composeroftheweek

[composeroftheweek]

This week's composer: Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893)

Today is his birthday (and Brahms', too)!

Current favorites:

This is the piece that really got me into classical music. I randomly got obsessed with it and after listening to it a billion times, I searched for more classical music instead of going back to my usual. Absolutely love the part where the French horns repeat the opening theme

I also really like this:

Started listening to the usual orchestral version and thought I smelled coffee for a second?? Just from reading the word, I guess

Day 1

I guess I'm doing the concertos today! One violin, three piano, two cello. I had to doublecheck that I was listening to Tchaikovsky for Piano Concerto No. 1 because it sounded so familiar and also so similar to Rachmaninoff that I thought maybe I'd chosen an album with piano concertos from both composers. I've definitely heard it before, but not during Rachmaninoff week

Martha Argerich looks so young there! That album came out in 1996, when she was 55. She is 83 now and still going strong!

Holy shit, the solo piano bit that starts at around 4:20 in Piano Concerto No. 2

It premiered in 1881, and in 1889, Aleksandr Ziloti began working on a heavily revised version, with Tchaikovsky objecting to many of his proposed changes. Ziloti's version was published in 1857, after Tchaikovsky's death, while the original wasn't published until 1955

Source

When Tchaikovsky died, he had only completed the first movement of Piano Concerto No. 3, Op. 75. Sergey Taneyev, a friend and former student, completed the second and third movements, Andante and Finale, Op. 79. The three movements are usually played together

The Cello Concerto was based on a 60-bar fragment found after his death. It was completed by Yuriy Leonovich in 2006. The Cello Concerto in E major is an orchestration of some of Tchaikovsky's Piano Pieces, Op. 72, by Gaspar Cassadó. I haven't been able to find a recording of the former and there isn't one of the latter

Ran into this sort of thing again with his piano sonatas. Leslie Howard completed his unfinished first piano sonata. For complete works by Tchaikovsky, there's just the Grand Piano Sonata in G major, Op. 37, and Piano Sonata No. 2 in C# minor, Op. 13. Listening to all of them now

Listening to the string quartets now, but I am pretty tired and having trouble focusing on them. Stopping on No. 2 and might go back and relisten to No. 1 later

Day 2

Listened to The Seasons, Op. 37a, which was very pretty and charming! Listening to an orchestral version now. Favorite from each version:

Started on the symphonies; I listened to Nos. 1 and 2 tonight. No. 2 was nicknamed the "Little Russian" (Ukrainian) symphony due to its use of Ukrainian folk melodies. Other nicknames: "Winter Daydreams" for No. 1, "Polish" for No. 3, and "Pathétique" for No. 6

Tchaikovsky had three siblings, all younger than him -- a sister, Aleksandra, and two twin brothers, Modest and Anatoly. Edit: Damnit, he actually had six siblings; the article I read about Modest only mentioned the three Tchaikovsky was closest to. The others were Ippolit, Nikolay, and a half-sister named Zinayda from his father's first marriage

Currently reading about Modest and laughing at quotes from letters his older brother wrote to him

I am mad at the fact that you are not free from any of my faults, and this is true. I would like to find absent in you at least one of my own bad traits, and I cannot. You resemble me too much, and when I am angry with you, I am in fact angry at myself, since you always act as a mirror in which I see the reflection of all my weaknesses. Consequently, you may conclude that if I feel antipathy for you, it means that I feel it for myself. Ergo, you are a fool, which nobody ever doubted.

And this:

You had the misfortune to be born with the soul of an artist and you will always be drawn into that world of the highest spiritual joy, but since, in addition to this artistic sensitivity, you are endowed with no talent, for God's sake be on guard lest you yield to this temptation.

Source

I don't know if he was a dick or just very blunt, but either way, I like him!

Also read a bit more about his relationship with Brahms (insubstantial as it was, since they only met twice) and his opinion of his music, which I was curious about after reading this article. Apparently he really gave Brahms' music a shot, which involved a good bit of effort on his part as it wasn't performed in Russia very often during that time period, and respected it despite not liking the vast majority of it

He also really liked him as a person. It probably helped that Brahms didn't like his music either. They both seemed to shrug off the other's criticisms of their work, and it did not prevent them from enjoying each other's company

Source

Day 3

Relistened to some of The Seasons and then continued with the symphonies. I'm on the first movement of No. 6 right now but might save it for tomorrow since I'm pretty tired. Big fan of the dramatic shift in mood about halfway through, though!

I'm surprised by how much I like his symphonies, especially the earlier ones, which seem far less popular than Nos. 4 through 6...or more like 4 and 6. I really started getting into them with No. 2 and then I was completely engaged for the entire ~20-minute first movement of No. 4. My favorites so far are Nos. 3 and 4, and the only one I didn't really like was No. 5. A bit too dramatic for me, maybe

Day 4

Finished the symphonies! I wasn't really into the middle movements of No. 6 but god that last one. I immediately relistened to it twice

Next I think I'll finally start on the ballets, in chronological order: Swan Lake, The Sleeping Beauty, and The Nutcracker. Well, maybe after I listen to the Manfred Symphony, which I forgot about until a second ago. Yeah, listening to that now;

Started reading his diaries. It is slow going because I keep forgetting who people are and having to look at the footnotes to remind myself, but that's gradually getting better. I at least don't have to look up Sasha (his little sister, Aleksandra Davydova), Lev (her husband), and Nata (Natalya Plesskaya, Lev's cousin and Aleksandra's close friend) anymore. Though I guess we'll get a new cast of characters once he

Also he keeps referring to "pas de géants." Given the context, I'm assuming they're some kind of stilts, but I wish I could be 100% sure because it's kind of driving me crazy

Finished the Manfred Symphony. Started on Orchestral Suites Nos. 1-4 since I was having trouble focusing on The Sleeping Beauty, though that probably had more to do with what I was reading while listening to it than the music itself

I will make a real start on the ballets soon; it will take around seven hours to listen to all of them

Listened to the first two orchestral suites

Day 5

Finished the orchestral suites and started on The Sleeping Beauty because I misremembered the chronological order and thought that it was the first. But I guess I might as well start with the longest one!

I could actually watch the ballets, but they tend to not include the entire score and I don't want to miss anything

Finished The Sleeping Beauty. I wasn't that into it but I'm listening to Swan Lake right now and I LOVE IT

Also, a big milestone, five days into Tchaikovsky week: I finally started humming his music instead of just Schubert's and Shostakovich's!

