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Cork Pops Orchestra

Teachers’ Notes 2025

Programme

 

The following pieces  -(and more!) –  will be performed at the Cork Pops Orchestra Concerts for Schools 2025.

 

The ‘Clock’ Symphony  (2nd movt.)                Franz Josef Haydn

The Syncopated Clock                                    Leroy Anderson

Concerto for Descant Recorder                     Giuseppe Sammartini

Music for Pieces of Wood                              Steve Reich

The Dance of the Hours                                 Amilcare Ponchielli

Unsquare Dance                                             Dave Brubeck

Star Wars Theme                                            John Williams

Jurassic Park Theme                                       John Williams

 

The theme for this year’s concert ‘The Rhythm of Time’ is inspired by my fascination for the life and work of the African-American poet, Langston Hughes (1901-1967), whose book The Book of Rhythms I have loved since I found a copy in 1995.

Post-primary students may be interested in learning about Langston Hughes, who was very involved in the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920/30s, which provided the foundation for the civil rights movement of the 1950/60s in America.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bwRF7mU4zrg    (Hughes reading his own work.)

 

The book was first published in 1954, in the era of Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King Jnr.  The new publication in 1995 included an introduction by the acclaimed trumpeter, Wynton Marsalis, and an afterword by Hughes’ scholar Prof. Robert O’Meally.

[Oxford University Press : ISBN 0-19-509856-0]

I hope you will find both the information below and the YouTube links useful in preparing for the concert. As usual, I will leave it to yourselves to make the material age-appropriate for your own class group. I would also refer you to the classroom resources on the website from ‘A Musical Tapestry’. Although these Lesson/Performances were created during 2021, they remain relevant for the primary school age groups.  https://corkpops.ie/schools/

Also included below information on some works by Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Wagner, and Tchaikovsky, which is intended for AFTER the concert. A surprise!

I include YouTube links in the spirit of for educational use (fair dealing/fair usage), to help the students enjoy orchestral music. Please encourage them to be aware of copyright issues, and to remember that the musicians who perform and record music deserve both recognition and fair payment for their work.

Symphony No. 101 in D major, ‘The Clock’ – Second Movement: Andante (1794) Joseph Haydn (1732-1809)

In this movement, Haydn creates a musical timepiece that’s impossible to ignore. From the very first bars, you’ll hear a steady “tick-tock” created by the plucked strings and bassoons, keeping perfect time like clockwork. But Haydn being Haydn, he can’t resist having some fun – halfway through, the music suddenly turns dark and dramatic, as if the clock has gone a bit mad, before the cheerful ticking returns to restore order.

This symphony was written for Haydn’s second triumphant visit to London in 1794, where audiences absolutely adored him. At the première, this gentle second movement was so popular that the crowd demanded it be played again immediately – along with the first movement! It’s a perfect example of how Haydn could take a simple everyday sound and transform it into something magical and amusing.

About the Composer

Joseph Haydn is known as the “Father of the Symphony” – and with good reason. He wrote 104 of them! Born in a small Austrian village, Haydn showed such musical talent that at age eight he was sent to sing in the choir at Vienna’s St Stephen’s Cathedral. His career really took off when he was employed by the wealthy Esterházy family, where he worked for nearly 30 years, composing music and conducting their orchestra.

Haydn had a wonderful sense of humour and was incredibly inventive. Not all of his symphonies have been given names, but he once wrote a symphony where the musicians leave the stage one by one until only two violinists are left, – this one became known as ‘The Farewell Symphony’; and another one called ‘The Surprise’ has a great big loud chord in one movement, intended to waken anyone who might have fallen asleep in the audience. He basically established the rules for how symphonies and string quartets should be written, which inspired Mozart and Beethoven. Despite his fame across Europe, Haydn remained modest and good-natured throughout his very long life. His music is full of wit, elegance, and delightful surprises.

YouTube Links:

The Syncopated Clock (1945) Leroy Anderson (1908-1975)

In this fun piece, composed by Leroy Anderson in  1945, he turns the ticking clock into a musical joke. The “tick-tock” sound is made by wooden blocks, keeping a steady pulse throughout – but this clock doesn’t quite keep perfect time. It’s syncopated, meaning the rhythm – within the beat is deliberately off-beat and jazzy,  so while there is a steady 4/4 beat throughout, the syncopation gives the piece a fun, quirky feel.

Anderson wrote this whilst serving in the US Army during World War II, working in military intelligence at the Pentagon. It became so popular that CBS television used it as the theme tune for “The Late Show” for over 25 years.

