SKU: A0.548699

A Trombone Christmas/Easter classic! Duration: 4:55 Score: 3 pg. Trombone part: 1 pg. Piano reads from the score. Schubert seems to have composed this piece as a song-setting. This is because he wanted to portray a poignant emotional event from a poem. The poem was Walter Scott's The Lady of the Lake. Consequently, this song became an integral part of Schubert's Song cycle. Therefore the cycle is called: the Lady of the Lake. In the poem, Ellen Douglas is the Lady of the Lake. The lake is probably Loch Katrine in the Scottish Highlands. First of all, Ellen goes with her father to stay in the Goblin's cave. They go because he earlier refused to join in a rebellion against King James. Roderick Dhu, the chief of the rebellious Alpine Clan, marches up the mountain with his army. But before the battle, he, first of all, hears Ellen singing. She is singing a prayer calling for help from the Virgin Mary. Schubert's piece was first performed at the castle of Countess Sophie Weissenwolff in Steyregg, Austria.  Schubert dedicated the arrangement to her, and as a result, she became famous as the lady of the lake.The incipit of Ellen's song is Ave Maria which is Latin for Hail Mary. It seems like this similarity led Schubert to adapt the melody to accommodate the Roman Catholic prayer Ave Maria. Consequently, the Latin version of Ave Maria finally became more famous than the original so that consequently many believe he wrote the Latin version first.

Schubert

Franz Schubert (1797–1828) was, in fact, a famous Austrian composer. Moreover, he composed during the late Classical and early Romantic periods. Schubert was comparatively prolific. He wrote more than 600 secular vocal works, seven symphonies, and, correspondingly, a massive amount of piano and chamber music. Critics agree, as a matter of fact, that his most famous works include his Piano Quintet in A major, D. 667 (also known as the Trout Quintet), the Symphony No. 8 in B minor, D. 759 (Unfinished Symphony), the last sonatas for piano (D. 958–960), and the song cycles Die schöne Müllerin (D. 795) and Winterreise (D. 911).

Education

Schubert was furthermore a musical child prodigy. He studied violin with his father as well as piano with his older brother. In addition, when Schubert was eleven he studied at Stadtkonvikt school, where he became familiar with the orchestral music of Haydn, Mozart, and likewise Beethoven. In due time he left school and returned home where he studied to become an educator; nevertheless, he continued studying composition with Antonio Salieri.

Performance

Eventually, Schubert was admitted to the Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde as a performer. This appointment straightaway established his name in Vienna as a composer and pianist. Finally, he gave his only composition recital in 1828. He died suddenly a few months later probably due to typhoid fever.

Legacy

Schubert’s music was by and large underappreciated while he was alive. There were all in all only a few enthusiasts in Vienna. After he died, however, interest in his work in fact increased. Felix Mendelssohn, Robert Schumann, Franz Liszt, Johannes Brahms and other famous composers in due time discovered his compositions. Nowadays, historians rank Schubert expressly among the greatest composers of the era, and his music remains in general very popular.

 

SKU: A0.549853

Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme (Awake, the voice is calling us) from Cantata BWV 140. Duration: ca. 4:00, Score: 6 pages, solo part 1 page, piano part: 4 pages. Program this for church services during the Easter season, weddings, or as a recital encore.

Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme

(Awake, the Voice is calling us) also known as: Sleepers Awake

Bach composed his church cantata Wachet auf (BWV 140) as part of his second annual cantata cycle covering the entire annual church calendar. It is based on the hymn of the same name by Philipp Nicolai (1599). The hymn text covers the readings for the 27th Sunday after Trinity. Bach designed the cantata in seven movements, setting the stanzas in various forms. Among these forms are the chorale fantasia, the chorale prelude, and a four-part chorale. He casts the new lyrics as recitatives – in a manner similar to the opera.

Fourth Movement

Bach writes the fourth movement, Zion hört die Wächter singen (Zion hears the watchmen singing), in the style of a chorale prelude with the chorale phrases performed as a strict cantus firmus. The phrases seem to enter at times erratically against the famous lyrical melody. The violins play this melody in unison as a foil against the cantus phrases. The violin melody is so independent and complete that when the cantus melody appears it catches the listener at times totally off-guard. Bach later transcribed this movement for organ (BWV 645). This transcription became No. 1 of the Six Schübler Chorales.

Bach Overview

First of all, Johann Sebastian Bach is maybe the greatest composer in music history. Certainly, he was prolific. As a result, everyone has heard of his works. Furthermore, these works number well over a thousand. It seems like people are probably most familiar with the instrumental works such as the Brandenburg Concertos, and the Goldberg Variations. But, similarly famous are such noteworthy works as the Well-Tempered Clavier, the Musical Offering, and certainly the Art of Fugue. Seems like his most famous vocal works include the most noteworthy Mass in B Minor. Also, most noteworthy, though, are the St. John Passion, and certainly the Christmas Oratorio.

 History

Bach came from a long line of musicians and above all, composers. Consequently, he, first of all, pursued a career as a church organist. So as a result, he gained employment in various Protestant churches in Germany. For a while, he worked as a court musician in Weimar and Köthen. Here he probably developed his organ style and likewise his chamber music style. Eventually, he, therefore, gained an appointment as Cantor of St. Thomas in Leipzig. Here he worked until difficulties with his employer ultimately drove him away. The King of Poland finally appointed him as court composer.

 Style

It seems like Bach created a fascinating new international style. He synthesized elements of the most noteworthy European music ideas into his new style. Even more, this new style was probably his synthesis of European musical rhythm and form. Furthermore, he demonstrated a complete mastery of counterpoint and motivic development. His sense of harmonic organization probably propelled him to the top.

Revival              

Mendelssohn conducted a Bach revival in the nineteenth century. His effort probably helped to re-familiarize the public with the magnitude of Bach’s works. During this period, scholars published many noteworthy Bach biographies. Moreover, Wolfgang Schmieder published the BWV (Bach Werke Verzeichnis). As a result, this is now the official catalog of his entire artistic output. The BWV number allows us to locate a work in the catalog. Sometimes scholars will simply use an S (Schmieder) as an abbreviation for BWV.

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SKU: A0.1238319

Please contact me by email at jfries@ptd.net to make a special request or to find out all that I have to offer and to express your comments or concerns. Thanks, John.  Band of Brothers is a 2001 American war drama miniseries based on historian Stephen E. Ambrose's 1993 non-fiction book of the same name. The theme music was composed by the late Michael Kamen, known for his scores for titles such as the Die Hard films, X-Men, Memento as well as several HBO series. He had also collaborated previously with Tom Hanks, who produced the score for Band of Brothers. The bold, evocative soundtrack to the series was very well received, with critics calling it Kamen's best work to date.