Day 12: A song you want played at your wedding + Day 13: A guilty pleasure

Guilty pleasure:


© Philip Brown

I became seriously addicted to Jelly Bellies this past Easter.  Need I say more?

* * *

If I were to get married, I would love for this hymn to be sung (or played).  I guess it's not a conventional wedding song, but I think it's rather fitting!

The church's one Foundation
Is Jesus Christ her Lord;
She is his new creation
By water and the Word:
From heav'n he came and sought her
To be his holy bride;
With his own blood he bought her,
And for her life he died.

Another great song with fitting lyrics is this Phantom of the Opera classic.   I love Jackie Evancho's version!  Few people sing with such heart (be sure to look up her version of "The Lord's Prayer", too):

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Password - Einaudi

Another piece by the Italian composer Ludovico Einaudi.  A little more cheerful than the last one I recorded, and lots of fun to play!  (The first (horrible) page turn is edited out.)

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"Chopin" by Schumann

So beautiful. If I could play this, I would play it all day long.

Interesting trivia about this piece--it is from a collection called "Carnaval", based on the idea/storyline of a masquerade or costume ball, attended by different real-life characters such as Chopin.  Several of the pieces, therefore, could be called character sketches in music form. :)

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Me playing "Ombre" / Einaudi

Practice recording* of Ombre ("Shadows"), by Ludovico Einaudi (obviously, I own nothing, and no copyright infringement is intended.  This is not an accurate recording.):



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If you don't like this song, that's ok; I understand.  Einaudi's music--you either love it or don't.  If you do like the song, I highly recommend buying his own recording from iTunes or Amazon.  He plays it (much) more accurately, a little slower, and with more rubato.

A big thank-you to my sister for turning the pages.  :)
  
*I'm a violinist, not a pianist.  I have no technique.  Besides that, I am still learning this piece, the piano hasn't been tuned in ages, and the sustain pedal makes a creaking sound. 

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And they all lived...

Earth Prelude / Einaudi

Theme song for the ending of my steampunk book.  If you were watching this in a theater, the screen would go blank and the credits would show up at about 3:27.  ;)
 
P.S.  If anybody knows where I may legally purchase and download this song, do let me know...I've already checked iTunes and Amazon, and they don't have it.  

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Poetry without words

I never listened to Debussy, until earlier this year.  But I found his was just the music to listen to, when homework got unpleasant (i.e. often).  In fact, if I had a theme song, I would say it's a tie between this Arabesque and Brahm's Rain Sonata (mvt 1).  My other Debussy favorites are Valse Romantique, the violin sonata (mvt 1), and Reverie.

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Alkan's genius

On one of my ramblings through the classical music on YouTube, I randomly came across a composer named Alkan (1813 – 1888).  I don't think I'd ever heard of him before, but I wish I had.



Alkan, to me, is kind of like a combination of Mendelssohn, Schumann, and Chopin; yet the incredible complexity of Alkan's music sets it in its own world.  It's not that it's terribly melodic, in that the melodic lines aren't quite as "focused" as those in Chopin or Schumann.  But Alkan's use of chord progression is magnificent; and the overall effect is somewhat abstract, without the horrors of Expressionism or the tedium of Minimalism. 

If you have fifteen minutes to spare, check out the Overture for solo piano as well--it's pretty epic.

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"Round and round the garden like a teddy bear"

So I finally learned how to play BBC's "Sherlock" themes on piano.  ^_^  Mind you, when I say "play", I really mean "pound"--my piano playing is about as pretty as the quadratic formula.  Couple that with a piano that's out of tune, and you have a most melodious music.  The Sherlock soundtrack is so good, though, that hopefully it makes up for my piano playing.  ;)



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I figured it out by ear...the second theme is definitely in the wrong key, though.  :P 

I wasn't so sure if I liked the soundtrack at first, but the more I've heard it the more I like it!  Especially that second theme--very catchy.  Needless to say, I've been playing these songs over and over again this past week...much to the annoyance of my family, I daresay.  :)

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Still my favourite genre

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Quick announcement + excerpt from Victorian story

I was awarded twice and got a tag, so a post on that is upcoming; also, I'm working on a character quiz that people can do, so that will be posted soon, too. And thirdly, thank you to all the new followers of my blog! :) The blog has been kind of boring lately, but I daresay it will get better, especially after I finish some sewing projects that I've been working on.

Now the excerpt! Disclaimer: I try to avoid cliches, in general. Believe me, I don't like them. But I did write a cliche scene in this story, and you can read it below.... My only (bad) excuse is that it might be deleted from the final draft. ;)

“My dear Miss Bridge,” exclaimed our host suddenly. “Might we beg you to entertain and enlighten the company with a performance? Come, come, just one piece—or two—perhaps some Mozart? I should be forever indebted to you if you would be so kind.”

The volume of Mr Gill's voice had been increasing as he spoke, and all the heads in “the company” were turned directly towards us by the end of this entreaty. I felt the colour come to my cheeks as I half-consciously murmured some words of assent; I had not been prepared, the question was so abrupt and unprecedented from Mr Gill, and the thought of performing just then, when the idea was so alarming to me, made my steps towards the piano rather too brisk and unsteady. I was to perform in front of an array of people whom I had only that evening met, and in particular, in front of the lieutenant; would he not think me quite forward and self-important? Inwardly, I recoiled at this possibility, while attempting to express modesty and good-naturedness in my voice as I accepted a few compositions from Mr Gill, who had darted across the drawing room and had taken some sheet music from a drawer in a small table. I longed to look at Lt Clifton to try to read his thoughts, but such a thing could not be done. Instead, I sat down, opened the piano, and set up the sheets of paper before me, for a moment wondering suddenly why I cared so much for the favourable opinion of any of the guests there present.

To say that, gradually, I found myself swept away by the blissful music, to say that I became overwhelmed by self-consciousness and made many an inharmonious blunder—neither would be quite true, for my playing was not marked by any remarkable turn or sentiment. The piece I had chosen from the proffered volume of sonatas was one I knew well: a B-flat major adagio in common time, by Mozart as suggested. Though Mozart is formidable music for the purpose of performing, and though I played with rather too little expression, it was a pleasant enough selection for the occasion; and, nonetheless yet mortified at performing in front of one to whom I was anxious to make a good impression, I realised that, with Mr Gill, the situation might have been worse, and that it was not such a very extraordinary or great thing he had asked of me. And so, I played on, unable to perceive in any degree what the guests were thinking, as I was facing a corner and had my back to them.

As you can see, my Victorian writing style needs some work...

Here's a video of the Mozart piece I had in mind:

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Yesterday, Tomorrow, and Right Now

I tried to write a post for today, but it just didn't come out right. I could say a lot about New Year's Eve, and I nearly did, but it isn't of much use.

It started raining a few moments ago. Then Bach came into my head. I have more appreciation for Bach now than I used to; it's amazing how his music lasts for centuries and centuries, but it never gets old.

If you have time, listen to this video; it's less than three minutes, but it's perfect for a day like this:

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