About the Composer

Leroy Anderson was an American composer who had a special talent for creating short, fun orchestral pieces that made people smile. Born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, he studied at Harvard University and became fluent in nine languages working as a linguist during the war. Whilst he is best known for light orchestral music, he was incredibly skilled at his craft. His other famous works include “Sleigh Ride” (always heard at Christmas time) and “The Typewriter,” where an actual typewriter becomes a musical instrument. Anderson proved that classical music doesn’t always have to be serious – it can be witty, clever, and great fun.

YouTube Links:

 

Concerto in F Major for Descant Recorder (c1730) Giuseppe Sammartini (1695-1750)

Giuseppe Sammartini’s Concerto in F Major for Descant Recorder is his most famous piece today, and it’s one of the finest works written for the small recorder during the Baroque period.

The concerto was probably composed in the 1730s, during the height of the recorder’s popularity in London. A handwritten copy of the manuscript survived in Sweden, and that’s how we know this wonderful music today.

At the time Sammartini wrote this concerto, small recorder concertos were all the rage in London. From about 1715 onwards, audiences loved hearing a little recorder “piping away” above a string orchestra in public concerts and in special entertainments given during theatre intervals. The bright, cheerful sound of the descant recorder was perfect for showing off both the instrument’s agility and the player’s skill.

Sammartini likely wrote this concerto to perform himself. Although he was famous as an oboist, he was skilled enough on the recorder to dazzle audiences with this piece. By the mid-1730s, however, the fashion for recorder concertos was ending, and the modern flute (which could play louder) was taking over in professional concerts.

About the Composer 

Giuseppe Sammartini was hailed as “the greatest oboist the world had ever known”.

Born in Milan, Italy, on 6 January 1695, Giuseppe came from a musical family. His father, Alexis Saint-Martin, was a French oboist who had moved to Italy, and he taught Giuseppe to play the oboe from an early age.

Giuseppe had a younger brother named Giovanni Battista, who also became a famous composer. To tell them apart, people called Giuseppe “St Martini of London” and his brother “St Martini of Milan,” after the cities in which they worked.

In the late 1720s, Giuseppe moved to London, where he became a huge sensation. He joined the opera orchestra at the King’s Theatre and even played in the great composer George Frideric Handel’s orchestra. People were amazed by Giuseppe’s playing—witnesses said he could make the oboe sound almost like a human voice!

From 1736 until his death in 1750, Giuseppe served as music master to Frederick, Prince of Wales, and his wife Princess Augusta. He taught music to their children and wrote special pieces for royal birthdays and celebrations. He dedicated many of his compositions to the royal family, showing how important he was to them.

Although Giuseppe was primarily an oboist, like many musicians of his time, he could also play the flute and the recorder. This was common practice in the Baroque period—players needed to be versatile to perform in orchestras and chamber groups.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6W-hfSCrduk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9LRAik8wJMc

 

 

Music for Pieces of Wood (1973) Steve Reich (born 1936)

What happens when you take away everything but rhythm? Steve Reich answered this question with one of the most fascinating experiments in minimalist music. Composed in 1973 and premiered at New York University on 7th December of that year, Music for Pieces of Wood is written for five pairs of tuned claves—simple cylindrical pieces of hardwood that produce clear, resonant clicks when struck together.

Reich carefully selected claves of different pitches (A, B, C♯, D♯, and D♯ an octave higher) to create a shimmering palette of percussive colours. The piece is built entirely on what Reich called “rhythmic buildups”—a process where silence is gradually replaced by sound, beat by beat, creating intricate interlocking patterns that slowly emerge and shift. The work unfolds in three sections with decreasing pattern lengths (6/4, 4/4, and 3/4 time), and whilst one player maintains a steady pulse throughout, the others gradually construct complex rhythmic tapestries around it.

Reich himself noted that this is one of the loudest pieces he ever composed, yet it uses no electronic amplification whatsoever—just the natural resonance of wood on wood. The result is hypnotic and exhilarating: what begins as a simple pulse transforms into a kaleidoscope of rhythmic patterns, constantly shifting and evolving before your ears. The piece typically lasts about ten minutes and requires intense concentration from both performers and listeners alike.

About the Composer

Steve Reich, born in New York in 1936, is widely regarded as one of the most important composers of our time and a pioneer of minimalist music. After studying philosophy at Cornell University, he pursued composition at the Juilliard School before earning a master’s degree from Mills College in California, where he studied with the renowned composers Luciano Berio and Darius Milhaud.

