When I was choosing my assignments for submission, I focused to select works which represents different aspects of the music. This assignment is focused on exploring musical instruments, specifically on the piccolo.
The Piccolo
At the beginning of human history, the flute and the recorder were symbols of love spell, life, and rebirth for many primitive nations. Based on an old Greek mythology, we know that Zeus and Mnemosyne had nine daughters. Since ancient times we look at them as the muse of poetry, art and science. One of the daughters, Euterpe was the goddesses of music, song and dance. (Pécsi, 1998) As we can see on the picture below, the painter Francesco del Cassa portray Euterpe with a wind instrument.
The piccolo is a member of the woodwind family of musical instruments. It is a small flute which sounds an octave higher than the ordinary or concert flute. (Oxfordmusiconline.com, 2019) The instrument made from wood, metal, or a combination of both.
During the nineteenth century, there was an industrial revolution which bought a social change as well as the development in science and manufacturing. This development had an effect on the design of the instruments and music performance. Auxiliary instruments such as the piccolo evolved and enhanced. It became a more frequent member of the orchestral wind section. (Rees, n.d.)
The piccolo evolved from the military transverse flute of the Middle Ages. From the 17th century to the 19th century there were rapid technical innovation in the flute making process which mirrored to the piccolo. The result of these technical improvements was a smaller sized piccolo traverso. By the early 18th century it appears with one to four keys and later more keys added. In the middle of the nineteenth century, piccolos were made using the new Boehm fingering mechanism invented by Theobald Boehm in 1832. Besides the development piccolos with older key mechanisms were still in use well into the twentieth century. The sound is produced the same way as on the flute. The musician blows through the mouth hole (embouchure hole) and the stream of air contacts the edge which cyclically directed outward and inward. This cyclically vibrating air stream is the sound generator and excites cyclic vibrations of the air column inside the flute’s cylindrical tube. The tone holes and keys shorten the vibrating air columns and produces an increase in pitch. The sound is projected through the open lower end and the open keys. The strength of blowing has an effect of pitch.
Blowing strongly results high pitch than blowing softly. The flutist’s lips also have an important role with intonation and expression. (Vsl.co.at, 2002)
The first time when parts appeared in scores for piccolo was in the first third of the eighteenth century. These parts appeared in the opera called Rinaldo (1711) and Water Music (1715) written by Georg Friedrich Handel. They also can be found in The Three Concerti per flautino composed by Antonio Vivaldi. The only problem that there was no clear indication which instrument plays these parts; the piccolo with one key or the high recorder or flageolet. Today this is not a problem as these parts are played by the piccolo.
The first composer who consciously wrote parts to the piccolo in his works was Ludwig van Beethoven. He used this instrument to imitate the sounds of the nature. For example, the whistling of a stormy wind in the fourth movement of his 6th Symphony. Other example is Giuseppe Verdi`s Rigoletto where the composer used a piccolo to symbolize lightning. And Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart`s Magic Flute where the instrument was used for special effects or compositions where the fortissimo of the piccolo is used to heighten terror in frightening scenes.
The Piccolo became a part of the Orchestra`s woodwind section by composers of the Romantic period especially Richard Strauss and Gustav Mahler. It became a widely used instrument to add colour and shading to the sound of the orchestra. Occasionally the piccolo also used as a solo instrument. (Vsl.co.at, 2002)
Beside the orchestral pieces there are other type of works composed for piccolo such as solos, concertos, chamber music and duets with piano which many of them are sonatas.
As the piccolo`s popularity increased, more and more flutists turned to this instrument. Beside playing in the Orchestra, the musicians turned to recording due to major improvement in the equipment such as Edison`s phonograph. Many virtuoso performers started recording their pieces which gained an international success. There were piccolo soloists all around the world.
