 13 Minuet</span></a><br />
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TgJv_p1QJ2c" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Water Music Suite No. 2 in D Major: No. 15 Bourrée</span></a><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Vivaldi</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZZ222C2p98" target="_blank">Concerto In Mi Minore RV 275: III. Allegro</a> </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">(from 4.50 of this clip)(Vivaldi: Concerti per violino by Deuter Florian & Harmonie Universelle)</span><br />
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IqYr67jnNTg" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Violin Concerto in A Major, RV 335, "The Cuckow": I. Allegro</span></a><br />
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UPd5Dbmn59c" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 7/ii, No. 5, RV 208a: II. Grave</span></a><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NUebr4iXBfk" target="_blank">I Concerti Di Dresda, RV 569: I. Allegro</a> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-PGFFHk3AoE" target="_blank">Overture in B-Flat Major, TWV 55:B8: I. Ouverture</a> (from Telemann: Complete Ouvertures, Vol. 2 by Collegium Instrumentale Brugense & Patrick Peire)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=80pfXXCQVTo" target="_blank">Sinfonia a 4 in G Minor, Si 7: I. Allegro</a> (from Albinoni: Concerto per violino & Sinfonie a 4 by L'Orfeo Ensemble)</span><br />
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<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oUepXxjaoKU" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Second livre de pièces de clavecin, Ordre 6 : VIII Le moucheron</span></a><br />
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G3ECYFZQQSY" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Second livre de pièces de clavecin, Ordre 7 : III La basque</span></a><br />
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3sPZj_ABago" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Second livre de pièces de clavecin, Ordre 11 : II L'etincelante ou La bontems</span></a><br />
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sMbHHZSRuIU" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Second livre de pièces de clavecin, Ordre 11 : III Les graces naturéles, Suite de la bontems</span></a><br />
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Art<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><img alt="" class="thumbimage" data-file-height="13013" data-file-width="19842" height="230" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/57/L%27Embarquement_pour_Cythere%2C_by_Antoine_Watteau%2C_from_C2RMF_retouched.jpg/350px-L%27Embarquement_pour_Cythere%2C_by_Antoine_Watteau%2C_from_C2RMF_retouched.jpg" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/57/L%27Embarquement_pour_Cythere%2C_by_Antoine_Watteau%2C_from_C2RMF_retouched.jpg/525px-L%27Embarquement_pour_Cythere%2C_by_Antoine_Watteau%2C_from_C2RMF_retouched.jpg 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/57/L%27Embarquement_pour_Cythere%2C_by_Antoine_Watteau%2C_from_C2RMF_retouched.jpg/700px-L%27Embarquement_pour_Cythere%2C_by_Antoine_Watteau%2C_from_C2RMF_retouched.jpg 2x" width="350" /></span><br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">After many decades of not much enter Jean-Antoine Watteau and a new Rococo style to give the art critics something to talk about after a few uneventful decades on the trot. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Watteau was perhaps the greatest artist since the days of Rembrandt and Rubens in the first half of the last century.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">He painted his masterpiece the Embarkation of Cythera in 1717 and in this he captures the fleeting nature of being in love symbolized by the fact that none of the couples want to leave Cythera, the island of love. Watteau’s own life was sadly cut short by a life long illness and perhaps that is why his paintings of dream like scenes have an intense feeling of melancholy about them and all the figures look so sad though in a very endearing way.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Literature<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Alexander Pope was the great satirist of the day and in 1717 published his epic poem ‘the rape of the lock’ in which he wrote about the theft of a lady’s lock of hair as if it was an epic story comparable to the abduction of Helen of Troy making a mockery of the vanity of the upper classes during this period.</span></span></span><br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2257900140734866240.post-91474942513923651612015-11-26T12:44:00.002-08:002015-11-26T12:44:56.772-08:001716 Telemann, Vivaldi, Handel and Albinoni<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I think I am being too mean on Telemann who was becoming perhaps the most famous composer in all of Europe. Telemann really grew in stature at this time and the number of Telemann choices for this year seems to substantiate this. Telemann even out did Vivaldi from whom I pick 9 pieces for this year alone. Based on his contributions for this decade I put him behind Bach and Vivaldi but prefer him to Handel.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Of the 10 Telemann pieces I can pick, all of them are for wind instruments. That is piccolo, flute, recorder, trumpet and even bassoon.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Like the oboe great developments were made with Bassoon making at this time and as with the oboe it became quite popular with composers like Telemann and also Vivaldi. It is nice to off set all the Vivaldi violin concertos with music such as these Telemann choices on which the wind instruments take the lead.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">It is not easy to compose good music for the Bassoon but Telemann manages to do that with Concerto for Recorder and Bassoon In F Major, TWV 52:F1: II. Vivace and IV Allegro. Vivaldi too writes some very nice music for Bassoon. I also love the blend of what I think is a recorder and oboe on <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLAdyzd4Hks" target="_blank">Vivaldi’s RV94 Allegro</a>. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Handel shows his gift for melody with his <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OnA4PRIsTLw" target="_blank">Concerto Grosso In F Major, Op. 3, No. 4, HWV 315: IV. Allegro</a> and Albinoni adds to the collection of violin allegros I am accumulating with his <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YPB194eLrE8" target="_blank">Sinfonia a 4 in B-Flat Major, Si 6: I. Allegro</a>.</span></span><br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mfqf0b3agz0" target="_blank">Concerto for 3 Trumpets and Timpani In D Major, TWV 54:D4: II. Allegro</a> (the version I have is not this you tube link but on Telemann: Orchestral Music by Ludwig Güttler, Klaus Huckstadt, Werner Pelz, Peter Bollman, Michaelstein Telemann Chamber Orchestra & Eitelfriedrich Thom)</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yRyatOPaKBA" target="_blank">Concerto for Recorder and Bassoon In F Major, TWV 52:F1: II. Vivace</a> (the </span></span><span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">version I have is not this you tube link but on Telemann: Complete Double Concertos With Recorder by Clas Pehrsson, Michael McCraw & Drottningholm Baroque Ensemble)</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AnkQXgGqF7I" target="_blank">Concerto for Recorder and Bassoon In F Major, TWV 52:F1: IV. Allegro</a> </span></span><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">(the </span></span><span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">version I have is not this you tube link but on Telemann: Complete Double Concertos With Recorder by Clas Pehrsson, Michael McCraw & Drottningholm Baroque Ensemble)</span></span><br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4i38EnoAiFc" target="_blank">Double Concerto for 2 Horns In D Major, TWV 52:D1: IV. Allegro</a></span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Telemann: Wind Concertos, Vol. 2 - Twv 51:F1, 51:G1, 52:C1, 52:D1, 53:D1 by Ulrich Hubner, Jorg Schultess, La Stagione Frankfurt & Michael Schneider</span><br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pk-om0onfRE" target="_blank">Flute Concerto in D major, TWV 51:D2: I. Moderato</a></span></span><br />
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nD82Gepvk6s" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Flute Concerto in D major, TWV 51:D2: II. Allegro</span></a><br />
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7HwXMWt-BHk" target="_blank">Flute Concerto in D major, TWV 51:D2: IV. Vivace</a></span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">All from Telemann, G.P.: Wind Concertos, Vol. 4 - Twv 51:A2, 51:D2, 51:E1, 52:A2, 53:B1 by Karl Kaiser, Michael Schneider & La Stagione Frankfurt</span><br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3gZuglPGFbI" target="_blank">Overture (Suite) In e Flat Major, TWV 55: Es5: Aria IV: Allegro</a> From Telemann: 6 Orchestral Suites by Michael Schneider & La Stagione Frankfurt</span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vyp4xXBtvws" target="_blank">Partita No. 2 für Blockflöte und Basso continuo in G Major, TWV 41:G2: II. Aria 1: Allegro</a> from Hans-Martin Linde & Konrad Ragossnig: Musik für Flöte und Gitarre by Hans-Martin Linde & Konrad Ragossnig</span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iyqum3LpEiU" target="_blank">Piccolo Concerto In D Major, TWV 51:D4: IV. Tempo Di Minuetto</a> from Telemann, G.P.: Wind Concertos, Vol. 3 from Karl Kaiser & Camerata Köln</span></span><br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Vivaldi</span></span></span><br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lNMsOt9Yu6Y" target="_blank">Concerto in D major, RV 92: III. Allegro</a> </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kl8776nNgIc" target="_blank">Concerto in G minor, RV 103: I. Allegro</a> </span></span>(the versions I have of these two are not these you tube links but on Vivaldi: Recorder Concertos by Borbala Dobozy & Laszlo Kecskemeti)</span><br />
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<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLAdyzd4Hks" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Concerto in D major, RV 94: I. Allegro</span></a><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tI15-D-8wfk" target="_blank">Concerto in G minor, RV 107: III. Allegro</a> Both f</span></span>rom Vivaldi, A.: Concertos - Rv 94, 100, 101, 104, 107 by Musica Pacifica</span><br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ToQFo-3XzQ" target="_blank">Flute Concerto in D Minor, RV 96: I. Allegro</a> first 2.25 of the clip from Vivaldi: Flute Concertos, Vol. 1 by Béla Drahos & Nicolaus Esterházy Sinfonia</span></span><br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NHVbYi0m4kU" target="_blank">Sonata for 2 violins and continuo in B-Flat, RV 76: 2. Allemanda (Allegro)</a></span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0JeXi65GuEU" target="_blank">Sonata for violin and continuo in B-Flat, R.33: 4. Gavotte (Presto)</a></span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T-LDuYztdpQ" target="_blank">Sonata for violin and continuo in F, RV 18: 1. Preludio (Largo)</a></span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tw44l09nYVc" target="_blank">Sonata for violin and continuo in F, RV 18: 2. Corrente (Presto)</a></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">All from Vivaldi Masterworks by Salvatore Accardo, Sylvie Gazeau, Rohan De Saram & Bruno Canino</span><br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Handel </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OnA4PRIsTLw" target="_blank">Concerto Grosso In F Major, Op. 3, No. 4, HWV 315: IV. Allegro</a> from Handel: Concerto Grosso, Op. 3 by Iona Brown & Academy of St. Martin in the Fields</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Albinoni </span></span></span><br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YPB194eLrE8" target="_blank">Sinfonia a 4 in B-Flat Major, Si 6: I. Allegro</a> first 2.36 on this clip From Albinoni: Concerto per violino & Sinfonie a 4 by L'Orfeo Ensemble</span></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2257900140734866240.post-9187725388656431582015-11-22T08:22:00.001-08:002015-11-26T12:46:50.285-08:001715 Albinoni, Bach, Handel, Scarlatti, Vivaldi and Telemann<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">Sticking with Bach in 1715 we hear his first keyboard music not composed for organ and I am pleased to include it in my Greatest Hitstory. Named the ‘English Suite' my selections are of Italian influence if anything and you will probably recognize them. They are named the English suites either because they were thought to be composed for an English nobleman or because they were based on suites by a French composer called Charles Dieupart who was famous in England.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Another ‘first’ is that Albinoni becomes the first Italian to compose an oboe concerto as opposed to a sonata <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>which Vivaldi had already done. The basic difference between a sonata and concerto for this period at least is that a sonata will usually only be one instrument with between one and three backing instruments while a concerto has got one instrument with more of an orchestral backing, usually involving lots of violins at the very least. So much for being amateur, these two oboe concertos from Albinoni are excellent! <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I can also add from Albinoni his Sinfonia a 4 in A Major, Si 5: I. Allegro - Adagio to the long list of Allegros.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I managed to find another good bit of instrumental music from a Handel opera, being the sinfonia from act 3 of his Amadigi Di Gaula. There is also some nice organ music from Handel. Like Bach, Handel did compose a lot of organ music but most of this comes in the 1730s so we’ll see when I get to that decade if anymore find its way to my Greatest Hitstory.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">This year Vivaldi departed from writing violin concertos to write a fine piece of choral music, being his Gloria in D Major, RV 589: I. "Gloria in excelsis Deo" He had by now also started writing operas but we won’t go into that.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">This is also the year when the other new composer, a leading composer of the day who I can finally introduce properly to this blog, temporarily departed from his fondness for music of the operatic variety to compose a couple of good violin concertos. His name was <b>Allesandro Scarlatti</b> (1660-1725) and I very much like his Concerto grosso, sinfonia No. 2 in D Major: V. Presto which sounds in parts like it could have been composed in the 1960s.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was a year when composers contribute music they are not known for as Telemann defies his boring tag with his exciting sonata for violins TWV 40:200.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fMstx2Sv7HQ">English Suite No. 3 in G Minor, BWV 808: VI. Gavotte II (ou la Musette) [with da capo I]</a> Glen Gould</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7TI9-A5hgCE">English Suite No. 4 in F Major, BWV 809: VII. Gigue</a> </span>Murray Perahia version is best </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K-ojsCW2loo">English Suite No. 6 in D Minor, BWV 811: V. Gavotte I</a> From beginning to 1.14 </span>Murray Perahia version is best </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Albinoni</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YYpkYqc8LuU">Oboe Concerto In B Flat Major, Op. 7, No. 3: III. Allegro</a></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I2XCS_8UFpQ">Oboe Concerto In D Major, Op. 7, No. 1: I. Allegro</a> from beginning to 1.54</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YPB194eLrE8">Sinfonia a 4 in A Major, Si 5: I. Allegro - Adagio</a> from beginning to 2.38</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OBhpm5uugpU">Concerto for 2 Oboes In D Major, Op. 7, No. 8 : I. Allegro </a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Handel</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hqcZs8hzFUM">Amadigi Di Gaula : Act 3 Sinfonia</a></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WOJ0oqOH9Mg">Air in B-flat Major HWV 470</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Scarlatti </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZ7LzvqNKg4">Concerto grosso, sinfonia No. 2 in D Major: V. Presto</a></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ccXzYK75V8s">Concerto grosso, sinfonia No. 9 in G Minor: V. Allegrissimo</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Vivaldi</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l0UFGa09Llk">Gloria in D Major, RV 589: I. "Gloria in excelsis Deo" (Live)</a></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Telemann</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fYk8nzjafS8">Sonata á Violino I, Violino II, Viola e Violono, TWV 40:200: iii. Vivace</a></span></span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2257900140734866240.post-31737259556879033642015-11-21T13:49:00.000-08:002015-11-26T12:59:20.237-08:001714 Corelli, Vivaldi, Handel, Bach and Albinoni<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Vivaldi is back this year with his opus 4 entitled La Stravaganza translated as ‘Extravagance’ – another brilliant set of violin concertos. I have chosen 6 of these but if you listen to one then listen to the superb </span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0vv9N5dcwDA" style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;" target="_blank">Concerto for Violin and Orchestra in B Flat Major, Op.4, No.1, RV383: III. Allegro</a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">. Also brilliant is </span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6II_iQD9ZM0" style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;" target="_blank">Concerto for Violin and Orchestra in A Minor, Op.4, No.4, RV357: III. Allegro</a></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">For all the Vivaldi I find in this decade though it is Corelli who plays the trump card with his <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6xGQPElLMBA" target="_blank">Concerto grosso No. 4 in D Major, Op. 6: I. Adagio – Allegro</a>. This exhilarating piece of music is my favourite of all the music so far going right back to the dawn of time. I am going to go further and say that no human being has bettered this before or since. Equalled may be but not bettered. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now that will teach Handel not to make a mockery of the great Corelli! I would highly recommend it to anyone. Opus 6 is considered Corelli’s best work and I have chosen 7 pieces from which also include two of the Christmas concertos which are Corelli’s most well known works today. Corelli had been working on these concertos for several years before his death in 1713. His opus 6 was a great way for one of the most influential composers in history to sign off.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">As for Handel, he thankfully takes time out from opera writing to come up with a few lazy sounding tuneful oboe sonatas. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">There are also in this year a couple of violin sonatas – one from Albinoni which is decent and one from <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=as7vJhjK6Xs" target="_blank">Bach</a>, not unlike his famous organ toccata from 1708 which provides plenty of fuel to the idea that Bach the composer is pure genius. However in 1714 Bach was</span></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> not yet really known as a composer but</span><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">more as an organist</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">. It was 1714 when Bach was asked to improvise on the organ for Prince Friedrich of Sweden. The prince showed his great appreciation for Bach’s playing simply by taking off a ring from his finger and giving it to the great maestro. An observer wrote of Bach that ‘his feet flew over the pedal-board as if they had wings and the ponderous and ominous tones pierced the ears of the hearer like a flash of lightning or clap of thunder; and if the skill of his feet alone earned him such a gift what would the prince have given him if he had used his hands as well’!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">So here's the best from this year........</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Vivaldi</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Vivaldi: "La Stravaganza" Concertos for Violin & Orchestra, Vol. 1</span></span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Andrew Watkinson & City of London Sinfonia (better than the versions on the you tube link)</span></span><br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6II_iQD9ZM0" target="_blank">Concerto for Violin and Orchestra in A Minor, Op.4, No.4, RV357: III. Allegro</a></span></span><br />
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P-QiCMeIQkE" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Concerto for Violin and Orchestra in B Flat Major, Op.4, No.1, RV383: I. Allegro</span></a><br />
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0vv9N5dcwDA" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Concerto for Violin and Orchestra in B Flat Major, Op.4, No.1, RV383: III. Allegro</span></a><br />
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tqbv9cPyBfs" target="_blank">Concerto for Violin and Orchestra in E Minor, Op.4, No.2, RV279: I. Allegro</a> first 4 min</span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tqbv9cPyBfs" target="_blank">Concerto for Violin and Orchestra in E Minor, Op.4, No.2, RV279: III. Allegro</a> from 7.38</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4hR3_2ihDRY" target="_blank">Concerto for Violin and Orchestra in G Major, Op.4, No.3, RV301: I. Allegro</a></span></span><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Corelli </span></span><br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">From Corelli: Concerti grossi, Op. 6, Nos. 7-12 by Anna Holbling, Capella Istropolitana, Daniela Ruso, Jaroslav Krček, Ludovit Kanta & Quido Holbling</span></span><br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XXzJBO4fhEc" target="_blank">Concerto grosso in C Major, Op. 6, No. 10: V. Allegro</a> from 1.21 to 3.47</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hpFf7qu5fcY" target="_blank">Concerto grosso in F Major, Op. 6, No. 9: II. Allemanda. Allegro</a> 1.15 to 3.27</span><br />
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hpFf7qu5fcY" target="_blank">Concerto grosso in F Major, Op. 6, No. 9: IV. Gavotta. Allegro</a> 5.14 to 6.07</span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hpFf7qu5fcY" target="_blank">Concerto grosso in F Major, Op. 6, No. 9: VI. Minuetto. Vivace</a> 6.40 to end</span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_u7xUjMP34" target="_blank">Concerto grosso in G Minor, Op. 6, No. 8, "Christmas Concerto": IV. Vivace</a> 7.22 to 8.24 keep listening on same clip for</span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_u7xUjMP34" target="_blank">Concerto grosso in G Minor, Op. 6, No. 8, "Christmas Concerto": V. Allegro</a> (from 8.24 to 10.24</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6xGQPElLMBA" target="_blank">Concerto grosso No. 4 in D Major, Op. 6: I. Adagio - Allegro</a></span></span> (first 3.22 min of this clip)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Handel</span><br />
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<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QENk9QkgY1M" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Sonate en Fa Majeur Pour Hautbois Et Basse (continue, HWV 363 - Allegro)</span></a><br />
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sypiDibVg30" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Sonate en Fa Majeur Pour Hautbois Et Basse (continue, HWV 363 - Bourrée)</span></a><br />
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wGrJWEWWYtE" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Sonate en Fa Majeur Pour Hautbois Et Basse (continue, HWV 363 - Menuetto)</span></a><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Bach</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=as7vJhjK6Xs" target="_blank">Sonata in E Minor for Violin and Continuo, BWV 1023: I. Allegro</a> by James Ehnes</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Albinoni</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Albinoni: Concerto per violino & Sinfonie a 4 Sinfonia a 4 in D Major, Si 4: II. Allegro by L'Orfeo Ensemble</span><br />