Here is 20a, since of course everyone knows this waltz (No. 2) and the more sinister version of the swan theme heard here (No. 9)

Tried to resist relistening to anything because I want to finish this before I go to bed but of course I failed

Kind of on the fence about listening to The Nutcracker because it feels very familiar, but I've probably only listened to the suite vs. the entire ballet score. On the other hand, it is so strongly associated with Christmas that if I don't listen to it this week, I know I will at some point. Also there is a good bit more I'd like to check out, so it might be nice to spend the time I would have spent listening to The Nutcracker listening to music that is entirely new to me

I guess I'll decide tomorrow

Day 6

No Nutcracker, I guess! Listened to Eugene Onegin and Serenade for Strings in C major, Op. 48, today. The former was pretty cool, and as I didn't make it through Dialogues of the Carmelites and I was probably too zoned out when I listened to L'Orfeo to really count that, I can finally say that I've listened to an entire opera!

Of course I only stopped for a total of maybe half an hour to read the lyrics or look up what was happening in a particular scene, which was obviously not ideal. But it made for an enjoyable afternoon, and I liked it enough that I might want to watch a performance of it at some point, or at least relisten while reading a translation of all the lyrics

Working my way down this section. Listened to Sérénade mélancolique, Op. 26; Variations on a Rococo Theme, Op. 33; Valse-Scherzo, Op. 34; Concert Fantasia in G, Op. 56

[composeroftheweek]

This week's composer: Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)

I've been looking forward to this one for a while. He kept popping up a few weeks ago; I saw a billboard advertising a performance of his Ein deutsches Requiem (A German Requiem) and then he was the answer to a Jeopardy question re: one of his pieces (the second movement of his first string sextet) making a Vulcan cry on an episode of Star Trek

All I'm really familiar with is that one lullaby everyone knows ("Wiegenlied," or "Cradle Song") and Hungarian Dance No. 5, but I will fix that soon!

Day 1

Grudgingly adding "Wiegenlied" to the CotW playlist

Found a traditional arrangement with a singer and solo piano but the singer was doing that echoey thing with her voice that kind of makes me want to die. So, an instrumental version and then lyrics with a translation here

I was looking for recommendations since I wasn't sure where to start and found...kind of the opposite of that: listening guides for every single opus number plus links to a playlist of his complete works, including unnumbered pieces! Still cool, though, and I may just use the playlist instead of agonizing over what interpretations to listen to

Started off with his three piano sonatas, Op. 1-3, but not really in the mood, so switching to Symphony No. 1

I'm having trouble figuring out when he actually completed it, but he began work on a symphony in 1854 and premiered Symphony No. 1 in 1876, when he was 46 years old, which is kind of wild compared to the other composers I've read about and covered here. Bruckner completed his first symphony at 42, but he didn't start seriously composing until he was 37, so he got a much later start than Brahms, who published his piano sonatas when he was 20 and seems to have spent his entire adult life as a working musician

Anyway, I like it so far! Currently relistening to the first movement...partly because I'm tired and having trouble focusing, but I also just wanted to hear it again

Day 2

Listening to his three piano trios, two cello sonatas, and three violin sonatas (stopping for the night at the end of the second one)

Day 3

Listened to Ein deutsches Requiem (text and translations) and Hungarian Dances. The former was nice and I ended up relistening to several movements. The latter was fun, and the arrangements for violin and piano are really cool, too!

I'm more into his music today. Maybe I just needed to warm up to him but it probably also helps that I actually slept and ate enough for the first time this (CotW) week

Trying to finish the violin sonatas but I keep relistening to No. 2

Did the same thing with No. 3, but done now!

Tomorrow: Maybe the concertos, and I also want to listen to the rest of his symphonies

Day 4

Finished the symphonies and concertos. Favorite symphony movement:

Listening to the clarinet sonatas now

Tomorrow: I guess more chamber music! Maybe starting with the clarinet sonatas because I only made it to the second movement of No. 1 before my headphones died. I'd also like to check out more of his vocal music

Day 5

Finished the string quartets

Day 6

Spock's dad had it right; this is great!

Finishing up the Amadeus Quartet's Brahms: Complete String Quartets, Quintets, and Sextets

Listening to some vocal music now. This is really pretty

And "Begräbnisgesang" ("Burial Song")!

Not sure what's up for tomorrow, but I do want to check out Gould playing his music

Day 7

Listened to the Three Intermezzi, Four Ballades, Two Rhapsodies, and some of the Klavierstücke. Finishing up with the Seven Fantasien. I was hoping to get through all the Klavierstücke but I am pretty tired

So that's it for Brahms week!

I added 36 tracks to my playlist this week, possibly more than any other week, which is kind of weird because I wasn't that into him. I do like him, but I feel like I just scratched the surface with his music. Not because I didn't listen to enough of it, since I listened to quite a bit, but because whatever I find appealing about his style feels kind of subtle, like something that would require multiple listens over a longer period of time to really sink in. I don't know. His music is interesting. Also it was cool listening to some non-Schubert lieder, which I haven't really done aside from checking out a few Hugo Wolf pieces

[composeroftheweek]

This week's composer: Sergei Prokofiev (1891-1953)

Today is his birthday!

Current favorites:

Also the third movement of Piano Concerto No. 1 and the first movement of No. 3

Day 1

I decided to start with his two violin concertos and immediately got my ass kicked by the first movement of No. 1. This is going to be a good week! I mean, not personally. Personally, it will continue to be terrible. But at least music-wise

Update: Just realized that was actually Bruch's Violin Concerto No. 1. Not sure how that happened but quietly removing it from my CotW playlist and adding it to my general classical one. Now I'm not sure if I actually listened to both of his violin concertos, so might go back and listen/relisten to them before the week is out

Listening to the string quartets and Sonata for Two Violins in C major now/next because my headphones are about to die and my back-up pair are garbage

Listened to Piano Concertos Nos. 1 through 3. Currently listening to Cantata for the 20th Anniversary of the October Revolution. The sixth movement ("Revolution") is awesome!

I was like "Wow they'd really denounce anyone" because this seems very patriotic, but apparently it was not well-received, particularly his use of quotations from Communist texts, and not performed until 13 years after his death. Also found out that the theme from "Victory" was used in the soundtrack for The Land Before Time, the 1988 children's film with the cute animated dinosaurs??

Reminder to check out the version with Gergiev conducting. Rotterdam, I guess? Or the LSO?

