God is our Refuge, K. 20, is a motet for four voices in G minor by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Based on Psalm 46, it was composed in July 1765 during Mozarts' stay in London on the Mozart family grand tour as a gift for the British Museum along with one other supposed work: a set of variations in A major, K. 21a.
Sir: I am ordered by the Standing
Committee of the Trustees of the British Museum, to signify to You, that
they have received the present of the musical performances of your very
ingenious Son which you were pleased lately to make them, and to return
You their Thanks for the same." - A brief note from a secretary at the British Museum.
Original manuscript of Wolfgang Mozart's "God is my Refuge", composed in 1764 when he was nine years old.
Score:
The 23-bar work is scored for four voices: soprano, alto, tenor and bass, and is written in 3 2 time.
Lyrics
God is our refuge,
our refuge and strength,
a very present help in trouble,
a present help in trouble.
The Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 35 was the only concerto for violin composed by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky in 1878 and is one of the best-known violin concertos.
Instrumentation: The concerto is scored for solo violin, two flutes, two oboes, two clarinets in A and B-flat, two bassoons, four horns in F, two trumpets in D, timpani and strings.
Form: The piece is in three movements:
Allegro moderato (D major)
Canzonetta: Andante (3 4, G minor)
Finale: Allegro vivacissimo (2 4, D major)
The second and third movements are played attacca, with no break between them. A typical performance runs approximately 35 minutes.
My all time favourite interpretation is one performed by the great violinist Jascha Heifetz, with John Barbirolli conducting the London Philharmonic, recorded March 25, 1937 - here.
Video: Violinist Joshua Bell interprets Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto in D major, Op 35. (YouTube, uploaded by Classical Vault 1. Accessed April 2, 2020.) 1. Allegro moderato
2. Canzonetta: Andante
3. Finale. Allegro vivacissimo. National Youth Orchestra of the United States of America, Valery Gergiev, conducting.
Sergei Vasilyevich Rachmaninoff orSergei Vasilyevich Rakhmaninov, (1 April [O.S. 20 March] 1873 – 28 March 1943), was a Russian composer, virtuoso pianist, and conductor of the late Romantic period. As a pianist he was famous for his precision, rhythmic drive, clarity of texture, and for the broad design of his performances.
Rachmaninoff's music is melodious and emotional.
The influence of Tchaikovsky, Rimsky-Korsakov, Balakirev, Mussorgsky, and other Russian composers is seen in his early works, later giving way to a personal style notable for song-like melodicism, expressiveness and rich orchestral colors.
Rachmaninoff's Piano Prelude in C# minor , written at the age of 19, made him famous overnight. He wrote brilliantly for the piano, and equally well for the orchestra.
His most famous works include: Piano Concerto No. 2, used in the British film Brief Encounter; Piano Concerto No. 3, the theme music in the movie Shine; and Rhapsody on a theme of Paganini for the piano and orchestra, featuring the most popular Variation
No. 18. This variation is one of the most beautiful and magical
compositions ever written by Sergei Rachmaninoff; it was featured in the movie Somewhere in Time.
His other works include: operas such as Francesca da Rimini (1906); three symphonies; four piano concertos; piano pieces including Prelude in C-# minor (1882); choral; chamber music and songs.
Rachmaninoff's qualities of style, mood and technical mastery made
Sergei Rachmaninoff one of the most popular among the great composers.
Rachmaninoff - Rhapsody Paganini - Alexander Malofeev, Pianist.
Video Credit:
Rachmaninoff's Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, Op.43. Artists: Soloist Alexandеr Malofeev (16 y.o.).
Conductor Myung-Whun Chung.
Orchestra Sinfonica Nazionale della RAI di Torino.
Italy. Auditorium RAI Arturo Toscanini -- May 30, 2018.
"I feel like a ghost wandering in a world grown alien. I cannot cast out the old way of writing, and I cannot acquire the new. I have made intense efforts to feel the musical manner of today, but it will not come to me." - Rachmaninov, quoted in Ewen, American Composers
Resources:
Classical Music Instance Reference: Teach Yourself Series
Oxford Dictionary of Music, Sixth Edition.
Sadie, Stanley, Editor. The Grove Concise Dictionary of Music
(c) April 2006. Updated April 1, 2021. Tel. Inspired Pen Web. All rights reserved.
