Studies on music: a program

[Henk]

- going through my Handel opera collection. Make notes about every opera.
- reading Brendel's book "Just me"
- reading The Rest is Noise. If I like it.
- reading Ligeti's biography
- going through different Beethoven symphony cycles
- listening to everything by, and make notes of their work:
    > Stravinsky
    > Takemitsu
    > Messiaen
    > Sciarrino
    > Aperghis
    > Birtwistle


Jazz: Compile a list of best recordings of 2014

For now this is enough.

[EigenUser]

- going through my Handel opera collection. Make notes about every opera.
- reading Brendel's book "Just me"
- reading The Rest is Noise. If I like it.
- reading Ligeti's biography
- going through different Beethoven symphony cycles
- listening to everything by, and make notes of their work:
    > Stravinsky
    > Takemitsu
    > Messiaen
    > Sciarrino
    > Aperghis
    > Birtwistle


Jazz: Compile a list of best recordings of 2014

For now this is enough.

Which Ligeti bio are you reading? I've read all of them, but I liked Toop's the best. The others are well-done, too. I also read a book on his so called "stylistic crisis" (about his seemingly-abrupt transition from the Ligeti of "Lontano" to the Ligeti of the "Piano Concerto") and a book of essays on the composer which was fantastic ("Of Foreign Lands and Strange Sounds").

"The Rest Is Noise" was good, but not nearly as good as I was expecting it to be. I was particularly put off by the chapters dedicated to Sibelius and Britten. Although they were interesting and well-written, they were disproportionate to the rest of the book. I was hoping for it to be more about the "difficult" avant-garde music like Boulez, Stockhausen, Kagel, etc so I could get a greater appreciation/understanding of this stuff.

Keeping listening notes is a good idea. I should do that, even if they are just superficial comments like "first movement, dotted rhythms, stormy, etc." Trying to remember each movement from Haydn's symphonies is cumbersome!

[Artem]

I'm curious, what goes into the notes making for listening?

[Henk]

Which Ligeti bio are you reading? I've read all of them, but I liked Toop's the best. The others are well-done, too. I also read a book on his so called "stylistic crisis" (about his seemingly-abrupt transition from the Ligeti of "Lontano" to the Ligeti of the "Piano Concerto") and a book of essays on the composer which was fantastic ("Of Foreign Lands and Strange Sounds").

"The Rest Is Noise" was good, but not nearly as good as I was expecting it to be. I was particularly put off by the chapters dedicated to Sibelius and Britten. Although they were interesting and well-written, they were disproportionate to the rest of the book. I was hoping for it to be more about the "difficult" avant-garde music like Boulez, Stockhausen, Kagel, etc so I could get a greater appreciation/understanding of this stuff.

Keeping listening notes is a good idea. I should do that, even if they are just superficial comments like "first movement, dotted rhythms, stormy, etc." Trying to remember each movement from Haydn's symphonies is cumbersome!

Yes, Toop's.

As with the Haydn symphonies (I have all of his symphonies by Bruggen, I think they were only published in the Netherland, exceptional performances , I have the same with Handel operas. Such beautiful music, but too much to consume. I think I pick the best ones I have and listen to them concentrated.

As for the notes. I think I only write down some general information, things which interest me particulary.

I have this book on 20th century music, covering avant-garde music and this third edition also contain 21th century music:


http://www.amazon.com/Modern-Music-After-Paul-Griffiths/dp/019974050X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1404994605&sr=8-1&keywords=griffiths+music

It's quite technical. I think it also can be read, skipping the too much technical parts.

[jochanaan]

I'm curious, what goes into the notes making for listening?

You mean program notes, either for an album or for a concert?  In my experience, there are two primary aspects: historical information and musical content description.  As a listener, I find the first very valuable, the second less so; I like to think I can discern most content for myself.

[petrarch]

I have this book on 20th century music, covering avant-garde music and this third edition also contain 21th century music:


http://www.amazon.com/Modern-Music-After-Paul-Griffiths/dp/019974050X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1404994605&sr=8-1&keywords=griffiths+music

It's quite technical. I think it also can be read, skipping the too much technical parts.

It's a good book and worth a read, though I have the previous edition. It is worth keeping in mind that no single book will cover the topic thoroughly and there's always some measure of bias from each author.

[Artem]

You mean program notes, either for an album or for a concert?  In my experience, there are two primary aspects: historical information and musical content description.  As a listener, I find the first very valuable, the second less so; I like to think I can discern most content for myself.

I was refering to Henk's listening process, which I found rather interesting in terms of note taking. I should try it myself.