Happy Easter to everyone! While Classic FM might be playing their hall of fame for best love pieces this year, this blog will go in the opposite direction with a piece which is perhaps less well known.
Cesar Franck was a relatively prolific composer for organ but also wrote many other compositions. This, his Piano Quintet (which is a string quartet plus a piano, and not - as I used to think - five pianos) is an exciting example of what can be done with relatively few instruments. I absolutely love it, although, poor soul, that wasn't quite the reception he got at its premier.
The story goes that it was dedicated to Camille Saint-Saens (as of a few posts ago with his second symphony), who played the piano part in the piece's first ever performance. However, at the end of the piece, apparently grumpy ol' Camille stormed off stage. When you listen to this piece, perhaps you'll understand why - it's very fiery and unsettled, and perhaps Saint-Saens didn't like that. But I think it really adds something very special to the piece.
Here we have four instruments that are very similar and one that is not. This allows the composer to add another layer of musical aesthetic to the piece. Note how Franck utilises this in the first movement, where the entrance of the piano marks a structural change as well as a melodic one. The strings start with a very passionate melody on their own which is then interrupted by the piano, again on its own. There is, for a while, a battle between the two types of instrument and associated melodies, until both the calm and passionate natures of both families fit together, with all five parts playing at once. Notice that once this starts to occur, the emotional quality of the music becomes far more volatile, varied and exciting. Listen out for how the two opposing forces interact with each other and take on each other's roles throughout this movement.
In the second movement, the five instruments work together very differently, complimenting each other (perhaps a relationship which is achieved throughout the first movement). The movement builds to an emotional climax of repeated notes about three quarters of the way through and then releases for its final section. The third movement is very different, and a very exciting way to conclude the piece. Even in its stormy nature, the piano seems to take more of a role of accompaniment to start with until the piece builds to its ultimate climax where many layers from many instruments interweave. Notice here how the piano can be used to emphasis harmony or rhythm to add extra interest to the piece.
I first heard this piece in an amazing concert by Ensemble 360 with Music in the Round in Sheffield a few years ago - and again this is one of the pieces that inspired me to start this blog. If you ever get chance, going to a Music in the Round concert is a great opportunity and will doubtless ignite an enthusiasm in you for music like this - I would highly recommend it!
Next week I'll be looking at a string quartet and asking what about that format makes it so popular.
Comments
Post a Comment