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<b><i><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Philosophy</span></span></i></b></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Leibniz is back with his other key work entitled ‘Monodology’. In this he argued against the commonly held view at the time that objects were inanimate and that an external force would be needed to animate them. Instead he believed that the energy came from within the object itself because they contained what he called a ‘monad’. A monad was an entity, the energy in every object and the intensity of the monad depended on the nature of the object. The monad in inorganic matter was at the bottom of the scale, while in living beings the monad was the soul and God at the very top of the scale was a monad so intense it needed no physical form. We now know that in one sense at least Leibniz was right because all matter is reducible to energy (so I am told!).<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US">Inventions</span></i></b><span lang="EN-US"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In the world of science Dante Gabriel Fahrenheit (1686-1736) invented the Mercury thermometer while on the political front…..<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">General History<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The war of Spanish succession that had been rumbling on throughout the whole of the last decade mainly overseas and in Spain and parts of northern Italy finally came to an end. This good news contributes to the youthful optimism that characterizes the music and art of this decade.</span></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2257900140734866240.post-41430409876323856012015-11-15T12:15:00.000-08:002015-11-26T12:47:53.733-08:001713 J.S. Bach, Handel & F. Couperin<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">Another year with no Vivaldi! Time for me to mention J.S. Bach then, who during this time was composing pretty much only for organ and was becoming known as one of the greatest organists in Germany. According to one person who watched him play, his feet moved as easily and quickly along the pedals as many players could move their hands across the keyboard. </span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">As with the violin, the church organs were reaching the peak of their development so that was good but generally I am not a great fan of Bach’s organ music at this time which seems to lack melody </span></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">(except for the great Tocatta and fugue in D minor BWV 565 from 1708)</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">. Bach then moved from writing mainly organ works to mainly cantatas for the next few years. Again I am not so keen on cantatas (as you have probably grasped by now, with the occasional exception, I am not so keen on any singing within the wider classical music genre). Bach, then has been absent from my Greatest Hitstory since 1709. He did however, in 1713, write as part of one of the cantatas a trio oboe violin and cello BWV1040 which is also treated as a standalone instrumental piece. It has been described as ‘wholly delightful’ and I would completely agree with that. </span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Also absent since 1709 has been the music of Handel (although not the practical jokes!). This is because Handel was concentrating on opera. However his opera ‘Silla’ from 1713 has got a couple of good overtures I can pick. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1713 brings us the first of two new composers for this decade of my Greatest Hitstory. Known as ‘Couperin the Great’ to distinguish him from other, evidently inferior composers named Couperin, of which there were a few. Like Vivaldi, <b>Francois Couperin</b> (1668-1733) was influenced by Corelli and loved by Bach, Handel and Telemann. Seen as the father of French Harpsichord music, he was already 45 years old by the time in 1713 he published his first book of harpsichord music of which I have chosen ‘La Manon’<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(not sure what this translates as) and the completely crazy ‘Le réveil-matin’ which translates as ‘the alarm clock’ and you just have to listen to it to know why. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Composing in Paris it’s nice to have an alternative to the Italians and Germans and Couperin conveniently fills the gap left by his still not yet known French harpsichord composing colleague Rameau who had snuck in a piece I chose from 1706 but is absent from this decade.</span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">J.S. Bach</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span></span><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=za8Ye1WW7YU" target="_blank">Trio In F Major, BWV 1040</a> Roland Straumer, Virtuosi Saxoniae, Ludwig Güttler & Manfred Krause</span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Handel</span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LiLGHVDfvsg" target="_blank">Silla: Overture, Andante - Adagio</a> </span></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">The London Handel Orchestra, Denys Darlow, James Bowman, Simon Baker, Joanne Lunn, Rachel Nicholls, Natasha Marsh, Elizabeth Cragg & Christopher Dixon</span><br />
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RDXHAQB8bWM" target="_blank">Silla: Overture, Minuet</a> The London Handel Orchestra, Denys Darlow, James Bowman, Simon Baker, Joanne Lunn, Rachel Nicholls, Natasha Marsh, Elizabeth Cragg & Christopher Dixon</span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">F. Couperin</span></span><br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6cxmKyMyT7s" target="_blank">Premier livre de pièces de clavecin, Ordre 4 : IV Le réveil-matin</a></span></span><br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2257900140734866240.post-68981917952367734252015-11-15T12:05:00.003-08:002015-11-26T12:52:49.092-08:001712 Telemann<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">Come 1712 we find no Vivaldi but some more oboe, this time from Telemann from whom I can also pick a flute concerto and a recorder and flute concerto. I was reserving judgement on Telemann. He seems to be a composer who could be accused of going for quantity over quality being named in the Guinness Book of Records as the most prolific composer in history, whilst also being responsible for quite a lot of dull, uninteresting music. That said, although Telemann’s music is often quite simple he could still pen a nice tune.</span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Inventions</span></span></i></b><br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Thomas Newcomen invented steam powered engine in England which was used to pump water out of mines and one of the key inventions that led to the industrial revolution about 50 years later</span></span><br />
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<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EdyIduYYgeM" style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Telemann, G.P.: Overtures - Concertos - Chamber Music TWV52 e1 II double concerto for Recorder and Flute in E minor</span></a><br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BLjLhCNwIeU" target="_blank">Telemann, G.P.: Wind Concertos, Vol. 1 - Twv 51:E1:II Alla breve</a></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YBMxx3jcnOY&index=18&list=PLUSRfoOcUe4aJYa4OOy5j5JAV0QNmzOeo" target="_blank">Telemann, G.P.: Wind Concertos, Vol. 4 - Twv 51:e1:II Allegro Molto</a>. </span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2257900140734866240.post-26339087065957036432015-11-12T12:59:00.000-08:002015-11-26T12:48:08.869-08:001711 Vivaldi & Albinoni<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">Up until now the music of Vivaldi had only been published in Venice. In 1711 he shot to international fame with opus 3 entitled ‘L'Estro Armonico’ meaning ‘Harmonic Inspiration’, his 3</span><sup style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">rd</sup><span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;"> major collection and a vast improvement on my earlier Vivaldi selections. Published in Amsterdam and then in London and Paris these chirpy tunes were widely circulated across Western Europe and a massive influence on Vivaldi’s northern European contemporaries Handel, Bach and Telemann. This music was a sensation across Europe and a visit to Venice to hear it performed by the young lady orphans Vivaldi taught became a must for the well to do classes.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Along with Corelli’s opus 4, Vivaldi’s opus 3 was apparently the most popular set of instrumental music throughout the whole 18<sup>th</sup> Century. The best of the best of the opus 3 are the two allegros in A Minor from concerto no.6 of which you will probably be familiar. If you like the allegros from opus 3 (and how could you not?) then there is much more to come because almost all of my Vivaldi selections are allegro (which means quick) movements and all will have to measure up to this. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">As well as his opus 3 we have in 1711, insofar as my Greatest Hitstory is concerned, Vivaldi’s first departure from violin concertos and probably one of his very earliest compositions for oboe, the RV779 Sonata in C major. This is one of my favorite pieces by anyone of the whole decade. Ben Fatto Vivaldi!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The oboe is relatively new at this time and as with the violin, new improvements had been made to the instrument, making it more popular with composers. Telemann and Handel had already composed pieces for oboe (see my last posting) and were probably among the very first to do so but the instrument soon became more popular in Italy.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The other main composer in Venice at this time was the self proclaimed ‘dedicated Venetian amateur’ also known as Tomasso Albinoni.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Being from a wealthy background he did not need to rely on his music to make a living but this did not stop him from composing some very good music as we have already seen, or rather heard. First up from him for this decade are a couple of melodic violin sonatas (and yes I have gone for the ‘allegro’ movements again)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Vivaldi was not the only composer to find fame in this year. Handel moved to London in 1711 and had huge success with his opera ‘Rinaldo’ which was his break through work so to speak. A pity for me it is opera and not instrumental music! <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It must have been around this time that Corelli’s chamber orchestra came to London to play. Handel had been enjoying his new found position as leading London composer and possibly felt threatened by Corelli’s year long stay in the city. There had been a bit of history between Corelli and Handel. It may have been when the young Handel visited Rome in 1706 that Corelli and Handel first met. Corelli was having trouble playing one of Handel’s pieces and Handel snatched the violin off Corelli, who though not a virtuoso, was arguably the greatest violinist in Europe, to show him how the piece should have been played. Corelli would not rise to the insult and merely replied ‘my dear saxon, this is music in the French style, of which I have no knowledge’. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Let me remind you that Corelli was extremely popular and highly acclaimed (remember he was the teacher of Vivaldi and all those other composers I mentioned in my 1680s posting) but his music was very orderly and slightly set in its way. It was a known fact that Corelli refused to compose or play on the violin any note higher than the D with his 4<sup>th</sup> finger stretching up to 3<sup>rd</sup> position.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Well on Corelli’s trip to London, the younger Handel, envious of the London public’s admiration for Corelli played a mean trick, cheekily writing a sonata with a note at the end being just one note higher than the note Corelli had publicly declared would be the highest note he would ever play. Corelli, while performing was unaware and when he got to the offending note, immediately stopped playing, glared at a sniggering Handel and walked off stage, never speaking to Handel again! <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">So here are the best tunes of the year.....</span><br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fWDWe39u6Gs" target="_blank">Vivaldi: L' Estro Armonico, Op.3 Concerto for 4 Violins in B minor,Op. 3, No. 10, RV 580: III. Allegro CapellaIstropolitana & Jozef Kopelman</a> (From 6.00 to end)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=siGhSGI1vzM" target="_blank">Vivaldi: L' Estro Armonico, Op.3 Concerto for 4 Violins in D major,Op. 3, No. 1, RV 549: III. Allegro CapellaIstropolitana & Jozef Kopelman</a> (From 5.35 to end)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fn6Pghk31gs" target="_blank">Vivaldi: L' Estro Armonico, Op.3 Concerto Grosso in F major, Op. 3,No. 7, RV 567: III. Allegro - Adagio JozefKopelman & Capella Istropolitana</a> (From 4.43 to 7.15)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U8hvL4NZPCk" target="_blank">Vivaldi: L'EstroArmonico, Op. 3 - Concerto #6 In A Minor, RV 356, 1. Allegro Jindrich Pazdera: Accademia Ziliniana</a><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1_7TzqUJZcg" target="_blank">Vivaldi: L'EstroArmonico, Op. 3 - Concerto #6 In A Minor, RV 356, 3. Allegro Jindrich Pazdera: Accademia Ziliniana</a><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=shIS0GeCewU&index=16&list=PLU20tyHFbsRk1oWXUVWbtFIsmQpZT8S5e" target="_blank">Vivaldi: L'EstroArmonico, Op. 3 - Concerto #8 In A Minor, RV 522, 1. Allegro Frantisek Figura; Jindrich Pazdera:Accademia Ziliniana</a><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Ph5QRBVJP8" target="_blank">Vivaldi: L'EstroArmonico, Op. 3 - Concerto #8 In A Minor, RV 522, 3. Allegro Frantisek Figura; Jindrich Pazdera:Accademia Ziliniana</a></span><b style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></b></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6RU89akXd3Q" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Pellegrina's Delight: Sonatas & Chamber Music for Oboe by Antonio Vivaldi</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Sonata In C Major, RV 779: Allegro</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Gail Hennessy & Nicholas Parle</span></a></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Albinoni </span></b></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/albinoni-trattenimenti-armonici/id835861399" target="_blank">Albinoni: Trattenimenti Armonici, Op. 6 Sonata No. 11 in A Major, Op. 6: II. Allegro Zero Emission Baroque Orchestra</a><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/albinoni-trattenimenti-armonici/id835861399" target="_blank">Albinoni: Trattenimenti Armonici, Op. 6 Sonata No. 12 in B-Flat Major, Op. 6: IV. Allegro Zero Emission Baroque Orchestra</a></span></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Architecture<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">After studying Michelangelo’s designs for St Peters in Rome, Sir Christopher Wren did an excellent job, in completing St Paul’s in London which had the first triple dome in the world. Handel may have made his bread and butter from writing operas but his main hobby was playing the keyboard and he loved the organ at St Paul’s often playing for a delighted congregation after church services. They even had lock ins at the cathedral after hours to hear Handel play. In fact the whole area around St Paul’s was a hotspot for both amateur and professional musicians and the Queen Anne’s Tavern located in St Paul’s churchyard had a harpsichord where Handel also used to go along with the choristers from the cathedral and knock out a few tunes for his adoring and no doubt starstruck public.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2257900140734866240.post-33707225932290811762015-11-12T12:45:00.002-08:002015-11-26T12:51:16.019-08:001710 Vivaldi<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; text-align: justify;">We begin as we mean to go on with an allegro from a Vivaldi violin concerto. Vivaldi is still at an early stage in his career and this is the last piece from the period before his music becomes exceptionally brilliant.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://open.spotify.com/track/6SiUETNsgu1GPB4KHfgV0a">https://open.spotify.com/track/6SiUETNsgu1GPB4KHfgV0a</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/vivaldi-concerti-per-violino/id277725067" target="_blank">Antonio Vivaldi Vivaldi:Concerti per violino Concerto per violinoIn Fa Maggiore RV Anh.130: I. Allegro DeuterFlorian & Harmonie Universelle</a> (the second track 16)</i></span><br />
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Philosophy</span></span></i></b></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">As if to set the scene for this new decade of positivity </span></span><span style="color: #252525; font-family: sans-serif; line-height: 22px; text-align: start;">Gottfried Wilhelm von</span><b style="color: #252525; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; text-align: start;"> </b><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Leibniz (1646-1716) published his essays on ‘the goodness of God, the freedom of man and the origin of evil’ setting out a new philosophy in which he put forward the idea that we actually live in the best possible of all possible worlds. This was because the world has free will. The cause of all evil and imperfections in the world was the existence of free will but to have a world without free will would be inferior. God therefore had created the best possible</span></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> world. This optimistic view of the world was not without its critics.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">....and on to the next year!</span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2257900140734866240.post-1943587420973949312015-11-11T13:57:00.002-08:002015-11-26T12:49:13.976-08:001710-19 Vivaldi is a sensation, Handel a joker, Bach a prisoner and Corelli saves his best for last<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">Welcome to the 1710s, the greatest decade so far in this Greatest Hitstory of Music! This is mainly thanks to the music of Vivaldi (32 choices!), now in his early 30s and Bach (17 choices), Telemann (16), Handel (15) all in their 20s coming into the decade with a supporting cast of slightly older composers in their 40s and 50s being Albinoni (9), Corelli (7) and a couple of others who I’ll come to. </span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">As well as the excellent new music Jean-Antoinne </span></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Watteau is the first really important artist to emerge in decades, </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Daniel Defoe makes a great contribution to literature while in the realm of philosophical thought Leibniz even invents the theory of philosophical optimism! </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">All this was born out of a new positive social mood round Europe perhaps caused in part by </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">King Louis XIV's 72 year reign and </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">the War of Spanish Succession that went on throughout most of the last decade finally coming to an end.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Change is in the air. Let’s take it year by year......</span></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2257900140734866240.post-12909667834655650612014-09-28T08:01:00.000-07:002015-08-31T09:56:55.777-07:001700-1709 Saved By The Button and Other Stories <div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Since 1600 and the end of all that Renaissance era chanting, we have been in the Baroque era. As the century turns we come into the High Baroque period for music which basically means Baroque is getting to its best bits. With Purcell now pushing up daisies and Biber going the same way in 1704, at the start of the 1700s Corelli was perhaps the most influential instrumental
music composer of the day while Allesandro Scarlatti seems to be the most important
opera composer. Corelli publishes his best music yet in 1700
with his opus 5 and in particular the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wuqm1KNQPaw">sonata no.11 Gavotta:Allegro in E <i>(from 7.10 to end)</i></a>– a very good little 32 second piece, almost as good as my Torelli selections in
the 1690s which I have preferred to Corelli. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Corelli is now 47 years old and Torelli is 42. As
mentioned in my last posting there is a new generation of composers who are
among the greatest in history now coming into the picture. As well as that two
significant steps in instrument making happen around this time. The first is
that Stradivarius is perfecting violin making which now enters its golden age,
becoming the most important instrument next to the piano which is invented in
1700 by Christifori. I suppose it's ok now for me to listen to piano versions of harpsichord pieces when choosing my favourite pieces. They stand a better chance of getting
into my Greatest Hitstory, the pianoforte (Italian for softstrong) being a technological improvement
on the harpsichord because the keys are sensitive to how strongly or softly
they are hit, allowing the player to be far more expressive, having quiet
(pianissimo) and loud (fortissimo) bits to their music. I do not see the piano as
a different instrument to the harpsichord, but a better version of the same
instrument.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I have to acknowledge though that it is probably not
for another hundred years, until Beethoven arrives, that a composer composes for
the modern sounding piano. Even for the next 100 years after Beethoven there are
many advancements made in piano making before it gets to what it sounds like
today. Some say that Beethoven anticipated this and composed for the future.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Back to the new lot of composers and I will begin in
1701 with a 21 year old <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Georg Phillipp Telemann</b> (1681-1767) who had always wanted to be a musician
having mastered the keyboard, violin, flute and zither by the age of 10 and
written an opera by 12…..but despite all that his mother was not convinced and made him go to
law school in Leipzig! Telemann had no intention of a legal career though and
on his way stopped off in Halle to meet a younger musician he had heard about </span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">called </span><b style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">George Frideric Handel</b><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> (1685-1759)</span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">, who would soon become one of the greatest of all </span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">composers</span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">. The two became friends for life and eventually
the two most famous composers of their day.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Handel had been noticed by the aristocracy as young
as 10 as a very talented young keyboard player and in 1702 by the age of 17 was
organist at the cathedral in Halle, the city of his birth…..but that year like
Telemann, his dad made him study law.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Handel
did not want to be a church organist or a lawyer, preferring the theatre and at
18 in 1703 he ditched law and the church organ and moved to Hamburg, a major
centre for opera and got a job as violinist and harpsichordist for the city’s
orchestra, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When the 18 year old Handel had got his job in
Hamburg the same year, another 18 year old who many now consider to be the greatest composer of all time and</span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">who since
1700 had been making up a lot of uneasy listening organ pieces, usually between
10 and 20 minutes long, got a job as church organist in Arnstadt. </span><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">His name was</span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><b style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Johan Sebastian Bach</b><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> (1685-1750).</span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> Unlike Bach
though, Handel gains eligibility for my Greatest Hitstory from the start because
while at Hamburg (1703-1706) he starts composing and I can pick three good keyboard
pieces from him in this period, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7bag7fIl5DY">HWV 440 </a></span> <span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXSv_n2y6dQ">HWV 491</a> and my favourite,
the Capriccio in F Major <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jyAuzRQJgJU">HWV 481</a> which evens sounds good on the harpsichord. He
also composed a very good allegro for his concerto in G minor for oboe, (his favourite
instrument at the time) and orchestra <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iRpeDyUq9E0">HWV 287 </a><i><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iRpeDyUq9E0">(last 2 minutes of this clip)</a> </i>between 1704-1705. This is a good
start for Handel.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This music might have been the only music I included
for Handel had he not been saved by the button on his coat on 5<sup>th</sup>
December 1704. Handel was playing the harpsichord that evening during the
performance of an opera by a current young hotshot composer named Johann Matheson.
Matheson who also sang the lead role during the performance of his own opera, was evidently
a bit of a show off and wanting to display his many talents to the audience,
got carried away and tried to push his way onto the harpsichord Handel was playing. A fuming Handel challenged Matheson to a dual after the show. Egged on by on lookers, combat
began and Matheson’s sword hit Handel’s metal coat button, breaking the sword
and saving Handel’s life. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A few weeks
later on 30<sup>th</sup> December, the two patched things up and in January 1705 Handel's own first opera opened and he gave Matheson the lead tenor part!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In the summer of 1705 the 20 year old Bach too had a close scrape. He
was fixated with playing the church organ but was also expected to conduct the
student church choir and orchestra. This he resented because it did not provide
remuneration for him and also because they were rubbish, by his own high
standards, and he told them so. (It also prevented him composing pieces I liked
enough to get into my Greatest Hitstory!). He knew he was unpopular as they regularly
verbally assaulted him. Some of them were older and larger than he and so for
his own defence he began carrying a dagger in his coat. One evening returning
home from work, crossing the market square he got yelled at by a disgruntled
bassoon player, a large chap named Geyersbach, sitting with the other students.
Geyersbach, shouted – ‘you insulted my bassoon and anyone who insults my
bassoon insults me!’ and then attacked him with a stick. Bach pulled out the
knife, Geyersbach smashed it to the ground with the stick and the fight
continued until other students pulled them apart.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It turned out Bach had called him a ‘nannygoat
bassoonist’. Bach wanted Geyersbach disciplined but no punishment was given to
either and the council just asked Bach to try to get on better with his
students.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Bach was fed up in Arnstadt and later that year his obsession with
the organ led him to walking 250 miles (he walked a lot as he never had much
money and long distance walking was not so uncommon in those days) to watch the
ageing Buxtehude, the most venerable organ composer of the day, play in Lubeck.