Link to the Rotterdam one for future reference

Listened to the Scythian Suite, which was fun, the Love for Three Oranges suite, Quintet in G minor, and the first two movements of Symphony No. 2 (will finish tomorrow)

Day 2

Actually looked at the track titles and apparently I was just on the first part of the second movement of Symphony No. 2. It has an odd structure -- the second movement (which is also the last) is split into eight parts. It was not well-received and Prokofiev himself found it incomprehensible. He intended to revise it but didn't get to it before he died

Continuing with the symphonies. Currently on No. 3 and it's my favorite so far, particularly the second and fourth movements

Unfortunately I think my good headphones are wearing out; everything sounds way too quiet even at full volume. Ordering a new pair soon but in the meantime I will have to be content with taking a break from slowly deafening myself by obsessively listening to classical music

There are apparently two different Symphony No. 4s. The first, Op. 47, was completed in 1930, and it was heavily revised to create the second, Op. 112. Both used material from the Prodigal Son ballet. Listening to the 1947 one now and will check out the original after that

Finishing up with No. 7 now! Prokofiev apparently added a cheerful ending to it in an attempt to win the Stalin Prize. He succeeded but told conductor and cellist Mstislav Rostropovich, "Slava, you will live much longer than I, and you must take care that this new ending never exists after me"

I think Symphony No. 3 is still my favorite, but I would like to revisit 5 and 6

Tomorrow...maybe Romeo and Juliet? I have plans tomorrow night but might as well at least get started on it. I also want to listen to his other concertos and sonatas. And more of his ballet music

Day 3

Listened to the first two acts of Romeo and Juliet today. Someone said that it was like two and a half hours long but not boring and they were right on both counts! It is hard to beat "Dance of the Knights," though. It's exciting every time that theme comes back

Day 5

I had plans yesterday and felt like watching something vs. listening to music when I got home, so finishing Romeo and Juliet now! It's great overall, but from today's listening session, I especially like Juliet Alone

And Juliet's Funeral! Of course Acts 3 and 4 would be my favorites since they're the most depressing ones

Listening to Cinderella now

Think I'll stick with my wired headphones. I'm used to listening to music with them now and it is REALLY nice not having to charge them or think about the battery level at all

Done with Cinderella and on to the piano sonatas

Day 7

So uhh I thought today was Monday

Finished the piano sonatas and currently listening to the Lieutenant Kijé suite. Pretty tired so that will probably be it for Prokofiev week

The style of his solo piano music is interesting (very aggressive at times!) and Romeo and Juliet was awesome. Would definitely like to relisten to some of what I heard this week and listen to more at some point

[composeroftheweek]

This week's composer: Franz Schubert (1797-1828)

Well. I was going to do Carl Nielsen this week, but Wednesday was a bad mental health day and I ended up just listening to the chronological Schubert playlist as part of an attempt to distract myself. Then on Thursday, I found out my sister died Wednesday night. So this is less a usual CotW thing and more me just listening to Schubert because I like him and need the distraction and also I didn't want to throw my week numbers off by completely skipping a week

I'm not sure how much I will write about it and I am not going to try to keep up my usual pace and spend hours listening every day. But I would like to keep track of what I listen to and any particularly enjoyable and/or interesting pieces

Will probably spend a good bit of it working on the chronological playlist, where I'm on D. 264

Anyway

Day 1

Kind of into this second, more angsty setting of "Der Jüngling am Bache"! Which might actually be my favorite Schubert piece (the first setting). I get it stuck in my head A LOT and am currently trying to memorize it because only being able to sing like four lines of it was annoying

Also I am determined to like "An den Mond" because 1) songs about the moon are cool and 2) I just learned how to say "the moon" in German

Der vierjahrige Posten was fun, especially the prelude and the second-to-last song

Relistened to Symphony No. 3 and enjoyed it a lot more the second time around

Listened to 20 Waltzes

Day 2

I listened to and probably posted this during the last Schubert week but holy shit it's so good

Day 3

Working on the chronological playlist tonight, so lots of songs!

I was looking forward to "Trinklied im Winter" and am delighted to find that he went with a trio for it vs. a soloist

What is up with the last stanza though

---

Der stolzen Frau

Färb braun und blau

Den Kamm, der adlich ihr schwillet!

Nur musst du fliehn

Den Hermelin,

Der junge Busen verhüllet.

I should probably try to actually finish listening to Winterreise this week. I made it like halfway through before but I am more into his vocal music now. I would also like to keep working on the chronological playlist and listen to more of his instrumental music since the playlist/his catalogue is mostly songs. Maybe relisten to more of the symphonies. I don't know. We'll see!

That proud woman,

She should be black and blue

For getting ideas above her station!

But you have to renounce

The ermine

That covers young breasts!

Day 4

Working on the chronological playlist again. Listening to Piano Sonata No. 2 now. Apparently it's regarded as incomplete because it has only three movements but D. 346 or D. 309A might be the missing movement

I am looking forward to Mass No. 3 but mostly I am ready for some more complex instrumental music. The piano accompaniment for his lieder is very simple and I've heard that thing where it slows down and moves into slighter lower notes at the end like 300 times. Which is not an exaggeration but a completely reasonable estimate

It's actually getting a bit grating, so I think I'm going to take a break from the playlist. Listened to String Quartets Nos. 1-2 and now relistening to Symphony No. 8 and probably No. 9 after that

Day 5

Listened to Symphony No. 3 yet again while driving home today and thoroughly enjoyed it

Worked on the chronological catalogue some more. "Erlkönig" is so good

Might relisten to some more symphonies tomorrow as I feel like I am slowly or maybe not so slowly being driven insane by lieder and could use a break from the playlist

Day 6

Finding lieder less maddening today, so back to the playlist. Nice and gloomy!

Got a full minute into D. 374 before I realized it was actually instrumental vs. a song with an unusually long intro

Day 7

Relistened to some symphonies (6 and 7) and now relistening to some favorites from the first Schubert week

I am going to need a break from him after this. And maybe I should give up on the chronological playlist. I really don't want to ruin his music for myself and it feels like that's where I'm headed if I continue with it

Anyway listening to every last recorded piece of music by your favorite composer is cool and obsessive and all, but it's really not necessary, and it is okay to prefer their instrumental music!

I am not 100% done with his lieder but maybe I could listen to compilations when I'm in the mood for it instead of ALL OF IT

[composeroftheweek]

This week's composer: Dmitri Shostakovich (1906-1975)

Day 1

The generator gave me Christoph Willibald Gluck, an opera composer, and there are no good birthdays or dates of death on my calendar, so fuck it, Shostakovich week

Some current favorites:

This is such a fun piece! It's like a playful chase that turns threatening

I think there's a categorization issue with this one. Like it's actually part of the Suite for Variety Orchestra No. 1 vs. Jazz Suite No. 2?

