Music Appreciation
MUH Essay 2
Sarah Ostrowski
Wayne State University
Question 4:
Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture was a very interesting song; there were many changes through out the piece. It started out sounding like a battle symphony where Tchaikovsky used the instruments to make a choppy sound, which reminded me of a march, as well as gun sounds. He has a great use of crescendo at the beginning. Along with increasing the sound level he also increases the tempo and brings the piece into a dramatic point as all of the instruments join. This includes many different types of instruments: orchestra, woodwind, and percussion. This composer also has a great use of repetition, in the first minute of the song he repeats small sections with the same instrument, but as the song develops he makes this more complicated and repeats longer sections and changes instruments each time. I really like this style because it allows the listener to hear each instrument individually, which is rarely done in a song. Drums are used to keep the beat in this section of the piece, which makes the battle feeling stronger and alludes to a heartbeat sound. But it is really the trumpets that stand out in the song and give the beginning of the battle presentation. After the repetition involving different instruments the song begins a decrescendo, this is a great transition into the next big change in the music. A dramatic shift happens and the music turns into a soft, smooth melodic tune that you would dance to at a ball. There is the use of a tiny bell sound that lightens the mood. The notes in this section are much longer and smoother than previously. Also, the woodwinds were taken out during this section and we only hear orchestra. I did not particularly enjoy this song until it transitioned in such a dramatic way; I have never heard such a transition in a piece where it goes from a battle theme to a ball dance theme. This
Sarah Ostrowski
Wayne State University
Question 4:
Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture was a very interesting song; there were many changes through out the piece. It started out sounding like a battle symphony where Tchaikovsky used the instruments to make a choppy sound, which reminded me of a march, as well as gun sounds. He has a great use of crescendo at the beginning. Along with increasing the sound level he also increases the tempo and brings the piece into a dramatic point as all of the instruments join. This includes many different types of instruments: orchestra, woodwind, and percussion. This composer also has a great use of repetition, in the first minute of the song he repeats small sections with the same instrument, but as the song develops he makes this more complicated and repeats longer sections and changes instruments each time. I really like this style because it allows the listener to hear each instrument individually, which is rarely done in a song. Drums are used to keep the beat in this section of the piece, which makes the battle feeling stronger and alludes to a heartbeat sound. But it is really the trumpets that stand out in the song and give the beginning of the battle presentation. After the repetition involving different instruments the song begins a decrescendo, this is a great transition into the next big change in the music. A dramatic shift happens and the music turns into a soft, smooth melodic tune that you would dance to at a ball. There is the use of a tiny bell sound that lightens the mood. The notes in this section are much longer and smoother than previously. Also, the woodwinds were taken out during this section and we only hear orchestra. I did not particularly enjoy this song until it transitioned in such a dramatic way; I have never heard such a transition in a piece where it goes from a battle theme to a ball dance theme. This