In the 1960s, Reich began experimenting with tape loops, discovering that when two identical recordings play simultaneously, they gradually move “out of phase” with each other, creating fascinating new rhythmic patterns. This led to groundbreaking works like It’s Gonna Rain (1965) and influenced his approach to live instrumental music. Reich also studied African drumming in Ghana in 1970 and Balinese gamelan music, experiences that profoundly shaped his understanding of rhythm and ensemble playing.

His major works include Music for 18 Musicians (1976), Different Trains (1988, which won a Grammy Award), and WTC 9/11 (2011), a response to the September 11th attacks. In 2009, Reich won the Pulitzer Prize for Music for his Double Sextet. He has received numerous prestigious awards and has been described by critics as “America’s greatest living composer” and “the most original musical thinker of our time.” His influence extends far beyond classical music, affecting composers, rock musicians, and electronic music producers worldwide.

YouTube Links:

Star Wars: Main Theme (1977) John Williams (born 1932)

What happens when you need to open a film set in a galaxy far, far away? You create one of the most instantly recognisable pieces of music ever written! John Williams composed this thrilling fanfare for the original Star Wars film in 1977, and from the very first explosive brass chord, you know you’re in for an adventure. The melody leaps dramatically, powered by blazing trumpets, horns and trombones, before the strings sweep in with a more lyrical, romantic theme.

Williams wanted something that felt heroic and uplifting with a military flair – and he achieved it magnificently. The piece became so popular that it reached the top ten in the music charts, and the soundtrack album became the best-selling symphonic recording of all time. In 2005, the American Film Institute voted it the greatest film score ever written. Williams drew inspiration from earlier composers like Erich Korngold and Richard Wagner, but created something entirely his own – a sound that defined epic cinema for generations to come.

Jurassic Park: Theme (1993) John Williams (born 1932)

In this theme, John Williams needed to create a sense of seeing a living, breathing dinosaur for the first time. HE captured that sense of awe and wonder perfectly in this majestic theme, which he composed in early 1993. Rather than writing frightening music for a film about dinosaurs, Williams chose to celebrate “the awesome beauty and sublimity of the dinosaurs in nature.”

The theme begins gently with a solo flute, almost like a lullaby, before building into one of the most sweeping, emotional melodies Williams ever wrote. With lush strings, shimmering harps, and an ethereal choir singing wordless “oohs,” the music makes you feel as though you’re witnessing something truly miraculous. Williams described the process as “a massive job of symphonic cartooning,” trying to match the movements of the dinosaurs whilst working alongside the sound designers. The result is pure magic – noble, moving, and utterly unforgettable.

About the Composer

John Williams is quite simply a legend. Born in New York in 1932, he’s now 92 years old and still composing. After studying at the prestigious Juilliard School and working as a jazz pianist, Williams moved to Hollywood where he began scoring films in the 1960s. His big break came when director Steven Spielberg asked him to write the music for Jaws in 1975 – and their partnership became one of the greatest in cinema history. When he first played (on the piano) his idea of the using two lows notes to represent the scary shark, Spielberg thought he was joking, but when transferred to the double bass section of the orchestra is was perfect. Once again, the simplest compositional ideas can be incredibly effective.

Williams has an extraordinary talent for creating melodies that stay with you long after the film ends. Beyond Star Wars and Jurassic Park, he’s composed the music for Harry Potter, Indiana Jones, E.T., Superman, Home Alone, and over 100 other films. He’s won five Oscars and has been nominated an incredible 54 times – more than any living person. He also conducted the Boston Pops Orchestra for 13 years. Williams brought symphonic music roaring back into cinema at a time when electronic scores were becoming the norm, proving that a full orchestra can stir the emotions like nothing else.

YouTube Links:

Jurassic Park: Theme

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cR7erYmO0m8

 

Dance of the Hours from La Gioconda (1876) Amilcare Ponchielli (1834-1886)

How do you turn the passing of time into a ballet? Amilcare Ponchielli answered this question with one of the most delightful pieces of music ever written for the stage. Originally composed as part of his opera La Gioconda, which premiered at La Scala, Milan on 8th April 1876, the Dance of the Hours depicts the eternal cycle of day and night through elegant choreography and sparkling orchestration.

The ballet begins with the gentle awakening of dawn, portrayed through flowing melodies in the strings. As the day progresses, the music becomes livelier and more energetic, with brilliant passages for the woodwinds capturing the brightness of morning. Evening arrives with a tender, lyrical theme played by the cellos, before night brings mysterious staccato figures from across the orchestra. Finally, morning returns in a joyous, exuberant finale—a vigorous can-can that brings the piece to a rousing conclusion.