Buxtehude was wanting to retire as organist at the church in Lubeck and Bach
considered taking up the post. However it turned out that a condition of
accepting the appointment would be that you had to marry Buxtedhude’s not so
pretty nor charismatic daughter and Bach was not that fed up! Handel and Matheseon
had also made the journey to Lubeck together (without managing to kill each
other) and considered the same job, both turning it down for this same reason!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Meanwhile, down in Venice the career of yet another great composer was beginning. This was a student of Correlli’s named <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Antonio Lucio Vivaldi</b> (1678-1741). For
most of his career Vivaldi was teacher at an orphanage for girls and they were
all taught music. It became a tourist attraction to see these young ladies led
by Vivaldi play and sing at St Marks in Venice. Vivaldi’s first set of violin concertos is published in 1705. It is very hard to pick a favourite from my selections but perhaps start with <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7uKRldjGn0k">op1 3 RV61 II Allemanda Allegro</a>.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It is really interesting to compare these Italian composers. The Corelli pieces are very straight forward and after a few beats the tunes happily resolve. Vivaldi's seem to spiral off a little more wildly. This for me reflects the freer spirit in Venice, a place that always resented the papal authority of Corelli's Rome. This is why a hundred years before Gabrielli brought instruments into St Marks in Venice and got the whole course of music history away from purely choral music, </span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">something you could not have done in Rome. Vivaldi's all female musicians also would not have been seen in Rome.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">With all this great music (and opera) coming out of
Italy, Handel decided in 1706 to tour Italy himself. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Before we join him in Italy let’s not get
ahead of ourselves. The German and Italians are not going to get the monopoly
on music in this decade because in 1706 there comes a very French sounding
harpsichord piece and one of the very first known compositions, the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zYLpyGNpesk">suite Amajor-minor 2nd Allemande</a> from the not yet famous but very French <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Jean-Philippe Rameau</b> (1683-1764),
another one whose parents tried to make him do law instead of music. Rameau
replaced Lully as the leading French opera composer.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Back to Handel down in Italy now and you can
certainly hear the Italian influence on Handel’s music where he took lessons in composing for violin from Corelli, the best results are in</span><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">the trio in F major HWV392 </span><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1706-1707, a sonata in G Major </span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">HWV358 </span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1707-1710</span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> and an overture HWV46a in</span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> 1707 but these are neither as good as his earlier keyboard pieces nor as good as those Italian composers he was trying to emulate.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I have mentioned Corelli, Torelli and the young
Vivaldi, but there was another Italian who, come 1707 was on his fifth set of
violin concertos and here there are four I highly recommend and one absolute gem, the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d07yctnyboA">allegro moderato op 5
no.1 </a></span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d07yctnyboA"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> <i>(first 2 minutes of this clip)</i></span></a> <span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">in B flat </span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">and it’s the best thing by anyone this decade, Italian, German or French. The name of the man to take credit for this was </span><b style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Tomaso Giovanni Albinoni</b><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> (1671-1751). The other three pieces being the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nquU1F0uUxE">op5. no.4 in G Allegro I <i>(first 1 min 55 seconds)</i></a> <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XAhMqB3Yt0I">op5. no.3 in D Allegro <i>(first 1 min 51 seconds)</i></a> <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tfPkZgwIviI">op5. no.11 in G minor </a><i><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tfPkZgwIviI">(first 2 min17seconds)</a> </i></span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In terms of style I'd say Albinoni is closest to Torelli who is closer to Corelli than Vivaldi, but they are all fairly similar. So far of these, Albinoni and Torelli have got the best tunes.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Back in Germany the long hike to learn from
Buxtehude must have been worthwhile because in 1707 J.S. Bach at last makes his musical entrance
to my greatest hitstory in humble fashion with the first music I enjoy from
him, a tuneful organ piece called the ‘little fugue’ <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PhRa3REdozw">BWV578</a> (and I can’t resist
a <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vonJhz2COck">jazz voices cover version of this</a> by the swingle singers).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Albinoni’s allegro moderato may have been my
favourite this decade but in 1708 Bach catapults himself to true greatness with
one of the most famous pieces of music from not only this decade, but of all
time, this being the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nnuq9PXbywA">toccata and fugue in D minor BWV565</a>. Of course it is
another organ piece but if anyone wants an introduction to JS Bach the best
place to start is to listen to Leopold Stokowski’s orchestrated version for the
1940 Disney film Fantasia, absolutely fantastic. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Bach is a busy bee in 1708 composing pretty much only for organ. However, although a recognisable organ piece ‘Gottes Sohn Ist Kommen’ BWV724 and a </span><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">dreamy prelude and fugue BWV</span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">536 come close I am not keen enough on his organ works (save for the previously mentioned BWV578 and BWV565)</span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">. Unsurprisingly one of the very few pieces he did not compose for organ this year is </span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">by far my favourite and it is the suite in E minor for Lute BWV 996 and here I am referring to <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eTkKMDhm6ds">The prelude</a>, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w1OsOTNDZr0">allemande</a>, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WUEMllv0mW0">gigue</a> and
particularly the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0xKdb4rNtyk">bouree</a>.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Meanwhile in Rome this year we find the young
Handel now 23 and no stranger to a dual, taking part in another one, but this time swapping swords for keyboards. This incredible keyboard duel was with another 23 year old called Domenico Scarlatti who like Handel was becoming well known as a
keyboard player in Rome (and from whose dad Allesandro, Handel had been picking
up opera writing tips). The event was set up by a wealthy patron. The result: on
the harpsichord a draw…..on organ Handel was agreed by all as the winner.
As before Handel became a lifelong friend of his rival, the two having great
mutual respect for each other.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I realise I started writing about Telemann and then
got side tracked on Handel and sidetracked again on Bach, then on to Vivaldi,
Rameau, Albinoni and back to Bach and Handel again….so let’s get back to
Telemann. By this year of 1708, Telemann was already a friend of Handel and between 1706 and 1708 met Bach
and became a very good friend of his too. In 1708 I find the first music I really like from Telemann being a couple of good oboe concertos and </span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">concerto for 2 horns</span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> including the lovely melancholic but </span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">springy</span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iVILh5YVAUY" target="_blank">concerto for 2 horns in F Major TWV 52:F4 I Largo - Allegro.</a> The one I like best from Telemann is
the </span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=njz156od1jw" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Quintet in D Major TWV 44:1 Sinfonia <i>(first 3.14 minutes)</i></a><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> (I am not sure when this was composed but am guessing this decade)</span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">. </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There seems to be a widespread opinion that
Telemann is very much inferior to Bach and Handel, and though at this early
stage I would agree with that view, I am going to reserve judgement for now.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This blog entry has accidentally become </span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">palindromic, almost</span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">. </span><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Before Telemann whose music at first I didn’t talk
about I mentioned Torelli whose music I also didn’t mention for this decade.</span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> Well that’s because the only
good thing I found for Torelli was his opus 8 which comes at the end in 1709 and my favourite would probably just be the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uw07TM8KBCc">Allegro in F major no.11.I <i>(first 3.19 minutes</i></a><i>) </i><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MZuUDlK9Fd4">Allegro III in G no.5<i> (start from 4.08 on this clip</i></a><i>) </i><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cetTULrFFkA">Allegro III in A minor no.2 <i>Start from 4.50 </i></a><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lnao_Mjmex8">Vivace III in G minor no.6 </a><i><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lnao_Mjmex8">(start from 4.30)</a> </i></span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">These are
not quite up there with my Torelli selections for the 1690s but they are still
excellent. Unfortunately this will be the last we hear from Torelli as he died
in 1709. Also this year we can hear Vivaldi’s second collection opus 2 – which
like so many second albums from rock bands I like, is not as good as the first but has
still got one or two good tunes. Finally another fugue from Bach </span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sqp2_LaYoSU" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">BWV911Toccata in C minor </a><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">sounds nice on the piano and that rounds off an eventful
decade in the Greatest Hitstory of music.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And now to everything else….</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>General history<o:p></o:p></i></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In 1701 the Kingdom of Prussia was proclaimed to exist and this would eventually basically become Germany. In 1700 the Great Northern war began when Sweden fought against Denmark, Poland, Saxony, Russia and Lithuania and would last until 1720. In 1701 the War of Spanish Succession began with the French against <span lang="EN-US">England, Holland, Austria, Prussia and most of Germany who were worried that if France took control of Spain (Louis XIV was the closest heir to the Spanish throne) they would become too powerful. They did not want them taking control of modern day Belgium which at the time was owned by the Spanish and this is where most of the fighting took place.</span></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Architecture</i><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The baroque style was beginning to reach its peak in buildings like the Melk Monastery in Austria up on top of the rocks with both interior and exterior quite majestic.</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Art</i><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The barren period for major works of art that has been running since the 1670s continues<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Literature</i><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And the barren period for major works of literature that has been running since the 1670s continues…..sorry folks!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Science </i><o:p></o:p></span></b><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In 1704 Newton published his other major work ‘Opticks’, in which he showed that pure light such as light from the sun was not made colourful by mixing with darker objects as previously believed but was itself made up of different colours. He showed this by shining light into a prism and seeing it refracted into all the different colours of the rainbow.</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Technology</i></span></b><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Britain may not have contributed much to music after Purcell died but does well with two technological achievements this decade. In 1701 an English Farmer Jethro Tull invented the seed drill. This would take the place of randomly scattering seeds. Instead, using the drill, seeds could be spread evenly, ploughing three rows at a time of appropriate depth, which improved crop yields by eight times. This laid the foundation for modern agriculture.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In 1709 Abraham Darby invented coke based iron smelting which had the effect in Britain of making a lot of iron available cheaply helping the country toward the industrial revolution.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Philosophy</i><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">To recap on my 1690s posting Locke had said that we experience everything though the senses and all we can directly apprehend are our own thoughts. For example when we see a vase, we experience the idea of a vase in our mind and this might be quite different to what the vase actually is.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">To go into a bit more detail Locke had said that an object had primary qualities, like solidity and shape, which we could be sure enough existed outside the mind. The idea of the vase though was all that we could be sure we had in our mind. Then there were secondary qualities of an object, like colour, taste and smell, which were mind-dependent and did not necessarily exist outside the mind. That is these secondary qualities were qualities that were perceived through our senses rather than being inherent in the object itself.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In 1709 a young George Berkeley, born in 1685, the same year as Bach, Handel and Scarlatti, published the first of his important philosophical writings, his ‘essay towards a new theory of vision’. Berkeley did not agree that there were ‘primary qualities’ and thought that absolutely everything was mind-dependent and if something fails to be in someone’s mind then it fails to exist. He said ‘to be is to be perceived’.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It follows then that if you opened a door and looked into an empty concert hall, when you closed the door the concert hall would not exist. Berkeley’s answer to this was that the empty concert hall would still exist because God, being everywhere, is perceiving it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And now to my selections for this decade which can be found on Spotify (or iTunes).</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Corelli</b></span><br />
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<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/44OD5myiwTEUKGvoV90DJY">Trio Sonnerie – Sonata a violono e violone e cimbalo, Op. 5, Sonata No.11 in E: V.Gavotta:Allegro</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/6copqnozlU7klnzLV5em9d">Trio Sonnerie – Sonata a violono e violone e cimbalo, Op. 5, Sonata No.11 in E: II.Allegro</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/6AtpD2RLKqZnxWgQh6Qibv">Trio Sonnerie – Sonata a violono e violone e cimbalo, Op. 5, Sonata No.10 in F: IV.Gavotta:Allegro</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/0Un8UOCXtIS0qwQ7B2o2pU">Trio Sonnerie – Sonata a violono e violone e cimbalo, Op. 5, Sonata No.9 in A: II.Giga:Allegro</a><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Handel</b></span></div>
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<a href="https://www.blogger.com/goog_833470581"><span id="goog_833470582"></span>Helen Marlais – Gavotte in G Major (HWV 491)</a><br />
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/goog_833470581">Aaron Robinson – Capriccio in F Major, HWV 481</a><br />
Ragna Schirmer - <a href="https://www.blogger.com/goog_833470581">George Frideric Handel – Suite in B-Flat Major, HWV 440: I. Allemande</a><br />
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/goog_833470581">Jiri Krejci – Concerto No. 3 in G Minor for Oboe and Orchestra, HWV 287: IV. Allegro</a><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Vivaldi</b></span><br />
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From the album Antonio Vivaldi: Suonate Da Camera a Tre:-<br />
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<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/125209V0jnTSEazpouDJ25">Antonio Vivaldi – Trio Sonata In G Minor, Op. 1, No. 1, RV 73: II. Allemanda</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/2uD0sC0cCcrfnbQ7pfWP5y">Antonio Vivaldi – Trio Sonata in E Minor, Op. 1, No. 2, RV 67: III. Giga (Allegro)</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/01oz2PBxzgTtYBBWi0RZsO">Antonio Vivaldi – Trio Sonata in C Major, Op. 1, No. 3, RV 61: II. Allemanda (Allegro)</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/4awtTW6lSsTZq3GWtUR1AL">Antonio Vivaldi – Trio Sonata in E Major, Op. 1, No. 4, RV 66: III. Allemanda (Allegro)</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/5ru8i3KXnmeifxYSSpDBPu">Antonio Vivaldi – Trio Sonata in F Major, Op. 1, No. 5, RV 69: II. Allemanda (Presto)</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/6q0eu9Fg2Zf0QUHfWqEPuj">Antonio Vivaldi – Trio Sonata in B-Flat Major, Op. 1, No. 10, RV 78: III. Gavotta (Presto)</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/0IvC1pUQeplo8ui5nifxrV">Antonio Vivaldi – Trio Sonata in B-Flat Major, Op. 1, No. 10, RV 78: II. Allemanda (Allegro)</a><br />
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<a href="http://open.spotify.com/local/Cordaria/Antonio+Vivaldi%3a+12+Sonatas+for+Violin+and+Continuo%2c+Op.2/Sonata+no.+4+in+F+major%3a+Allemanda+Allegro/134">Cordaria – Sonata no. 4 in F major: Allemanda Allegro</a><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Rameau</b></span><br />
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<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/6jqwiQiRKDngnBPUgWPt55">Jean-Philippe Rameau – Premier Livre de pieces de clavecin / Suite in A minor-major (1706): 3. 2nd Allemande</a> Christophe Rousset<br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Albinoni</b></span><br />
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From the album by I musici, Pina Carmirelli complete concertos op 5 and 7:-<br />
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<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/6p6wUehQVKvYtD6HFIVOST">Tomaso Albinoni – 12 Concerti a cinque, Op. 5 - Concerto No. 4 in G Major for Violin: I. Allegro</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/2ytCzNeDKDjE2kKfx3X1dE">Tomaso Albinoni – 12 Concerti a cinque, Op. 5 - Concerto No. 3 in D Major for Violin: I. Allegro</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/7lqj6H3YPrT7jjVFqyeEXM">Tomaso Albinoni – 12 Concerti a 5, Op.5 - Concerto a 5, Op. 5 No. 11: 1. Allegro</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/4sIVkZUkAyW3LLXyAm1LVg">Tomaso Albinoni – 12 Concerti a 5, Op.5 - Concerto a5, Op.5 No.1: 1. Allegro moderato</a> in B flat<br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/6CxlU2Cl51LeUgg2ty6nxb">Donatella Colombo, Clare Ibbott & Marco Rossi – Sonata da chiesa a violino solo e violoncello o basso continuo, Sonata III in Fa maggiore, So 28: II.Allegro</a><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Bach</b></span><br />
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Goran Sollscher <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/6oyZhdRmWf7ugmDVW3dKwx">Johann Sebastian Bach – Suite In E Minor, BWV 996 - transp. in G minor: 5. Bourrée</a><br />
Goran Sollscher <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/0LsqUTJI8AaTGkXWVo7DpS">Johann Sebastian Bach – Suite In E Minor, BWV 996: 2. Allemande</a><br />
Goran Sollscher <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/1s449rDrzfxu55LrRawVPQ">Johann Sebastian Bach – Suite In E Minor, BWV 996: 1. Praeludium</a><br />
Goran Sollscher <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/7bI3ysGBrOt4c6blg5wMQs">Johann Sebastian Bach – Suite In E Minor, BWV 996: 6. Gigue</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/3bvo9ROdeYPnbyUUnuL1qo">Simon Preston – Fugue in G Minor, BWV 578, "The Little"</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/0yztmt4jLebqUkKBviPAz4">Klemens Schnorr – Toccata and Fugue in D Minor for Organ, BWV 565</a><br />
Andrea Bacchetti <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/3TYtlvMYAo8KirNtXgpIqD">Johann Sebastian Bach – Toccata in C Minor, BWV 911: III. Fuga -</a><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Telemann</b></span><br />
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Collegium instrumentale Brugense <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/2cVYBp1RJE1RvwtyeNdJQw">Georg Philipp Telemann – Overture in F Minor, TWV 55:1: Gigue</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/3fGdvmlEg7Er9ZZWTJ4g1a">Concerto Melante – Quintet in D Major, TWV 44:1: I Sinfonia</a><br />
Northern Chamber Orchestra <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/0PnkX5ovyCJ3G6xeau1jH9">Georg Philipp Telemann – Overture (Suite) in G Minor, TWV 55:g2, "La changeante": IV. Avec douceur</a><br />
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<span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="color: blue;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/4N00kyDOCuCpOv6CsZKqkZ">Concerto for 2 Horns in D Major, TWV 52:D2: III. Allegro –
Georg Philipp Telemann, R.J. Kelley, Alexandra Cook, Palisades Baroque, Richard
Dunn</a></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="color: blue;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: blue;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/7ip4CCLknxhiNDVm070amC">Concerto for 2 Horns in D Major, TWV 52:D2: V. Allegro assai
– Georg Philipp Telemann, R.J. Kelley, Alexandra Cook, Palisades Baroque,
Richard Dunn</a></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/0bofzTF8TW4BH4adMBjLyv">Concerto for 2 Horns in F Major, TWV 52:F4: I. Largo -
Allegro – Georg Philipp Telemann, Palisades Baroque, Richard Dunn</a></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="color: blue;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: blue;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/6TliTr8GNk4ygKOVBmF4ct">Oboe Concerto in C Minor, TWV 51: c1: II. Allegro – Georg
Philipp Telemann, Bach Concentus, Vinciane Baudhuin, Ewald Demeyere</a></span></span></div>
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Philipp Telemann, Luise Baumgartl, La Stagione Frankfurt, Michael Schneider</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Torelli</b><br />
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From the album Torelli: Concertos, Simon Standage:-<br />
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<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/4VQ3gXQvw2GrBi1NYD7eQ0">Giuseppe Torelli – Concerto Grosso in F Major, Op. 8, No. 11: I. [Allegro]</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/55bwC8JoL1Rezjr6UzCcy8">Giuseppe Torelli – Concerto Grosso in G Major, Op. 8, No. 5: III. Allegro</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/6hynvfPlnKrpiVPDstB8Ml">Giuseppe Torelli – Concerto Grosso in A Minor, Op. 8, No. 2: III. Allegro</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/7dROyRqWvwsGInPyKtO6ef">Giuseppe Torelli – Concerto Grosso in G Minor, Op. 8, No. 6: III. Vivace</a><br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2257900140734866240.post-74729088652826948462012-09-30T08:07:00.001-07:002012-09-30T08:10:49.270-07:001690s Purcell and Pachelbel - the greatest hits truly begin<div style="text-align: right;">
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<a href="http://open.spotify.com/user/historyomtssg/playlist/4ScOA61pnLIMRvfoNfrInh"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">GREATEST HITSTORY</span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The 1690s is predominantly taken up by Henry Purcell and all of his music came in the first half of the decade because he was dead by the second. It seems he has slotted right into the place that Lully vacated after that composer had wacked his foot and accidently killed himself and Purcell's music is clearly greatly influenced by Lully. As with Lully he composed lots of choral music and sing songs for operas and theatre. As with Lully I have completely ignored this to listen to the good bits which are the glorious instrumental interludes, usually involving trumpets. There are many excellent Purcell pieces but the stand outs for me are the trumpet voluntary from the Indian Queen z.630 <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=30D1iPN6vdc">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=30D1iPN6vdc</a> the second Allegro from the trumpet sonata in D <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4zhRtOfxv1c">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4zhRtOfxv1c</a> (it starts at 3.20 on this clip), </span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">the rondo from Abdelezar</span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xm71yCre2O8&feature=related" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xm71yCre2O8&feature=related</a><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">, </span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">and these three: </span><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/6Nc16XYZC3xpSalX93iuCE" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">CBC Vancouver Orchestra – The Married Beau, Z. 603, "The Curious Impertinent": Hornpipe</a><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">, </span><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/1XUkxWnMtLOKwcF4MUeZ8E" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Orchester Le Phenix – Distress'd Innocence, Z. 577: VII. Aire</a><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">, </span><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/7IY4p7sehpd1f9ZYKba5Y6" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">John Eliot Gardiner – Purcell : Timon of Athens Z632 : Dioclesian Second Music</a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It's funny though because my favourite two are not actually by Purcell but in fact by a much lesser known English contemporary of Purcell called </span><b style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Jeremiah Clarke</b><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><b style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(1674-1707)</b><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">. They are the Trumpet Voluntary for the Prince of Denmark <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n1n7WeuHCog">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n1n7WeuHCog</a> </span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> and the Trumpet Tune in D from the Island Princess (on which Purcell's younger brother Daniel worked and which is extremely similar to Purcell's trumpet voluntary from the Indian Queen</span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">- hence the confusion).</span><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JFv69KInTnM">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JFv69KInTnM</a>.</span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> That was like thinking 'I'm a believer' is your favourite Beatles song and finding out it's by the Monkees. Oh well, I can take a set back like that because I still think Purcell was the best composer around at the time. These two extremely catchy Jeremiah Clarke trumpet tunes often end up on classical best of compilations incorrectly attributed to Purcell, so it's not just me that has been fooled.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The young Purcell was like a famous pop star of the time and top melody writer. He had been still a teenager when he was appointed court composer for the king's 24 violins in 1677. In some of his portraits there is a vague sort of resemblance to Paul </span><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">McCartney....</span></div>