And the second movement of String Quartet No. 8

I will probably start with his string quartets

I'm excited! I really haven't listened to much of his music but I like what I have heard so much that I basically already consider myself a fan. So uh hopefully I actually end up liking more than a handful of pieces

Day 2

Stopping for the night on String Quartet No. 10

Day 3

Taking a break from the string quartets to listen to his concertos (two each for piano, violin, and cello)

I was not expecting something as dreamy-sounding as the second movement

The first movement of Violin Concerto No. 1 is so eerie!

Also very into the last movement of Cello Concerto No. 1

Everything I've listened to from him, both before and during this, has so much personality to it. Interesting and forceful, even when I'm not particularly into it. I have yet to find anything that gives me that "this music is so beautiful it's killing me" feeling but he is the most entertaining composer to listen to I've heard so far

Listening to his piano quintet and two piano trios now. Will probably start on the symphonies tomorrow; there are 15 of them, so that will take some time (~11 hours apparently)

This is fun!

Listened to some waltzes and film scores -- The Gadfly Suite, which I really liked, and the Five Days, Five Nights Suite. One of those had a bit of the Ode to Joy in it, so that was fun

From The Gadfly Suite:

Day 4

Relistened to Symphony No. 9 and then kept going from there. Currently on the last movement of No. 11 and I love the quiet bit that starts at around 8:10

Now listening to No. 15 because I saw someone describe it as "incredibly dark and cruel"

Keeping track of the ones I've listened to

[1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15] = done!

Relistening to Piano Concerto No. 1 now since I found a recording with Shostakovich on piano (Shostakovich Plays Shostakovich). That'll probably be it for tonight

I guess I might as well listen to all of his symphonies since I made a good dent in them today. I also want to listen to all of his solo piano music, which should take about 5.5 hours. And his non-symphony orchestral music. And his ballets

Well...he was born on August 9th and died September 25th, so whatever I don't get to will be a good starting point for either or both of those weeks

Day 5

I started on the piano music but the house was too loud, so I switched to Symphony No. 4. Really glad I did, because I love it!

While he was composing it, Pravda published three pieces criticizing his music. It was completed in 1936 but not performed until nearly 30 years later, in 1961

Fun fact: Prokofiev died on the same day as Stalin and Shostakovich attended both of their funerals

I am enjoying his symphonies, which is kind of surprising. In general, I'm not that into them, but before this, I listened to and liked No. 9, so I figured I should check out the rest. I guess he would be an exception

On to Nos. 7 and 8 and looking forward to 13 (sometimes referred to as Babi Yar) and 14; they sound interesting!

Day 6

Just started No. 13 and got chills about a minute and a half in, so this seems promising! Looks like the recommended recording is the earliest one, with Kirill Kondrashin, Vitaly Gromadsky, and the Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra

PDF with song texts and translations

From the fourth movement:

We weren’t afraid of construction work in blizzards, or of going into battle under shell-fire, but at times we were mortally afraid of talking to ourselves.

Going with Kondrashin for No. 14 as well, but there is a version that's conducted by Bernard Haitink with Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, my favorite for Schubert's lieder, with the poems sung in their original languages vs. Russian that I might check that out later

PDF with (Russian) song texts and translations

Feeling kind of burnt out but I guess I might as well listen to No. 12 now and then the last/first three tomorrow

Listened to The Execution of Stepan Razin because I couldn't resist that title. It's awesome! Then The Sun Shines over Our Motherland. Listening to The Song of the Forests now

Oh god there's so much more I want to listen to. More of his vocal music, suites, assorted symphonic works, ballets, incidental music, and piano music, especially 24 Preludes and Fugues. So basically his whole catalogue other than film music and opera, though I would be up for the former once I got through the rest and am at least interested in Lady Macbeth after reading a bit about the history of it. I would also like to relisten to his symphonies

Day 7

I decided to listen to the remaining symphonies in reverse order and am on the first/last one now. No. 3 felt really short (only a little over 26 minutes long) and No. 2 is only like 17 minutes long. Didn't really like either of them, and apparently Shostakovich himself described them as "completely unsatisfactory." So kind of a downer of an ending, though I like No. 1 a lot more than those two and of course none of that changes the fact that I liked the other 12 symphonies, some very much! I think my favorites are 4, 9, and 13, but I definitely want to give the others another shot at some point

Listening to 24 Preludes and Fugues now after getting kind of overwhelmed while looking through his catalogue. And now the Cello Sonata in D Minor and Violin Sonata in G Major

I guess that's it! Summary: BIG FAN

[composeroftheweek]

This week's composer: Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873-1943)

Reminder: Look for recordings of him playing/conducting his own music. Update: Found some but the sound quality was intolerable

Day 1

Excellent

I was looking forward to his second piano concerto since it seems to be everyone's favorite piece and then I got to the second movement and it's the melody for "All By Myself." What the fuck

I don't like this lol

Update: Was so offended that I ditched him for Schubert, but just for tonight

Day 5

This is wonderfully eerie!

Just listened to all of his symphonies and god I hate the finale of the third one

I'm almost done with him and I've slacked off a lot and also feel like I haven't really dug into his music. I've listened to his piano sonatas, piano concertos, symphonies, cello sonata, Symphonic Dances, some of his vocal music, and some standalone symphonic pieces, but most of what he wrote was for solo piano. I would also like to check out more of his vocal music. So that is the plan for tomorrow

Day 6

Listened to All-Night Vigil and currently about halfway through his solo piano music

I realized that the list from the last entry is actually pretty long and that he really didn't put out much music, at least compared to some of the other composers I've done. I think his opus numbers go up to 45? So yeah, I feel like I haven't listened to much but really there is not that much to listen to

I am kind of ready to be done with him. Earlier I was like, "I didn't think it was possible to dislike someone more than Bruckner." With Bruckner, I at least felt like there was something there if I could just get his music to click for me, but I think I just generally dislike Rachmaninoff's style. He is also sometimes too much for me, while at worst I just found Bruckner dull

I am judging my mom a bit for once saying that she liked him lol. Though at most she's probably a very casual fan; I've never seen her listening to classical music

Anyway, tomorrow: Finish the solo piano music and then listen to Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini

Day 7

I am so tired but I will say that I like him a LOT more after listening to Moments Musicaux and Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini! Also maybe I just needed to listen to him while hungry, cold, and sleep-deprived? lol

Anyway that is it for Rachmaninoff week!