Whilst the opera tells a rather dark and dramatic story (it’s set during the time of the Venetian Inquisition!), the Dance of the Hours provides a moment of pure entertainment and visual spectacle. It became so popular that it was soon performed as a stand-alone concert piece, and for a time was one of the most frequently performed ballets in the world. Modern audiences might also recognise it from Walt Disney’s 1940 film Fantasia, where it accompanies the famous sequence featuring dancing hippos, ostriches, elephants and alligators.

About the Composer

Amilcare Ponchielli was born near Cremona in northern Italy in 1834 and showed extraordinary talent from an early age. He won a scholarship to the Milan Conservatory when he was just nine years old, and composed his first symphony at ten! Despite his obvious gifts, his early career was frustrating—several of his operas failed to achieve success, and he was even manoeuvred out of a professorship he had rightfully won.

YouTube Links:

 

Rock Around the Clock

The Hit That Launched Rock ‘n’ Roll

“Rock Around the Clock” by Bill Haley & His Comets became one of the most important songs in music history when it was released in 1954. While it wasn’t the very first rock ‘n’ roll song, it was the one that made rock ‘n’ roll explode into mainstream popular culture around the world.

The Story Behind the Song

The song was written by Max C. Freedman and James E. Myers (who used the name “Jimmy De Knight”). Bill Haley and His Comets recorded it, combining elements of rhythm and blues, country music, and swing into an exciting new sound that got everyone dancing.

At first, the song didn’t do much on the charts. But in 1955, it was featured in the opening credits of the film Blackboard Jungle, a movie about rebellious teenagers. Suddenly, “Rock Around the Clock” became an anthem for young people everywhere. It shot to number one and stayed there for eight weeks!

The Impact

This song helped define what rock ‘n’ roll sounded like with its:

“Rock Around the Clock” sold over 25 million copies worldwide and opened the door for artists like Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry, and countless others. It showed that rock ‘n’ roll wasn’t just a passing fad—it was a musical revolution that would change popular culture forever.

The song remains instantly recognizable today and is often used in films, TV shows, and for TV advertisements, whenever someone wants to evoke the exciting birth of rock ‘n’ roll in the 1950s.

Bill Haley and the Comets ; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZgdufzXvjqw

 

Unsquare Dance (1961)  Dave Brubeck (1920-2012)

Composed in 1961, this playful piece uses a 7/4 time signature – meaning there are seven beats in each bar instead of the usual four. It breaks down into 4 + 3, leaving the pulse feeling just a little bit ‘off’ – in a good way! The tune feels like it’s constantly surprising you, with hand claps and a bouncy bass line that keeps a great forward momentum.

The most famous piece associated with the Dave Brubeck Quartet is ‘Take Five’, which was actually written by the saxophone player in the group, Paul Desmond.  Now a classic jazz standard, ‘Take Five’ was released in 1959. Notable for its distinctive 5/4 time signature and featuring Joe Morello’s iconic drum solo, it became one of the best-selling jazz singles of all time and remains a defining piece of the cool jazz era.

About the composer

Dave Brubeck (1916-2012) was an American jazz pianist and composer who revolutionized jazz by bringing it from nightclubs to concert halls. In the 1950s, jazz was mostly played in smoky nightclubs and bars, often late at night. The Dave Brubeck Quartet changed all that. Brubeck, who had studied classical music at university, wanted to bring jazz to concert halls and college campuses, making it accessible to new audiences who might never set foot in a jazz club.

The Time Out Album.  When the Dave Brubeck Quartet released their Time Out album in 1959, they broke all the rules of jazz. While most jazz used simple 4/4 time (like a steady heartbeat), Brubeck experimented with unusual rhythms. The album became a massive hit, proving that complex, experimental music could still be catchy and popular. It showed musicians everywhere that taking creative risks could pay off, and it introduced millions of people to jazz who might never have listened otherwise. ‘Take Five’ was the big hit from this album. Also included was the popular ‘Blue Rondo a la Turk’ in 9/8 time, which grouped the quavers to make a 2-2-2-3 rhythm. This was influenced by Eastern culture, and inspired by Mozart’s Rondo a la Turk. Musicians in Mozart’s time had also been fascinated by the rhythm of Turkey and beyond. The piece has an interesting mix of the 9/8 and 4/4 sections, bringing both the eastern and western rhythms together.

‘Unsquare Dance’ featured on the follow-up album, ‘Time Further Out’, in 1961.

The quartet was one of the first jazz groups to tour American college campuses extensively, introducing thousands of students to jazz. Brubeck’s classical training meant he wasn’t afraid to experiment with complex time signatures and harmonies that other jazz musicians avoided. His quartet – featuring the brilliant alto saxophonist Paul Desmond, whose smooth, melodic style perfectly balanced Brubeck’s energetic piano-playing – proved that jazz could be both intellectually sophisticated and genuinely entertaining.