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<img alt="" class="rg_hi uh_hi" data-height="247" data-width="160" height="247" id="rg_hi" src="http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQQwWqrl_gCtUht_b34wb6wgBnOv_4M5Tq0dNqZBmSzN2rs5PWH" style="height: 247px; width: 160px;" width="160" /><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">......well I think so anyway.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Purcell's death in 1695 was even more tragic than Lully's when at the age of only about 36, in his creative prime, he came home</span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> from an after show party to find his wife had shut him out as she'd got fed up with him coming in late and he caught a chill from the cold and died. Either that or he just randomly caught tuberculosis or pneumonia somehow, it is not really known.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Of the other composers from the 1680s, in the 1690s I could not find much that was that good from Biber and Corelli was less prolific. His 4th Opus comes in 1694 and of the 12 sonatas my favourite is the allegro from sonata II which starts after 2 minutes on this clip <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NloP7jSdcRU">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NloP7jSdcRU</a></span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">. I sort of thought it was going to be all violins in the 1690s but actually Purcell's (and Jeremia Clarke's) brass blows that all away. As well as that there was another Italian violin composer who was like Corelli but with a T for trumpets and his name was </span><b style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Giuseppe Torelli (1658-1709)</b><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">. Corelli was the main man in Rome and Torelli was his equivalent composing in Bologna. Absent in the 1680s posting because I could not find anything good from him in that decade, the 1690s saw Torelli composing numerous trumpet concertos and some of them are brilliant...so much for violins. I have listened to all of these and the best are the Concerto Estienne Roger: Allegro </span><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nfIzv_tt4K4">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nfIzv_tt4K4</a> and <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/6akj2FtIKKmc0wJBGy7IA4">Giuseppe Torelli – Sinfonia G. 8: Allegro</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As if this is not enough to make the point that the best music in the 1690s was being played on brass instruments we have <b>Marc-Antoine Charpentier (1643-1704)</b> who composed the magnificent prelude to his Te Deum some time during this decade</span> <span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1e_QclgWsbA&feature=related">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1e_QclgWsbA&feature=related</a>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Well now we've had Purcell's, I mean Jeremiah Clarke's trumpet voluntary but we are well and truly coming into 'classical greatest hits compilations' territory with one of the best known pieces of music ever composed. This was the Canon in D major by <b>Johann Pachelbel (1653-1706) </b></span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NlprozGcs80&feature=related"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NlprozGcs80&feature=related</span></a><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">, now sabotaged quite regularly by buskers everywhere. Well, to give the buskers their due, may be it is not sabotage but I just wish they would not all play this same piece all the time, it gets so annoying especially when the piece itself is just a few bars repeated (supposedly) 28 times.....mind you I expect it also gets the pennies dropping! It also happens to be in about 50 different pop and rock songs. Having said all of that I still think it's amazing. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It is not certain when it was actually composed but I reckon 1690s is most likely for a couple of reasons. Firstly some believe it was composed for the wedding of J.C. Bach, the oldest brother of the great J.S. Bach in 1694. Secondly it's as if Corelli and Biber were groping towards it's immortal chord sequence but not quite finding it in the 1680s. Have a listen to </span><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/4b6SJD6H5RnvgfHvmd5DpK"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Il Ruggiero – Sonata Duodecima</span></a><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> by Corelli and </span><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/1XI4L5BWxARSFUHQYzYhaM"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ars Antiqua Austria – Violin Sonata No. 3 in F major, C. 140: IV. Variatio</span></a><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> by Biber which are favourites of mine from the 1680s to hear what I mean. Either that or they had heard it and were ripping it off like everyone else does! Apart from this Pachelbel mostly composed organ music which was probably not as good as his contemporary, Buxtehude, of whom I gave a mention in an earlier posting. He did compose some other music for stringed instruments which I might have included if it had come in say the 1660s when I could barely find any music I liked, but really now I am getting spoilt for choice of good tunes as we approach the 1700s and Pachelbel's other works have not made the cut for me. Pachelbel is what you might call a one hit wonder - but what a hit it is, even if it took until the latter part of the 20th century for people to realise.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Of all of these, and not withstanding the Jeremiah Clarke set back, Henry Purcell was without question the greatest of the time and almost all his great work came from a five year period at the start of this decade. Imagine how much more he could have composed if he had lived longer. I believe he will be sorely missed for music until we get to the work of a truly golden generation of composers which include Vivaldi who was just 17, and Handel and J.S. Bach, who were 10 year olds when Purcell died. </span></div>
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<i style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">General History</i></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The war of the League of Augsberg ended in defeat for France and victory for most of the rest of Europe in 1697. No other major events really.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Architecture</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Versailles provided the inspiration for many baroque country houses for aristocrats that continued to spring up around Europe. Here are a couple of good ones that were being built during this decade in England.</span><br />
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<a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0c/England1_144.jpg/240px-England1_144.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="England1 144.jpg" border="0" height="180" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0c/England1_144.jpg/240px-England1_144.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img alt="" class="thumbimage" height="255" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/10/Chatsworth_showing_hunting_tower.jpg/340px-Chatsworth_showing_hunting_tower.jpg" width="340" /> Chatsworth House, Derbyshire Castle Howard, Yorkshire</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Art, Literature an</i></span><i style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">d Technology</i></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ok I'll keep this short - there is not really much happening in art, literature or technology at this time.</span><br />
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<i style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Philosophy</i></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Locke wrote 'Some Thoughts Concerning Education' in 1693. In some ways this was like a sequel to 'Essay on human </span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In Understanding'. In that he had said how the mind was like a blank slate and our only reality was what we experienced through the senses.</span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> In t</span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">his new bit of writing he explains how the mind should be educated, namely with an emphasis on understanding virtue and retaining health, rather than fact gathering. He thought the best way was to install in children an enthusiasm for acquiring knowledge for themselves rather than actually teaching them the facts. This idea of thinking and reasoning for your self rather than just doing what you're told, blindly following tradition, makes Locke for many the first 'modern' thinker and a revolutionary. This mindset is closely linked with his friend Newton and his approach to the world of science.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So here are my selections for the greatest hitstory:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Purcell</span><br />
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<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/7wyRAUSFCqE9mvRcdEIIPM"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Christopher Hogwood – Purcell: Abdelazer - Rondeau</span></a><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/2FRsP7JeL87ANgjyqGBiHe">Orchester Le Phenix – Abdelazar Suite, Z. 570: VI. Second Act Tune: Aire</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/1XUkxWnMtLOKwcF4MUeZ8E">Orchester Le Phenix – Distress'd Innocence, Z. 577: VII. Aire</a><i><br /></i>
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/6Nc16XYZC3xpSalX93iuCE">CBC Vancouver Orchestra – The Married Beau, Z. 603, "The Curious Impertinent": Hornpipe</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/5vJMuHlAvJj1h5xJ5h1Oq1">Nikolaus Harnoncourt – Purcell : The Fairy Queen : Act 3 Dance for the Green Men</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/09TeLvwm8glccWQYDYHJXh">Nikolaus Harnoncourt – Purcell : The Fairy Queen : Act 3 Hornpipe</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/2hVUNBJNFxQQ2bOMVN7ysK">Nikolaus Harnoncourt – Purcell : The Fairy Queen : Act 4 Symphony</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/4bpAUBCz2Uw1T9MCq9PJaI">John Eilot Gardiner – Purcell : The Indian Queen Z630 : Act 2 Allegro</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/6GM9gLYX04TtReN10wiwFM">John Eilot Gardiner – Purcell : The Indian Queen Z630 : Act 3 Air</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/6oPCaJVoueGDY11TamnXbZ">John Eliot Gardiner – Purcell : The Tempest Z631/10 : Act 4 The sailor's dance</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/26DCEqljoayXdmmzZCAXEb">John Eliot Gardiner – Purcell : Timon of Athens Z632 : Overture to The Masque</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/7IY4p7sehpd1f9ZYKba5Y6">John Eliot Gardiner – Purcell : Timon of Athens Z632 : Dioclesian Second Music</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/0xtmtxtMYmhoOzlp5hsTPs">John Eliot Gardiner – Purcell : Timon of Athens Z632 : Act 4 Fourth Act Tune</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/6tvy3lSF7CJq8JI304emn9">John Eliot Gardiner – Purcell : Trumpet Sonata in D major Z850 : I Allegro</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/7vWC7HwhgPU4hkwvwmdQMr">John Eliot Gardiner – Purcell : Trumpet Sonata in D major Z850 : III Allegro</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/1n83qA9rAtkvua6pDps60D">Olivier Baumont – Purcell : Harpsichord Suite No.1 in G major Z660 : I Prelude</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/0XKprta5bS4I3RPI42IFTD">Aradia Ensemble – The Indian Queen, Z. 630 : Trumpet Overture To 'The Indian Queen', Z. 630</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/2t3nSKt0QZFElgosaLPLj7">The Scholars Baroque Ensemble – The Indian Queen, Z. 630 : Act III - Dance</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Clarke</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/0MIoRslhpufouaiRtN4bBH">Island Princess Trumpet Tune</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/2suxNWCP1kIPC7tZ6UZP1u">Prince of Denmark Trumpet Voluntary</a> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Corelli</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/1GvDBX97SA1bWRGelqnbkg">Il Ruggiero – Sonata II</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/5dtI6LSpP0UkYeoPshN8rP">Il Ruggiero – Sonata III</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/5xgRXNQaX42FDDhXspEFGU">Il Ruggiero – Sonata IV</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/6SSUgrKMKQuxg6Ykk6Y1Kx">Il Ruggiero – Sonata IX</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/3eiGv0shW90DhLloYX0mZ3">Il Ruggiero – Sonata X</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/1R5kIL4c1iJavMAcURE9gw">Il Ruggiero – Sonata X</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/1N2ej4jLbcLkUQSqWDQF1b">Il Ruggiero – Sonata XII</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Torelli</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/0gAMdMjhD4v2OBXPS1V1Lp">Giuseppe Torelli – Concerto Estienne Roger: Allegro</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/0hyHsUQIGcAAz0Ek8zoT6u">Giuseppe Torelli – Sinfonia Avanti L' Opera G. 14: Allegro</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/3r7yHzgM4vACWXo23PbBhh">Giuseppe Torelli – Sinfonia G. 4: Allegro</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/7umgIusfHalGkYErLmN5bC">Giuseppe Torelli – Sinfonia Con Trombe G. 20: Allegro</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/6akj2FtIKKmc0wJBGy7IA4">Giuseppe Torelli – Sinfonia G. 8: Allegro</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Charpentier</span><br />
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<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/1qz9S6tWmWZPBygeLUAft4"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">London Festival Orchestra – Te Deum</span></a><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Pachelbel</span><br />
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<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/7IC8BUTu0irq8Iq2J6HayC"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">London Philharmonic Orchestra – Canon in D Major</span></a></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2257900140734866240.post-87565116914526423882012-09-19T13:44:00.001-07:002012-09-19T13:56:34.823-07:001680s Captain Correlli's violin string<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Zooming on into the 1680s and with his triumphant and majestic instrumental interludes we find Lully still going strong until he accidently wacks his toe with the baton he was using to keep the orchestra in time during a performance of <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JVSZlVA4dqM">Te Deum</a>. Unfortunately this caused him an injury which might have healed if he'd had it looked at by a doctor. As it happened the wound became gangrenous, he refused to have his toe amputated and this meant the end of Lully on 22nd March 1687, a real shame for music. In this decade Lully even managed to compose some vocal music that I like, that is the chorus '<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=feB1t2slSCM">Cherchons la paix dans cet asile</a>' from his opera Phaeton which I am sure I have heard somewhere, on a television advert probably.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My other favourite composer of the day was also still going strong and he did manage to survive the decade. Biber was like nobody else and his music seems to know no boundaries. My particular favourites from him this decade are <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/3K8ChZqeTMFtD2oijqUH5S">Garry Clarke – Mensa sonora, seu Musica instrumentalis: Sonata No. 2 in F major: I. Intrada</a> and <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/1XI4L5BWxARSFUHQYzYhaM">Ars Antiqua Austria – Violin Sonata No. 3 in F major, C. 140: IV. Variatio</a>. This latter piece and some other of Biber's music has something about it, like the chanting hundreds of years earlier, that just seems timeless and I feel a bit cheesy and at risk of sounding a bit like a judge on the X Factor for using this word but also, 'soulful', especially when you compare him to Lully who was great but of his time. The way it ends is extraordinary for the 1680s, but then Biber was an extraordinary composer. As much as I love the music from the other composers I have chosen in this decade, next to this all those other pieces seem a bit trivial, but then they're lots of fun too.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So that's Biber but there was another virtuoso violinist based in Rome who was more influential, this was <b>Arcangelo Corelli (1653-1713)</b>. Corelli's music was very much in keeping with the classical architecture around him, nice and neat and tidy, well formed, perfectly balanced and aesthetically pleasing. Parts of Biber sound outrageous by comparison. Corelli's musical output is also very neatly organised consisting only of 6 'opus' collections which each had 12 sonatas each containing a few short movements. In this decade we have Opus 1 (1681), 2 (1685) and 3 (1689) and out of these three the first is the best and the second the worst. Opus 6 which was not published until just after he died is supposed to be the best of all 6 but we'll see about that when I get to the 1710s. There's not much to separate these sonatas but try the first allegro from sonata 7 of opus 1. <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/4dWHyMAlLF3c1nxBhCjhKv">Il Ruggiero – Sonata Settima</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Corelli is significant because he was the first of all the composers not to bother with choral or vocal music at all, that is, the first whose work consisted entirely of music for instruments and the composer who set music on a course that would finally see instrumental chamber and orchestral music challenge the status of vocal music. I refer to him as captain in my heading partly in tribute to a great novel by Louis De Bernieres but also because in a way Corelli was the captain of the violinists, the one they all looked up to and learnt from, the first in a string of Italian composers of violin music, most of whom would follow Corelli's style and some of whom were his pupils (excuse the pun but by the string I mean Corelli, Torelli, Albinoni, Vivaldi, Locatelli, Somis, Manfredini, Geminiani, Veracini, Tartini, and a little later Nardini, Lolli and Pugnani and finally to Paganini, the Jimi Hendrixi of the violin). </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">With Biber and Corelli the violin was well and truly on the up and had established itself as the most important non-keyboard instrument. Antonio Stradivari began making instruments around this time and bought the design of the violin to perfection between 1700-1720.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In my last post I mentioned an English composer whose name I am pleased now to reveal as <b>Henry Purcell (1659-1695)</b>. Purcell's really good music does not really come until 1689 and I have picked the opening overture from his opera <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hnPo7mtkh7M">Didas & Aeneas</a> which is a slow starter but then gets going after about a minute. Three other pieces are harpischord pieces which could be 1690s but I am guessing 1680s - it's a real joy to find such catchy little 40/50 second gems for the harpsichord as Rigadoon, Scotch Tune and Irish Tune and the March in C major but Purcell's best was yet to come.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So my selections for this decade are: -</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Lully</span><br />
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<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/6ZDUejaCzkiBDeP5ceo4XF"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Christophe Rousset – II, 5: Entrée, Gavotte</span></a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/6rS04N3tDsbDfjZ04LUHF9"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Marc Minkowski – Lully : Phaëton : Prologue "Cherchons la paix dans cet asile" [Chorus]</span></a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/1ZHsPxjGRBy7ou8djH11Do"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Musica Antiqua Köln – Lully: Te Deum Motet à deux choeurs</span></a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/6BZMFCkyLj9atY880jQS3X"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Lully, Jean-Baptiste [Composer] – Lully: Acis & Galatée - Premier Air - Deuxième Air</span></a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/3Tzyd7Kl3mtFDDLtLseiMh"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Dominik Kiefer – Phaeton : Rondeau</span></a><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Biber</span><br />
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<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/1XI4L5BWxARSFUHQYzYhaM"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ars Antiqua Austria – Violin Sonata No. 3 in F major, C. 140: IV. Variatio</span></a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/53KbtSVuuu74r5eon3vE2F"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ars Antiqua Austria – Violin Sonata No. 8 in A major, C. 145: IV. Allegro - Allegro</span></a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/3K8ChZqeTMFtD2oijqUH5S"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Garry Clarke – Mensa sonora, seu Musica instrumentalis: Sonata No. 2 in F major: I. Intrada</span></a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/5IzOQjT7HSj4m3HwjS5EZe"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Garry Clarke – Mensa sonora, seu Musica instrumentalis: Partita No. 3 in A minor: III. Aria</span></a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/16cBhX84nMayscADAvnM7a"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Garry Clarke – Mensa sonora, seu Musica instrumentalis: Sonata No. 4 in B flat major: IV. Balletto</span></a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/21uBzxg15HhPR8ZNBwPke5"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Garry Clarke – Mensa sonora, seu Musica instrumentalis: Sonata No. 5 in E major: V. Gavotte: Alla breve</span></a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/3mtOePcLdRDapeBegSq81g"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Nikolaus Harnoncourt – Biber: Sonata a 2 violini, trombone, violone in D minor - 2. (Poco allegro)</span></a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/2MoumdHqKxqzX7y47oBPMV"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Nikolaus Harnoncourt – Biber: Sonata a 2 violini, trombone, violone in D minor - 9. (Allegro)</span></a><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Corelli</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/79sdirefFhsxG8ljpxS38r"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Il Ruggiero – Sonata Prima</span></a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/4j2XKyPcmMVgh1roYCRYj9"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Il Ruggiero – Sonata Seconda</span></a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/1D2KsPo9lSLk8lbfQdJLkY"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Il Ruggiero – Sonata Quinta</span></a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/4dWHyMAlLF3c1nxBhCjhKv"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Il Ruggiero – Sonata Settima</span></a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/696ZiUK0ALcA0Qzp9l115U"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Il Ruggiero – Sonata Duodecima</span></a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/4n7w0fTMcJdKclqg0dlN3o"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Il Ruggiero – Sonata Sesta</span></a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/04waxjPmJd7yEC0jl3h76G"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Il Ruggiero – Sonata Ottava</span></a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/4b6SJD6H5RnvgfHvmd5DpK"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Il Ruggiero – Sonata Duodecima</span></a><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Purcell</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/4fKbudACxAlbjV6gsgXQUV"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">William Christie – Purcell : Dido & Aeneas : Overture</span></a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/4pcct0DTpDvlojb4iA9cqO"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Olivier Baumont – Purcell : Hornpipe in E minor ZT685</span></a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/7ahFVIxQ3ZwJprfPOW1u1G"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">John Gibbons – March in C major, Z. 648</span></a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/5uvo9qLssEjB48SWvPNcYw"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A New Scotch Tune in C major, Z. 655</span></a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/2EzobUunOzxUqtDd7XdQx8"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">John Gibbons – A New Irish Tune in G major, Z. 646</span></a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/0EiTBoTZJdrRgEqn3OiCm4"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">John Gibbons – Rigadoon in C major, Z. 653</span></a><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<i><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">General History</span></i><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Turkey and Austria were at war with each other and Poland joined in on Austria's side. Louis XIV started to get too big for his boots, banning all religions except catholic and kicking the protestant Huguenots out of France which was not a good move for his country. He also claimed the Palatinate, a German state as French. This was also not a good move for France because it led to Sweden, Spain, Holland, the Holy Roman Empire and German states, Saxony and Bavaria forming the League of Augsburg against Louis XIV. England later joined the League after James II was forced out and replaced by William and Mary in 1688. The war of the League of Augsburg, with them all against France, began in 1689.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<i><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Architecture</span></i><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Now that the finishing touches were being put on the palace at Versailles most aristocrats around Europe wanted their own mini Versailles and also to replicate Bernini and Boromini's impressive Italian baroque designs and a whole lot of extravagant castle and monastery building was going on, though often they would run out of money before the buildings were completed.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<i><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Art</span></i><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We are in a creative slump in terms of painting. By now the greatest artists of the century had either died, that's Rubens, Poussin, Velasquez, Rembrandt, Vermeer, or were about to this decade, meaning Ruisdael and finally Claude Lorraine. Claude did at least manage to keep the standard of his paintings up into his late seventies with this one entitled landscape of Ascanius Shooting the Stag of Sylvia, painted in 1682, the year of his death.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img alt="" class="thumbimage" height="239" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ee/Ascanius_Shooting_the_Stag_of_Sylvia_1682_Claude_Lorrain.jpg/300px-Ascanius_Shooting_the_Stag_of_Sylvia_1682_Claude_Lorrain.jpg" width="300" /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<i><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Literature</span></i><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The world of literature was consistent with the art world in that there really was not a great deal of enormous significance happening in this decade (apart from Locke & Newton who, if you read on you will see, within a couple of years of each other, were responsible for two of the most important publications in the history of mankind) .</span><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Science & Technology</span></i><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Newton published his Principia (or mathematical principals of natural philosophy) in 1687. This is the monumentally important book in which he explains the laws of gravity and the workings of the solar system. From this Newton could predict things like the movement of the moon, the planets, comets, the movement of the tides, an absolutely astounding achievement that for the first time, gave people the feeling that the universe had somehow been tamed.