[composeroftheweek]

This week's composer: Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)

Day 1

I decided I would let myself pick composers if their birthday or death date was that week, so here we are -- today is the 198th anniversary of Beethoven's death

Since I listened to all of his symphonies last time, I'm starting off round two with his piano sonatas and concertos

Fuck dude, the fourth movement of Piano Sonata No. 1

About four minutes into this I was like "Yeah, I'd let Beethoven strangle me" and I am delighted to be experiencing that "this music is trying to kill me and I'm okay with that" feeling again so early on

Made it to Piano Sonata No. 9 tonight

Day 2

Currently on the first movement of No. 12 ("Moonlight Sonata") and it's slow enough for me!!! Thank you, Alfred Brendel!

I added some random recording of it to my playlist the first time around, but it was too fast. I mean it was by Jenő Jandó, who is apparently a very well-regarded pianist, but I hadn't listened to any of his other stuff and just wanted to get that track on the playlist as a current favorite despite being kind of burnt out on it

It's just one of those classical pieces you end up hearing over and over again without trying. Maybe in the form of some heavy-handed Classical Hits version of it that smothers all the charm out of it

And despite being sick of it, I somehow also became very picky about the tempo, to the point that I gave up on trying to find a slower version because I couldn't stand listening to so many that felt too fast

But I am very pleased with Brendel's tempo and the charm is back now!

I do much prefer Jandó's interpretation of the third movement of No. 14, though. I read a comment where someone was gushing over it immediately after listening to Brendel's version, which I didn't find particularly moving. Then I put on Jandó's and was like OH I get it now. It feels much more turbulent!

Stopping for the night on No. 17

A little worried I'm going to get distracted or something and JUST end up listening to the piano sonatas. But I am confident that I'll listen to his music every day and not feeling daunted by only being halfway through them. Instead I'm glad there are so many left

Day 3

A little more worried about that now, but I guess I might be able to finish the piano sonatas tomorrow? The last one I listened to was No. 22, so 10 more to go! Then...I don't know. I would like check out the violin sonatas and string quartets and also the piano concertos

Day 4

God the first movement of Piano Sonata No. 30 is fucking incredible

And the opening of the second movement is so cool! I could listen to that first 10 seconds or so over and over again

Brendel actually recorded the complete piano sonatas three times. I'm listening to the most recent one (2010s)

Listening to the last one now!

There was a moment tonight where I thought "I might like Beethoven more than Schubert" and kind of recoiled once the thought really sunk in. I can't handle that big of a change, man. Though I guess if anyone is going to take Schubert's spot it might as well be his favorite composer

Side note: I am kind of burnt out on Schubert because of the chronological playlist, so I might stop that or still try to listen to his whole catalogue, just not chronologically, and maybe focus on the instrumental stuff. I like his lieder but there is so much of it and I mostly prefer his instrumental music

Anyway, done with the piano sonatas!!! So much amazing music. Legitimately feels like a post-concert high

I thought I'd want to switch to non-piano music after this, but yeah, might start on the piano concertos tomorrow

Day 6

Got a bit distracted, but I did listen to the piano concertos on Saturday and the violin sonatas yesterday/Sunday and just started on the string quartets

I love the part at around 5:00 where it gets quiet and then gradually ramps up again. Also, English: quartet, German: Quartett

Stopping for the night on No. 7

Day 7

Currently on No. 14 and just realized it was an hour past midnight. So I guess that's it for Beethoven week #2! I'm kind of too tired to think, so I will finish those tomorrow before moving on to the next composer

Anyway: BIG FAN

[composeroftheweek]

This week's composer: William Byrd (1540?-1623)

Current favorite:

Saw something about him composing a lot of virginal music and was like "Music about virgins...?" but apparently the virginals or virginal is like a smaller, simpler harpsichord. Though given that he was an English Renaissance composer, virgins/the Virgin Mary probably come up pretty often

My favorite from Disc 1 of Davitt Moroney's Byrd: The Complete Keyboard Music:

Listened to William Byrd: Essential Works while hiking the other day. Favorite instrumental:

Favorite vocal tracks:

"Ye Sacred Muses" is interesting, too. It was written after the death of Byrd's mentor, Thomas Tallis. Queen Elizabeth granted Byrd and Tallis a 21-year monopoly over the printing of music and Byrd retained the monopoly after Tallis' death

I can't find much information about their output during the monopoly, just that their first and possibly only joint project during that time period was a collection of 17 songs, one for each year of Queen Elizabeth's reign, called Cantiones quae ab argumento sacrae vocantur (Songs which by their argument are called sacred). It was not a commercial success

Got about 12 minutes left of Byrd week and not much else to say, so I will just wrap it up here!

I was definitely more into the vocal music than anything, with a few exceptions (most posted above). I listened to more of The Complete Keyboard Music and it kind of started to blur together after a while. It was fun, but I am feeling a little grateful for the Italian influence on English Renaissance music given that I've listened to very little music from that time period and really liked Monteverdi. Much of Byrd's work wasn't dramatic or emotional enough to appeal to me

[composeroftheweek]

This week's composer: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1790)

Oh thank god. I am so fucking ready for a heavyweight after Saint-Säens and Copland. And MOZART!!!

Current favorites: too many to post videos for them all, but the first movements of Symphony No. 25, Symphony No. 40, and Piano Concerto No. 20 and Serenade No. 13 (Eine kleine Nachtmusik), Lacrimosa from the Requiem

I should probably try to finally watch Amadeus this week. It looks pretty amusing

Day 1

Spent the last half hour trying to decide what recording of Requiem to listen to before settling on Dunedin Consort with John Butt conducting. Apparently it's the closest to a "definitive" version there is, given Mozart died before completing it. A year later, a composer named Franz Xaver Süssmayr finished it, and then other composers followed suit. This recording is based on Süssmayr's version

Listening to his piano sonatas now (1-15 but stopping for the night on the second movement of No. 2). Might not go back to them, at least for a while, because I would like to hear some strings

This is just cool. Like calm and confident

Mozart's first four piano concertos are based on other composers' work, possibly as part of his father teaching him how to compose. This movement is based on Johann Schobert's Op. 17, No. 2

I was excited to find another Schubert soundalike (in name only) but apparently Schobert wanted to eat some mushrooms he picked, was told by two chefs that they were poisonous, had a doctor friend who told him they were edible, and used them in a soup that ended up killing the doctor, him, his wife, and all but one of his kids

Anyway I'm liking his piano concertos! Made it to the 10th one tonight

Day 6

Started on Mozart's later piano concertos tonight and listened to...er...Symphony No. 25, maybe? Not sure since I jumped around a lot

There is something that sounds like a person speaking in it that is freaking me out, though! Might look for another recording later

Day 7

Currently listening to this:

I completely forgot about Amadeus. It's like three hours long and I would prefer to spend the time I have left listening to music, so maybe another time

Okay I've been listening to a playlist of his opera for like two hours while playing chess, so I'm not sure what most of what I listened to was, but it is pretty great!

