Musician Rambles

"I began it three days ago and am writing with difficulty , not for wont of new ideas, but because of the novelty of the form. One requires six independent yet homogeneous voices. This is unimaginably difficult." - Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, 1890

Talk to me about this on tumblr! https://www.tumblr.com/musicianrambles Thank you to my dear friend DeeDee for proofreading this episode for me! BIBLIOGRAPHY: Bunzel, J.H., Porter, R.P. and Goldman, D.P. (1991) "Black and white at Stanford", National Affairs. |Capell, R. (1938). Beethoven. Music & Letters, 19(4), 375–390 | Clark, P. (2020) "‘Beethoven was black’: Why a century-o...

You know, I'm starting to notice that my vocal inflections are extremely different when talking about pieces I really really care about.

It must be a rule for all inventors to be extremely weird at this point. BIBLIOGRAPHY: Debenham, M. (2014). Joseph Merlin in London, 1760–1803: the Man behind the Mask. | Incledon, Charles Benjamin. "John Joseph Merlin: The Celebrated Mechanic". Broadsheet. Retrieved 12 July 2018 | Rimbault, Edward Francis (1895). Clinch, George (ed.). Soho and Its Associations: Historical, Literary &amp...

This is the reason my standards are so high. I cannot listen to chamber music that isn't this and it is an Issue. BIBLIOGRAPHY: Tchaikovsky, P. I "Дневники П. И. Чайковского (1873-1891)"

Two things: I am aware that talking about someone's first symphony isn't a good indication of them as a composer. I will cover a larger work when I have more time. No, I will not be posting another analysis this month.

I genuinely want 50 pieces just like this one. BIBLIOGRAPHY: Luque Fernández, A. “The Works Of Manuel Quiroga: a Catalogue” | Samson, J. “Tempo”, no. 167, 1988

This man cannot hold a relationship to save his life bless him. BIBLIOGRAPHY: POZNANSKY, A. (1998). Tchaikovsky: A Life Reconsidered. In L. KEARNEY (Ed.), Tchaikovsky and His World (pp. 3–54). | Tchaikovsky's letters (as found on http://en.tchaikovsky-research.net/pages/Letters)

Happy Valentines month! Here is another programme work that I prefer to Symphonie Fantastique :)

Take a note of the number of times I mention Tchaikovsky despite him having literally nothing to do with this story. BIBLIOGRAPHY: Maddocks, F "Rachmaninoff In Exile: Goodbye Russia" | Poznansky, A "Tchaikovsky: A Life Reconsidered" | Steinberg, M "The Concerto: A Listener's Guide"

BIBLIOGRAPHY: Block, A.F. (2000). Amy Beach: Passionate Victorian | Block, A. F. (1994). A “Veritable Autobiography”? Amy Beach’s Piano Concerto in C-Sharp Minor, op. 45. The Musical Quarterly , 78 (2), 395–416. http://www.jstor.org/stable/742549 | Rushing, K. C. (2000). Amy Beach's Concerto for Piano and Orchestra in C-sharp Minor, Op. 45: A historical, stylistic, and analytical study . Louis...

TW: References to sexual harassment and misogyny. The Snow Maiden being aromantic is my new favourite headcanon.

I love egregious use of the wind section!!!

TW: Suicide mention I really wish rich people started keeping artists as pets again. BIBLIOGRAPHY: POZNANSKY, A. (1998). Tchaikovsky: A Life Reconsidered. In L. KEARNEY (Ed.), Tchaikovsky and His World (pp. 3–54). | Tchaikovsky's letters (as found on http://en.tchaikovsky-research.net/pages/Letters)

BIBLIOGRAPHY: Berlioz, H "Symphonie Fantastique Programme Notes: 1845 Edition" | Berlioz, H "Symphonie Fantastique Programme Notes: 1855 Edition" | Codeine Monograph for professionals. (n.d.). Drugs.com. | "Documentation of a heroin manufacturing process in Afghanistan. BULLETIN ON NARCOTICS, Volume LVII, Nos. 1 and 2, 2005" (PDF). United Nations Office on Drugs and C...

Fun game: count how many times I make noises of sheer exhaustion and disappointment in this episode. BIBLIOGRAPHY: Berlioz, Hector "Memoirs" | Lockspeiser, Edward, et al. “Unpublished Letters of Harriet Smithson and Berlioz.” The Musical Times , vol. 79, no. 1150 | Raby, Peter "Fair Ophelia: a life of Harriet Smithson Berlioz"

Fun game: count every time I chastize Haydn's existence in this one. BIBLIOGRAPHY: Brown, Rachel “Telemann Fantasias: a feat of ingenuity and inspiration” | Min, KyoungJoo. Analyses of the twelve fantasies for solo flute (1732-1733) and the twelve fantasies for solo violin (1735) of G. Ph. Telemann (with suggestions for performance) . | Zohn, Steven David “Music For A Mixed Taste” 

Enemies to lovers, speedrun, 100k, comfort/hurt. BIBLIOGRAPHY: Banks, Paul "Mahler." The Musical Times 129, no. 1739 | Barry, Barbara R. "The Hidden Program In Mahler's Fifth Symphony" The Musical Quarterly, vol. 77, no. 1 | Kravitt, Edward F. "Mahler's Dirges for His Death: Februrary 24, 1901" The Musical Quarterly, vol. 64, no. 3, 1978 | Mahler, Alma "G...

I will shove the 2nd movement in everyone's faces if it is the last thing I do. BIBLIOGRAPHY: Saccenti, Edoardo, et al. “Beethoven’s Deafness and His Three Styles.” | Solomon, Mayanard. "Beethoven" | Solomon, Maynard. “On Beethoven’s Deafness.” | https://youtu.be/yKl4T5BnhOA?si=c_RWGhmxQO2blJBe

Look, I'm not saying he wasn't partially justified, but he had no right to expect to be treated like a saint when so many others before and after him suffered so much more! Anyway I would adore this kind of position and he's very selfish for not making the most of it.

Today I ramble about my favourite Chopin piece and what makes it so authentic for his work. BIBLIOGRAPHY: Huneker, J. (1915). The Classic Chopin. The Musical Quarterly, 1(4), 519–525. http://www.jstor.org/stable/738063 Kallberg, J. (1985). Chopin’s Last Style. Journal of the American Musicological Society, 38(2), 264–315. https://doi.org/10.2307/831566 Samson, J. (1989). Chopin and Genre. Music An...