# Magical moments is music



## Waehnen (Oct 31, 2021)

Please share with us some magical musical moments that are special to you!

The intention is not to refer to total works but to certain musical passages. I would also encourage you to describe what in the passage makes it meaningful to you.

I shall begin!

*1. Sibelius: Pohjola's Daughter, the beginning/introduction*

G-minor chord with bassoons, contrabassoons, horns, cellos and double basses. Evocative folk-like melody in the Kalevala rhythm on top of which you could sing in Finnish: "Vakavanha Väinämöinen, tietäjä iänikuinen." The bass clarinet adds a very hounting quality to the sound.

I absolutely love this passage. It is perfect symphonic music to my ears

*2. Beethoven: 9th Symphony Finale, Choir passage
"Brüder, überm Sternenzelt muß ein lieber Vater wohnen."*

The mixed choir passage with the night sky above, represented by the dominant 7th chord with the 9th interval is an immensely delicate and atmospheric musical moment.

*3. Brahms: 3rd Piano sonata, F-minor, 2nd movement, Poco piu lento -passage bar 37 onwards*

Tchaikovsky disliked Brahms for being too academic but there is nothing academic about this passage. Neither is the texture as thick as some other Brahms but very delicate and translucent, heartfelt. Absolutely beautiful music by a young genius.


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## hammeredklavier (Feb 18, 2018)

hammeredklavier said:


> I.
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> ...


To my mind, anyone who can make this sort of exotic, dark sound (like Bach and Mozart) in the 18th century has certain rarity value.


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## Ethereality (Apr 6, 2019)

Rimsky-Korsakov: Symphony 3, Andante


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## Rogerx (Apr 27, 2018)

Beethoven Triple concerto : Rondo alla Polacca


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## Pat Fairlea (Dec 9, 2015)

Waehnen said:


> Please share with us some magical musical moments that are special to you!
> 
> The intention is not to refer to total works but to certain musical passages. I would also encourage you to describe what in the passage makes it meaningful to you.
> 
> ...


Love your first choice, though my nomination would be the ending. Violins meandering off into the mists, then a final, hushed growl to disconcert both the mood and the tonality. Dark and lovely.

For me, the opening of the slow movement of Shostakovich's 2nd Piano Concerto will always have a certain gentle magic about it.


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## Olias (Nov 18, 2010)

I only intended to do a few but stuff kept coming into my head so I got a bit carried away.....

*Dvorak Symphony 8* - the trio of the scherzo (the rhythmic hemiola is so cute)

*Haydn Symphony 100* - The coda of the finale when the percussion kicks in

*Beethoven Symphony 7* - 2nd movement near the end when the winds trade off with pizzicato strings

*Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto* - The end of the first movement exposition when the full orchestra kicks in with Theme 1

*Shostakovich Symphony 5* - 4th movement coda

*Mozart Symphony 41* - 4th movement coda for the quintuple invertible counterpoint

*Mendelssohn Violin Concerto* - all the fireworks in the 3rd movement coda

*Beethoven Symphony 7* - 4th movement coda when the horns go high and the basses saw away at the semitone motive

*Dvorak Symphony 7* - The big Bach-like chorale at the end of the finale

*Dvorak Symphony 9* - 4th movement coda when the brass kick in

*Mozart Marriage of Figaro* - 2nd act finale

*Dvorak Cello Concerto* - coda of 3rd movement that portrays the love Dvorak had for his sister in law

*Dvorak Cello Concerto* - 1st movement recapitulation when the orchestra hits Theme 2

*Beethoven Violin Concerto* - main theme of the third movement

*Haydn Symphony 88* - main theme of the finale

*Copland Appalachian Spring* - the first allegro section

*Holst The Planets* - Gotta love the Jupiter Chorale

*Dvorak Violin Concerto* - Main theme of the 3rd movement

*Saint-Saens Symphony 3* - chorale in the finale

*Debussy La Mer* - End of the first movement

*Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto 2* - Theme 2 of the finale