They also broke barriers in other ways: Brubeck insisted on playing with his Black bassist Eugene Wright at a time when integrated bands faced discrimination, even refusing to perform at venues that wouldn’t accept the whole quartet. By bringing jazz to mainstream venues, experimenting with rhythm and structure, and standing up for equality, the Dave Brubeck Quartet helped transform jazz from underground entertainment into a respected American art form.

YouTube Links

Unsquare Dance – Dave Brubeck Quartet : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lbdEzRfbeH4

Take Five – Dave Brubeck Quartet : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tT9Eh8wNMkw

These next works are a surprise element on the concert, as part of a very short medley.

Attention-grabbing openings…..I’m hoping the students will want to know more!

The notes and YouTube links below should be left until after the concert!

 

Toccata and Fugue in D minor, BWV 565 – Opening Toccata (c.1704–1708) Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750)

This is probably the most recognisable opening in all of classical music. From the very first dramatic note—with its sharp ornamental flourish—followed by that electrifying pause and then the thunderous cascade of descending notes, Bach’s Toccata has become the sound of drama itself. You’ll likely recognise it from Walt Disney’s 1940 film Fantasia, or from countless films where mystery and gothic atmosphere are needed.

The word “toccata” comes from the Italian toccare, meaning “to touch,” and refers to a virtuosic keyboard piece designed to showcase the performer’s technical brilliance. Bach’s toccata is wonderfully free and improvisatory in spirit, with rapid arpeggios (notes of a chord played in succession rather than together) racing up and down the keyboard, punctuated by powerful chords and dramatic silences. It’s like watching a brilliant organist improvise on the spot, though every note is carefully written down.

The dating of this piece remains uncertain—scholars suggest it was composed sometime between 1704 (when Bach was still a teenager) and the 1740s, though most believe it to be an early work, possi bly written during his time as organist in Arnstadt. The piece only survives in a copy made by Johannes Ringk around the 1730s, and no original manuscript in Bach’s hand exists. The toccata serves as a dramatic introduction to the fugue that follows, setting the stage for the intricate contrapuntal writing that was Bach’s particular genius.

 

About the Composer

Johann Sebastian Bach was born into a renowned musical family in Eisenach, Germany, on 21st March 1685 (31st March in our modern calendar). His father was the town musician and his uncles were all professional musicians, so music was quite literally in his blood. Tragically, both his parents died before he turned ten, and he went to live with his older brother Johann Christoph, an organist who gave him his first formal keyboard lessons.

Bach held various positions throughout his life—as court organist in Weimar, Kapellmeister to Prince Leopold in Cöthen, and finally as Cantor of St. Thomas’s Church in Leipzig from 1723 until his death. He was known as a phenomenal organist and keyboard player during his lifetime, though many considered his compositions old-fashioned compared to the newer Italian style that was becoming popular. He composed an astonishing amount of music: over 200 cantatas, the Brandenburg Concertos, the Goldberg Variations, The Well-Tempered Clavier, the Mass in B minor, and countless works for organ, including this famous Toccata and Fugue.

Bach died on 28th July 1750 in Leipzig, following complications from unsuccessful eye surgery. His music fell into relative obscurity until 1829, when Felix Mendelssohn performed the St Matthew Passion and sparked what became known as the Bach Revival. Since then, Bach has been recognised as one of the towering geniuses of Western music—a composer whose technical mastery, emotional depth, and spiritual power continue to inspire musicians and audiences worldwide.

YouTube Links:

Eine kleine Nachtmusik, K. 525 – First Movt: Allegro (1787) Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Mozart’s Eine kleine Nachtmusik (which translates as “A Little Night Music”) opens with another of the most recognisable themes in all of classical music. Composed in Vienna on 10th August 1787, this charming serenade was originally written for a small string ensemble – two violins, viola, cello and double bass – though today it’s often performed by a full string orchestra.

The first movement is in sonata-allegro form, the standard structure for opening movements in the Classical period. After that memorable opening, Mozart introduces a more graceful second theme in a different key, before developing and weaving these ideas together. The whole movement sparkles with energy and good humour – it’s elegant but never pompous, brilliant but never showing off. What makes it remarkable is how Mozart creates such sophisticated music from such simple materials.