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Within Principia was the invention of 'Calculus' (the study of change in maths). An intellectual rival of Newton, Gottfried Wilhelm von Leibniz (1646-1716), had in fact invented Calculus independently and published this in 1684. It is unfortunate for Leibniz to have worked all that out and then to find that Newton could prove he had already done it back in 1666 but just not published his work, a bit like when you think you've got an amazing idea for a new type of website but then find out it's already been done! You've got to have some sympathy for Leibniz, who despite discrediting himself by trying to back date and amend his work to claim the glory, was apparently a charming and well liked fellow. His desk was very untidy and he confessed he would often have to re do work he had already done because it would be quicker for him to do that than to look through his unorganised pile of papers. Of some consolation for him is that it is his notation for Calculus that mathematicians now use rather than Newton's.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Leibniz was a real bright button though and was the first to describe an early type of mechanical calculator called a pinwheel calculator and his 'leibniz wheel' was a component used in the first mass produced calculator which came out much later in 1851 and this component was used all the way until 1973 when electronic calculators came in.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Leibniz also began philosophising in this decade, following the rationalist philosophy of Descartes and Spinoza but he did not publish anything until 1710, probably because his papers were in a mess, so I'll tell you about his ideas when I get to 1710.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<i><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Philosophy</span></i><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Newton's friend John Locke (1632-1704) published his Essay on Human Understanding in 1689. Like Newton's 'Principia' this is another monumental work and like Henry Purcell, Locke is basically known for what he came out with during the few years following from and including 1689.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Before Locke people generally thought that the limit to what could be known was set by what there actually was in the universe, so theoretically we could go on finding out things until there was nothing left to find out. So for example Descartes started with 'I think therefore I am' and said we can build up our understanding of the universe from one certainty leading to another. Locke on the other hand said that when we are born, rather than thinking first, our mind is like a blank page waiting to be written on by our experience in the world and we can only really know and understand things based on what we experience through our senses and build our knowledge from there, so there may be a whole lot in reality that we'll never be able to know about if we don't experience it through our senses. This idea that knowledge comes from how we interpret our sensory experience, rather than pure and simple reasoning is known as empiricism and is a reaction against the rationalist school of thinking that included Descartes, Spinoza and Newton's intellectual rival Leibniz.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Also important to Locke's philosophy is that as we infer something from our sensory experience, we'll then generalise from that experience and this occasionally can lead to us being mistaken.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Locke's ideas were revolutionary in two ways. One because they suggested that no one is superior by birth whether they're a king or a peasant and two, because they suggested that if we could be mistaken then we should not impose our own view, but instead be tolerant of other people's, and willing to change our mind if necessary. Locke believes that this sort of thinking combined with the absence of civil order being of such great detriment to human beings led mankind to listen to one another to create organised rule. So for Locke governments and rulers are empowered by the people and that is where they had always got their sovereignty from, not from God as rulers like Louis XIV liked to believe. Locke's essay marks the start of liberal democracy and was a big influence on the people who started the French and American revolutions about 100 years later.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/user/historyomtssg/playlist/4ScOA61pnLIMRvfoNfrInh"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">GREATEST HITSTORY</span></a><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2257900140734866240.post-79039160318451817732012-08-26T15:42:00.001-07:002012-09-14T13:25:08.409-07:001670s Lully, Biber and the first public concerts<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 19px;">If
you want to know who made the best music in the 1670s I do not think you need
to look much further than Lully in Versailles who had ruled the roost in the 1660s and <b>Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber (1644-1704)</b> in Salzburg both of whose music
goes from strength to strength. Between them there is an abundance of really
good, short and lively instrumental pieces, most of which are about a minute and forty seconds long.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Lully’s
are mostly interludes from his various operas and ballets but Biber is best
known for his Rosary Sonatas (aka the Mystery Sonatas) which is one of the
earliest collection of pieces for solo violin, from 1676 (give or take a year or two). Of these sonatas (there are 15 of them), a couple of gigues and a gavotte make it
into my compilation. For me the violin sounds best with accompanying
instrumentation and I really like the selections from Biber’s fast and feisty Battalia à 10 (10 instruments) </span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BC2oaSAToRE">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BC2oaSAToRE</a> <span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">and slow and serene Balletti </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">à 6 (6 instruments).</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> <o:p></o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/7nDXaOaLUosYqfD9P2YQtO">IV. Der Mars</a> from Biber's Batallia sounds to me like it might have influenced Gustav Holst when he composed 'Mars The Bringer of War' from the Planets in the 20th Century which in turn has been influential on many film scores. Also on the Battalia collection there is a curiously cacophonous piece called <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/1vEvcwEVrCPAvTvvxofoy1"> Die liederliche Gesellschaft von allerley Humor</a> which brings to mind Biber's earlier imitations of animal sounds (things like cats and cuckoos) from his '<span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;">Sonata violino solo representativa' to which I was referring in my 1660s posting.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">This
decade is also notable because in 1672 in London, the largest city in Europe at
the time, the first ticketed public concert is believed to have taken place thanks to an ex-empoloyee of the king, John Bannister. John Bannister had held the equivalent post as that of Lully in France. That is he was in charge of the King's orchestra. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Louise XIV had his Les Vingt Quatre Violins Du Roi, an orchestra of 24 stringed instruments and Louis' cousin, King Charles II of England had been impressed with this and so got himself an orchestra of 24 too, putting the violinist John Bannister in charge. The problem was there were some French players in his orchestra and John Bannister made some impertinent remark about them offending Charles' liking for the French, which got him the sack. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">No longer in the employment of the king, it seems John Bannister then went about organising concerts for the public rather than for the king and his courtiers, the first being in 1672 at his house. They did not catch on in a big way, that would not happen until the 1720s (in France), but b</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 19px;">y 1678 at least there was
a public concert hall at Charing Cross in London. Not much really great music
had come from England since the days of Byrd and Dowland at the turn of the
last century but the stage was being set for one of England's greatest ever
composers, in his late teens at this time, but whom I’ll get to soon.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">I
will mention at this point another German composer whose name was <b>Dieterich
Buxtehude (1637-1707)</b>. Buxtehude organised Evening music concerts in Lubeck, Germany, that
were free for the public (and funded by local business men) in 1673 which were
held on the five Sundays leading up to Christmas each year and continued all the way until
1810. I mention Buxtehude mainly because he was a big influence on the soon to
be born J.S. Bach who was such a big fan that he famously walked 400 kilometres
to watch Buxtehude perform in one of these evening concerts. Buxtehude is a
composer of organ music which is a bit of a challenge for a 21<sup>st</sup>
Century listener such as myself. However, I have selected </span><span lang="EN-US"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/0uVL6sFT0nJDFWNyXprXm7"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Ciacona In E Moll Buxwv 160</span></a> </span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">which
judging from its catalogue number I am guessing was composed in this decade.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">The best of them all though is definitely still Lully and you can see a depiction of Lully’s ballet Alceste being performed at the King Louise XIV’s Palace at Versailles below. Look at that, listen to <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/3LBVBi06lfkxpHpbbN9m0J">Le Concert Des Nations, Jordi Savall – Alceste, 1674: Marche Des Combattans</a> and imagine you were there!</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 19px;"><br /></span></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 19px;"><img height="670" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/43/Ballet_versailles.jpg" style="-webkit-user-select: none; cursor: -webkit-zoom-in;" width="938" /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Lully
<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/4YS5gDSRkslj4jEdHgsnkw">Le Concert Des Nations, Jordi Savall – Le Bougeois Gentilhomme, 1670: Gavotte (Lully)</a><br /><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/4yJIgq7Hx0MmYZVdz02l4a"> Le Concert Des Nations, Jordi Savall – Le Bougeois Gentilhomme, 1670: Canaries (Lully)</a><br /><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/7yFIRg5FtUelfd8Ju7pzqw"> Le Concert Des Nations, Jordi Savall – Le Bougeois Gentilhomme, 1670: Chaconne Des Scaramouches, Trivelins Et Arlequins (Lully)</a><br /><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/7FUBtY3z2H4CIjcKe8grVH"> Le Concert Des Nations, Jordi Savall – Le Divertissement Royal, 1664-1670: Les Suivants De Neptune (Lully)</a><br /><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/1ltQnYCzfuS53gSpKnb9EV"> Le Concert Des Nations, Jordi Savall – Le Divertissement Royal, 1664-1670: Prélude Des Trompettes (Lully)</a><br /><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/3lueAPe9wbt85wYm9OJQK2"> Le Concert Des Nations, Jordi Savall – Le Divertissement Royal, 1664-1670: Danse De Neptune (Lully)</a><br /><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/5j2WP9Sazq9ZyCfr4csb2P"> Le Concert Des Nations, Jordi Savall – Le Divertissement Royal, 1664-1670: Les Hommes Et Femmes Armés (Lully)</a><br /><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/5l8uGAYId8qqEkFDw93TxC"> Le Concert Des Nations, Jordi Savall – Le Divertissement Royal, 1664-1670: Menuet Pour Les Trompettes (Lully)</a><br /><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/3LBVBi06lfkxpHpbbN9m0J"> Le Concert Des Nations, Jordi Savall – Alceste, 1674: Marche Des Combattans (Lully)</a><br /><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/3VmNw8wuVHYztBijfQJcQH"> Le Concert Des Nations, Jordi Savall – Alceste, 1674: Menuet (Lully)</a><br /><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/6Mp75NLTMwIivmQVvVtT1Z"> Le Concert Des Nations, Jordi Savall – Alceste, 1674: Loure Pour Les Pêcheurs (Lully)</a><br /><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/1GCsiS9BqhiQmnHjkk8gJP"> William Christie – Lully : Psyché : Prelude</a><br /><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/4dgCwkL6jux0L4FIUJmFbg">Lully Atys: Air</a><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Biber</span><br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/2Cop2ecjoe8YuYjnUiySb9">Biber, Heinrich Ignaz Franz – Rosary Sonata XIII - The Descent Of The Holy Spirit: Guigue</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/0GSIRu5ov7fMpcYe5ZfbR8">Johannes Koch – Mystery (rosary) Sonata No. 5, "the 12 - Year - Old Jesus In The Temple" - Iii. Gigue</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/0SBy6aVt8UndeU13jqnvZp">Johannes Koch – Mystery (rosary) Sonata No. 13, "pentecost" - Ii. Gavotte</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/1UPSf6he6VWfjGA8U51HGD">La Capella Reial De Catalunya, Le Concert De Nations, Jordi Savall – Battalia À 10: Sonata (Biber)</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/0LFqt8XNAtym1RmJMfFxZl">La Capella Reial De Catalunya, Le Concert De Nations, Jordi Savall – Battalia À 10: Presto (Biber)</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/4bxsfIYxpgAbuUS4naeM5b">La Capella Reial De Catalunya, Le Concert De Nations, Jordi Savall – Battalia À 10: Die Schlacht (Biber)</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/2PYOtLBUqeXwrZLE5oiDzP">La Capella Reial De Catalunya, Le Concert De Nations, Jordi Savall – Battalia À 10: Presto (Biber)</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/2uYyUZS13u0KQI99bTk6yW">Combattimento Consort Amsterdam – Sonatae Tam Aris Quam Aulis Servientes</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/54VIEA81b7MmpnYFrXoOjH">Combattimento Consort Amsterdam – Sonatae Tam Aris Quam Aulis Servientes</a></span><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/4nlrfVQuz4jCHOHyydIonx"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Combattimento Consort Amsterdam – Sonatae Tam Aris Quam Aulis Servientes</span></a><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/5Oos9qHtoJj0mhN5MtXjfe">Virtuosi Saxoniae – H. I. F. Biber: Balletti à 6/Aria</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/64mSksCapOYPGj8R0dOxW3">Virtuosi Saxoniae – H. I. F. Biber: Balletti à 6/Sonata</a></span><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/16Q0bRYsd0BBnqLMXSHBbu">Garry Clarke – Battalia, "Sonata di marche": I. Allegro</a><br />
<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/7nDXaOaLUosYqfD9P2YQtO">Garry Clarke – Battalia, "Sonata di marche": IV. Der Mars</a><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Buxtehude</span><br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/0uVL6sFT0nJDFWNyXprXm7">Bernard Foccroulle – Ciacona In E Moll, Buxwv 160</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt;"><i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><i>General history</i><b><o:p></o:p></b></span></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">The Dutch were at war with the French and English and Sweden were at war with Prussia (now Germany).<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">Peter the Great (1672-1725) became Tzar of Russia in this decade and over the next 50 years or so he would modernise his country making it one of Europe’s most prestigious nations.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt;"><i>Art</i><b><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">There
was not an awful lot new happening in art and no massively
significant works.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt;"><i>Architecture</i><b><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Guarini
continued to represent the height of the baroque period with his wild but yet
perfectly geometrical designs. Christoper Wren
set about rebuilding London after the great fire of 1666. Most famously he
began work on St Paul’s Cathedral in 1675, known for it’s very elegant dome,
which finally got finished off in 1710. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img alt="St Pauls Cathedral" border="0" src="http://www.images-of-london.co.uk/jss/shopimages/products/thumbnails/dEngCTY2.jpg" /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt;"><i>Literature</i><b><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">The
Third of the century’s three great French figures in literature was Jean
Racine, the other two being Corneille and Moliere. He was a playwright and his
plays were mostly tragedies. May be his most famous play was Phèdre published
in 1677. Today it is one of the most frequently staged tragedies of the 17<sup>th</sup>
Century.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><i>Science and Technology</i><b><o:p></o:p></b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Great scientific institutions continued to be set up in this decade, the prime example being The Royal Observatory at Greenwich, London which was established in 1675.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">Isaac Newton (1642-1727) who unbeknown to the rest of the world had possibly worked out most of what he would become known for back in 1666 </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 19px;">(that is discovering gravity, inventing calculus (calculus is the study of change in maths) and his theories on light and colour and generally being a strong candidate for cleverest person that ever lived)</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 19px;"> published his first paper on light and colour in 1672. He worked out that white light was in fact a mixture of lots of different colours and that when shone through a prism it would split up into these different colours (just as the sun light does on rain drops, making a rainbow) but then when those separate colours went through a second prism they would not split further which showed that these colours were part of the white light itself and not something different that was produced by it. This led to him inventing a new type of reflective telescope which got him elected as member of the recently established Royal Society of London.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">Great strides with the recently invented microscope continued to be made with Anthony van Leeuwenhoek who was the first to use it to examine single celled organisms. He was actually an amateur but made better microscopes than any of his professional scientific contemporaries and is known as the father of microbiology, not bad for a hobby. He might have been an amateur but he was probably important enough to be aquainted with the great painter Vermeer as they were both from Delft in Holland and he was appointed by Vermeer’s will as executor of his estate, which he had to administer when Vermeer died in 1675.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt;"><i>Philosophy</i><b><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">This
was the decade in which Benedict Spinoza’s great work ‘Ethics’ was published.
To be more specific it was in 1677, a few months after he died.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Benedict
Spinoza was of the same rationalist school of thinkers as Descartes. Like
Descartes he took a scientific and mathematical approach to philosophy and
based his ideas on logic. However, he was not completely satisfied with what
Descartes had said. He had two main questions that Descartes did not answer
satisfactorily enough for him. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">The
first one was that if everything was a logical consequence of something else as
Descartes had said, how could there be God in the first place? Spinoza's answer was
that there could be God because God was absolutely everything, so there didn’t
really need to be a first place.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Spinoza’s
reasoning for why God is everything went as follows:- For Descartes there are
two separate things: thoughts and tangible things but for Spinoza these could
not be separate because with thoughts you can move tangible things. If I think
that I want to type a sentence in this blog out, my fingers will then do that,
so there is tangible movement which stems from thought, so for Spinoza thought
and matter are in fact one and the same. By the same token if God is infinite
he cannot be separate to us and so everything we know is in fact god himself.
So God is not somebody who sits outside the world and created it (a view that
Newton held) – God is the world the universe and everything. Just as we have a
body and a soul which for Spinoza is one and the same (thoughts and typing are
the same), the body is the outward form of the soul so God’s body is everything
in the universe and everything in the universe is the outward body of God’s
soul. This idea became very popular with the romantics who came along in
literature, music and art in the late 1700s and early 1800s. They were the ones
who revived Spinoza’s work which people had ignored for about 100 years after
he had died.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">The
second question Spinoza had of Descartes’ philosophy was that if everything was
a logical consequence of something else, as Descartes had said, how could there
be free will? Spinoza’s answer was that there was no free will.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Spinoza
saw the everyday actions of us human beings as being outside our control, that
our idea of freewill was in fact an illusion because we might sometimes think
we do but we do not really truly and fully understand the causes of our
actions. The good thing about this is that if we become aware of this, we can
see our personal problems as extremely petty in the grand scheme of things. If
we look at our own lives through the eyes of eternity, any problems we may have
are just silly little things, so let’s not worry too much! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Spinoza
made a few other important contributions to philosophical thought. He was the
first to argue that freedom of speech was necessary to secure public order –
the people that try to stop freedom of speech are the main disturbers of the
peace, not the people who exercise freedom of speech.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Another
of his achievements was that he was the first to look at the bible as a
historical document and to question its accuracy in this regard, which is
really quite a significant development in Western thought.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/user/historyomtssg/playlist/4ScOA61pnLIMRvfoNfrInh">http://open.spotify.com/user/historyomtssg/playlist/4ScOA61pnLIMRvfoNfrInh</a></span></div>
<!--EndFragment-->Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2257900140734866240.post-25134439023858858112011-11-28T14:01:00.000-08:002011-11-28T14:01:17.940-08:00the next decade.....Sorry not to up date this for a while - I will get back to it as soon as I can!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2257900140734866240.post-28693471317873977572011-06-08T14:23:00.000-07:002011-08-22T05:37:17.404-07:001660s Lully and Louis - Here Comes The Sun King<div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After Monteverdi died, as I have said, there was a little bit of a gap in terms of big names, but this is now filled by the next composer who is known for making developments to the orchestra whose name was Giovanni Battista Lulli (1632-1687). In this decade he became court composer for Louis XIV, adopted France as his own country and changed his name to the more French sounding </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Jean-Baptiste de Lully</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">, to fit in.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Lully would later compose many operas but the young King Louis XIV loved dance and as superintendent of music to the king, Lully did much to develop ballet in the 1660s, which like opera had its origins in Italy. Lully collaborated on several ballets with Molière the leading literary figure of the day.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The music he composed had its own distinct French style and a grandeur which suited King Louis XIV and matched the palace at Versailles, the construction of which really got going in this decade and where much of his music would have been performed. Lully was the best composer of his day, not just in France but throughout Europe. I sort of see Lully as the beginning of really good orchestral music.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Also in this decade comes </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Heinrich Biber composing mainly in Salzburg Austria, a virtuoso violinist and </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">one of the first great composers of violin music. He and Lully established the violin as the main instrument, other than keyboards, in Europe. While Lully composed for ensembles and orchestras, Biber's music was more for the solo violin with accompaniment. Biber was very much an original. Like Janequin back in the 1520s he composed some early 'programme music', imitating things like frogs and chickens with his instrument. This music is weird but worth a listen.</span><br />
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</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Apart from Lully and Biber I have stumbled upon Johan Rosenmuller, another German violin composer who moved to Italy and composed violin music from there. I think the music from him I have selected is from this decade though I am not too sure.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Lully</b> – <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/1bvEmwI84taY5FvvoNONfm">Bourree Du Divertissement De Chambord</a> (1669) Jordi Savall -Les Grandes Eaux Musicales Du Versailles</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Lully</b> – <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/0UmTe9I1Fpx2JHTFpVf7C6">Preludes Des Trompettes Et Autres Instruments Pour Mars</a> Jordi Savall - Les Grandes Eaux Musicales Du Versailles</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Rosenmuller</b> Trio sonata in E minor II <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/5sniRBid3Jw3ZAdTT78hId">Allegro</a></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Rosenmuller </b>Trio sonata in E minor IV <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/3620p7enUZbbT3892s5DzF">Prestissimo</a></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; font-style: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times; font-size: xx-small;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; font-style: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/user/historyomtssg/playlist/4ScOA61pnLIMRvfoNfrInh">http://open.spotify.com/user/historyomtssg/playlist/4ScOA61pnLIMRvfoNfrInh</a></span></span></i></span></span></span></i></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>General History</i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">During this decade Holland, England, France and Denmark were all at war with each other. The most powerful person on the planet, Louis XIV began ruling in 1661 at the age of 24 without his prime minister the Italian Cardinal Mazarin who died that year. Louis was a benefactor of years of shrewd policy making firstly under Richelieu and then Mazarin and by now France was rich, prosperous and the most powerful of nations. By the end of his reign in 1715 Louis had squandered the country’s wealth and power, by among other follies, blowing money on non-beneficial wars and persecuting the protestant Huguenots, many of whom had been France’s best craftsmen. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">London had the double disaster of the great plague in 1665 and the great fire in 1666. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Art</i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img alt="File:Vermeer - The Milkmaid.jpg" height="599px" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a8/Vermeer_-_The_Milkmaid.jpg/537px-Vermeer_-_The_Milkmaid.jpg" width="537px" /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The centre of musical prestige might have moved to France but the greatest artist of his day, a generation younger than Rembrandt who died in 1669, could still be found in Holland and his name was Jan Vermeer van Delft (1632-1675). His paintings were in keeping with the Dutch ultra realistic style as can be seen in brilliant works like ‘The Kitchen-Maid’ above. Maybe his most popular work is 'The Girl with a Pearl Earing' below.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><img class="rg_hi" data-height="269" data-width="188" height="269px" id="rg_hi" src="data:image/jpg;base64,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" style="height: 269px; width: 188px;" width="188px" /><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><img height="371px" id="il_fi" src="http://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/upload/img/ruisdael-landscape-ruined-castle-church-NG990-fm.jpg" style="padding-bottom: 8px; padding-right: 8px; padding-top: 8px;" width="494px" /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Also in Holland the landscape painting begun in France with Claude Lorraine caught on as seen in the works of Jacob Van Ruisdael (1628-1682) the leading Dutch landscape painter whose picture entitled ‘An Extensive Landscape with a Ruined Castle and a Village Church’ (above) is one of his most famous and another influential Dutch landscape painter called Aelbert Cuyp (1620-1691) who finished his ‘River Landscape with Horsemen and Peasants’ (below) in 1660 and which some see as the culmination of 17</span><sup><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">th</span></span></sup><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> Century Dutch landscape painting.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal;"><br />
