# Birdsong in music



## Pat Fairlea (Dec 9, 2015)

I realise that some threads have touched on this topic, and please don't all shout "Messiaen!" at me.

For something that I'm planning to write, I want to mull over the deliberate imitation of bird calls and song in CM. I know of quite a few good examples and have some personal favourites, but would welcome your views on good and bad examples, successes and failures.


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## Retrograde Inversion (Nov 27, 2016)

messiaen messiaen messiaen messiaen messiaen messiaen messiaen messiaen messiaen messiaen messiaen messiaen messiaen messiaen messiaen messiaen messiaen messiaen


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## Reichstag aus LICHT (Oct 25, 2010)

Retrograde Inversion said:


> messiaen messiaen messiaen messiaen messiaen messiaen messiaen messiaen messiaen messiaen messiaen messiaen messiaen messiaen messiaen messiaen messiaen messiaen


Well whispered.


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## cimirro (Sep 6, 2016)

around 3 years ago I have played two lovely works where one can easily recognize bird song
Alessadro Poglietti - Suite in D major 'Rossignolo' (a kind of Goldberg variations)
Johann Caspar Kerll - Capriccio sopra il cucu 

but there are some other examples:
Villa-lobos - Uirapuru
Carlos Gomes - Alvorada (from opera "Lo Schiavo")
Ravel - Lever du Jour (from Daphnis et Chloe)

and how about Bach's "Thema all'Imitatio Gallina Cucoa" from Sonata in D Major BWV.963 ?

All the best
Artur


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## Heck148 (Oct 27, 2016)

Beethoven, Resphigi......


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## Reichstag aus LICHT (Oct 25, 2010)

Well, there's the end of the 2nd movement of Beethoven's _Pastoral_ Symphony, featuring woodwind solos depicting a cuckoo, quail and nightingale. Apparently, there's also a yellow-hammer in there, to which his friend and biographer, Anton Schindler, commented (possibly apocryphally) that they must have possessed throats like giraffes to make such a sound.


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## Bettina (Sep 29, 2016)




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## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Of course, the second movement of Beethoven's Pastoral Symphony is filled with woodwind imitations of birdcalls.

I wouldn't count The Pines of Rome because a real recording of chirping birds is employed.


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## Clairvoyance Enough (Jul 25, 2014)

Thank you for reminding me how much I love the bird calls in Siegfried. I always feel like crying when I hear that second link.


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## stejo (Dec 8, 2016)

The first I think of is Vaughan Williams ~ The Lark Ascending
Reminds me always about the spring who soon will be here...


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## Retrograde Inversion (Nov 27, 2016)

Actually, my avatar image is a much simplified transcription of the song of the lesser spotted ferneybird, noted for its habit of nesting in tuplets.


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## Manxfeeder (Oct 19, 2010)

The oldest known composition featuring six-part polyphony features a bird. As they sing Sumer Is Icumen In, they all break out into cuckoos. And because of this, every first-year music history student has been driven koo-koo.


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## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Manxfeeder said:


> The oldest known composition featuring six-part polyphony features a bird. As they sing Sumer Is Icumen In, they all break out into cuckoos. And because of this, every first-year music history student has been driven koo-koo.


Sorry I missed that.


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## Alfacharger (Dec 6, 2013)

A couple of Spohr symphonies (#4 "Die Weihe der Töne" and #9 "The Seasons") contain some birdsong.


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## Manxfeeder (Oct 19, 2010)

What, nobody's mentioned Vivaldi's Four Seasons? In Spring, there's the song of the birds. (Gil Shaham said, "At first I thought the Tortorella was some kind of pasta, but it's a bird.") Of course, in the Four Seasons, there are also dog barks and gunshots. It's very noisy.


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## Manxfeeder (Oct 19, 2010)

There's also a bird in Bartok's 3rd Piano Concerto, in the middle section of the Adagio Religioso. It's been called the song of the Towhee, whatever that is.


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## tortkis (Jul 13, 2013)

Clément Janequin (c.1485-1558): Le chant des oyseaux


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## Brahmsian Colors (Sep 16, 2016)

Two favorite symphonies contain likenesses of singing birds: Dvorak's Eighth and Sibelius' First. Other works include Ravel's Mother Goose Suite and Mussorgsky's Pictures At an Exhibition.


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## Brahmsian Colors (Sep 16, 2016)

Manxfeeder said:


> There's also a bird in Bartok's 3rd Piano Concerto, in the middle section of the Adagio Religioso. It's been called the song of the Towhee, whatever that is.