And finishing with more piano concertos. I got so into this album that I didn't realize it was recorded live until this track (the second to last) vs. immediately being annoyed by the audience noise and finding another recording

Well, that is it for Mozart. The piano concertos were my favorite by far, but I also enjoyed...basically everything I listened to, though I did get bored with the piano sonatas pretty quickly. Despite that, I'm not super into his style. It's a bit too refined? classical-y? for me, I guess

[composeroftheweek]

This week's composer: Aaron Copland (1900-1990)

I transcribed a lecture on him a while back and checked out his music afterward, so I've already listened to Fanfare for the Common Man, Billy the Kid, Appalachian Spring, and of course "Hoe-Down"

I didn't really like any of it, but...there is a lot more to listen to!

Honestly he is a bit more recently deceased than I would prefer but what are you gonna do

Day 1

I do like jazz and he seems to have some jazz/jazz-influenced stuff

This is nice!

Grudgingly adding "Hoe-Down" to my CotW playlist. It is cheesy as hell but it is also very catchy

Day 7

Ohhh shit I kind of forgot about him. And may have spent several hours listening to a certain Austrian composer today

Haha anyway

I've added less of his music to my CotW playlist than I did Bruckner's, which is pretty sad. I do like him more than Bruckner, I think? But it is a similar thing -- being unmoved by the vast majority of his music.

I guess it doesn't help that he's like THE American composer, so his style doesn't feel very interesting. He also tried to compose music that would appeal to the general public vs. classical music fans, so I guess it's a bit less complex than what I'm used to?

Finishing out Copland week with Music for a Great City

[composeroftheweek]

This week's composer: Camille Saint-Saëns (1835-1921)

Excellent! I've been wanting to listen to more of his music. I think all I've listened to so far is The Carnival of the Animals?

Current favorite:

Listened to his five piano concertos today. He has an interesting style, which I guess I should have expected from someone who composed a piece as weird as "Aquarium"

Favorites: Nos. 4 and 5 (Egyptian), the slow movement of No. 1

Listened to Danse macabre and currently listening to his third violin concerto

Listening to the Organ Symphony. It's lovely! I immediately went back and relistened to the first movement and am doing the same with the second movement now

It was Saint-Saëns' last symphony and he began composing it while also working on Le Carnaval des animaux (The Carnival of the Animals). It premiered in May of 1886 and after Franz Liszt died that July, Saint-Saëns dedicated it to him

Pointing out that it is Friday and that I did actually get around to listening to him today because I feel bad about my weekend plans! But I do intend to listen to some of his music on top of Chopin and Smetana's

Day 7

I listened to this earlier in the week but got really into it today. I think this might be tied with "Aquarium" for my favorite piece now; I love every movement of it

Currently relistening to The Carnival of the Animals since it's been a while and I really just remember "Aquarium." It is very fun!

I started listening in the car and the title for the eighth movement was cut off so that the only full word visible was "personnages," so I kind of assumed it was about people and was surprised and amused that that's how he would choose to represent humans. But it is actually about donkeys, which makes a lot more sense

After that, I started listening to Schubert and then ate too much pasta and then listened to more Schubert, so...that's it for Saint-Saëns! I guess I wasn't too into him given I had no problem ditching him for three other composers (or actually four since I did listen to half of Messiaen's Quartet for the End of Time on Monday), but I really liked some of his pieces, enjoyed listening to everything else I heard, and am glad I went beyond The Carnival of the Animals

[composeroftheweek]

This week's composer: Claudio Monteverdi (1567-1643)

By far the oldest one I've gotten so far!

It looks like he composed little to no instrumental music but I guess I have pretty thoroughly disabused myself of the notion that I don't like vocal works or have a strong preference for instrumental music at this point, so whatever

Day 1

I already found something I like!

Recommendations from Reddit: Vespro della Beata Vergine (Vespers for the Blessed Virgin; recommended recording: Apollo's Fire), L'orfeo, L'Incoronazione di Poppea, Il ritorno d'Ulisse in patria, Album: Christina Pluhar and Philippe Jaroussky's Teatro d'Amore (apparently they put a bit of a modern spin on some of the pieces, though), his madrigals (recommended recording: Marco Longhini and Delitae Musicae), group: L'Arpeggiata

Day 5

I've kind of been slacking off re: Monteverdi, but I'm trying to make up for that today; I spent several hours listening to his music and am currently working on a 50-track playlist

Not that I have much to compare it to, but I've really been enjoying L'Arpeggiata's interpretations of his music!

Like they seem like they're having so much fun here

Lyrics and English translation

Also I figured out that if "lamento" or "tormento" is in the title, I will probably like it lol

Lyrics and English translation

Day 7

I was going to start this by complaining about how tired and burnt out on listening to things I am after getting done with work at 9:30, but then I started listening to L'Orfeo. This is very nice!

Composed in 1607, L'Orfeo is the earliest opera that's still performed regularly

Well, this is like two hours long and I started it after 11pm, so I guess that's it for Monteverdi week!

I'm glad I went back on my earlier decision to skip composers who focused entirely or almost entirely on vocal works. I enjoyed a good bit of his stuff and it was nice listening to something different in terms of both form and style

[composeroftheweek]

Week by week

Domenico Scarlatti

Franz Schubert

Erik Satie

Ludwig van Beethoven

Hector Berlioz

Anton Bruckner

Francis Poulenc

Claudio Monteverdi

Camille Saint-Saëns

Aaron Copland

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

William Byrd

Ludwig van Beethoven

Sergei Rachmaninoff

Dmitri Shostakovich

Franz Schubert

Sergei Prokofiev

Johannes Brahms

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky

Side project: chronological Schubert playlist

[composeroftheweek]

This week's composer: Francis Poulenc (1899-1963)

Member of Les Six and mentee of Satie until they had some sort of falling out, possibly due to Poulenc becoming friends with one of Satie's (seemingly many) enemies

Day 1

This is so lively and fun! The first movement alone cured me of the lingering effects of Bruckner week

It reminds me of when it finally warms up and you peel all of your layers off and can stretch out vs. bracing yourself for the cold

Day 5

Poulenc with Wanda Landowska!

