- Third act of Walkure, the orchestral interlude between the "Leb wohl" bit and "Der augen leuschtendes paar".
- Hadn't felt this way about the end of Traviata, but then I went to the Gheorghiu perfs the other year. That was embarrassing.
- The "Sunday" chorus at the end of the first act of "Sunday in the Park with George"--I still don't quite understand why and it's a big part of why I like the show so much, despite that often unfortunate second act.
- The last lines of the last movement of the Brahms' Requiem: "daß sie ruhen von ihrer Arbeit; denn ihre Werke folgen ihnen nach" (that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them).
- This terribly sappy song by Iris DeMent called "Our Town", which just kills me.
Sunday, October 21, 2007
I'd weep for that
Lisa Hirsch has a game about pieces of music that make one cry, originally inspired by this clip of Esa-Pekka-Salonen getting choked up on the podium during Sibelius 2. My short list would go something like this:
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6 comments:
Credit where it's due: I got the game from Tim Mangan, who got it from Heather Heise.
Now I am forced to admit that "Our Town" gets me, too.
Oh, let's put it on, can we?
http://www.hotlinkfiles.com/files/493152_xgxpu/01Track0115.mp3]01Track0115.mp3
You mean you don't like the Chromolumes in the 2nd act of Sunday? I agree that the end of the 1st act is perfection. (The other Sondheim musical which should end at intermission is "Into the Woods" and spare us the maudlin deconstruction of Act II.)
Re. opera tears - I would add
1 - The Willow Song/Ave Maria in Otello - I tear up at every "salce"
2 - the final chord progression in Parsifal
3 - the ascending swooping scales at the very end of the 1st movement of Mahler 8 (I consider this symphony to be Mahler's almost-opera, and I would LOVE to see a company stage this piece) which embody the Holy Spirit as wind/the breath of God.
4 - Lenski's aria (as sung by Ramon Vargas last year at the MET - one of my all-time opera-going highlights)
Two by Strauss:
1. "Rosenkavalier" Trio.
2. Four Last Songs, especially the last two.
The slow movements to Mozart Piano Concertos can make me teary, if they're played with sensitivity; especially Nos. 9, 20 & 27.
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