Thanks for the tip! One sound I always looked forward to hearing at the emergence of spring while living in the Appalachians of North Carolina was the song of the Towhee. It resembled someone chanting "sweet pea, sweet pea", and with variations too.


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## LesCyclopes (Sep 16, 2016)

Rameau's celebrated keyboard piece Le Rappel Des Oiseaux (literally, "Call of the Birds").


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## Bettina (Sep 29, 2016)

Here's yet another French example: Ravel's Oiseaux tristes (Sad Birds) from Miroirs. French composers seem to have a thing for birds!


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## manyene (Feb 7, 2015)

I suppose Rautavaara's Cantus Arcticus doesn't count either as it features real birds


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## Alfacharger (Dec 6, 2013)

Instead of birds, how about frogs?

At about 5.08 in..


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## Heck148 (Oct 27, 2016)

hpowders said:


> Of course, the second movement of Beethoven's Pastoral Symphony is filled with woodwind imitations of birdcalls.
> 
> I wouldn't count The Pines of Rome because a real recording of chirping birds is employed.


but Respighi also wrote "Gli Ucceli" - the Birds....


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## Marinera (May 13, 2016)

Liszt's Saint François d'Assise prêchant aux oiseaux

... and i see no one mentioned yet Biber's sonata Representativa - CuCu, Nachtigal, Quail, hens


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## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Heck148 said:


> but Respighi also wrote "Gli Ucceli" - the Birds....


Yeah. That's actually a very fine piece.


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## Marinera (May 13, 2016)

cimirro said:


> around 3 years ago I have played two lovely works where one can easily recognize bird song
> Alessadro Poglietti - Suite in D major 'Rossignolo' (a kind of Goldberg variations)
> Johann Caspar Kerll - Capriccio sopra il cucu
> 
> ...


Johann Caspar Kerll - Capriccio sopra il cucu this one is one uncanny cucoo, and so very woodsy. I agree it's lovely


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## Avey (Mar 5, 2013)

And then there is *Mahler's* First Symphony with the waking of spring and that darn cuckoo ... and *Dvorak's* Wood Dove too.


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## Heck148 (Oct 27, 2016)

"Forest Murmurs" - Siegfried, Wagner


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## Pugg (Aug 8, 2014)

Bettina said:


>


Good one Bettina.


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## MarkW (Feb 16, 2015)

Of course, the intro to the Mahler First contains the only cuckoo in the world that chirps a descending fourth. -)


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## Pat Fairlea (Dec 9, 2015)

MarkW said:


> Of course, the intro to the Mahler First contains the only cuckoo in the world that chirps a descending fourth. -)


That'll be the rare Minor Plagal Cuckoo?

Thanks all round for the many useful replies, folks. I'm not a huge fan of Mahler, despite my love of Sibelius, so I'll have to spend more time listening carefully to Gustav's symphonies.


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## Reichstag aus LICHT (Oct 25, 2010)

There's also Daquin's _Le Coucou_, one of the few keyboard pieces I ever managed to play.


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## Razumovskymas (Sep 20, 2016)

Händel of course in his organ concerto.

A wonderful cuckoo and nightingale. The Nightingale is really brilliant!!

the cuckoo kicks in at 1:00 and the nightingale starts to sing along at 1:45


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## Razumovskymas (Sep 20, 2016)

Händel loves Nightingales I guess because there's another one "hidden" in a chorus piece of Solomon.

"May no rash intruder..."

Again a really wonderful nightingale at the beginning of the piece.


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## starthrower (Dec 11, 2010)

I prefer the birds themselves to musical approximations.


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## Manxfeeder (Oct 19, 2010)

Pat Fairlea said:


> I'm not a huge fan of Mahler, despite my love of Sibelius, so I'll have to spend more time listening carefully to Gustav's symphonies.


If you can track down David Hurwitz's The Mahler Symphonis, An Owner's Manual, his enthusiasm for these pieces may rub off on you.


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## brianvds (May 1, 2013)

Pat Fairlea said:


> That'll be the rare Minor Plagal Cuckoo?
> 
> Thanks all round for the many useful replies, folks. I'm not a huge fan of Mahler, despite my love of Sibelius, so I'll have to spend more time listening carefully to Gustav's symphonies.


Somewhere in one of Mahler's symphonies, there is also a bit in which birds keep on bumping into cow bells.


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## Bettina (Sep 29, 2016)

"Four Calling Birds" from Richard Rodney Bennett's suite _Partridge Pie_. I just posted this a moment ago in a thread about Bennett, and I decided that it was worthy of being cross-posted here as well. So here it is!


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## JosefinaHW (Nov 21, 2015)

Bach, _ Liebster Gott, wenn werd ich sterben?_ BWV 8 (Herreweghe)

'just lovely....