Nobody knows why Mozart composed this piece – there’s no record of a commission or a first performance. Some scholars suggest it was written for an outdoor social gathering (serenades were typically evening entertainment music), whilst others think Mozart may have composed it simply because he felt like writing something delightful. Whatever the reason, it has become one of his most beloved works. Interestingly, Mozart’s own catalogue listed the work as having five movements, but one minuet has been lost, so we now know only four.

About the Composer

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was born in Salzburg, Austria, on 27th January 1756, into a musical family. His father, Leopold, was a respected composer, violinist and music teacher who recognised his son’s astonishing talent immediately. By the age of five, young Wolfgang was composing his own pieces; by six, he was performing before European royalty; and by eight, he had written his first symphony.

Mozart spent much of his childhood touring Europe with his father and sister, performing for kings, queens and aristocrats. As an adult, he settled in Vienna in 1781, where he worked as a freelance composer, pianist and teacher. During his Vienna years, he composed some of his greatest masterpieces, including operas like The Marriage of Figaro, Don Giovanni, and The Magic Flute, as well as numerous symphonies, concertos, and chamber works.

Mozart was phenomenally productive – he composed over 600 works in his short life, encompassing every musical genre of his time. Tragically, he died on 5th December 1791, at just 35 years old, whilst working on his Requiem. The exact cause of his death remains uncertain, though various illnesses have been suggested. Despite his relatively brief life, Mozart’s music has endured for centuries. His works are celebrated for their beauty, emotional depth, technical perfection, and seemingly effortless grace – qualities that continue to delight audiences worldwide.

 

Symphony No. 5 in C minor, Op. 67 – First Movt: Allegro con brio (1808) Ludwig van Beethoven (1770–1827)

“Da-da-da-DUM!”  This one is possibly THE most famous one. Those four explosive notes – three short, one long – have become perhaps the most recognisable musical phrase ever written. According to Beethoven’s friend Anton Schindler, the composer himself described this motif as “fate knocking at the door.” Whether or not Beethoven actually said this, the image has stuck, and it captures perfectly the dramatic power of this opening.

What makes this symphony revolutionary is how Beethoven takes these four simple notes and builds an entire movement (and indeed, much of the whole symphony) from them. The motif appears again and again in different guises – sometimes threatening, sometimes triumphant – weaving through every section of the orchestra. It’s as if Beethoven is showing us how to overcome adversity: by confronting it repeatedly, transforming it, and ultimately conquering it.

The symphony was composed between 1804 and 1808, a period when Beethoven was struggling with increasing deafness – a devastating affliction for any musician. He repeatedly set the work aside to compose other pieces, including his Fourth Symphony and Violin Concerto. When it finally premiered on 22nd December 1808 at the Theater an der Wien in Vienna, conditions were far from ideal: the concert lasted over four hours, the theatre was freezing cold, and the orchestra had only one rehearsal. Despite this difficult début, critics soon recognised it as a masterpiece, and it has remained one of the most frequently performed symphonies ever since.

About the Composer

Ludwig van Beethoven was born in Bonn, Germany, and baptised on 17th December 1770 (most likely born the day before, on 16th December). He came from a musical family – his grandfather was Kapellmeister (music director) at the court, and his father was a court singer. Unfortunately, his father was also an alcoholic who subjected young Ludwig to harsh and often brutal music lessons, sometimes forcing him to practise in the middle of the night.

Despite this difficult childhood, Beethoven’s talent was undeniable. He moved to Vienna in 1792 to study with Joseph Haydn, and soon established himself as a brilliant pianist and composer. Beethoven is often called the bridge between the Classical and Romantic periods in music. His early works show the influence of Mozart and Haydn, but his middle and late periods broke new ground, expanding what music could express and how it could make listeners feel.

Tragedy struck in his late twenties when Beethoven began to lose his hearing. By his mid-forties, he was completely deaf. Astonishingly, some of his greatest masterpieces – including his Ninth Symphony – were composed when he could no longer hear a single note. He died in Vienna on 26th March 1827, aged 56. Between 10,000 and 30,000 people attended his funeral, testament to the enormous impact he had on the musical world. His nine symphonies, 32 piano sonatas, string quartets, his only opera Fidelio, – and much more besides, continue to be performed and cherished worldwide.

YouTube Links :

Ride of the Valkyries from Die Walküre (1856) Richard Wagner (1813–1883)

Opening with thundering hoofbeats and battle cries, Wagner’s “Ride of the Valkyries” is yet another of the most thrilling and instantly recognisable pieces of music ever written. Originally the opening to Act III of his opera Die Walküre (The Valkyrie), it depicts warrior maidens—daughters of the god Wotan—galloping through storm clouds on their flying horses, gathering fallen heroes to carry them to Valhalla, the hall of the slain in Norse mythology.