Eli Hudson Rennison (1877-1919), was a sensational piccolo virtuoso and a pioneer recording artist in England. His skills and techniques were exceptional. The perfect intonation, clean articulation and brilliant passages made him an excellent piccolo player. After the Royal College of Music, he became a member of several orchestras such as the London Symphony Orchestra, Queen’s Hall Orchestra and the Crystal Palace Orchestra. In 1905 he was a co-founder of the New Symphony Orchestra which was the first orchestra that contracted with a gramophone company. Beside his orchestral play he was a regular soloist. For example, he played solo in the Bach’s Orchestral Suite No 2 in Prom 48 at the Queen’s Hall. He also explored other ways of working. He formed a trio with his wife and sister and started touring. They had several show pieces such as The Wren, Victoriana and The Sunshine of your smile which became a huge hit. They also did recordings together as a trio and individually as well. During his career he became famous not only as a flute and piccolo player but as a conductor, arranger, music hall star and recording artist. (Johnson, 2014)
On the picture below is the sheet music of one of his solo piece Bonnisseau’s Scherzo which was recorded in 1908.
In Germany, Julius Aschke (c.1851), who was born in Berlin. At the beginning of his career he was a piccolo player in the Buchner Orchestra. In 1901 he moved to Philadelphia. Between 1904-1909 he recorded piccolo solos for the Gramophone company and for the Odeon in Berlin. (Scott, 2008)
Indian born Mark A. Brewer (1876), who was born in Poona. He went to England to study flute and piccolo under J Harrington Young. He was a member of the Covent Garden Orchestra and he also performed before Queen Victoria at Windsor in 1895. Beside playing he also composed solos for piccolo such as the Golden Sparks, The Comet, The Lark’s Festival, The Linnet’s Parade and Deep Blue Sea. (Scott, 2008)
In France, Eugène Damaré(1840-1919), who was born in Bayonne. He was a piccolo virtuoso, conductor and composer. He was an Officer of the French Academy. As a composer he wrote several pieces and also studies and methods for flute and piccolo. He recorded some of his works for Bellini. He was also played with Concert Arban and conducted the Hotel de Ville Festivals in Paris. (Scott, 2008)
In US, Henry Jaegerwho was a flute and piccolo soloist at the US Marine Band. He did recordings with the Columbia Phonograph Company. (Scott, 2008)
An Irish born, John S. Cox(1834-1902) who was a piccolo player and composer. He wrote a number of solo pieces. He was a member of the famous American Gilmores`s band and in 1892 he joined to another popular American band called Sousa. (Scott, 2008)
The 19th century industrial revolution introduced us to this unique instrument and since than it has a growing popularity between composers and talented players all around the world.
Word: 1219
Reference
Pécsi, G. (1998). Key to the music. 4th ed. Pécs: Key to the music Publisher, p.213.
del Cossa, F. (n.d.). The Muse Euterpe. [wood on canvas] Budapest, Hungary: Museum of Fine Arts.
Rees, C. (n.d.). From the Present to the Past.
Oxfordmusiconline.com. (2019). Piccolo | Grove Music. [online] Available at: https://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/grovemusic/view/10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.001.0001/omo-9781561592630-e-0000021679?rskey=W9iCNk [Accessed 8 January 2020]
Vsl.co.at. (2002). Sound Production – Vienna Symphonic Library. [online] Available at: https://www.vsl.co.at/en/Piccolo/Sound_Production [Accessed 15 Jan. 2020]
Vsl.co.at. (2002). History – Vienna Symphonic Library. [online] Available at: https://www.vsl.co.at/en/Piccolo/History [Accessed 16 Jan. 2020]
Johnson, J. (2014). London Symphony Orchestra – The LSO in World War I: Eli Hudson. [online] Lso.co.uk. Available at: https://lso.co.uk/more/blog/306-the-lso-in-world-war-i-eli-hudson.html [Accessed 18 Jan. 2020]
Bigio, R. (n.d.). Eli Hudson recordings. [online] Robertbigio.com. Available at: http://robertbigio.com/hudson.htm [Accessed 20 Jan. 2020]
Scott, S. (2008). The Piccolo Soloists. [online] Dwsolo.com. Available at: https://www.dwsolo.com/flutehistory/piccolo/The%20Piccolo%20Soloists.htm [Accessed 22 Jan. 2020]
Cover picture: 2021. Piccolo. [image] Available at: <https://philharmonia.co.uk/resources/instruments/piccolo/> [Accessed 4 February 2020]
Reflective Account
This reflective account gives a detail how I was working on part three.
The biggest challenge for me with this chapter was to focus on my work. I had a difficult few months, which made my studies difficult, but I took my time and approach the material step by step.
My learning began with the nineteenth century industrial revolution and as a result the improvement of the instruments. Although I had a historical knowledge about the revolution itself, this topic gave me a deeper understanding about the development of the instruments and how they used them.
