Sophie

** __Sophie's Listening Assignment__ ** Title of piece: **__Theme of Swan Lake__** Composer: **//Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky//** Performer/Group's Name: **Israel Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra** Musical Time Period: **Romantic Era**

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About __Theme of Swan Lake__ :
This piece was written in 1875-1876 and was inspired by Russian folk tales. The piece told a story about transforming Odette into a swan by an evil sorceress. Tchaikovsky came up with the original concept in his house with his newphew and niece and called it "The Lake of Swans." The Lake of Swans featured the famous leitmotif known as the "Swan's Theme" (or Song of the Swans). Begichev commissioned the score from Tchaikovsky in 1875 for 800 rubles. After the score was completed, Reisinger the head choreographer demanded Tchaikovsky to make some changes, whether it was adding or removing a dance. Reisinger made it clear that he wanted himself to be a very large part of creating Swan Lake. Resinger and Tchaikovsky were forced to collaberate, but both preferred to work independently as much as possible. Most ballets were created by composers known as specialists who studied scoring the light, decorative, melodious and rythmically clear music that was at that time, popular in ballet. Tchaikovsky didn't like specialist music until he studied it himself and was surprisingly impressed. Tchaikovsky finshed Swan Lake within a year because of his excitement but also to complete and start an Opera.



About //Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky// :
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky was a Russian composer born in a middle class family on May 7th, 1840. He was a famous Russian composer of the romantic period. He wrote symphonies, operas, ballets, chamber and instrumental music. He is famous for Swan Lake, The Sleeping Beauty, The Nutcracker and 1812 Overture. His family wanted him to become a civil servant, even though it was obvious he was musically talented. He went agaisnt his parents' wishes and persued his music career. He was enrolled in St. Petersburg Consevatory in 1862 and graduated in 1865. His western oriented training set him apart from other sucessful and famous Russian composers at the time. Even with Tchaikovsky's growing sucess, he still had emotional issues such as depression. As his reputation grew, he was honoured by Tsar, a Russian ruler and was given a life-time pension. After this, he was wanted in the concert halls. He died at the early age of 53, his untimely death was due to cholera. To this day, Tchaikovsky is known as a great composer by all, using his magical themes to wow audiences everywhere.



Analysis of __Theme of Swan Lake__ :
I chose this piece because I love of the soft, whimsical and magical feel of it. It is from Swan lake, a famous ballet. I've heard this song somewhere before, and the first time I heard it, I loved it. It reminds me of a magical, enchanted, mythical place. I feel very calm and relaxed when I listen to this piece being played. It is very beautiful, dramatic, emotional and expressive. It has many intricate details in it which makes it a very exciting, interesting and unique piece.

The Theme of Swan Lake is played with a lot of emotion. There is a distinct flowyness about the rhythm that I find interesting. I find that it seems to flow because of the slurs and it is played legato. It it played softly and lightly with a smooth texture. It is played at a slow tempo, perhaps lento. Dynamics also play a huge part in creating the flowy feel, as there are a lot of crescendos and decrescendos which play a part in contributing to the romantic feel. Some parts are played softly, others loudly to create contrast. This all adds to the drama of the piece.

In the beginning, the melody is a solo mainly played by an picolo. The melody is played in a high octave with high notes. Later, all the woodwinds, brass instruments and drums join in. They make the piece have a lower,"dark, scary, evil" sound and feel. Then the strings come in. The melody holds very long notes and there is a vibrato added to it to make a rich, ringing sound. A lot of the notes are slurred and legato for a smooth texture. There is a furmata at the end of the song where they slow down.

In the beginning, when the solo melody was being played by the picolo, the strings had the harmony and were doing a tremelo in the backgound. It filled in the space and made the piece sound more full and also added drama with the dynamics.

The strings also did pizzicato for added effect when playing with the harp which kind of sounded like the wind in the background. Some notes staccatoed lightly and some were accented loudly to create drama.

The tone colour is very rich in sound because of the vibrato. The piece is played in a minor key and has a beautiful, mystical and mysterious feel to it. The beginning has a very soft and light feel to it. The high pictched notes ring through the whole room arousing everyone to their senses expressing feeling. Later, as the sound gets louder, you can hear the deep, rich sounds that express a different type of emotion. The beautiful tone colour makes the piece come alive.



Other Works by //Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky// :
Tchaikovsky wrote many symphonies, operas, ballets, chamber and instrumental music. He wrote over 100 pieces over his lifetime. Some of his most famous pieces included:


 * Swan Lake (1876)
 * Violin Concerto in D Major (1878)
 * 1812 Overture (1880)
 * Sleeping Beauty (1889)
 * The Nutcracker (1892)