The Pleasure of Classical Music

© Norine Peardon April, 2009

This is truly amazing. The ezines do not have articles about classical music.
All music started out with classical composers. In today’s world, most of the very old classical music is still being used for public pleasure.

One of the ways this music is relayed to us is by orchestra. The symphonies are played by many instruments and the music was written by the early composers. Some of these composers names’ were Beethoven, Bach, Schubert, Mendelsohn, Mozart, Handel, Brahms, Haydn, Dvorak, Grieg and Tchaikovsky. A symphony has many parts or sections (movements). Sometimes the music delivered to listeners is only part of the symphony.

Many of the above composers wrote music to be performed by single instruments as well as symphony orchestras. If you have had any piano lessons, you would understand the emotion that the composers put into their music. This may be true for other instruments as well. The emotion is what makes the music so beautiful and much of it is quite difficult without being rewritten for simpler applications (early music lessons).

Each piece tells a story about the composer. Some of the composers were very poor financially and not recognized for the talent they possessed and some, actually, had great disabilities. One example of this was Beethoven. He lost his sight but still continued to compose great music!

Classical music has been and is used for movies, pure listening, TV presentations and commercials and even cartoons. You probably have heard much of this music and just weren’t aware of the title and the composer.

The composers above composed operas, waltzes, marches, chamber music(easy listening), religious and dance music. One more modern composer, Aaron Copeland, composed music with a western flavor.

If you study this music, you will learn to recognize the various composers because most of them have a style all their own. One that comes to mind is Mozart. His extreme use of the violin is recognizeable in any of his compositions.

The tools our early composers used were medieval in today’s terms. My opinion is that they were quite reclusive as they composed. Most of them had a piano but not much more and had to hear the music and the way the instuments came together within their heads. Not an easy task. There are very few composers today who can do this. They also used dip pens to scribble out their music.

Most of the early composers would be very famous and earn large incomes today. Modern writers have even written various versions of some very old compositions. One that comes to mind is Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata which was rewritten as a rock tune. One of the current problems of today’s composers is the ability to compose and not have to have some kind of work which pays a living. Of course, there are other obstacles. Recognition and obtaining the support of their music by outside sources to be presented to the public are just some.

The knowledge of the histories of the early composers and music creates more interest in their music. Their music can relieve stress, anger and create happiness. Be pleasured when you are on your computer and try listening to some classical music.