My next journey was the romantic music. This genre was always close to me. As a singer I really enjoy performing pieces from this period because they are filled with lots of emotional expressions for example Faure Le Secret or Bellini Ma rendi pur contento etc. The unfamiliar area within the romantic period was the programme music. Berlioz and Mahler names were not new, but I never listened pieces from them before. The exercise also helped me to approach music and listening on a different way. It was also an enjoyment to came across Bartok`s name in the chapter of nationalism in music. He was a really important composer in Hungary. Bartok worked with Kodaly and they were pioneers for collecting Hungarian folk music and using folk elements in their compositions. This chapter gave me a vide view about other composers around the world who did similar works.
I had the same experience with piano recital. Although piano is not my favourite instrument and I do not really enjoy solo piano pieces it is undeniable, that Franz Liszt was pioneer with his composition and solo performances. It was really interesting to read about different music styles and how they performed. It surprised me that chamber music was only popular with different instrumental settings, as personally I like to listen piano based ensembles and solo voices which accompanied with piano as well as string quartets.
The last chapter from Wagner was an interesting topic. As the composer is famous amongst singers. His opera arias are highly demanding for singers and orchestra players as well. For a singer the vocals require different level of singing style and technique. You need a really dramatic voice to bring alive what Wagner wanted when he wrote his pieces.
In terms of my working methods, I really enjoyed the listening part and the research. I feel I am getting more comfortable about music. This was the first time I had to write a short account instead of an essay which was new and I hope I got the right idea about the form. I try to widen my research sources and I am using books, lectures and internet for my works. Although I feel I am improving about writing, I still need to focus on this area to achieve the requirements for the assignments and blogs. For that I try to gain more knowledge about forms and modes of communicating musical information. I also need to focus on more of my time management. I made sure that my referencing is correct.
Word: 521
Reflection on Tutor Feedback for Assignment Three
I was happy with my tutor`s feedback, although I knew there is plenty of room to improve. The first issue was the opening paragraph of the essay. As my tutor suggested, I changed the order of some points to help the flow of the content.
My biggest mistake was that I did not write a conclusion, so I added this section when I was re-visited my work.
I had a mistake in my reference list as well. I forgot to translate the reference of the Hungarian book I used for the essay. I corrected this by giving the reference in English.
Another issue was my listening log. My tutor made me aware that I only used one source. I corrected this by using multiple sources to improve my critical engagement and research skills.
Overall, when I was re-visiting my assignment, I followed my tutor`s advice. I focused on the structure and flow of my academic writing and wrote a clearer “narrative” and logical structure. During the research, I used a variety of sources. I also worked on my listening log and added more entries and works.
Assignment 3
The Piccolo
Based on an old Greek mythology, we know that Zeus and Mnemosyne had nine daughters. Since ancient times we look at them as the muse of poetry, art and science. One of the daughters, Euterpe was the goddesses of music, song and dance. (Pécsi, 1998) As we can see on the picture below, the painter Francesco del Cassa portray Euterpe with a wind instrument.
At the beginning of human history, the flute and the recorder were symbols of love spell, life and rebirth for many primitive nations. During the nineteenth century, there was an industrial revolution which bought a social change as well as the development in science and manufacturing. This development had an effect on the design of the instruments and music performance. Auxiliary instruments such as the piccolo evolved and enhanced. It became a more frequent member of the orchestral wind section. (Rees, n.d.)
The piccolo is a member of the woodwind family of musical instruments. It is a small flute which sounds an octave higher than the ordinary or concert flute. (Oxfordmusiconline.com, 2019) The instrument made from wood, metal or a combination of both.
The sound is produced the same way as on the flute. The musician blows through the mouth hole (embouchure hole) and the stream of air contacts the edge which cyclically directed outward and inward. This cyclically vibrating air stream is the sound generator and excites cyclic vibrations of the air column inside the flute’s cylindrical tube. The tone holes and keys shorten the vibrating air columns and produces an increase in pitch. The sound is projected through the open lower end and the open keys. The strength of blowing has an effect of pitch. Blowing strongly results high pitch than blowing softly. The flutist’s lips also have an important role with intonation and expression. (Vsl.co.at, 2002) The piccolo evolved from the military transverse flute of the Middle Ages. From the 17th century to the 19th century there were rapid technical innovation in the flute making process which mirrored to the piccolo. The result of these technical improvements was a smaller sized piccolo traverso. By the early 18th century it appears with one to four keys and later more keys added. In the middle of the nineteenth century, piccolos were made using the new
Boehm fingering mechanism invented by Theobald Boehm in 1832. Besides the development piccolos with older key mechanisms were still in use well into the twentieth century.