</span></span></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i></i></span><img class="rg_hi" data-height="161" data-width="312" height="161px" id="rg_hi" src="http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQ6SvQd_YFBCakHpyJmHhAwoPT3h9e3pRhqVUe7yN2TOEdHJe2v" style="height: 161px; width: 312px;" width="312px" /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Literature</i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br />
</i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Molière (1622-1673 real name was Jean-Baptiste Poquline –was an actor as well as writer and Molière was his stage name.) was writing his plays and is considered to be the creator of modern French comedy and one of the greatest comedy writers in all Western literature known for his excellent plot writing skills. Moliere reached the height of his fame at this time and most of his best known works were first performed during this decade.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In 1667 John Milton (1608-1674) published his long poem ‘Paradise Lost’ concerning Adam and Eve and the Garden of Eden which is considered one of the greatest works of English literature and which due to blindness he had to dictate to his two daughters.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Architecture</i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Bernini (still going strong) and others made the Italian Baroque style ever more dramatic A highlight of Bernini’s career from 1666 was the stairway between St Peter’s in Rome and the papal apartments which is flanked by columns, shortening as the stairs ascend, creating the illusion that the stairway is of a greater length. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><img class="rg_i" data-sz="f" height="180px" name="jzzPd18n50j5JM:" src="data:image/jpg;base64,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" width="117px" /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In 1667 Guarino Guarini began work on the chapel of the holy shroud in Turin with a dome, made up of six hexagonal layers, which, when seen from the interior has a marvellously dramatic effect.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img class="rg_hi" data-height="160" data-width="160" height="160px" id="rg_hi" src="http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcR_PCsGXOiZ7MeMIiAEfc5Jo6T7pkTsjC7xld80bJfPd-RcmVB8mQ" style="height: 160px; width: 160px;" width="160px" /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Louis XIV got J. Hardouin Mansard started on his enormous palace at Versailles, which is dull in the detail but extremely impressive simply due to its scale. It took 47 years to build, and notwithstanding the music of Lully, this really is the most symbolic expression of power and wealth the king could make.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><img alt="File:Versaillespanoraama2.jpg" height="243px" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a3/Versaillespanoraama2.jpg/800px-Versaillespanoraama2.jpg" width="800px" /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br />
</i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Science and Technology</i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Science was now getting more recognition from governments, first in England with the ‘Royal Society of London for improving natural knowledge’ being founded in 1660. This was something Francis Bacon had wanted as Lord Chancellor back in the 1620s. The French followed suit with the Paris Academy of Sciences founded in 1666. These were institutional bases for scientists. Other countries later set up similar government backed organisations.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Following the success of the telescope, the microscope was now beginning to have its day. Jan Swammerdam was the first to use it to examine insects. In 1665 another microscopist, Robert Hooke, published ‘Micrographia’ the first major publication for the Royal Society and the first scientific best seller bringing about a new interest in microscopy. In it he coined the biological term ‘cell’. The microscope opened up a whole new world for scientists to explore.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Robert Hooke had collaborated with Robert Boyle to invent the air pump (aka the vacuum chamber) in 1650s. Robert Boyle became very famous for his numerous writings and experiments in the 1660s and is seen as the father of chemistry.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/user/historyomtssg/playlist/4ScOA61pnLIMRvfoNfrInh">http://open.spotify.com/user/historyomtssg/playlist/4ScOA61pnLIMRvfoNfrInh</a></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2257900140734866240.post-38003285195447197132011-04-25T13:57:00.000-07:002011-06-19T13:06:33.268-07:001650s Harpsichord is King<div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After the death of Monteverdi, there were no really dominant composers for a while and it is hard to find too much music from this decade that is particularly memorable. Froberger was coming to the end of his career and had become the Viennese court composer. A couple of other alright tunes from him are </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/22uLQadhVxzlVSOGbl4HWt">Partita Es-dur FbWV 631: Gigue</a> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal;">and</span></span> <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/4ucEOd4tedW9Ig3PaeiFlX">Partita D-dur FbWV 611a: Gigue</a> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal;">or try</span> </span></i></b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><b><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/43YwxhGTm5XMELt0kTzslA">Suite n°2 en ré mineur: Gigue</a></b></i></span><i>.</i> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On his travels his influence had spread but he also soaked up influences himself such as the music of the first great French harpsichord composer </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Jacques Champion de Chambonnieres</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> (1601-1672) whose career now reached its peak with his appointment as composer for the court of the teenage King Louis XIV. He composed the very likeable and regal </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/3izDR4Xb4g2b7EDlqjdDuk">Chaconne</a></i></b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> from his </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><b>S</b></i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i>uite in G Major </i></b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">which though not published until 1670s would have been performed around this time. Another good French harpsichord composer was </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Louis Couperin</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> (1626-1661) whose </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><b><a href="http://www.blogger.com/goog_338866975">S</a></b></i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/3xIzfMiufOuP5XE0unQ4ce">uite in F major</a></i></b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> is short and lively which if, like me, you’re dipping your toes into the genre, is a good combination.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Again, I have looked to obscure composers of violin music from Italy in the search for something a bit more palatable, but this time with less patience and without too much success. I have come across <b>Maurizzio Cazzatti </b>(1620-1677) whose piece <i><b><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/25FYzNS13GNJp77tfOGbW0">La Calcagnina No. 4</a> </b></i>is quite pleasant. Other than that, not a lot going on in the 1650s.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times;"><br />
</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My favourite choices or rather choice for this decade is:-</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Champion de Chambonnieres - <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/3izDR4Xb4g2b7EDlqjdDuk">Suite in G Major - Chaconne</a> - Hanneke van Proosdij - Harpsichord Suites of Chambonnieres</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; font-style: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times; font-size: x-small;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; font-style: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/user/historyomtssg/playlist/4ScOA61pnLIMRvfoNfrInh" style="color: #993300; text-decoration: none;">http://open.spotify.com/user/historyomtssg/playlist/4ScOA61pnLIMRvfoNfrInh</a> </span></span></i></span></span></span></i></span></span><br />
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</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>General History</i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Oliver Cromwell became Lord Protector of England until he died in 1658 leaving power to his son Richard Cromwell who was forced to give it up by parliament who replaced him with Charles II. The thirty years war had ended but now England and the Dutch had a war and then England and Spain. Sweden went to war with Denmark, Russia and the Holy Roman Empire.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Philosophy</i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Thomas Hobbes 1588-1679 had been rubbing shoulders with Bacon, Galileo and Descartes and was on a par with them intellectually. His main work was ‘Leviathan’ published in 1652. Hobbes saw the world purely in terms of matter and movement. For him like everything else, the universe had a length, width and depth and everything in it did too. Everything, including human beings were part of this great machine, like cogs on a wheel. After what happened to Galileo, it was very brave of him to express this materialistic view in such religiously sensitive times. He was very clever in keeping himself out of trouble though. When asked where God fits in he replied that it was beyond the minds of mere human beings to know. Also when challenged on his views he would usually say it should be for the sovereign to decide whether he was right or not. This kept him in the good books of King Charles II and secured his free speech. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For Hobbes the brain was also part of this machine. He believed that the process of thinking was the movement of matter inside the brain. This mechanistic view of psychology was completely new. The idea has developed over time and now it is widely agreed that there is indeed a physical connection to the process of thinking, so thoughts are not something completely abstract. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is a fascinating view of the world but Hobbes is most important for his political thought. He believed that societies were born from individual self-interest, out of a fear of death. Without society there would be chaos in the world, leading to death. A tyrannical leader was even preferable to the chaos that would naturally occur with no leader at all. He said there was a ‘social contract’ between the ruler or ruling body and the people. The ruler is given the power to rule by the people for the reason that the ruler can impose law for the protection of the people. This is a radical view in a time when monarchs had up until recently mostly seen themselves as appointed by divine authority. This political idea, which continues to the present day, is Hobbes’ most influential contribution to philosophy. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Science</i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A bright young scientist called Christiaan Huygens (1629-1695) was the man who in 1656 invented the pendulum clock, which greatly improved the precision of time keeping, and in 1659 had discovered and announced that Saturn had a ring around it.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Literature</i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This seems to be a good time for literature. In Holland maybe the best know of all Dutch writers is Joost Van den Vondel (1587-1679). He is said to have raised Dutch literature to new heights of expression. Some say his best work is Lucifer published in 1654. In England Sir Thomas Browne published Hydrotaphia in 1658 which is viewed as the finest achievement in English prose of the entire century. This decade is also the century’s high point for French prose with Blaise Pascal’s ‘provincial letters’ published in 1656 and 1657. From Germany Andreas Gryphius wrote ‘Cemetery Thoughts’ in 1656 and some comedy dramas during the following decade, achievements which have been said to be unequalled in German literature for almost a hundred years.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Art </i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcR4tq-DBda3y1bruv7klgWKfRAMr3NQGRMQlrzKWJ57eVNG453LcQ" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: justify;"><img border="0" class="rg_hi" data-height="248" data-width="204" height="248px" id="rg_hi" src="http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcR4tq-DBda3y1bruv7klgWKfRAMr3NQGRMQlrzKWJ57eVNG453LcQ" style="height: 248px; width: 204px;" width="204px" /></a></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Diego Velazquez 1599-1660 the leading Spanish painter of his day, painted two masterpieces. The first was the portrait of Pope Innocent X from 1650 which captures the hot-tempered pope’s piercing stare. Then came ‘Las Meninas’ in 1656 which has been said to be a ‘painting about a painting’. This is because you look at it from the same view as the King and Queen of Spain whose reflection is on the mirror on the back wall. They are being painted by Velazquez himself, who stands to the left of the picture. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img class="rg_hi" data-height="240" data-width="210" height="240px" id="rg_hi" src="http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQNtJRf3jSRtafLQNcykOnFhCiUgpUHZviJVu-UWIFi2u5x8Gtr" style="height: 240px; width: 210px;" width="210px" /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Architecture</i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><img class="rg_hi" data-height="201" data-width="251" height="201px" id="rg_hi" src="http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSs4OMyIB4fW7m5ku0HLIGuMzX4Rf7uX4QE2qGEUGDlwNqArf6z" style="height: 201px; width: 251px;" width="251px" /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Bernini began the colonnades at St Peter’s Square in Rome in 1656.</span><br />
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</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/43YwxhGTm5XMELt0kTzslA">http://open.spotify.com/track/43YwxhGTm5XMELt0kTzslA</a></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2257900140734866240.post-85345691974016471322011-03-26T11:07:00.000-07:002011-06-19T12:55:20.712-07:001640s Goodbye Monteverdi<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Monteverdi comes to the end of his career and his life on a musical high with one of his most popular tunes –<b><i> <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/3lcWE26FpyFkO4aeiJWdXl">Pur Ti Miro Pur Ti Stringo</a> </i></b>from his opera </span><b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">L’Incoronazione di Poppea</span></i></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> composed in 1642, the year before his death. You don’t really have to like opera to like this. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A highly influential and well travelled German composer who comes in during this decade is </span><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Johan Jakob Froberger</span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> (1616-1667). A student of Frescobaldi, he is largely known for his keyboard works. Most of this type of solo keyboard music is not particularly appealing to me but there are just a few from his earliest surviving published work, the libro secondo from 1649, that are worth a listen. These are </span><b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Partita VI G-dur FbWV 606 <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/0Bl24qXkOAGqhYcuKAqwp3">Prima Partita</a> </span></i></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">and</span><b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/7B3IuabXMP7UHlZF1cJhpF">Seconda Partita</a> and <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/3b0nwhaKtVF9s7OzD6VmLf">Courant Sopra Mayrin Double</a></span></i></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> on an album called Froberger: Meditation – Works for Harpsichord.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Now, from the books I have looked at the music from the first half of this century is dominated by opera composers like Monteverdi and Schutz. The three keyboard composers Sweelinck, Frescobaldi and Froberger get a bit of coverage too but as I am not so keen on most of their music or opera I have had to look a bit further for music from this period that I like. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Well I have found a little more from the early composers of violin music, which was being made in Italy. The violin more than any other instrument mimics the voice. Composers recognised this at an early stage and wrote music which would give the violin a good melody above the other instruments, just as the opera composers wrote their melodies for the human voice. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We have already heard Marini who is probably the most important of these but he barely gets a mention in the books. By 1640s there are several Italian composers of violin music of even lesser fame and a significant contemporary of Marini was </span><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Marco Ucellini</span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> (c.1610-1680) who extended the range of the violin by being the first to use the third position. That just means he moved his hand further up the neck of the instrument to get to the higher notes. I can recommend </span><b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/1IWYf2juFpmGPtQzc8Z7ee">Aria Quinta Sopra La Bergomasta</a></span></i></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> by him which I think is from 1642. Other good early violin pieces are </span><b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/52zYOdvuvH38ZtYtlyyblP">Ciaconna</a></span></i></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> by </span><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Tarquinio Merula</span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> c.1595-1665 (has a good guitar riff all the way through (on this recording anyway)- most of his work was published from 1615-1639 so this piece may well be pre-1640s) and </span><b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/05ne1iE2ZH9ZOGdrfENuLr">La Bergamasca</a></span></i></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> from </span><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Gasparo Zanetti</span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> (1645 I think) – very similar but simpler than and not as good as the Ucellini piece. I might have missed these because Marini is the only one who gets a passing mention in Taruskin’s Oxford History of Western Music and in Griffiths’ Concise History of Western music. Evidently these early composers of violin music are not considered as important as the opera composers and perhaps that is because the opera music from this time has proved to be more enduring and the good violin pieces are few and far between. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So my selections for this decade are:<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Monteverdi - <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/3lcWE26FpyFkO4aeiJWdXl">Pur Ti Miro Pur Ti Stringo</a> from his opera L’Incoronazione di Poppea (realised by Raymond Leppard; abridged version)<o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ucellini - <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/1IWYf2juFpmGPtQzc8Z7ee">Aria Quinta Sopra La Bergomasta</a> – Ucellini: La Bergomasta<o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Merula – <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/52zYOdvuvH38ZtYtlyyblP">Ciaconna</a> The Collected Recordings of Il Giardino Armonico<o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Zanetti - <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/05ne1iE2ZH9ZOGdrfENuLr">La Bergomasta</a> – Gasparo Zanetti - 17</span><sup><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">th</span></span></sup><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> century Italian Dances<o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
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<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; font-style: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times; font-size: small;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; font-style: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/user/historyomtssg/playlist/4ScOA61pnLIMRvfoNfrInh">http://open.spotify.com/user/historyomtssg/playlist/4ScOA61pnLIMRvfoNfrInh</a> </span></span></i></span></span></span></i><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>General events</i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">At last in 1648 the Thirty Years War came to an end with Germany left in a bloodbath, Spain greatly weakened and France greatly strengthened. In England it’s the civil war (1642-1651) ending up with King Charles I getting executed in 1649 and Oliver Cromwell abolishing the monarchy and taking over.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Art</i><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> <o:p></o:p></span><img class="rg_hi" data-height="204" data-width="246" height="204" id="rg_hi" 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SV3AH3TaVWCh4iS4lBWtR0K5MsaeKGUt6z1sg1qhLhaFHa1SmNkeoj6paSKKTaLoY81WidQPopmB4s5j2ODiC20ztyUHB0AwtOxIEef7FOxNHK4gfHZefKMbpHoRm5Rtl9ju0FQvzksc6MolosBvbdUGKBq5nm7gJ8/RDmR5fEbfp6KRgqsGT9hco8NoDalqiupOJtzVzh+z9VzczW+5AkequsHwKm5gcBckgRcSt7wDCtp0c2XpduYkeXlClLylKXGJNYa7PFsTScxwDhBGo+9VeufTp03Cmc5tncHWMHVo1jW6m9q8E19RzxAvEDTNqQI03VLgeGGHF0hobJgwABubEx5KykpxTYklTBDE6utGoBJO+l7q5wUUQXi5JkOH5eUHVUmKqUGmWS4AWB1J59G9Dcwq5nFX0yS0kA6g3DvMJp4pZFSKYpxg7kj1BnbXEupGmalOoHNIB/PBEGY3vyWe7X/AMQ8bV/pNDqFKQ1oabkaAF4+ii8F4gKzLsAMx0/ZXWG4Vh3mKzs+zWgGACRmeSY8QbIbG5lZYZXinUzZkw45Q5wPMsbSLXkEyQb3339ZVlguLAsPeucTIyjbqT8FddvuzeHouccOXANixk5gd5JkEeyy/DOHGs9rRYEiTOgnqvSU4ZcfJnm1OEi04dx1wrtJALRP5Z2iSNx5q24jw+pVwQxdQOeXvLacEDK1v5nDktsP4bYcYcNpO8bRmc4//ppLX7jTbRX/AA3hL6lBtANp0qTBG7yNfwiAOtysE/Ix3cVsslJLbPAcHw97zAgGdDafLmegWpq8NjDsFS5aSNTA8M2G0gj1lek8U7E4UYas8MJLIh5nMXBzczunKBAEFYHtIHUqjqbh4Y8TokiCRPmRZPLyHkarQccYpMxweGvLZLgdvXRccHeXEMb/AKrmOgUjGNYwzTcdALi/U9FEyhzXE3MTdbou9onKLH1qtLK5tNu13O1Omg0CrqcZr6JWnqmhXSoxt20yX34be95B6gj/ACoTuqdU1TSilQs5WxWVISE3UrheA76oKYIBdoSYH7+iua/ZynQqmnVqAmARaBdpOm97JZZIxdPsKjKS/gr+A4h7XnIQPDedNQuWhpvpUTFJgew3Dg71giJBExfkuWOcuTviFpx1yZlH3cb2XPw0CZmfdMcwyfNWnCcHn10FupK1SlxVjwjy0V9NgsplNhnmChYvhjmG+mxGimYPCzryPyU5zVXY6TXoNg8SDU1HhB630nqVKq1G5CAZcbkn6KBg6YpvdIkEfuiGpcnQErNOKb0a4TqBz3wR0FxzCJRby52UcsEz8VZYLDE5WbXLdNN9fJdNpRJxezc9mcECxpk2N9Ii37rQY3CZ6cU5D4u0H8XMm9o/RVfZvh1Z1H+n+Hc5ZNvPdTGcIex3e5nRcay7wmDfzBtyXkuNO17LylbMBxuk+lUkhzZ0kRIGvnBUOnxZxcQdHCCNAYkieat+0mP7zGHP46YMR/oEGPPfVRW0yGHLThzZc2dTTJvfctMC2xW+C+qTJN7Mxj6hLi7c+X3yVZUHXVWOMbmcTlynkq2qbr0cXRnn+k3AY51NpLTBufYj91cYTte6B4Wh7XZs3O0ZYNo3+qyuZNlGWCE9tAj5EoKl0XXE+KVKzpqOFzeDtyhLhqxpOa5oBmwt635wqZpVhWqnK02tb4JZY0korotjyKabfo997CYE5cz3NeagBNg0NtZoA23WyfhGU2+GB8l5p/D3FtODacxbWAu7R0atAO46LcPY6oHA1GmNM1NrveV5POKtSXR04Su09A+AH/7g78OawN4m52uJK8x/ifgCC57SbGTtIPTzj3WwwVV+HxoY54y1BBysDZOrdDpMj1WR/is4NFTLF8s+KSTJPp5IY5KU48f0ZJxuzy+vVk+nsShVH7BNaFxEhe2lRJttAGlIuIXPF1YxehJXLlwC4UfRqFpBaSCNCFY4rh9d39WrmAdfM43PotB2Z4UykQ54Dqh0kSKf6u+Sv8dgQ9pzXnXz5rzM3nKE6S/2ehi8ZtfYxPDqNLm5zoMyYGo0XKxdwgNfI0jzvZculli3dgng30ijfTifNSMDiMvQqC+ub+aEK11s4NrZJzSaov6vEIEWPx91I4eQ+Q0wTbSw6LPU6kgzqrTs2HZzy+qz5MaUWx1kcqQbFYfK4ifvmgPFtRKm40/1D5qMaMscRsFOL6srpgKVTSVoMLWHgAjMGkg87XHnaAs3hhLZPktPwQgPaZP4co9bJc6SDB60en9gOI062GzzD2HK4E6N1B8iI9UTitY1KLqdOdxMSGiLO6HULzbG8Kq4RwqNzGk6C6JABmQ10ehEr1DgDWPwpex2bPckaSNh5Gyx5JJQXHo6MftbPNMNwQ0sQe8cw5TcEm5dMD01M/VLxvjLXCnkcczR4bf3QCJ/thRv4gf08UMocCWgu5E3AI5WAnqFlnYokAOkwbdFqxwcopnSlTG458lxnfSAPdVdVWTjLMx8j57e6rK4W/H+EMjBgpJSgrlczCyp1GlnLGczHx1+KjYNkvaDzVlXqFr87LFulvdRyPdGrCvq2zc4vB/y9Kk8HMwxMTaIsVvuCcaY9pcPAC2zSYAAgCJ2WW4LwipWwdJ1SowscGudYgls5oDgdYEf4VfxDizXPLA9rGNmXEyMo0jKTmJ5W6r56UJN8fdnoaasve3dq9KtTd/UAbEGxINt7a3KxPa/tBUxEitSAeNw6BprBn4RZWXE+1WHqNy0hVa5rYzOLYBixFtxO2tuqoMUHVQHPiQ0epb+I+y14YSg1zJOpLRlnADW/lokdWOU7dF2Ip5THmmPNgvZWzDJtWCXPSrnJzONXArlyIpq+B8RzNE6ix/VallcOpmdtfLmvOeE4jK+Ofz2Ww4bizmERBkEz8F4vmYKlyR7GDJzh/ItKlJOUid7z5eRXKzp0S9xyhoG5cQBPS19FyxubsaTVnnTwATOhKF3Q5qRiCM0C5n6oBpwvoUzz3FVomUw2ATpup3DHw62hOiqqVIuU/DYd4t11UMiVNWOm7ug/FWkPDm6Tp1TqNJzmGQAN/v1T3PMlpF9vNOpNcWkN53We6VD+yB3WUGFY8DxpNemORjzUc4Qh0lW3Z+m3PJi2hMa6IZci4O9jQTujeteH0HMeCQ4eIERvY/WVD4JwTEYU1Kn822hhmyZN8zZ8JyHwyR6qfRoNqQ0Oy2BJHtHl0WI7a9pBWrdzTdNGlYRMOcB4ndb2BXn+PCU216KzaSK3tHxf+ZxL6v5dGz/AGjSepufVRcDhA43guOg6kq0wnZf+kKtUmmzYR4jaxjkqqm+CIOi9FSVcY+iH8lxW7MENPiaTEkTyvbqsZi2gOIWmp46o1riDNjrpoVl6z5JJ1VvHvYmToLw3B95VawCRMn/AGi5TuM0MlQjY3H1+KtuzWHhj6psJDAf+xHyULj+IFR/h0bvzlOsjebiuqDxXxP9sg4EeNpmORKk1Xi/OVXSdFLdRIAmb3VZrdi4nqj1HHYWpU4fQp06raVNjR3wOZpcQBAsDbp1WVf2hZhzTDabagDhmmC1zPzCeZ0nZaSnxJ9ThYyCL6gXBtm+USvOcaPGRyt9F52GCnJqXpmpyajo9B4l2Oo927FUnFrKkPFPKGho1AkEztyWVp44CQXAQdNyCCCncI4tnpOpOzWHhMkgehKhcTp5Xen2E0Yy5OM3/RyerRVYlom2l490NwEBGqBMLZavQRlmrboE2nIXOolHa1KQjyZ3xJoh5U7uipXzSVKoykbyu5MR4Uk7ZDaVqeD40BgcbkaN2J69Flw1SKWJczQpc2P5FR2DI4PfRrv50vdLjJiw0AHIJVnuFYpznmTt9QlXnywcXRd5oy2hA0Am25+aDWZeUkOLj5/VOPI/5W1IHaDYTTVTmYiBYiygUKDtFKp0ZdGwUZpN7O2EfxPKZkTpoEThOLcATz6IFXAyZlScPhiBGylLjxpHJOyU/FuPLTkncNxndk7zzEoPdOvCispPBUlFNUO9MueJdpi1mRgaC8QTABA0t+qj9laDA4uexrnbTt5KGcLNyFKw1ItuCR6Jvqo0gU2zcUnMcZLGGdy4z81IZgMPtRpf8QsMar5s4kKVS4lVZufZRar2NRoe0r2U8K/JQY8uBb4W6TbMY5fOF5O3DCCTINv3W8PHaqpOP1HVCHOAFo2V8GTjo7hfYHs3iwzNTcJpv/FffQEdRdWPG+EUG0S6lGsm5Jiwi+w19VA4fw4kAgXPx5R8VLxuBqspOL2uDGi86ToPojKf30zkqMs3BOcCWiY1hWnek02h405WJFvih8OeLjNBOnXopGJ4e9hkhWnPdMCiu0bLg3Em08IKLqbwIMOBBnNJ0I6rz7ilEh5OxJ/yt7gOJ/8AxwDmEwS3NmFo0sdo81g8dUzOnbbyWfxuXySspJLiMwVTKZ91Mx1cOaGjzVXRc4ncKxxtOKQN/bXlPJa5pckxIy+rK58z0hK1vNNImJPRKaJFlUkrs5Na4+iI1pKM3Bm8z7JbS7KAW1IbBFjyQThyRIuApYwzoIhPGHc0i2q7mkc4X2RG4YlOOF8gVMFMjc67LntaLmZ1ul+QPCJEwFMBxkjT6hcpdF7HPkNMxeLbhchJ2zzskalqixo4AEE9eY5ojcG3SZNlNpanT26p9bDtOy895HdHruOiK7BiEajRYwQTJ3SNpDlupdOiApzlqrBRHdlmzSZThT/0qS035XUmmyUjycfQUrK+lhSdTC51AA7u+StqWHE/fJLRpgqbyuwqCIlI04u2/p9Ux2IHJpvyhWL8G349FIPC2cpueX6LlJds4og+TaPYBFFPMeav8Jw9g/KNT8FOZhmzpum5oBSYbgYN1ju0WMPeOYIDGOIEEGdpnderYjANdSe27QWkS0wfQrzjAcCp1K2R2bLOxH6K/jNK5P0Tk2XHZXi2FGDY2sfE1zvDBJN5B+MJeJcbpvY5jaEtcI6x7LQYHsjhqYaQzN/uM/DRSsVhmtAhoHoozyRtySGUTxupw5zTLQ7Wx133+CueH8NrYl5Aa5xtPIdSV6U3BtIFvkuq4JkQWgj226QqS8xyXQqhRkOOYmlQw7aDXtLm2cPzE6k8hfnzWLZ3lT8LCRsvXqXCKI0psH/iPmRKKMBTGjWj0C7HnWNaVt/oXs8jdwWsBIpu9ArZnCi9ga1pd6R5TK9OGHaNkWjh28k0vIlJICpHl57CvMEthOf2UDJkfNeo9wFC4phgWKMvIyXVh1+HnNLg4GjT80R3DmDWVusDgGNEgXOqHiaQJuAfMBJ8snuw2Yd2CboDCG7DtbYkFafGYVhJJaJH7qqqNAdoPZPHI2AgGkB+WPMD6KFxDCB4v7j91eGuSY2hN7sOF0Y5mnYWjMYPhzmuO4jpzC5aTD4ISbn4fouWp52zPKCs/9k=" style="height: 204px; width: 246px;" width="246" /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Rembrandt van Rijn 1606-69, the most successful painter in Amsterdam and one of the greatest painters of all time was reaching the height of his powers. May be his most famous painting is The Night Watch from 1642 (above). He had been commissioned to paint a formal portrait but he made it into an action scene.