He composed his Concert champêtre harpsichord concerto for her and she was the soloist at its premiere

There is also a recording of Poulenc playing a solo piano version of it

I haven't had the energy to spend much time on Poulenc this week, which is frustrating but also feels like good timing. Everything I've listened to has been interesting; I haven't had to spend hours digging through his catalogue to find music I like

I did not want to watch an entire three-hour opera for this, but I read good things about the final song of Dialogues des Carmélites, so I figured I'd at least check that out. It is quite chilling!

Listened to a crackly recording of Concert champêtre with Wanda Landowska playing the harpsichord, Les biches (ballet), Les animaux modéles (ballet), Trois mouvements perpétuels (solo piano), and a solo piano version of Suite française, the last two played by Poulenc himself

Day 7

I am very tired and not sure how much more of his music I'll get through; I don't feel like I can really pay attention to it. I will probably get a second wind soon, but otherwise I might focus on learning more about him. Les Six, working with Satie and Jean Cocteau, living and composing in Nazi-occupied France...it's all very interesting!

Speaking of his music, though, I am VERY into "Salve Regina" from Dialogues des Carmélites and have spent around four hours total just listening to it over and over again. I guess I would get obsessed with a song where people are being decapitated. I was listening to it in the car earlier and turned it up and got chills when I realized it had gotten quieter because I was about two-thirds of the way through, by which point most of the nuns are dead and no longer singing

Knowing the context probably helps, but even without that, I think it might have the same emotional impact. It's certainly not a piece you can listen to without realizing that something terrible is happening. The sense of hopelessness, helplessness, and resignation in the face of an awful fate

I especially like how the first death, the first guillotine sound, at around 1:24 in both the video I posted earlier and the audio I've been listening to (Kent Nagano with the Orchestre de l'Opéra de Lyon) is startling and their singing immediately becomes more intense while future deaths, aside from the last one, which is still substantially less dramatic than the first, almost blend into the music. No noticeable response from the singers. They sing over it, or it seemingly happens in the middle of a line or between lines, during a natural pause, or it's followed by silence from the singers but not in a way that feels like it means anything -- not like it's suggesting that that death was particularly noteworthy

If he had kept up the pattern of the first death, highlighting each one, it might feel like a bit much. But he didn't and it's so good. It's underway. It's inescapable. All they can do is wait their turn to be swept away by it

And yeah, the tipping point where you realize it's gotten quieter and why

And this, from the Wiki page:

At the place of execution, one nun after another stands and slowly processes toward the guillotine, as all sing the "Salve Regina" ("Hail, Holy Queen"). At the last moment, Blanche appears, to Constance's joy, to join her condemned sisters. Having seen all the other nuns executed, as she mounts the scaffold, Blanche sings the final stanza of the "Veni Creator Spiritus," "Deo Patri sit gloria…", the Catholic hymn traditionally used when taking vows in a religious community and offering one's life to God.

I love the idea of Blanche's solo being a sort of vow renewal, rededicating herself to both God and her fellow nuns in the brief period between her sudden return and her execution

It's such a beautiful, devastating piece. And a very stark contrast to the chaotic, playful music I started the week with. It's hard to believe that the same person was responsible for all of it, and I kind of feel like I need to reevaluate his instrumental music now

Like when I first listened to it, the lighter moments in the first movement of his Organ Concerto felt more "him," while the darker, more intense moments felt kind of shallow; I couldn't reconcile them with what I'd already heard at the time. But now...yeah

Ah. I read about his best friend dying and it prompting his return to Catholicism, but I somehow missed the fact that the friend was decapitated

From here:

Francis Poulenc’s closest friend was the affable and gregarious Pierre-Octave Ferroud (1900-1936); together they co-founded and directed the Triton contemporary chamber music group from 1932-1936. Among the younger generation of French composers, Ferroud had begun to be acclaimed for his colorful and dense orchestrations, with compositions admired and advocated by both Prokofiev and Ravel. In August 1936, while Francis Poulenc was vacationing in southwestern France, he learned that Ferroud had been beheaded in a car crash while walking along a road in Debrecen, Hungary. Immediately after hearing the news, Poulenc went to the ancient monastery Notre Dame de Rocamadour, in the Lot River Valley, with its revered “black” statue of the Virgin, a common pilgrimage destination. That night he began his first religious work, the Litanies of the Black Virgin, based on pilgrims’ prayers. At the same time, Poulenc began to examine his own religious beliefs: through a number of sacred works written over the next 25 years, he developed a unique religious musical style, both confirming and questioning the significance of faith. The violence of Ferroud’s death haunted Poulenc for years, prompting a new seriousness and depth of expression in his music—and eventually finding its grotesque echo in the celebrated guillotine finale of opera Dialogues.

Anyway

I've been meaning to listen to some of his sonatas, but I think I'll end with his Sept repons des tenebres (Seven Tenebrae Responses), which this page describes as "one of the darkest, most anguished works he ever wrote"

[composeroftheweek]

This week's composer: Anton Bruckner (1824-1896)

An organist! Excellent!

Day 1

I was wondering why the link for his wiki page was purple, but right, this is the guy who held Schubert and Beethoven's skulls when they were exhumed lol

Bruckner died in Vienna in 1896 at the age of 72. He is buried in the crypt of the monastery church at Sankt Florian, immediately below his favorite organ. He had always had a fascination with death and dead bodies, and left explicit instructions regarding the embalming of his corpse.

Apparently he also had a thing for teenage girls, which is...not great, but at least seems to have been limited to him proposing to them

Anyway

Listening to Symphony No. 1 now. Apparently 7-9 are really good, but I'll get there eventually. On No. 4 now. Nos. 1-3 had some brief enjoyable moments, but with No. 4 we are finally getting somewhere!

Read the main bits about Bruckner in two books about composers and my takeaway was that Mahler (a friend and fan of his work) sounds interesting. Bruckner does not, aside from the teenage girl thing, which is not interesting in a good way, and him being extremely religious and enjoying (or compulsively?) counting things

Taking a break from his symphonies to listen to some of his vocal works. This is nice!