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## SixFootScowl (Oct 17, 2011)

The cuckoo in Humperdinck's Hansel and Gretel opera:


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## JosefinaHW (Nov 21, 2015)

Maybe this one is good for a laugh, I know nothing about it other than it was composed by Rossini:

Thanks to Florestan for this great image!


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## JosefinaHW (Nov 21, 2015)

LOL Florestan, we posted at the same time!!!


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## pcnog11 (Nov 14, 2016)

There is section in the ballet music -La fille mal gardée where the music mimic the chicken in a farm, called "The Chicken Dance". Not exactly a birdsong but quite entertaining.


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## JosefinaHW (Nov 21, 2015)

JosefinaHW said:


> Maybe this one is good for a laugh, I know nothing about it other than it was composed by Rossini:
> 
> P.S. I just listened to the overture and I realize that I have heard this music many times....


...now to find a video of the full opera... Met Opera on Demand has disappointed me once again.


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## SixFootScowl (Oct 17, 2011)

JosefinaHW said:


> ...now to find a video of the full opera... Met Opera on Demand has disappointed me once again.


There is not much available in videos, but I like this one and used copies are reasonably priced online. Here is a short video clip from it.


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## Pugg (Aug 8, 2014)

is this one mentioned already?


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## JosefinaHW (Nov 21, 2015)

Florestan said:


> There is not much available in videos, but I like this one and used copies are reasonably priced online. Here is a short video clip from it.


Thanks, Florestan. I just found a full audio performance from 2016 at Glimmerglass. This performance is out on Blu-ray/DVD I think; I have to search again.

http://www.wqxr.org/#!/story/gioachino-rossinis-thieving-magpie-glimmerglass/

You probably know all about this performance but just in case you do not, the following is a review.

http://classicalvoiceamerica.org/2016/08/02/review-gazza-ladra-thieving-magpie-glimmerglass/

I am going to search for the performance you recommended. Thank you very much!


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## SixFootScowl (Oct 17, 2011)

JosefinaHW said:


> Thanks, Florestan. I just found a full audio performance from 2016 at Glimmerglass. This performance is out on Blu-ray/DVD I think; I have to search again.
> 
> http://www.wqxr.org/#!/story/gioachino-rossinis-thieving-magpie-glimmerglass/
> 
> ...


You're welcome. Never heard of the Glimmerglass production before. Looks very interesting. If it is on DVD I might check it out.


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## Lenny (Jul 19, 2016)

Manxfeeder said:


> If you can track down David Hurwitz's The Mahler Symphonis, An Owner's Manual, his enthusiasm for these pieces may rub off on you.


Thanks for this! Ordered... I've listened to Mahler A LOT, but I guess this book won't hurt


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## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Avey said:


> And then there is *Mahler's* First Symphony with the waking of spring and that darn cuckoo ... and *Dvorak's* Wood Dove too.


Yes. Nice birds in Mahler 1.


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## Bruckner Anton (Mar 10, 2016)

Bird song is almost a cliche in classical music, you can find a lot without much difficulty.


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## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Bruckner Anton said:


> Bird song is almost a cliche in classical music, you can find a lot without much difficulty.


Yeah. It might be easier to name the classical compositions that do not have bird song imitations! :lol:


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## waldvogel (Jul 10, 2011)

Dvorak wrote his "American" string quartet while summering in the primarily Czech community of Spillville, Iowa. When there, he must have heard the song of the Scarlet Tanager, which is still a reasonably common breeding bird in the forests of eastern North America. The song of the tanager (incidentally, the bird in my avatar lol) sounds like this:






The scherzo of the quartet has this melody! Listen to the tune beginning at the 13 second mark:


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## musicrom (Dec 29, 2013)

How about the opening to the 3rd movement of Scriabin's 2nd symphony, playing underneath the solo violin/orchestra?


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## Reichstag aus LICHT (Oct 25, 2010)

Stockhausen's _Montag aus LICHT_, Act II ("Mädchenprozession") features his _Klavierstück XIV_, with the pianist dressed as a budgerigar. Don't ask me why... perhaps his studies with Messiaen had more influence on him than he bargained for 









The pianist in the above photo is Pierre-Laurent Aimard, and he's playing here, from 9'40"






I find this music quite delightful, like much of Stockhausen's choral output.


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## SixFootScowl (Oct 17, 2011)

How about an opera singing parrot?


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## Alfacharger (Dec 6, 2013)

Ned Rorem's Tone Poem "Sunday Morning" has a movement called "Birds before they fly", of course there is a lot for the flutes and piccolos to do.


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