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><a href="http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRf6njSkXOzO5mPgEUsoAfQeDt_NfeS5mpACaIS5KQF6VxAb1H84g" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" class="rg_hi" data-height="182" data-width="277" height="182" id="rg_hi" src="http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRf6njSkXOzO5mPgEUsoAfQeDt_NfeS5mpACaIS5KQF6VxAb1H84g" style="height: 182px; width: 277px;" width="277" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In France the classical trend in literature can also be seen in art of Nicolas Poussin (1594-1665). A good example of this is ‘The Ashes of Phocion Colle</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">cted by His Widow’ from 1648 (left). Poussin and another Frenchmen, Claude Lorraine (1600-1682) sought to portray classical antiquity with a sense of nostalgia. Claude is best known though for being the first to make landscape painting a respected genre with paintings like ‘Landscape with the Marriage of Isaac and Rebecca’ also from 1648 (below left).</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><a href="http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTfD_EfPqBKftwwJCkvzeapMSU2FZ-pPuTm-I7UJ-2GmDo4dnl3zg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" class="rg_hi" data-height="195" data-width="259" height="195" id="rg_hi" src="http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTfD_EfPqBKftwwJCkvzeapMSU2FZ-pPuTm-I7UJ-2GmDo4dnl3zg" style="height: 195px; width: 259px;" width="259" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The greatest sculptor of the day was Bernini (the same Bernini as the architect who came to prominence in the 1630s). He is seen as a successor to Michelangelo and one of his best works said to be a masterpiece of high baroque is his ‘Ecstasy of St Theresa’ from 1647.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> <o:p></o:p></span><img class="rg_hi" data-height="233" data-width="216" height="233" id="rg_hi" src="http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSBbDAdLLkCAV5uIPJVKV3CPjBdA3hdXjuXDio1539bMF6odGNw-g" style="height: 233px; width: 216px;" width="216" /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Philosophy</i><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Descartes continued to develop his ideas publishing ‘meditations’ in 1643. This elaborates more on the ‘I think therefore I am’ idea and justifies the existence of God. Another thing to mention about Descartes is that he was a brilliant mathematician and did lots to develop algebra and graphs. The certainty that you have in Maths was what Descartes applied to his philosophy.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Literature </i><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">No real major works of literature in this decade except that in 1640 the Bay Psalm Book was the first book to be printed in North America. Corneille wrote another three plays- all classical tragedies.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Architecture</i><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In India they were building the Taj Mahal but other than that n</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">othing specifically spectacular here. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><o:p></o:p></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2257900140734866240.post-608126408954577902011-02-28T14:09:00.000-08:002011-06-19T12:46:05.575-07:001630s Chant goes private, opera goes public<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Monteverdi’s music continued to develop and improve as the composer remained the numero uno in Europe passed his seventieth birthday. Opera flourished in Italy and the first pubic opera house opened in Venice in 1637, so now it was not just the very wealthy who were watching. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Also important at this time was <b>Girolamo Frescobaldi</b> (1583-1643) who influenced keyboard music for the next 100 years, up to and including Johan Sebastian Bach. His most important work, <b><i>Fiori Musicali</i></b>, was published in 1635. He was the first to vary tempo in keyboard music and the first to compose different variations on a single theme as Bach would later do and for innovations like this he is often referred to as a genius. Unfortunately this is all church organ music without a clear melody and I cannot find anything by him I can really enjoy. The best thing I could find was a piece called <i><b><a href="http://www.blogger.com/goog_726003450">Canzon Detta ‘A Tromboncina’</a> </b></i>but to me it’s not particularly exciting.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My favourite music from this decade is a bit ‘retro’ for the time. It is the <b><i><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/62VUI35qqDKicbURf7HNek">Misere</a> </i></b>by <b>Gregorio Allegri</b> (1582-1652) composed in 1635 but which is a throw back to the renaissance music of Palestrina. This is regarded as one of the finest pieces of renaissance polyphony, although it was composed during the baroque period. It was forbidden for it to be transcribed or performed at any time or place other than Wednesday or Friday during Holy Week in the Sistine Chapel. As a result the Misere was shrouded in mystery and would remain unpublished for 135 years. That would change after 1770 when a 14 year old Mozart, during holy week, attended the Wednesday service while on a trip to Rome. The young genius memorised the piece and wrote it all down. He returned to hear it again on the Friday morning to check he had it right and only needed to make some minor corrections to his manuscript. He later gave the transcription to a British Historian, Dr Charles Burney, who had it published in London in 1771. After that, with the music now out it was pointless continuing the copying ban which was then lifted. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So my top recommendation for this decade is:-</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Allegri - </span><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/62VUI35qqDKicbURf7HNek"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Misere</span></a><br />
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; font-style: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times; font-size: small;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; font-style: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/user/historyomtssg/playlist/4ScOA61pnLIMRvfoNfrInh">http://open.spotify.com/user/historyomtssg/playlist/4ScOA61pnLIMRvfoNfrInh</a></span></span></i></span></span></span></i></div><br />
<br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>General events</i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Thirty years war continued. It was the world’s first modern war. It had all started in 1618 when a few protestant nobles threw some of the catholic Hapsburg emperor’s men out of a castle window in Prague following a row. Amidst all this, a new rational way of looking at the world had been taking shape thanks to people like Galileo, Bacon and Rene Descartes.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Science and philosophy</i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Galileo published his Dialogue on the Two Chief World Systems in 1634. In 1616 the Inquisition had brought a specific injunction on Galileo ‘not to hold, teach, or defend Copernicanism’ (That's the earth going round the sun rather than the other way round). A little later Galileo managed to get a certificate confirming that he merely could not ‘hold or defend’ Copernicanism. In his 1634 publication Galileo presented the argument for Copernicanism and the argument against, writing it in the third person. The trouble was the character supporting Copernicanism in the book had much the more persuasive argument for the reader and the church believed they had been tricked into allowing him to publish it. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Galileo was brought before the Inquisition. At first he tried to get out of it by sending a doctor’s note saying he was too frail to travel (he was 68) to Rome but he was in big trouble and that did not wash. The Inquisition thought the trial would go very well and they would easily convict him. He was at risk of facing torture or possibly execution. They confronted him with the injunction. In his defence Galileo produced the certificate he had obtained and said his book merely taught the theory, it did not hold or defend it. An expert witness supported the Inquisition allegation that he was defending Copernicanism but the certificate Galileo had was a problem and a compromise was reached. The compromise was that Galileo would be let off lightly and kept under house arrest for the rest of his life, provided that he admitted the Copernican view of the universe was wrong. In order to save his skin Galileo admitted to the Inquisition that the earth did not move and was the centre of the universe, but the myth goes that he then touched the ground and whispered ‘and yet it does move’. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">During this decade leading scientific and philosophical thought moves from Galileo in Italy to France, Holland and England. Galileo they say was the father of modern science. In France Rene Descartes (1596-1650) had been a soldier in the 30 years war in 1620s, though had not seen much action. In this decade he was to become the father of modern philosophy and he probably takes over from Galileo from this point as cleverest person on the planet. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Descartes published his Discourse on Method in 1637. Here he set out a new method of scientific and philosophical thinking. He compared knowledge to buildings saying that the best buildings were the ones started and finished by one architect. He said he was not going to build on any of the foundations of past knowledge but he would start again from the beginning. This idea was the foundation for modern philosophy. So t</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">he first thing to do was to doubt everything. H</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">aving begun with a clean slate, clearing away the ideas of Greek philosophers and everything since, he then considered whether there was anything of which he could be certain. He would begin with the most basic thing first, and then build knowledge as far as he could up from there. The only thing he could be certain of, was that he was thinking and if he was thinking, then he must be something that exists. His life might be a dream or it might not but he could be certain of one thing – that he was some sort of existing being. He said ‘I think therefore I am’ and you can say this is about as solid a basis as you can get from which all human thought can start. This idea was to influence 20</span><sup><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">th</span></span></sup><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> century films like the Matrix and Twelve Monkeys.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Art</i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Rubens continued to be a renowned artist. The greatest pupil of Rubens was Sir Anthony Van Dyk who moved to London and was court painter to Charles I. He painted the Equestrian portrait of Charles I (1637-8) and other similar portraits of the king to promote an authoritative, elegant and dignified image of the king. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><img class="rg_hi" data-height="258" data-width="195" height="258" id="rg_hi" 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" style="height: 258px; width: 195px;" width="195" /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A friend of Rubens was Diego Velazquez (1599-1660) court painter to the king of Spain. He painted in 1634-5 ‘The Surrender of Breda’ which is considered to be one of the best paintings of the period and depicts the Spanish capture of the Dutch city of Breda during the 30 years war in 1625.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><img alt="De overgave van breda Velazquez.jpg" height="250" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6e/De_overgave_van_breda_Velazquez.jpg/300px-De_overgave_van_breda_Velazquez.jpg" width="300" /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Architecture</i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After Maderna died the three leading architects of the next generation in Rome were Gianlorenzo Bernini (1598-1680) Francesco Borromini (1599-1667) and Pietro da Cortona (1596-1669). Bernini and Borromini continued with Maderna’s Palazzo Barberini. It is may be just a coincidence or maybe something that worked subconsciously on the minds of the architects but around the time of Kepler’s discovery that planets move in ellipses and not circles, circles are seen less in architecture and ovals become more popular with the baroque designs. The oval is suggestive of movement within a space, while the circle is more static and central. Thanks largely to Galileo, people knew the earth was moving and not fixed in the centre of the universe. The oval theme is best seen in Borromini’s S Carlo Alle Quattro Fontane (below) begun in 1633 which is considered a masterpiece of the baroque period. The façade was not completed until 1667, the year he died.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img class="rg_hi" data-height="275" data-width="183" height="275" id="rg_hi" src="http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTQ-uvAh6HJ3jOv5oKeh8en9_wHTfqTby4g9YWs8LyL_v6Lh5Hgew" style="height: 275px; width: 183px;" width="183" /> </span><img class="rg_hi" data-height="188" data-width="268" height="188" id="rg_hi" src="http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQBXmrwR0GYRWeIjPQbBdVOSy1LnS521qgFX3Bv-2dGqVM2_8g3rQ" style="height: 188px; width: 268px;" width="268" /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In France there was an influx of Italian classical design which developed into a distinctly French classical style. This is best seen in the Orleans wing at the Chateau Blois (below) by top French architect, Francois Mansart (1598-1664) begun in 1635. The curved corners of the colonnades are very French and the curved semi-circular pediment at the top was new for the time and had not been seen in Italy.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><img class="rg_hi" data-height="192" data-width="262" height="192" id="rg_hi" src="http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSXxl8cOqJv0I3tOwo7D2EWzPMi4UsTx4jt6l8fSzZpzySQtbsH8g" style="height: 192px; width: 262px;" width="262" /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 207.5pt; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Literature</i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">English literature was becoming ever more rich and complex with a new freedom of expression in the first part of this century. John Donne (1572-1631) a contemporary of Shakespeare and leading poet died in 1631. His complete works were published in 1633. He is known for his unusual and often extensive metaphors. He came up with the familiar phrase ‘no man is an island’.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In France Cardinal Richelieu, the first prime minister in the world, was making Paris the literary, political and academic centre of France and it has remained that way ever since. Richelieu founded the Acadamie Francais in 1635 basically to try to improve the use of the French language. Pierre Corneille was the leading French literary figure of the time and is said to be the founder of French tragedy. Richelieu would present ideas to Corneille which he wanted dramatised. Corneille obliged but eventually found this too restrictive. His play ‘Le Cid’ was a big success but controversial because it did not follow the classical rules of time and place that Richelieu wanted (that is a play should be set in the same place and within a 24 hour time period).</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In Germany the greatest poet was Martin Opitz von Boberfield(1597-1639) who had been trying through his career to set out rules for how the German language should be used in literature. Most representative of this aim was his ‘Vesuvius’ published in 1633. Schutz had composed the first German opera ‘Dafne’ in the last decade with words supplied by Opitz. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2257900140734866240.post-2697480629682648002011-02-19T04:54:00.000-08:002011-06-19T12:36:37.397-07:001620s Opera reaches Germany<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Opera had begun in Florence and spread to Mantua, Venice and by the start of this decade had reached Rome. In 1627 it would reach Germany with a composer second only in importance to Monteverdi and his name was </span><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Heinrich Schutz</span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> (1585-1672).</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Schutz</span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">, ‘the father of German music’ was the most influential of the three main German composers of the time, the other two being Schutz’s friend Schein who I have mentioned and </span><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Samuel Scheidt</span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> (1587-1654). Shutz had been to Italy, met the great Monteverdi and was very much taken by the new form of opera. Through Schutz, the Italian expressive vocal style and the quick changes in tempo and loudness came to influence German music. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Schutz had quite a tragic time losing his wife, two daughters, parents and brother and all in the middle of the time during which Germany was a complete bloodbath due to the 30 years war, so his music naturally is a bit on the solemn side. To me he sounds a bit like he still has one foot in the renaissance. Generally Schutz is all a bit sombre but I managed to find something called </span><b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/id204041270?i=204042308">‘Oh Suber Jesu Christ’ SWV 405 op 12</a></span></i></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> which is good if you want to listen to something a bit melancholic.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On the lighter side, the early composer of violin music, Monteverdi’s violinist and maybe the first violin virtuoso Biagio Marini, continues with a good piece called </span><b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/5CujzVLK3DjJCl6WD1LJon">Sonata Sopra ‘La Monica’</a> </span></i></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">from 1626. It is an improvement on his Affeti Musici collection from the last decade. From Samuel Scheidt in 1621 there is </span><b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/0o1ROTO0Y2nFSYwaoQDr7N">Galliard Battaglia</a></span></i></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">. With this piece and those from Marini and Schein there is definitely a distinctly straight forward and jaunty style to this early instrumental music. My favourite choices from this decade are:-<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Marini - The collected recordings of Il Giardino Armonico - <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/5CujzVLK3DjJCl6WD1LJon">Sonata Sopra La Monica</a><o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Scheidt - Ludi Musici - <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/0o1ROTO0Y2nFSYwaoQDr7N">Galliard Battaglia</a><o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px;"><br />
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<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; font-style: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times; font-size: small;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; font-style: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/user/historyomtssg/playlist/4ScOA61pnLIMRvfoNfrInh">http://open.spotify.com/user/historyomtssg/playlist/4ScOA61pnLIMRvfoNfrInh</a></span></span></i></span></span></span></i><br />
<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; font-style: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span></i></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>General History</i><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Well the 20</span><sup><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">th</span></span></sup><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> Century had World Wars I and II - this 17</span><sup><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">th</span></span></sup><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> Century had the Thirty Years War which by now is well and truly underway. In terms of politics and power, it is the defining event of the century for Europe. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Other than that the pilgrims arrived in Massachusetts on the Mayflower on 1620. Cardinal Richelieu becomes Chief Minister in France (for Louis XIII) from 1624-42 and made the country extremely powerful.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Philosophy</i><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Francis Bacon </span></b><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(1561-1626)</span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> had worked for the government of Queen Elizabeth I and King James I eventually becoming Lord Chancellor but all through his political career his writings had a great influence on the direction taken by Western philosophy and Science. In 1620, at the height of his power he published Novum Organum (and one year before he was sacked for accepting bribes). Francis ‘knowledge is power’ Bacon promoted the idea that science should be used for practical purposes to give humans power over nature, rather than just to acquire knowledge. He believed that science colleges and societies (which he unsuccessfully tried to persuade King James to set up) should collect as much data as they can, then patterns and regularities will reveal themselves through observation, then leading to the discovery of scientific laws by experimentation. He also believed that thinkers were all too keen to find the pattern and too quick to draw conclusions from it. For example pulling nine red marbles out of a bag did not necessarily mean the tenth would also be red. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Galileo who had been banned from promoting the Copernican theory was less disturbed by authority in this decade with a new pope in Rome who was more sympathetic to his ideas. This freedom would eventually lead to a new publication in the next decade that would get him into big trouble. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Technology</i><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">To add to his cv Galileo developed the microscope in 1624. In 1628 William Harvey published De Motu Cordis (on the circulation of blood). He was the first to realise and announce that the heart pumped blood around the body. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Art </i><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> <o:p></o:p></span></b><img class="rg_hi" data-height="183" data-width="275" height="183" id="rg_hi" src="http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTbnOz1c2L_WYYeU8xS6DDDdVGP3gTX_oXZ-ervrs6MKumFSd6TFQ" style="height: 183px; width: 275px;" width="275" /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><br />
</span></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The most high profile painter of the day, Rubens painted <i>Minerva protects Pax from Mars</i> (above)in 1629-30, one of his most well known works. This was a painting to promote peace as the war raged through Germany. </span><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Frans Hals</span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> (1580-1666) painted <i>The Laughing Cavalier</i> in 1624. Hals was a portrait painter who is known as being very good at capturing a fleeting expression which he does with this portrait. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> <o:p></o:p></span><img class="rg_hi" data-height="248" data-width="203" height="248" id="rg_hi" src="http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQv9TI80oJp68AoZAVKz-Mc-_S0pWDV_ck1HUXXZKkr2gfaOgsNMA" style="height: 248px; width: 203px;" width="203" /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Architecture</i><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times;"><br />
</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><img class="rg_hi" data-height="200" data-width="251" height="200" id="rg_hi" src="http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcS3YQZO9BZkdv1kXJ9UqVYWqoeTfGLlGJ5m1jaR-lnq6w6RMf2U" style="height: 200px; width: 251px;" width="251" /><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Maderna, the leading architect of his generation began the Palazzo Barberini in 1628 and created the ground plan. It is lighter, more open and approachable and in the style of the palaces and villas in Northern Italy by Palladio and this was new to Rome. Maderna died in 1629.</span><br />
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</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Literature</i><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">No really major works published in this decade other than by Francis Bacon and William Harvey (</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">mentioned above)</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/user/historyomtssg/playlist/4ScOA61pnLIMRvfoNfrInh">http://open.spotify.com/user/historyomtssg/playlist/4ScOA61pnLIMRvfoNfrInh</a></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2257900140734866240.post-74496274748113769352011-01-28T16:14:00.000-08:002011-06-19T12:24:38.359-07:001610s Dance Music - Old Style<div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">From the 1600s onwards music starts to find it's melody. In the centuries before the best music consists of voices merging together, evolving from the medieval fashion of open fourths and fifths to some nicer harmonies during the renaissance. Now, with opera, the completely different idea of a single vocal part singing over instrumental backing becomes more popular. </span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span> </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Monteverdi is still top composer of the day but I don't think he does anything in this decade as good as those selections I chose from L'Orfeo. Opera continues to gain popularity with Monteverdi but so does instrumental music and this is my preference. Instrumental music began to be played less by amateurs and gradually more by virtuoso musicians.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span> </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">John Dowland</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> continued to compose lute music and a really nice tune published by him in this decade is </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/0DMvDqvqumwQ4O35p9qtUw">Sir John Smith's Almain</a></b></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span> </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Probably the best creatively and also successful commercially for the composer was some early 17th century dance music composed by </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Michael Praetorius</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> (1571-1621) in a collection of 312 dances called </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Terpsichore</b></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> published in 1612. I like all of the following </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/1qthEp1mPxGsWHuoDp5a5v">Ballet Du Roy</a>, <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/6YVIUKC3b1C1UJMIB06FOl">Ballet</a>, <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/02GoGbsmsXX0ukyrU8nT3C">Bransle Double 3</a>, <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/6UdOe5oEvG7dHnrhXXqkFQ">Spagnoletta</a>, <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/1qEMoLEMeplYkzk4c365eY">La Canarie</a>, <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/136nrlVOkv2TcXA3BMmL3g">Courante</a></b></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b> </b>but my favorite is<b> </b></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/4T90hwFqf2Mb60rd3CBQth">Volte</a></b></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span> </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We hear the beginnings of music for the violin which was a relatively new instrument at this time and thankfully would eventually come to take the place of the viol. This early composer of violin music was perhaps the leading violinist in Monteverdi's orchestra. His name was </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Biagio Marini</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b> </b>(1587-1663) and his first collection was </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Affetti Musicali</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> which came out in 1617 and from which I have chosen '</span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/2ZQZIzWyXwoSKNmxJSuJBs">La Cornera</a></b></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">'. Don't expect too much from the violin yet, but it's a start.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span> </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Also in 1617 a leading German composer called </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Johan Hermann Schein</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> (1586-1630) published an instrumental collection called </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Il Banchetto Musicale</b></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> (the Musical Banquet). It's not as good as Terpsichore from Praetorius but </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/65VzAl9Xrxc4KotTWFTZIO">Suite 5 in D Allemande (attaca) -Tripla</a></b></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> is probably worth a listen.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span> </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Solo keyboard music which first emerged towards the end of the last century becomes more and more popular too with composers like Girolamo Frescobaldi. A slightly older composer though is </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> (1562-1621) and he is probably the first major keyboard composer in Europe. Solo church organ music is really not something that appeals to me at all but I skimmed through a bit of Sweelinck and came across quite a nice organ piece by him called </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/3wuPBk06SD2FxBheymPPq2">Ballo Del Granduca</a></b></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> (it may have been from a previous decade but I am squeezing it in here) if you happen to be in the mood for it!! Maybe something to listen to more for interest than for pleasure.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span> </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ok I am going to keep my posting short - so here are my selections:-</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span> </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Dowland: Lute Music of John Dowland - </b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/0DMvDqvqumwQ4O35p9qtUw">Sir John Smith's Almain</a></b></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Praetorius: - Dances from Terpsichore</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b> - </b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/1qthEp1mPxGsWHuoDp5a5v">Ballet Du Roy</a>, <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/6YVIUKC3b1C1UJMIB06FOl">Ballet</a>, <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/02GoGbsmsXX0ukyrU8nT3C">Bransle Double 3</a>, <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/6UdOe5oEvG7dHnrhXXqkFQ">Spagnoletta</a>, <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/1qEMoLEMeplYkzk4c365eY">La Canarie</a>,<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/136nrlVOkv2TcXA3BMmL3g"> Courante</a></b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>, </b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/4T90hwFqf2Mb60rd3CBQth">Volte</a></b></span><br />
