It’s October and
if you live in Cincinnati like I do, you know that this means the days are
growing shorter, the air is getting cooler, and the trees are getting brighter!
Autumn has always been my favorite season. Perhaps it’s the pumpkins or the
falling leaves, or maybe Thanksgiving. As I reflect on what this season means
to me, I can’t help but think of the many classical composers who wrote lovely
music based on the changing of the seasons.
Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons is probably the most
iconic “seasons” piece. Having over 500 concertos to his name, Vivaldi wrote
many of his works for the young ladies at the school where he taught throughout
his life. Some pieces, however, were written for his own performance purposes
or for a patron. It is likely that The Four Seasons was composed for these last two reasons. They are accompanied
by sonnets, likely written by the composer himself.
So you probably knew
Vivaldi’s musical depiction of the seasons, but what about Glazunov’s? He wrote
a magnificently orchestrated ballet in 4 scenes, one for each season.
In 1875,
Tchaikovsky was asked to write his own set of character pieces for the St.
Petersburg music magazine. He composed twelve short works for piano, one for
each month of the year. Since their conception, there have been many different
transcriptions of the various months.
Perhaps you
prefer choral music? Then you likely favor Haydn’s reflections on the seasons
in his oratorio, The Seasons. The
libretto was adapted by Baron Gottfried van Swieten from a poem by James
Thomson. The piece quickly became quite popular and was even printed in
multiple translations!
What is your
favorite “seasons” piece?
This month, Clef
Notes will look at a few favorites for each season, ending the month just in
time for Halloween and a spooky-music playlist!