*Shostakovich Symphony 9* - The fast coda in the 5th movement

*Dvorak String Quartet 12* - The "train tune" in the finale

*Beethoven String Quartet Op 18 #4* - The gypsy tune in the 4th movement

*Dvorak Slavonic Dance #7* - The oboe/bassoon duet at the beginning

*Beethoven Symphony 9* - The last two minutes gives me goosebumps every time

*Bernstein Divertimento for Orchestra* - The turkey trot movement

*Bernstein Symphony 1* - The 2nd movement main theme

*Bernstein Mass* - The "God Said" song


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## SuperTonic (Jun 3, 2010)

Tchaikovsky's Symphony 6 "Pathetique" - Final Movement toward the end there's a quiet tam-tam strike followed by a somber chorale in the low brass. That tam-tam strike gives me chills every time.


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## Rogerx (Apr 27, 2018)

Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 3 -III. Rondo: Allegro


Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 5 ( to be honest complete but ) Allegro


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## Forster (Apr 22, 2021)

For me, climaxes give me the strongest reactions:

*Sibelius *5th, 1st and 3rd mvmts; 4th, 2nd mvmt; 7th, the emergence from the maelstrom; 6th, 4th mvmt, but also the coda.
*Vaughan Williams *Pastoral, 4th mvmt; 6th, 1st mvmt.
*Haydn *99th, 2nd mvmt
*Mahler *6th, Andante
*Shostakovich *11th, finale

Funnily enough, *Beethoven *doesn't do climaxes in the same way as other composers. He does triumphant augmentation (choir rejoining the 'Ode' theme after the Turkish march; 2nd mvmt of the 7th; 4th mvmt of the 5th and so on. I like these too.


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## Forster (Apr 22, 2021)

And having just listened to *Vaughan Williams*'s Pastoral 4th mvmt again, the first passage after the wordless vocal is utterly gorgeous.


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## mikeh375 (Sep 7, 2017)

Almost every note in Ravel's complete Daphnis and Chloe does it for me. The triumphant return of Purcell's theme, merging from the depths of the final fugue in Britten's Young Persons Guide is also a magical shivers moment for me. I could go on and on of course...


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## Olias (Nov 18, 2010)

Forster said:


> For me, climaxes give me the strongest reactions:


That's true for a lot of things.....


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## Pat Fairlea (Dec 9, 2015)

Forster said:


> And having just listened to *Vaughan Williams*'s Pastoral 4th mvmt again, the first passage after the wordless vocal is utterly gorgeous.


Yes. That is one of the most consistently moving passages in all of CM for me. And sad, tragic, in its evocation of the Great War and the waste of lives and destruction of a pastoral landscape. I find it deeply upsetting.


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## DeepR (Apr 13, 2012)

Here are a few:

Atterberg - Symphony No. 4 - Andante, at 4:25 starts a most exquisite passage.





Scriabin - Fantasie Op. 28. The romantic theme at 1:50 and the incomparable way Sofronitsky plays it always gets to me.





Bruckner - Symphony No. 5 - Final movement. At 1:09:58 starts one of the most exciting moments in music to me. I love that bit at 1:10:08 so much it makes me jump up from excitement, also knowing that it leads to one of the greatest endings in music.


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## Azol (Jan 25, 2015)

*Vaughan Williams - Ninth Symphony - Finale*. The way it ends is just transcendental - alternations between desperation and exaltation, as if riven between farewell to life and opening to the infinite. Damn, it's soooo otherworldly. And a highly underrated symphony too, it deserves being performed!






Here's iconic recording by Sir Adrian Boult, but I also very much recommend versions by Leonard Slatkin and Vernon Handley.


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## fbjim (Mar 8, 2021)

I'm not a huge Mahler guy, but there are few symphonic moments more disarming to me than Mahler's 1st, when the "Wayfarer" tune first emerges out of the birdsong-like descending tones in the introduction.


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## Ethereality (Apr 6, 2019)

A lot of Yawn Williams fans here.



fbjim said:


> I'm not a huge Mahler guy, but there are few symphonic moments more disarming to me than Mahler's 1st, when the "Wayfarer" tune first emerges out of the birdsong-like descending tones in the introduction.


That's his best one. I love that momentous low strings/clarinet pulse:


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## golfer72 (Jan 27, 2018)

Id have to say the climax about 3.5 minutes in to the 1st movement of the 9th symphony.