<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Schein: - Il Banchetto Musicale</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b> - </b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/65VzAl9Xrxc4KotTWFTZIO">Suite 5 in D Allemande (attaca) -Tripla</a></b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b> </b></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Marini: - </b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Affetti Musicali -</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Marini Und </b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Seine Zeitgenossen </b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>- </b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/2ZQZIzWyXwoSKNmxJSuJBs">La Cornera</a> </b></span><br />
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<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; font-style: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The main thing that happens in Europe is that tea was introduced. Oh yea, and there was the outbreak of the thirty years war in 1618 which lasted until, let's see...er 1648. This caused the population of Europe to decline from 21 million in 1618 to 13 million in 1648 - pretty devastating and it was fought mostly in Germany (then the part of the Holy Roman Empire). For this decade it was about religious unrest but it then evolved into a conflict and power struggle between France and the Habsburg family who ruled Spain, the Netherlands and Austria. France, Sweden, Denmark, Austria, Spain would all participate. </span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; font-style: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; font-style: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Galileo continued to be a superstar. Now he was focusing his attentions on the skys and more actively promoted the Copernican view of the universe (that's the earth not being the centre of the universe but instead orbiting the sun) that he had always held. He also wrote in 1615 'Concerning the Use of Biblical Quotations in Matters of Science' in which he said that the bible should not be taken too literally where it is contradicted by science, but instead a different interpretation should be found. This basically remains the position of the catholic church today though at the time it outraged some in the church and the Inquisition opened a file on him. Galileo's message to the church was that it should not interfere with science. His view was that just as a despot who was not a qualified would not personally attempt to perform the duties of a doctor, so the church should not say whether scientific reasoning was correct or not. </span></span></span></i><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Literature</i></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Not a great deal to note here other than that Shakespeare completes his last play 'the Tempest' which is performed in 1611. He then died in 1616, as did Cervantes who had published the second part of Don Quixote in 1613.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Art</i></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Caravegio died in 1610 and Peter Paul Rubens 1577-1640 is now looked upon as the leading painter of the day. He had been in Italy studying the great Italian paintings but had returned to Antwerp in 1608. His paintings were often on a large scale and were full of colour and life. The visual equivalent of opera maybe. The elevation of the cross above was an early one from 1610 that helped him create a name for himself.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Architecture</i></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Inigo Jones, Britains first modern architect of significance, having returned from Italy where he studied the buildings of Palladio, brings the classical forms to England and designs the Queen's House in Greenwich (above) in 1616 and Banqueting Hall in Whitehall 1619-22 (below). Later, in 1635, Rubens painted the ceiling.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img alt="" class="thumbimage" height="264" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/14/Banqueting_House_London.jpg/300px-Banqueting_House_London.jpg" width="300" /></span> </div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2257900140734866240.post-19771295278394152312011-01-15T15:00:00.000-08:002011-01-16T05:47:46.761-08:00A New Presentation of History and a little interlude<div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I was thinking why, before I started getting interested in all of this and blogging away, did my knowledge of what happened in the 1500s throughout the entire world consist basically of some names of Tudor monarchs and events like Henry VIII breaking with the church and the Spanish Armada coming to invade England and a few other nuggets of information that for some reason got lodged in my memory. Why is it that in history lessons at school you really only learn about the history of leaders, what they did and changes in power?</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Leaders are a key element but not the only element of history. Elizabeth I may have supported the arts and this would have helped create the climate for Shakespeare to write his plays. She may have helped greatly to give England its identity and confidence later to expand but of what significance or good is that other than one people having some sort of control over another people. Is it really that significant?</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Leaders and governments seem more usually to be unpopular than popular but deserve credit and often huge credit and gratitude from the people who in some way, big or small, take benefit from their decisions insofar as that outweighs any negative consequence. Leaders and creative thinkers in government and commerce have the power to improve people’s standard of living (to the extent that the recipient of the perceived benefit see it as an improvement) and the more people they can do that for the better. Then they might be considered great, especially by those people they benefit and yes, events like Henry’s VIII’s break with the church and various decisions taken by leaders throughout history have played some part in shaping the world today. There is some significance in these things.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">However, Shakespeare is much more relevant today than Elizabeth. He has left plays that have been enjoyed by many people over and over again for centuries. Elizabeth might have helped create the environment for Shakespeare and had a big influence on the way one country has evolved, but Shakespeare’s legacy is tangible. Likewise, Galileo improved the telescope and started looking at the skies. This is much more important. Monteverdi began writing operas - much more important. These are things people still use and enjoy today. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I suppose the answer to my first question, to take it quite literally, is simply that you would learn about Shakespeare in an English lesson, you might come across Monteverdi in a music class and you would probably hear a mention of Galileo in Science.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">That’s not quite enough for me though. I reckon history should be taught in a way that gives these creators primary importance over or at least equal importance to the leaders who allowed them the space to create. An event like the gunpowder plot of 1605 is much less significant to mankind than Galileo improving the telescope and using it to look at the stars in 1609. I knew about the gunpowder plot but nothing of Galileo.</span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2257900140734866240.post-75003629457183029012011-01-14T13:50:00.000-08:002011-06-19T11:40:12.903-07:001600-1610 Opera Opens<div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There is a cliché that ‘football is a game of two halves’. That is to suggest that one half can be completely different to the other. For one moment, let us imagine this musical history I have been blogging about as minutes ticking through a football match, the major players, that’s Dufay, Des Prez, Palestrina and Lassus and the others I have so far mentioned or not mentioned all belong very much to the first half. Really in music history the second half begins here around 1600 and continues to the present day. I suppose too that you could say most of the action in this game is going to happen in the second half.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Baroque period in music is generally seen as beginning at the start of this proverbial second half, around 1600 and lasting until about 1750. There are so many things changing in music in or around the first decade of the 1600s that this posting, which I had originally intended to keep very short, has turned into another long one.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What happened was that the renaissance people in Italy who had firstly brought back in ancient Greek and Roman literature (Petrarch in the 1300s) and then the ancient architecture (Brunelleschi in the 1400s) were now looking to do the same with music. The architects could study ruins and the poets found ancient texts (presumably in the archives of libraries). For musicians it was not as easy (music notation did not come in until about 1000AD). The musicians and composers got the idea that all of the text in the dramas of the ancient Greeks would have been sung and none of it spoken. This was really just a guess but, hey, it was an excuse for the new type of music they wanted to create. It would have been like ‘speaking with melody’ they thought. In trying to recreate this concept, they created the first operas.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">From roughly this point on the secular form of the opera becomes more important to people than the religious chanting of the church. Personally I cannot really get into opera. I struggle too much with the warbling. I never understand why people have to sing with such vibrato. May be I‘ll get it one day. As with most musical genres, however, the very best can transcend the barriers of taste and leave an impression on the listener. In other words there are going to be some bits of opera that I like enough to mention here in my blog. I know this now because to my surprise I have already found something I like in this very decade from the person who is sometimes referred to as the ‘father of opera’ </span><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Claudio Monteverdi</span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> (1567-1643) and whose </span><b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">‘L’ Orfeo’</span></i></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> is first performed in Mantua in 1607. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Before I get to that there is one other major renaissance composer I mentioned but whose work I had not included in my last posting. His name is </span><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Tomas Luis De Victoria</span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">. Well in this decade I find he has left his best (and most well known) work until last. It’s another </span><b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">‘<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/3WvBenOvZoUNyV6VBQMlLr">Kyrie</a>’</span></i></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> and its from his Requiem </span><b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Officium Defunctorem</span></i></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> of 1605 and is worth a listen if you like this kind of thing. This type of music by now is fairly old hat and it is madrigals and the brand new medium of opera together with the rise of instrumental music that people are getting more excited about.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In basic terms it was time for the music of Palestrina and Lassus (who had both died in 1594) and others like Byrd and De Victoria by 1600 to move over for the new generation of Italian opera composers, the best of whom was Monteverdi. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The new spirit of vocal music is heard in the ‘</span><b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/78k0T2oJ5hh8sY7Hmotvbl">Lasciate I monti</a>’</span></i></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> chorus from Act 1, a brilliant and uplifting choral piece showing the fresh vitality that opera had. Monteverdi’s instrumental arrangements in this and his future works are also very influential in the development of orchestration. He assembled the largest orchestra created to date for this opera. The opening ‘</span><b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/5zPzOhZSuYXO8qFf9e6Ctg">Tocatta</a>’</span></i></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> of L’Orfeo sounds especially good after hundreds of years of church chanting and seems to me to announce the arrival of orchestration. There is also a third piece from the opera which I think is just a really good straight forward song with a good melody. It is </span><b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">‘<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/41tktMBPXntOFKLcqfU8WP">Vi Ricorda</a>’</span></i></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> from Act 2 and the singing on the recording I have selected reminds me a bit of Arthur Lee singing on Love’s ‘Forever Changes’ album from 1967. Also worth a mention here is the instrumental opening<i><b> '<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/4BREusTNpXugk5716U17gM">Aria di Romanesca</a>' </b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal;">(equivalent to Monteverdi's opening Toccata but a bit softer)</span></i> from Giulio Caccini's opera <i><b>'Euridice'</b></i>, one of the very first operas completed in 1600.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There is much talk in the various sources I have looked at about the precursor to opera, which was the Italian madrigal, emerging around the 1530s and eventually becoming a craze throughout Europe during the second half of the last century. In 1588, the year in England Elizabeth I sees off the Spanish Armada, the madrigal becomes popular in London which is by now the most populated city in Europe. The madrigal in England develops its own style. Creatively, London must have been quite a buzzing place (ok there were probably flies buzzing around the decapitated heads of executed traitors on stakes at London bridge - so may be a little scary too) with 1 in 8 Londoners going to theatres to see plays which were affordable to all, mostly by William Shakespeare, every week apparently. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The top English composer William Byrd did not compose madrigals and went a bit quiet from about the mid 1590s. The next most noteworthy English composer was also not a composer of madrigals. He was probably the best lute player of his day and his name was John Dowland. He is considered second only to William Byrd of the English composers at this time. Dowland composed mainly songs with lute or viols accompanying. Most of his music was published during this first decade of the 1600s. Best to listen to are not his songs, but his solo lute pieces like </span><b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">‘<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/728cgD4vYnvPQj0TTlv3Ln">My Lord Willoughby’s Welcome Home</a>’</span></i></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">, </span><b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">‘<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/1blMzXuIaPCqo6LXxQrS1H">Round Battle Galliard</a>’</span></i></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> and </span><b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">‘<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/53y7xlNvSHHvxGaFVTm4wG">Lady Laiton’s Almain</a>’</span></i></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> and </span><b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">‘<a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/3pV7GMIn8dXrMV1x54DFwu">The Shoemaker’s Wife</a>’</span></i></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We are a hundred years on from when instrumental music first started to come in in Europe but now more and more it becomes prominent. This selection from Dowland is representative of an emerging popularity of music for solo instruments. Solo keyboard music also started to feature more as we have already seen with William Byrd and his collection entitled ‘My Lady Nevilles Booke’ from 1591.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Really though, the most significant music of this decade is Monteverdi’s because with him we find the emergence of the brand new form which would come to be known as opera. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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<div class="MsoNormal"><div style="margin: 0px;"><span lang="EN-US"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My recommendations from this decade (all on my playlist on spotify) are:-</span></span></div></div><div class="MsoNormal"><div style="margin: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div></div><div class="MsoNormal"><div style="margin: 0px;"><span lang="EN-US"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">De Victoria- </span></b></span><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Requiem Officium Defunctorem – <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/3WvBenOvZoUNyV6VBQMlLr">Kyrie</a></span></b></div></div><div class="MsoNormal"><div style="margin: 0px;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Monteverdi – L’Orfeo – <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/5zPzOhZSuYXO8qFf9e6Ctg">Tocatto</a></span></b></div></div><div class="MsoNormal"><div style="margin: 0px;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Monteverdi – L’Orfeo – <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/78k0T2oJ5hh8sY7Hmotvbl">Lasciati I Monte</a></span></b></div></div><div class="MsoNormal"><div style="margin: 0px;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Monteverdi – L’Orfeo – <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/41tktMBPXntOFKLcqfU8WP">Vi Ricorda</a></span></b></div></div><div class="MsoNormal"><div style="margin: 0px;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Dowland – solo lute pieces: <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/728cgD4vYnvPQj0TTlv3Ln">My Lord Willoughby’s Welcome Home</a>, <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/1blMzXuIaPCqo6LXxQrS1H">Round Battle Galliard</a>, <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/53y7xlNvSHHvxGaFVTm4wG">Lady Laiton’s Almain</a> and <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/3pV7GMIn8dXrMV1x54DFwu">The Shoemaker’s Wife</a>.</span></b></div></div><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 15px;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/user/historyomtssg/playlist/4ScOA61pnLIMRvfoNfrInh">http://open.spotify.com/user/historyomtssg/playlist/4ScOA61pnLIMRvfoNfrInh</a></span> </span><br />
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</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">General History</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Dutch East India Company is formed in 1602 and begins to trade with the East, the first step in the evolution of the Dutch empire. Elizabeth I died in 1603 and James I becomes king and makes peace with Spain. Guy Fawkes and his gang try to blow up the houses of Parliament with their gunpowder plot of 1605. Netherlands break away from Spanish rule in 1609.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Science, Technology and Philosophy</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Cleverest person of the decade must be Galileo Galilie 1564-1642), the father of modern science (Shakespeare of course was also a bright spark). By now he was in his thirties and had already invented a pump for raising water and a military compass and an early type of thermometer. In 1602 he made his discovery about the movement of pendulums by watching a lamp swing back and forth in the cathedral of Pisa. This led to pendulum clocks in the 1650s improving the accuracy of time keeping. In 1604 he discovered that objects fall at the same speed whatever, their mass, supposedly by dropping objects off the leaning tower of Pisa. In 1609 he made vast improvements to the newly invented telescope and began using it to look at the skies.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Also important is Johannes Kepler (1571-1630). Copernicus had turned the world upside down in the last century with his theory that the earth was not the centre of the universe and in fact orbited the sun. For the first time the bible was shown to be literary wrong (‘though has fixed the earth immovable and firm’ from psalm 93). If it was wrong about this it could be wrong about other things. There was also a belief that God would have created perfect symmetry in the movement of heavenly bodies and Kepler showed in 1609 that the planets, moon and stars did not move in perfect circles, but instead in ellipses. The Copernicun revolution and discoveries like this from Kepler meant the whole authority of the church was therefore under a great philosophical threat.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Literature</span></i></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Shakespeare writes Hamlet, Twelfth Night, Othello, King Lear, Macbeth, The Winter’s Tale among many other plays. He had moved from writing light comedies and historical dramas to tragedies. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In 1607 Ben Johnson publishes Volpone or the Fox, a play, maybe his masterpiece, which satirizes the up and coming Jacobean merchant class. John Donne wrote his divine poems in 1607.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes was published in 1605 (1</span><sup><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">st</span></span></sup><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> volume, number 2 came in 1615) in Spain. Like Shakespeare’s plays, this is a founding work of modern western literature. Thanks to this book Cervantes has sometimes been called the father of the novel.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Art </span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">El Greco painted his ‘Opening of the Fifth Seal’ below in 1608 but by this time Mannerism had given way to Baroque art. It looks way ahead of its time.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img class="rg_hi" data-height="237" data-width="213" height="237" id="rg_hi" src="http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTAUDuKq3dJD8zfEX1ogsGq0dK2AphkC3uQU4OhtMwQCUpn-Qvj" style="height: 237px; width: 213px;" width="213" /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Michelangelo da Carravegio (1573-1610) hit the art scene arriving in Rome and painting some of the earliest Baroque works causing a sensation in 1600 with paintings like the Martyrdom of St Matthew (below). He re-introduced chiaroscuro technique first seen in Corregio, that is the use of extremes of light and dark which created a spotlight effect. He used this to good effect to convey the most dramatic moment of the scene he had been asked to depict. Another feature of his work is that he wanted to convey truth and he made his figures look more like ‘everyday’ people. For example he would make a disciple look like the common labourer he probably was.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img class="rg_hi" data-height="219" data-width="230" height="219" id="rg_hi" src="http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQEXAAreZRT4_ISDo_RJwWfVQqOcO8OZHWaA_4SaXX9gT4Hbt88uA" style="height: 219px; width: 230px;" width="230" /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Flemish artist Peter Paul Rubens (1577-1640) also arrived in Rome in 1600 and studied the works of Caraveggio and the renaissance masters. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Architecture</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As with music and art, the baroque period also begins in architecture around this time. Unlike with music it is not such a big departure from what had gone before. With baroque architecture the designs get more complicated. This was often shown in church facades partly to show as part of the counter-reformation movement that the church had money and power. The most important of the early baroque designs was the church façade of Santa Susanna in Rome by the leading architect of the day Carlo Maderno(1556-1629). </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img class="rg_hi" data-height="252" data-width="200" height="252" id="rg_hi" src="http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSFUrFRRa6vz_rPwo-w6AiQkZTA1iKjWjD-JgFXPju3YhFz7tHf" style="height: 252px; width: 200px;" width="200" /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2257900140734866240.post-22314518750449559382011-01-01T09:29:00.000-08:002011-01-25T13:14:53.400-08:00SourcesI thought I better state my sources of information for this blog so here they are:-<br />
<br />
The internet.<br />
<br />
History of Western Music - Richard Taruskin<br />
A Concise history of Western Music - Paul Griffiths<br />
Chronical of Classical Music - Alan Kendall<br />
Classical Music The 50 Greatest composers and their 1000 greatest works -Phil Goulding<br />
Classical Music -Julian Johnson<br />
Lives of the Great Composers - Harold Schonberg<br />
Guinness Guide to Classical Composers - Keith Shadwick<br />
The Story of Art - E.H. Gombrich<br />
The Story of Philosophy - Bryan Magee<br />
Philosophy - 100 Essential Thinkers - Philip Stokes<br />
An Outline of European Architecture - Nikolaus Pevsner<br />
The Story of Literature - Daniel Anderson Maria Lord Michael Macaroon Clare Peel and Tara Stubbs<br />
The Story of Science and Technology in World History - An Introduction James McClellan III and Harold Dorn<br />
The History of the World - Richard OveryUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0