Tuesday, March 21, 2017

March Madness Listening Challenge: Week 3 Chamber Ensemble

Last week's winner was Rimsky-Korsakov's Flight of the Bumblebee - thanks for listening!

This week's videos feature music for piano in a chamber ensemble.  A chamber ensemble is a small group of musicians and can feature many different combinations of instruments from groups of strings, winds, and even percussion.  Chamber ensembles do not have a conductor - each musician is responsible for knowing not only their own part, but the parts of their partners so that they can listen and respond to the parts as they interact.

Since I've been so heavily featuring composers from Russia, I've moved to a completely different world region.  This week's listening examples come from two South American composers, both from Argentina.

The first is a piece by composer and arranger Astor Piazzolla (1921-1992).  Piazzolla injected fresh energy into the tango genre, creating a new style called "nuevo tango" that incorporated elements from classical music and jazz into the traditional tango.


The second is a work by another Argentinian, Alberto Ginastera (1916-1983).  The Danza de la Moza Donosa (Dance of the Beautiful Maiden) is a slow, gentle dance; originally written for solo piano, this is a beautiful arrangement for piano, violin, and cello.  





Which piece did you enjoy the most?




Which piece did you enjoy the most?

Piazzolla Oblivion (Gracieux Trio)
Ginastera Danza de la Moza Donosa
quotes to know

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