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## Rogerx (Apr 27, 2018)

Mahler Symphony 8 :Finale Alles Vergängliche ist nur ein Gleichnis

https://www.youtube.com › watch


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## hammeredklavier (Feb 18, 2018)

Ethereality said:


> I feel like Chipia's going to publish a book called The Major-Minor Mistake.


Whereas Waehnen is going to publish one called Magical Moments in Music.


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## hammeredklavier (Feb 18, 2018)

15:44


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## KevinJS (Sep 24, 2021)

Haven't checked, but I'd guess I'm not the first to mention Beethoven's 9th. When I attended a performance, I discovered that some items are not removed from the bucket list by ticking them off. I'm going to do that again.

New one for me: Mahler's 8th. My God! Mahler doesn't take prisoners, does he? That's going on the regular rotation pile.

Grieg's Piano Concerto. When you write something as good as this, you don't bother with a sequel.

Bach's Toccata and Fugue in D minor BWV 565. Whether belted out on the organ by E Power Biggs, or on guitars and drums by Sky or violin by Vanessa-Mae, it never disappoints.


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## SONNET CLV (May 31, 2014)

*Magical moments in music*

I suspect I know something about magic, if not about music. For over 40 years I've held a membership in the International Brotherhood of Magicians, having been recruited into the organization sponsored by two fine practitioners of the magical arts when I was still young. For some years now I've sported an "M" after my IBM membership number, signifying I belong to the Order of Merlin. I possess some small skills with prestidigitation, slight of hand, and mentalism, but I've always most envied those magicians who had the ability to disappear. There were times I would have welcomed such a skill.

In any case, I'll apply a bit of my knowledge of magic to music and see here what I can conjure up.

Bruckner's Seventh Symphony represents one _big_ magical moment to my ears, but there is a smaller moment within that larger moment that startled me upon my first hearing of the symphony and still brings a smile of delight each time I hear it after literally dozens of hearings of the Bruckner, especially as played on the Max Rudolf/Cincinnati Symphony interpretation on DECCA, the first Bruckner I ever heard and still my favorite 7th. This "magical moment", only four measures in length, occurs for the initial time in the Scherzo, at measure 153 in the score, a passage for woodwinds with a flute, two oboes, and two A clarinets producing the "magic".

In the following recording, you can hear that moment I refer to at about 1:49 into the Scherzo.






It's the kind of moment that occurs throughout Bruckner that prompts my personal observation that Bruckner symphonies seem to present an ever present looking upwards into the clouds which, every once in a while, part just enough to provide a quick glimpse of Heaven.

Hummel's Piano Concerto No. 3, Op. 89 in B Minor provides another memorable (for me) "magic moment" in the second movement of the work. The moment occurs at around 20:26 (the second movement) where a shift in tone brings out several measures of pure sublimity. If you don't know this Concerto, please give it a hearing. It's filled with magic, especially when Martin Galling plays it.






The Brahms Intermezzo in A Major, Op. 118, No. 2, provides quite a bit of magic, especially as Hélène Grimaud performs it on her Denon release, CO-79782. The Part B section of the work (marked "in tempo" on my copy of the score) provides a touch of contrast to the beautiful Part A. But Part B is more poignant and reflective, truly magical. Grimaud presents the first go of the section emphasizing the right hand melody, but takes the repeat giving emphasis to the left hand. Two visions of the same page of the score are revealed, both steaming in magic. This is Brahms at his best, and Grimaud at hers






Probably for me, though, the single most magical moment in music (and I've heard a lot of music) occurs in the Mahler unfinished Tenth Symphony, the string section of the final movement, a number of measures that Mahler orchestrated beyond the piano sketch he left for much of the remainder of the work. It's the moment of moments in my experience.

That "moment" occurs around measure 335 beginning at about 1 hour 12 minutes into the symphony as performed in the link below and lasting for a couple of minutes of pure sublime. My absolute favorite "magic moment" in music. That it's by Mahler doesn't surprise me.






And now, I disappear.