The music builds in layers, with swirling strings and trilling woodwinds creating the sense of wild flight, whilst powerful brass fanfares blaze out the main theme. In the opera, the Valkyries themselves sing their fierce battle cries over the orchestral music, greeting each other as they arrive at their rocky mountain meeting place. The piece lasts about eight minutes in its full operatic form, though it’s often heard in a shorter, purely instrumental version of around three minutes.

Wagner composed Die Walküre between 1854 and 1856 as part of his monumental four-opera cycle Der Ring des Nibelungen (The Ring of the Nibelung), which took him over 25 years to complete. The complete opera premiered in Munich on 26th June 1870. Wagner initially forbade the “Ride” from being performed separately, calling such performances “an utter indiscretion”—he wanted it heard only within the complete opera. However, after the full Ring cycle premiered in 1876, he relented and even conducted it himself in London. It has since become perhaps Wagner’s most popular work, featured in countless films including the famous helicopter assault scene in Apocalypse Now (1979).

About the Composer

Richard Wagner was born in Leipzig, Germany, on 22nd May 1813. His father died when he was just six months old, and his mother soon married the actor Ludwig Geyer, who may have been Wagner’s biological father. Unlike most composers, Wagner showed little early musical talent—he was the only child in his family not given piano lessons and had to teach himself to play. However, he was deeply interested in drama and theatre from a young age.

Wagner revolutionised opera by creating what he called Gesamtkunstwerk (“total work of art”), uniting music, drama, poetry, and stagecraft into one unified vision. He wrote both the music and the words (librettos) for his operas, and used a system of recurring musical themes called leitmotifs to represent characters, emotions, and ideas—a technique that has influenced film music ever since. His operas include The Flying Dutchman, Tannhäuser, Lohengrin, Tristan und Isolde, and his masterwork, the four-opera Ring cycle.

Wagner’s life was marked by political exile, passionate love affairs, constant debt, and controversy. He built his own theatre at Bayreuth, Germany, specifically designed for performing his operas, which still operates today. Wagner died of a heart attack in Venice, Italy, on 13th February 1883. Whilst his musical influence on Western culture is undeniable, his legacy remains controversial due to his deeply antisemitic writings, which were later embraced by the Nazi regime. Today, Wagner’s music continues to be performed worldwide, though discussions about separating his artistic genius from his abhorrent views continue.

YouTube Links :

The Nutcracker Ballet Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893)

Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker (1892) is a beloved Christmas ballet that whisks audiences into a magical world of childhood wonder. Based on E.T.A. Hoffmann’s tale, the story follows young Clara, who receives a nutcracker doll on Christmas Eve. That night, she dreams of the nutcracker coming to life as a prince, battling the Mouse King, and whisking her away to the enchanted Land of Sweets.

The score is full of Tchaikovsky’s most memorable melodies—from the delicate “Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy” featuring the celesta, to the grand “Waltz of the Flowers” and spirited character dances representing sweets from around the world. Though initially received with mixed reviews, The Nutcracker has become synonymous with Christmas, and performances take place all over the world.

The celesta had recently been invented, when Tchaikovsky came across it on a visit to Paris. It has a very distinctive sound – between a piano and a glockenspiel. It is a keyboard instruments, with the hammers striking bells. He included the celesta in the Sugar Plum Fairy, but kept it a secret in case other composers would discover it, and use it in performance before the premiere of his ‘Nutcracker’ ballet.

It is regularly heard in the orchestra nowadays, and on film soundtracks. It is instantly recognisable in John Williams theme from Harry Potter.

About the Composer

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky remains one of Russia’s most celebrated composers, renowned for his deeply emotional and melodically rich music. Though he trained initially as a civil servant, Tchaikovsky pursued his true passion at the St. Petersburg Conservatory, becoming one of the first professionally trained Russian composers. His works span symphonies, concertos, operas, and ballets, with Swan Lake, The Sleeping Beauty, and The Nutcracker forming a triumphant ballet trilogy. Despite battling personal demons and self-doubt throughout his life, Tchaikovsky created music of extraordinary beauty and dramatic power that continues to captivate audiences worldwide. He died in St. Petersburg just months after the premiere of his final masterwork, the Pathétique Symphony, his Symphony No.6.

YouTube Links

Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy  – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gFjveJ5sgeQ

Harry Potter Theme – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wtHra9tFISY

 

The Recorder: A Journey Through Time

Introduction

 

The recorder has fascinating history.