The first time when parts appeared in scores for piccolo was in the first third of the eighteenth century. These parts appeared in the opera called Rinaldo (1711) and Water Music (1715) written by Georg Friedrich Handel. They also can be found in The Three Concerti per flautino composed by Antonio Vivaldi. The only problem that there was no clear indication which instrument plays these parts; the piccolo with one key or the high recorder or flageolet. Today this is not a problem as these parts are played by the piccolo.
The first composer who consciously wrote parts to the piccolo in his works was Ludwig van Beethoven. He used this instrument to imitate the sounds of the nature. For example, the whistling of a stormy wind in the fourth movement of his 6th Symphony. Other example is Giuseppe Verdi`s Rigoletto where the composer used a piccolo to symbolize lightning. And Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart`s Magic Flute where the instrument was used for special effects or compositions where the fortissimoof the piccolo is used to heighten terror in frightening scenes.
The Piccolo became a part of the Orchestra`s woodwind section by composers of the Romantic period especially Richard Strauss and Gustav Mahler. It became a widely used instrument to add colour and shading to the sound of the orchestra. Occasionally the piccolo also used as a solo instrument. (Vsl.co.at, 2002)
Beside the orchestral pieces there are other type of works composed for piccolo such as solos, concertos, chamber music and duets with piano which many of them are sonatas.
As the piccolo`s popularity increased, more and more flutists turned to this instrument. Beside playing in the Orchestra, the musicians turned to recording due to major improvement in the equipment such as Edison`s phonograph. Many virtuoso performers started recording their pieces which gained an international success. There were piccolo soloists all around the world.
In England, Eli Hudson Rennison (1877-1919), who was sensational piccolo virtuoso and a pioneer recording artist in England. His skills and techniques were exceptional. The perfect intonation, clean articulation and brilliant passages made him an excellent piccolo player. After the Royal College of Music, he became a member of several orchestras such as the London Symphony Orchestra, Queen’s Hall Orchestra and the Crystal Palace Orchestra. In 1905 he was a co-founder of the New Symphony Orchestra which was the first orchestra that contracted with a gramophone company. Beside his orchestral play he was a regular soloist. For example, he played solo in the Bach’s Orchestral Suite No 2 in Prom 48 at the Queen’s Hall. He also explored other ways of working. He formed a trio with his wife and sister and started touring. They had several show pieces such as The Wren, Victoriana and The Sunshine of your smile which became a huge hit. They also did recordings together as a trio and individually as well. During his career he became famous not only as a flute and piccolo player but as a conductor, arranger, music hall star and recording artist. (Johnson, 2014) On the picture below is the sheet music of one of his solo piece Bonnisseau’s Scherzo which was recorded in 1908.
In Germany, Julius Aschke (c.1851), who was born in Berlin. At the beginning of his career he was a piccolo player in the Buchner Orchestra. In 1901 he moved to Philadelphia. Between 1904-1909 he recorded piccolo solos for the Gramophone company and for the Odeon in Berlin. (Scott, 2008)
Indian born Mark A. Brewer (1876), who was born in Poona. He went to England to study flute and piccolo under J Harrington Young. He was a member of the Covent Garden Orchestra and he also performed before Queen Victoria at Windsor in 1895. Beside playing he also composed solos for piccolo such as the Golden Sparks, The Comet, The Lark’s Festival, The Linnet’s Parade and Deep Blue Sea. (Scott, 2008) In France, Eugène Damaré (1840-1919), who was born in Bayonne. He was a piccolo virtuoso, conductor and composer. He was an Officer of the French Academy. As a composer he wrote several pieces and also studies and methods for flute and piccolo. He recorded some of his works for Bellini. He was also played with Concert Arban and conducted the Hotel de Ville Festivals in Paris. (Scott, 2008)
In US, Henry Jaeger who was a flute and piccolo soloist at the US Marine Band. He did recordings with the Columbia Phonograph Company and he was the first musician who was identified by name. (Scott, 2008)
An Irish born, John S. Cox (1834-1902) who was a piccolo player and composer. He wrote a number of solo pieces. He was a member of the famous American Gilmores`s band and in 1892 he joined to another popular American band called Sousa. (Scott, 2008)
Reference
Pécsi, G. (1998). Kulcs a muzsikához. 4th ed. Pécs: Kulcs a muzsikához Kiadó, p.213.