Listening to Symphony No. 7 now, having skipped 5 and 6. I might go back and listen to them later but I'm just not really into him and I do want to at least listen to 7-9

lol

Bruckner's symphonies are stiflingly, crushingly, oppressive. Once you're in one, you can't get out again. Spend too long in their grip and you lose the will to live. They are cold-blooded and exceedingly long, and they go round and round in circles.

Also

Bruckner (1824-1896) was obsessive compulsive. He had a counting mania – to the point that he would stand under a tree and count its leaves.

ND solidarity I guess

I kind of get what they and others have said about his symphonies -- overly long, bloated, repetitive. Like I said, there were some enjoyable moments in 1-3, but then the moment passed and it almost would have been less disappointing if it hadn't been there in the first place

Overall I just find him kind of dull so far. Like yep, this is definitely classical music, but I haven't found anything personally appealing. I'm not connecting with his music

Still hoping to find something that will make him click for me, though

This Reddit comment helped

Okay I really like the third movement of No. 7!! Relistening to it now

I did like the first and last movements of No. 4 as well (kind of forgot about that), but nowhere near as much as this

Day 7

Listening to some of his instrumental non-symphonic works now, which there aren't many of. I started with chamber music and am on solo piano now. Then on to the organ

This is nice!

Or was until it annoyed me by becoming fast and happy lol

Bruckner can you not make me like you for more than three minutes

Also I do not like organ music as much as I thought

Well, that's about it! I'm sure this goes without saying at this point, but overall, after spending at least 15 hours listening to it, I don't really like his music. I feel like I could like it more if I spent more time listening to it, but I don't really want to

[composeroftheweek]

Update: Supposed to be back to Berlioz now but have been sidetracked by this ridiculous playlist

Currently on Overture in C Minor, D. 8a, which he composed when he was 14 (track 14).

2/1: Made it to Kyrie in B flat major, D. 45 (track 47)

2/7: Apparently last time I listened to this, I added both versions of "Der Jüngling am Bache" to my Schubert playlist because I couldn't decide which I liked best (Fischer-Dieskau or Lothar Odinius). Edit: Definitely Fischer-Dieskau, but I love it enough I will probably keep listening to both of them

Was wondering why the fuck the first movement of String Quartet No. 4 was making me tear up but I think I'm just happy to be listening to Schubert again lol

Composer of the week Schubert year

Made it to the end of the string quartet (track 51)

2/8: Made it to the end of String Quartet No. 6 (track 81). Seven vocal works and then it'll be time to relisten to his first symphony!

2/9: Track 93! Zoned out for almost the entirety of Symphony No. 1, but I've listened to it before, so...onward

2/10: Track 120! Unfortunately about four hours' worth of tracks have been removed from Spotify since the playlist was made. I decided to ignore that and maybe go back and listen to other versions of the missing tracks later, but there is a whole album of waltzes missing in the 100s...so I guess I will look for those and try to fill in any larger gaps I come across

[composeroftheweek]

This week's composer: Hector Berlioz (1803-1869)

A French Romantic composer with a cool name

Day 1

Started reading his chapter in The Lives and Times of the Great Composers

Carl Zelter described his music as "an abortion arising from loathsome incest," and Mendelssohn found him "agreeable and interesting and a great deal more sensible than his music"

I think I'm going to save the rest of the chapter for later because it's psyching me out a bit, though I'm assuming he had more positive reviews later on. He also seems to be fairly popular with modern classical music fans

Started with the Symphonie fantastique. The bells in the fifth movement are interesting

Relistened because the volume was too low the first time around. I like it, especially the first movement

Listened to the Harold en Italie symphony and the Benvenuto Cellini, Le carnaval romain, Le corsaire, and Béatrice et Bénédict overtures

I don't really like him so far. Nothing I dislike but nothing I wouldn't mind not hearing again. Usually when that happens I would go to the piano works, but unlike many of the major composers, Berlioz wasn't a pianist and didn't compose much for it. Franz Liszt, a friend and sometimes collaborator, transcribed some of his works for piano, though, so I might check that out later

Liszt's Berlioz transcriptions

Day 2

I was looking forward to listening to Berlioz's Roméo et Juliette because I like Prokofiev's even though that made no sense because the two of them have very different styles and Prokofiev's is a ballet vs. a symphony

But despite that, I fucking love it

It might be my favorite symphony so far. I love individual movements of other symphonies, sometimes 3/4 or 4/5, but this is the first time I've listened to one and immediately wanted to relisten to the entire thing

Berlioz's first wife, Harriet Smithson, was an actress. He became obsessed with her after he saw her in the role of Ophelia in a production of Hamlet, and he later saw her as Juliet in Romeo and Juliet. She was the inspiration for both the Symphonie Fantastique and Roméo et Juliette

Finished the rest of the Berlioz chapter and feel kind of bad for him now. He had some disastrous public performances and didn't seem to be very well-regarded or respected in France during his lifetime

Also the next chapter is about Mendelssohn and apparently he was just Like That

Day 4

Listening to the Les nuits d'été (Summer Nights) song cycle today

This is also nice!

Lyrics in French and English

Day 6

Oh my god

I was going to talk about his hair but this is more important

Day 7

Last day of Berlioz!

Okay, I started this before midnight on February 3rd and just realized that I actually have another full day! But now it is February 4th, so "last day" is accurate

Listened to "Villanelle," the first song of Les nuits d'été (Summer Nights), 23 times today. Currently listening to the Grande Messe des Morts (Requiem)

From here:

Among all his works, Requiem apparently held a special place in Berlioz's heart. During the last few years of his life, Berlioz wrote to a friend: "If I were threatened with the destruction of the whole of my works save one, I should crave mercy for the Messe des morts."

Yes I see the irony of skipping Meyerbeer because he had too many vocal works and then mostly preferring Berlioz's to his instrumental stuff

Also I am still going to talk about his hair. I kind of forgot about it and then looked at some caricatures of him and thought it must be exaggerated. But it wasn't; the reality was enough. It was very fluffy! No wonder they made him into a cat

I feel like I lost interest in seeking out more of his work pretty early on, content with what I'd already heard. But I am VERY glad I heard some of what I did, and I did manage to restrain myself from adding the entirety of Roméo et Juliette to my CotW playlist, so that's something

I am very tired and have to work now, so the last act of Berlioz week may have been listening to "Villanelle" an additional 30 times while driving today. But if I'm not too out of it once I'm done, I may listen to Roméo et Juliette again, or give one of his other symphonies another shot

Update: Listening to Roméo et Juliette while slumped over a sandwich