Musical Notes

The Inferno to Paradise: Mahler's First Symphony

In this episode, we explore Gustav Mahler's First Symphony, also known as Titan. We give a brief account of who Gustav Mahler was, discuss the history and conception of the piece, as well as go over each movement and discuss their structure and themes. If you enjoyed this episode, please consider leaving a rating/review and sharing this episode with your family and friends. If you have questions, suggestions, or feedback, please email us at podcastmusicalnotes@gmail.com. Recommended recordings: Seiji Ozawa with the Boston Symphony Orchestra (1988) Klaus Tennstedt with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra (1990) Claudio Abbado with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra (1981)

A Rewarding Journey: Octopath Traveler's Soundtrack

In this episode, we give a quick introduction to one of the best recent video game soundtracks, Octopath Traveler. We go through the background (0:33), the main theme (2:07), the character/location/town themes (6:28), the battle themes (12:16), and the ending theme (16:14). If you enjoyed this episode, please consider leaving a rating/review and sharing this episode with your family and friends. If you have questions or feedback, please email us at podcastmusicalnotes@gmail.com. Want to find out more about Octopath Traveler's Soundtrack? You can visit the composers blog [https://note.com/yasunori_nishiki/m/m794192564040] (though it is in Japanese) and check out this interview [https://www.reddit.com/r/octopathtraveler/comments/94dasw/octopath_traveler_soundtrack_interview_transcript/] with Yasunori Nishiki!

From Darkness to Light: Beethoven's Fifth Symphony

In this episode, we explore Beethoven's famous 5th Symphony. We discuss the history and conception of the piece, as well as going over each movement and discussing their structure and themes. If you enjoyed this episode, please consider leaving a rating/review and sharing this episode with your family and friends. If you have questions, suggestions, or feedback, please email us at podcastmusicalnotes@gmail.com. Music used: Beethoven Symphony No. 5 conducted by Herbert von Karajan with the Berlin Philharmonic Sources used (if you want to explore more): * Beethoven by Barry Cooper * Program notes from the Stow Symphony Orchestra [https://www.stoworchestra.org/program%20notes/Beethoven_Fifth_Symphony.html] and Fort Collins Symphony [https://fcsymphony.org/program-notes/beethoven-symphony-5/]

Introduction to Beethoven

In this episode, we give a quick introduction to the life and music of composer Ludwig Van Beethoven, one of the most important composers in Western classical music. If you enjoyed this episode, please consider leaving a rating/review and sharing this episode with your family and friends. If you have questions or feedback, please email us at podcastmusicalnotes@gmail.com. Suggested works for listening (to help you get started, we suggest starting with his early and middle works...his late works can be tough for newcomers to get into): * Early Period: Piano Sonatas #8 & 14, Symphony #1, String Quartets #1 - 6, Violin Sonata #5, Romance in F major * Middle Period: Piano Sonatas #21, 23, & 26, Symphonies #3, 5, 6, & 7, String Quartets #7 - 9, Piano Concerto #5, Violin Concerto * Late Period: Piano Sonatas #28 - 32, Symphony #9, String Quartets #12 - 16 (including the Grosse Fugue), Diabelli Variations, Missa Solemnis Music used (all pieces were composed by Beethoven): * Piano Trio No. 1 (performed by Beaux Arts Trio) * Eroica Variations (performed by Emil Gilels) * Piano Sonata No. 8 "Pathetique" (performed by Yundi Li) * Piano Sonata No. 14 "Moonlight" (performed by Jenö Jandó) * Symphony No. 5 (Herbert von Karajan with the Berlin Philharmonic) * Symphony No. 6 (Herbert von Karajan with the Berlin Philharmonic) * Symphony No. 9 (Günter Wand with the NDR Symphony Orchestra) * 6 Bagatelles, Op. 126 (Performed by Wilhelm Kempff) If you want to explore more: most of the information comes from Beethoven by Barry Cooper. Some additional sources used are listed below. * A Brief History of Beethoven [http://www.cco.caltech.edu/~tan/BeethovenMissaSolemnis/background_on_beethoven.html] * Concise History of Western Music [https://wwnorton.com/college/music/concise-history-western-music4/ch/17/outline.aspx#:~:text=He%20wrote%20music%20slowly%20and,1816%E2%80%931827%2C%20when%20his%20music] * Karl van Beethoven [https://www.classicfm.com/composers/beethoven/guides/karl-van-beethoven-nephew/] * Keeping Score: Eroica [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J5zFitBASEw]

The Butterfly Lovers' Concerto

In this episode, we explore The Butterfly Lovers' Concerto. We discuss the history and the conception of the piece, the story that inspired it, and the structure of this piece. If you enjoyed this episode, please consider leaving a rating/review and sharing this episode with your family and friends. If you have questions or feedback, please email us at podcastmusicalnotes@gmail.com. Music used: * The Moon Over a Fountain performed by Weiwei Wuu * Excerpts from The Butterfly Lovers' Concerto composed by He Zhanhao and Chen Gang and performed by the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra conducted by Chen Xieyang with Lü Siqing as soloist * The excerpts for glissando and vibrato were taken from this video [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ux3Z3yAK-UE] Sources used (if you want to explore more): * Story for the Butterfly Lovers [https://www.activityvillage.co.uk/the-butterfly-lovers] * The Butterfly Lovers' Violin Concerto (1959) by Ying Zhang [https://digitalscholarship.unlv.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=5277&context=thesesdissertations ] * The Butterfly Lovers' Violin Concerto by Zhanhao He and Gang Chen [https://kuscholarworks.ku.edu/handle/1808/14877?show=full] * Program notes from the New York Philharmonic [https://nyphil.org/~/media/pdfs/program-notes/1920/Chen-Gang-HE-Zhanhao-The-Butterfly-Lovers-Violin-Concerto.ashx] and San Francisco Symphony [https://www.sfsymphony.org/Data/Event-Data/Program-Notes/2/2019-Lunar-New-Year-Celebration]