del Cossa, F. (n.d.). The Muse Euterpe. [wood on canvas] Budapest, Hungary: Museum of Fine Arts.
Rees, C. (n.d.). From the Present to the Past
Oxfordmusiconline.com. (2019). Piccolo | Grove Music. [online] Available at: https://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/grovemusic/view/10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.001.0001/omo-9781561592630-e-0000021679?rskey=W9iCNk [Accessed 8 January 2020]
Vsl.co.at. (2002). Sound Production – Vienna Symphonic Library. [online] Available at: https://www.vsl.co.at/en/Piccolo/Sound_Production [Accessed 15 Jan. 2020].
Vsl.co.at. (2002). History – Vienna Symphonic Library. [online] Available at: https://www.vsl.co.at/en/Piccolo/History [Accessed 16 Jan. 2020]
Johnson, J. (2014). London Symphony Orchestra – The LSO in World War I: Eli Hudson. [online] Lso.co.uk. Available at: https://lso.co.uk/more/blog/306-the-lso-in-world-war-i-eli-hudson.html [Accessed 18 Jan. 2020]
Bigio, R. (n.d.). Eli Hudson recordings. [online] Robertbigio.com. Available at: http://robertbigio.com/hudson.htm [Accessed 20 Jan. 2020]
Scott, S. (2008). The Piccolo Soloists. [online] Dwsolo.com. Available at: https://www.dwsolo.com/flutehistory/piccolo/The%20Piccolo%20Soloists.htm [Accessed 22 Jan. 2020]
Reflective Account
This reflective account gives a detail how I was working on part three.
The biggest challenge for me with this chapter was to focus on my work. I had a difficult few months, which made my studies difficult, but I took my time and approach the material step by step.
My learning began with the nineteenth century industrial revolution and as a result the improvement of the instruments. Although I had a historical knowledge about the revolution itself, this topic gave me a deeper understanding about the development of the instruments and how they used them.
My next journey was the romantic music. This genre was always close to me. As a singer I really enjoy performing pieces from this period because they are filled with lots of emotional expressions for example Faure Le Secret or Bellini Ma rendi pur contento etc. The unfamiliar area within the romantic period was the programme music. Berlioz and Mahler names were not new, but I never listened pieces from them before. The exercise also helped me to approach music and listening on a different way. It was also an enjoyment to came across Bartok`s name in the chapter of nationalism in music. He was a really important composer in Hungary. Bartok worked with Kodaly and they were pioneers for collecting Hungarian folk music and using folk elements in their compositions. This chapter gave me a vide view about other composers around the world who did similar works.
I had the same experience with piano recital. Although piano is not my favourite instrument and I do not really enjoy solo piano pieces it is undeniable, that Franz Liszt was pioneer with his composition and solo performances. It was really interesting to read about different music styles and how they performed. It surprised me that chamber music was only popular with different instrumental settings, as personally I like to listen piano based ensembles and solo voices which accompanied with piano as well as string quartets.
The last chapter from Wagner was an interesting topic. As the composer is famous amongst singers. His opera arias are highly demanding for singers and orchestra players as well. For a singer the vocals require different level of singing style and technique. You need a really dramatic voice to bring alive what Wagner wanted when he wrote his pieces.
In terms of my working methods, I really enjoyed the listening part and the research. I feel I am getting more comfortable about music. This was the first time I had to write a short account instead of an essay which was new and I hope I got the right idea about the form. I try to widen my research sources and I am using books, lectures and internet for my works. Although I feel I am improving about writing, I still need to focus on this area to achieve the requirements for the assignments and blogs. For that I try to gain more knowledge about forms and modes of communicating musical information. I also need to focus on more of my time management. I made sure that my referencing is correct.
Tutor report
Aname 