Composer,
conductor, and violist Frank Bridge (1879–1941) is most famous for teaching
Benjamin Britten, who attempted to get the word out about his beloved teacher
by writing his Variations on a Theme by Frank Bridge. This work is based on the
second of Bridge’s Three Idylls for
String Quartet. Bridge received an exemplary education at the Royal College
of Music and even had the opportunity to study with Charles Stanford.
Why
look at Frank Bridge today? Well, he wrote a piece titled Summer and “summer” just happens to be the Clef Notes theme this
week! Listen to Bridge’s depiction of summer here.
Can
you imagine the sounds of nature and the warmth in the air on a hot, summer day
as you listen to this work? The piece begins with strings that sound like the
leaves stirring in the breeze. This is followed by an oboe solo, long and lazy,
just like summertime. What other references to summer do you hear Bridge
express in this work?
