Caspar David Friedrich

Wanderer Above the Sea of Mist

By Caspar David Friedrich

The Romanticism period started in the early nineteenth century to the beginning of the twentieth century. In this period there was a growth in nationalism, a rise of the individual, and an emphasis on a powerful and uncontrollable presence that is nature. 

Artists were the true philosophers of the time and unlike the Enlightenment period, their works were separated from society. Art of the romantic period was very different from the Enlightenment period because artists were considered as the "dreamer". Art was also more organic and less symmetric. The lighting is different in romantic pieces because it is brought to the background instead of the foreground. Mystical skies and powerful nature scenes were starting to be the focus of artist's work. 

This piece by Friedrich represents the romantic era in many different ways. The lighting of this painting focuses on the background which pulls attention to the sky and nature of the valley the individual is looking at. This painting also depicts the concept of the individual as a dreamer because the place where this individual is painted, is a mystery. You don't know what lies beyond this valley and you can't tell if he is standing in the clouds or looking at a patch of fog. This piece is very asymmetric which represents the concept of breaking away from Enlightenment ideals. The only attention pulled to the foreground is the shadow of the individual. 

I think that romantic artwork is mysterious and beautiful. Artist's depict nature as if you were in the picture itself. I think that's why this period focused on the emotions of an individual and these dramatic emotions are shown in the artwork of this time.

Joseph Haydn

Recognizing Phrases Through Haydn's Symphony

When we first started learning about Haydn in class, I had no idea who he was and that he composed classical music. Some would say Mozart is more known than Haydn but in fact Haydn had composed many more pieces of music than Mozart. Haydn had composed over 100 symphonies! Mozart had only composed around 40 symphonies. 

I used Haydn's Symphony No 91 in E-flat major to point out a phrase structure. You don't have to listen to the entire 25 minutes because I only used the first 17 seconds!

This is what I found listening to this piece over and over again:

The phrase diagram is labeled as a contrasting sectional period because both ideas start off differently making them contrasting ideas. The antecedent (opening phrase) ends on an interrupted authentic cadence (mi). This makes the period sectional because the harmony is resolved but the melody is not. The consequent (second phrase) ends on a perfect authentic cadence, or the tonic chord: do. This makes the two phrases a period because the antecedent ends on an "IAC" and the consequent ends on a "PAC".

The antecedent starts off strong and each three notes that are being played go up in scale, raising in pitch. The texture is smooth and you can clearly hear a flute, oboe, violin and cello. I'd like to describe the consequent the opposite of the antecedent because it starts high in scale and goes down in scale with each note being played, ending on the tonic chord. 

This phrase diagram can clearly represent the Enlightenment period we've been studying in class. It represents conversions thinkers would have in the salons. It brings together two different ideas that thinkers would argue over. At the end though the problem gets resolved and they come to a the best conclusion together. Two ideas are always better than one and that is what this phrase diagram represents. 

Ithacappella

Ithacappella Block I Concert

When I think of acapella I think of the movie "Pitch Perfect". I think of the extreme acapella battles that the different groups have. When I went to go watch the Ithacappella's Block I concert I had expected it to be something to what I've seen in that movie. Although there was no "cup song" or puking on stage from nervousness, it was such an awesome event to watch. I have never been to an acapella concert before so I didn't know what to expect. 

I anxiously sat in the dark, crowded, Emerson Suites this past Friday night and when the singers emerged from the side doors, the audience went wild. They started off by singing the Ithaca College anthem and it was done so beautifully, way better than Convocation. You could hear all of the different melodies and harmonies because of how in sync everyone's voices were. After the opening the group made their way to the stage and the stage lights emerged from the background. The group came in with Sing by Ed Sheeran and proceeded with the songs, Working for the Weekend, Mr. Brightside, September, Bang Bang, Sitting on the Dock of the Bay. 

During intermission I had entered a raffle and I so badly wanted to be serenaded by Ithacappella but sadly my darn raffle tickets weren't chosen. Anyways, besides that tragic news, I could clearly hear the different textures of the songs because I could recognize the different sounds being made from each singer (since they are making every sound of the song from their mouths and no instruments). I could hear the beat from the beat boxers, the bass from the bass singer and so on. 

I gained appreciation for the acapella singers when I listened to them sing. I couldn't imagine picking out each sound of a song and trying to re-create the sound with your voice. That's hard work! The coolest thing about listening to acapella singers is that even though the voices blend well together to create the song, you can still clearly pick out the different textures. The music that was sung at the concert wasn't exactly related to what we've been learning in class but I would consider the song Sitting on the Dock of the Bay a folk song. The lyrics of the song are memorable and the music doesn't contain leaps which makes it easy to sing.  

There wasn't a song that stood out to me because every song was performed so well! I did love the freshman introductions though. I love that they didn't just sing the songs, they performed them as actors too which made the show interesting to watch and not just something to hear. This was such a great event and I'm so happy I got to see it. I most definitely will be going to the other events they put on to see how they improve as a group. By the end of the year they are going to be "on point" and I can't wait to hear that progression!

If you want to hear Ithacappella perform, check out their YouTube! 

youtube.com/ithacappella