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## Haydn man (Jan 25, 2014)

For me 3 examples
Mozart Prague Symphony first movement with its drive and energy 
Mozart PC No.23 slow movement which I find utterly devine
Brahms PC No.1 first movement introduction, that’s how to start a big powerful romantic concerto


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## hammeredklavier (Feb 18, 2018)

A reminder for some people; this thread is <Magical Moments in Music>, NOT <Magical Movements in Music>, btw.


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## neofite (Feb 19, 2017)

When I was younger, one of the most magical of musical moments for me was the very short section in Wagner's "Magic Fire Music" (first 90 seconds of 



, but particularly seconds 60 to 90) which allowed me to easily visualize the dancing of the tips of the flames. It was magical for several reasons, including its great beauty, its uniqueness, and the fact that I had no idea how such a sequence of sounds could be composed and performed. It has lost a bit of magic now that I have grown up and understand something (but still not much) about orchestration and the roles of the various instruments involved.

It also became less magical after I had the opportunity to hear more of this opera and realize that this section, which I consider one of Wagner's most beautiful and unique, is too short and is not repeated nor further developed. What follows seems anti-climatic. Although I realize that the story would not allow it, I would have liked for this, or a longer, even more intense repetition, to be at the very end, part of a great climax in the final moments of the opera.

Fortunately, as I have grown up and my music horizons expanded, I have found many other, more magical moments, and even entire magical movements or pieces. And, likewise fortunately, my greater understanding of instruments and orchestration has not detracted from the magic of these new moments, but, rather, has enhanced it.


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## Forster (Apr 22, 2021)

hammeredklavier said:


> 15:44


15:44?

My PC must be playing slower or faster than yours. 15:44 seems a random spot in the concerto, rather than anything magical. Would you explain what I should be hearing?


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## hammeredklavier (Feb 18, 2018)

Forster said:


> 15:44?
> My PC must be playing slower or faster than yours. 15:44 seems a random spot in the concerto, rather than anything magical. Would you explain what I should be hearing?


The nostalgic exchange of the first theme of the movement in the various solo instruments of the orchestra and then the rising chromatic, disssonant passage that leads to the dreamy, nocturnal recapitulation of the second theme and the fantasy-like bravura passage extending that, in the piano? (If you don't find this magical, then) which part of the work do you find magical?


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## Forster (Apr 22, 2021)

hammeredklavier said:


> The nostalgic exchange of the first theme of the movement in the various solo instruments of the orchestra and then the rising chromatic, disssonant passage that leads to the dreamy, nocturnal recapitulation of the second theme and the fantasy-like bravura passage extending that, in the piano? (If you don't find this magical, then) which part of the work do you find magical?


So, what was the point of directing us to a specific moment, if what you actually want us to listen to is the whole thing?


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## hammeredklavier (Feb 18, 2018)

Forster said:


> So, what was the point of directing us to a specific moment, if what you actually want us to listen to is the whole thing?


No, I don't want you to listen to the whole thing. 



 (15:44~16:00) - just this bit alone would be fine, just for this thread. If there are other moments in the music you think are just as magical, feel free to post them.


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## golfer72 (Jan 27, 2018)

golfer72 said:


> Id have to say the climax about 3.5 minutes in to the 1st movement of the 9th symphony.


Oops! Of course I meant Mahler 9 !


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## Waehnen (Oct 31, 2021)

I´m in the mood for describing another magical moment. 

*Tchaikovsky, Symphony no. 6., Pathétique, 1st Movement, "The Great Breakdown" as I call it, at the end of the furious development section.*

(Bar 278, Marking Q onwards. Before the andante "Song theme" appears for the last time. Starting from 13:02 in the clip below:




)

The whole symphonic movement has been building up to this point. In Karajan´s hands it is a terrifying breakdown. In Celibidache´s hands with a slow tempo it causes anxiety, even.

In my opinion it is a similar compositional technique which Beethoven applied in the Funeral March in Eroica Symphony, when the fugato suddenly appears. This breakdown is a tight chordal and polyphonic sequence which you can follow with intuition, the trombones marking the turns while spiralling down and down, just like you kinda know what to expect with a fugato (here´s the theme, now it is repeated etc). It is a powerful contrast to the romantic and hysteric narrative of the development section which doesn´t really follow any tight forms so to speak.


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