# Wonders of the Familiar



## Meaghan (Jul 31, 2010)

Do you ever hear a piece you have heard a million times, and suddenly you are hearing it as if you have never _really_ heard it before, or at least not for a very long time?

I went to a symphony concert last night. They played two pieces I had never heard before, Christopher Rouse's Phaeton and Prokofiev's Symphony-Concerto, both of which were pretty cool. And the last thing on the program was Dvorak's 9th Symphony. I don't even know how many times I've heard that symphony. Many. So I was expecting a pleasant performance of a symphony I like, but wasn't expecting to hear anything new in that part of the concert. But something happened. First of all, I had some revelations about the relationships between various themes in the symphony. I like it when I gain a better understanding of things like that and really get a grasp on the structure and inner cohesiveness of a piece; I like being able to hear the _bones_ of music. But there was something less cerebral going on, too. They played the second movement like I'd never heard it before (unless I was just listening like I never had before). It had this bright, open, quiet, expectant _expansiveness_ to it and something else I want to call "humility," but that doesn't exactly describe what I mean. Whatever it was, it really caught me by surprise and I thought, "Oops, I'm going to cry," and then I did.

And in the last movement, I felt like this toddler I once saw at an outdoor concert where they also played Dvorak 9. She was maybe two years old, and she danced through most of the symphony, and at a high point in the finale, she all of a sudden squealed and began clapping her hands. That's how excited I was. I was like a child. And that almost never happens, because I'm not a child anymore and have been living with this music for a while and have become occasionally jaded and often hard to please.

So, sorry to ramble on (and probably be super corny), but I wanted to share this with somebody, and also to solicit your stories. So - has this happened to you? Tell me about it!  I like stories.


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## Olias (Nov 18, 2010)

I think that is marvelous, and I wish we all had more experiences like the one you just described. I think we'd be happier as a species.

I have noticed experienced musicians tend to almost apologize for enjoying music in the standard repertoire. For some reason there's a perception that only newbies can get an emotional thrill out of Dvorak 9th, or Beethoven 5th. FIDDLESTICKS I SAY!!! There's a reason why these works are so loved by the common masses and the educated. Enjoy standard repertoire as if it was your first time, every time.


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## Dodecaplex (Oct 14, 2011)

This happened to me with the Grosse Fuge.

It wasn't until I got a piano arrangement of the work and sat down and actually played it that I realized it is one of the most beautiful pieces of music in all of history. Especially when played slowly, its violent nature turns into pure grief and sorrow. At least, that's how I see it.


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## Guest (Nov 22, 2011)

Meaghan said:


> First of all, I had some revelations about the relationships between various themes in the symphony. I like it when I gain a better understanding of things like that and really get a grasp on the structure and inner cohesiveness of a piece; I like being able to hear the _bones_ of music. But there was something less cerebral going on, too. They played the second movement liked I'd never heard it before (unless I was just listening like I never had before).


That's altogether possible, of course, but Carlos did do things last night (and all the other nights) with the 9th that none of us had ever heard before. We were all taken aback and rather pleased by how he handled that piece. It really did sound fresh because he really did do fresh things with it.

Plus, it's a good piece. I told my colleague that the 9th was my least favorite Dvorak symphony. And then, after a dramatic pause, that "least favorite" wasn't really saying much!

["We" being the three Classical Millenium wonks at the CD table--I was the one to your right--and a few of the people who stopped to chat about the piece.]


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## Meaghan (Jul 31, 2010)

some guy said:


> That's altogether possible, of course, but Carlos did do things last night (and all the other nights) with the 9th that none of us had ever heard before. We were all taken aback and rather pleased by how he handled that piece. It really did sound fresh because he really did do fresh things with it.
> 
> Plus, it's a good piece. I told my colleague that the 9th was my least favorite Dvorak symphony. And then, after a dramatic pause, that "least favorite" wasn't really saying much!
> 
> ["We" being the three Classical Millenium wonks at the CD table--I was the one to your right--and a few of the people who stopped to chat about the piece.]


!!!! Whoa, you work at Classical Millennium? Wonder if I've met you. I wouldn't be surprised; I'm in there fairly often when I'm in town.


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## Ukko (Jun 4, 2010)

Meaghan said:


> !!!! Whoa, you work at Classical Millennium? Wonder if I've met you. I wouldn't be surprised; I'm in there fairly often when I'm in town.


This information is dismaying; I had developed the impression that _some guy_ sat at the high table.


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## Guest (Nov 23, 2011)

Hahaha, you need some full disclosure, Hilltroll72?

OK. I taught introductory writing courses in universities for about twenty years, was a free-lance editor for a short time, was the editor at a computer software company for 13 years, was a poetry editor for a literary mag for a few years, ran a poetry workshop for 9 years.

Right now I run an online music magazine, but I work a few hours a month at my corner music store because I can. I can leave any time I want to go on long trips to Europe (two or three months) to cover music festivals. And when I come back, there's always some work or other to do for the store. 

(Anyway, for Meaghan, you're likelier to see me at concerts than in the store. Maybe around Christmas time in the store, yes. That's a busier time, and I get called in more often.)

Otherwise, I played trumpet for many years, in various ensembles from trumpet trios to symphony orchestras. (Small local bands. I was not ever very good.) I've listened to music all my life, howsumever, and know more about it than Stlukesguild and HarpsichordConcerto combined and multiplied by 5 billion. In my own mind, that is!!:lol:

I'm not really a "high table" kinda guy, Hilltroll, but maybe this wee precis has re-established me in your esteem?


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## Ukko (Jun 4, 2010)

some guy said:


> Hahaha, you need some full disclosure, Hilltroll72?
> [...]
> I'm not really a "high table" kinda guy, Hilltroll, but maybe this wee precis has re-established me in your esteem?


Yes! Dunno about esteem, but in understanding of 'life experience'. I thought I detected meat on the bone of you posts, am gratified that I am right _again_. (That's at least twice in 2011... I think). Those whippersnappers you mentioned are fairly fleshed out in theory, but got no belly on 'em.


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## Sid James (Feb 7, 2009)

Meaghan said:


> Do you ever hear a piece you have heard a million times, and suddenly you are hearing it as if you have never _really_ heard it before, or at least not for a very long time?...


This happens to me often with Mozart's music & it doesn't have to be his most complex or serious works. Eg. _Eine kleine Nachtmusik_ & esp. the _Divertimento in D, KV.136_. There's some quite vigorous counterpoint in the last movt. of KV.136 & I'm always amazed how he could get that down on the page.

There are other composers whose music never ceases to amaze me, Haydn is one, his music has a wealth of invention and imagination. Others are Berg, Walton, Brahms, Messiaen, the list goes on. These are guys who I've stuck with for over a decade, esp. their chamber music, relistening to these masterpieces and continually reaping the rewards.

Maybe 15-20 years later I'll think that same of things I've discovered more recently, or re-discovered, which is what a lot of my posts on the current listening thread tends to go into. A lot of my recent things in this category have been follow-ons or follow-ups from other earlier directions. & most of them are mainstream, eg. Beethoven's late string quartets & J.S. Bach's solo instrumental music...


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