Listening ProjectBradley Paynter

April 14, 2014

Composition #1

Composition: Music for the Royal Fireworks (1749)by: G.F. Handel (1685-1759)Period: Baroque (1600-1750)

Why I liked this piece: I really enjoyed this piece because of the meaning behind it. It was originally composed to accompany a firework display celebrating the end of the War of the Austrian Succession. I have always been a fan of huge celebrations and this also reminds me of the National Anthem in some ways. It has a lot of nationalism in it, and that it what I really like about it.

Tone Quality/Loudness:The music really makes me feel happy. It gives me the idea that Im at a huge celebration and has a lot of nationalism in it. The texture is thick, due to the composition having so many instruments.

Rhythm:The rhythm is very active. It is so active because it is for a celebration and people want it to be matching to the celebration. The beat is fast also because they are celebrating.

Harmony:The harmony is being played by a slow percussion, which has a main snare drum. The texture is thick, due to the composition having so many instruments.

Melody:The melody is very wide. It has many highs and lows. It sounds happy because of the occasion it is written for.

Composition #2

Composition: The Entertainer (1902)by: Scott Joplin (1867-1917)Period: Modern (1900-present)

Why I liked this piece: I liked this piece because it is a very catchy tune and makes me feel happy.

Tone Quality/Loudness:The Tone quality is very happy, and very outgoing. It is something that would be used in a party setting to get the party going.

Rhythm:The rhythm is very active. It goes along very well with the tone quality, because when you think of happy things you tend to think of active and fast.

Harmony:The harmonic texture is thin, but it is typical in a piano piece.

Melody:The melody is narrow, the piece centers on a few main notes, and maintains it the entire song.

Composition #3

Composition: String Quartet in C Major, op. 76, no. 3 (1796)by: Franz Joseph Haydn (1732-1809)Period: Classical (1750-1820)

Why I liked this piece: This piece is very soothing. It actually relaxed me while I was doing this project. I stopped everything I was doing and lightened to the soothing strings by Haydn.

Tone Quality/Loudness:The tone quality is happy. The strings are very consonant and make listening very easy. I imagine a bird flying in the sky for the first part of the song, and could be considered program music.

Rhythm:The rhythm is moderately slow, but not really slow. It goes really well with the tempo of the violins that backs up the melody.

Harmony:The harmony is played by violins. The song has two violins and the slower softer violin is the one playing the harmony.

Melody:The melody is not narrow, yet it also is not wide. This is because it is not all violin, it also has cello, which has a lower sound than the violin.

Composition #4

Composition: Trio for Piano, Violin, and Cello in D Minor, op. 11 (1) (excerpt) (1850)by: Fanny Mendelssohn Hensel (1805-1847)Period: Romantic (1820-1900)

Why I liked this piece: I like this piece because it starts off very fast and immediately catches my attention. The use of the violin and cello with the piano really sounds pleasant to my ears.

Tone Quality/Loudness:The tone quality is happy, and typical of songs with the violin.

Rhythm:The rhythm is dotted. It has a unequally subdivided beat that has a long dotted note and then a short note.

Harmony:The harmonic is being played by in most parts, the violin. It leads on the rhythm as to which the piano or cello comes in and ultimately takes over while the violin maintains the harmony.

Melody:The melody is very wide. This is due to the piece having many instruments that all have pretty different sounds.

Composition #5

Composition: Now is the Month of Maying (1595)by: Thomas Morley (1558-1603)Period: Renaissance (1450-1600)

Why I liked this piece: I liked this piece because it is very different from what I have ever listened to. Although it isnt really happy and active like i usually like songs to be, this actually is nice. After listening to it for a couple of times, I believe you can truly appreciate the quality of the male and female voices bonding together.

Tone Quality/Loudness:The tone quality is happy. The voices blend very well together in a tone that is very pleasant to the ears.

Rhythm:The rhythm is light, yet is also very vigorous and demanding.

Harmony:The harmony is done by the male voices in the background which simply back up the other singers.

Melody:The melody is pretty wide. I give credit to the power of the human voice. It is a very powerful thing. The melody is very repetitive in that is repeats the same chorus over and over.