 

A member of the woodwind family, the recorder belongs to a special group called duct flutes, which includes instruments like tin whistles. “Recorder” is the English term for a duct flute, which is also called flauto dolce (Italy), flûte à bec (France), or Blockflöte (Germany). Its fipple mouthpiece makes it a relative of pipes and whistles; however, recorders have a hole for the thumb and holes for four fingers of the lower hand.

Recorders come in different sizes, with their name indicating the relative range, for example, soprano (descant), alto (treble), tenor, bass; however, the recorder plays an octave above the corresponding vocal range.

One might think of it as a simple plastic instrument, but the recorder has an incredible story spanning over 60,000 years! In 1995 an instrument dating back to the Neanderthal era was excavated in Slovenia.

Watch and listen to a reconstruction played here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sHy9FOblt7Y

Further research :

https://www.metmuseum.org/essays/the-development-of-the-recorder

 

https://iza2.zrc-sazu.si/en/novice/on-the-30th-anniversary-of-the-discovery-of-the-neanderthal-flute

 

 

Ancient Beginnings: The Medieval Period

The recorder is first documented in Europe during the Middle Ages, sometime in the 14th century when it evolved from more simpler whistles. The earliest surviving recorder is called the “Dordrecht recorder”. This wooden instrument was discovered in 1940 in the Netherlands, buried in a well near the town of Dordrecht – estimated to be over 600 years old!

In 1388, we find the first written mention of “a pipe called Recordour” in English documents. But why is it called a “recorder”? The name might come from the old word meaning “to remember” or “to repeat,” possibly because the instrument was used to help singers learn and remember their musical parts.

 

Further Research suggestions: Check out The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s collection online to see images of early recorders, including the ‘Tartu Recorder’ (mid-14th century) and the ‘Dordecht Recorder.’

https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/505501

https://www.srp.org.uk/recorder-name/

https://www.srp.org.uk/recorder-history/

The Renaissance: A Family of Recorders

During the Renaissance period (roughly 1400-1600), the recorder became extremely popular. Unlike today, where we mostly use soprano and alto recorders, Renaissance musicians had entire consorts (matching sets) of recorders in different sizes.

These consorts ranged from tiny instruments just a few centimetres long to enormous ones measuring over two metres! The German music theorist Michael Praetorius documented nine different sizes of recorders in his book Syntagma Musicum in the 17th century.

Renaissance recorders were usually made from a single piece of wood with a cylindrical bore (a straight tube inside). They had a warm, gentle sound that blended beautifully in groups. Musicians played dances like pavanes and galliards, as well as more complex pieces called fantasias and ricercars.

Interesting facts:

-In Renaissance times, composers didn’t always specify which instrument should play a piece. Musicians would choose appropriate instruments themselves—recorders often shared music written for voices or other instruments.

-The infamous Renaissance English King Henry VIII was an avid musician, composer and recorder player  and had a collection of over 76 recorders!

https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/henry-viii-recorder-hero-renaissance-instrument-music

 

Watch and listen: Recorder Ensembles playing Renaissance Music

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w4sxnGuQkRY&list=RDw4sxnGuQkRY&start_radio=1

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2k8TlkpiB7M

 

 

 

The Baroque Era: The Golden Age

The Baroque period (1600-1750) was the recorder’s golden age. This is when the instrument changed dramatically. Makers created a new design with three separate sections that could be fitted together, and they changed the bore to be conical (cone-shaped) rather than cylindrical. This gave the recorder a brighter, more brilliant sound.

Famous composers wrote magnificent music specifically for the recorder:

During this time, the recorder was a star soloist in concerts, operas, and oratorios. Professional players dazzled audiences with their skill and expression.

Watch and Listen : Search online for “Vivaldi recorder concerto” or “Bach Brandenburg Concerto 4” to hear Baroque recorder music.

YouTube links to the Sammartini Concerto in F to be performed at the concert :

Muzik Ensemble 561 – Soloist : Leonardo Cabo Santamaria

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6W-hfSCrduk

La Serenissima – Soloist : Tabea Debus

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9LRAik8wJMc

 

The Disappearance: 18th-19th Centuries

After 1750, something happened—the recorder nearly disappeared.

The modern flute (called the transverse flute because you hold it sideways) was becoming more popular. The flute could play louder, had a bigger range of notes, and could create more dynamic contrast (the difference between loud and soft). As orchestras grew larger and concert halls became bigger, the quieter recorder couldn’t compete.

By the time of Mozart and Beethoven in the Classical period, and through the Romantic period of the 19th century, hardly anyone played the recorder. One of the last pieces written for it was by composer Carl Maria von Weber in 1806. For over 100 years, the recorder was almost forgotten.

The Amazing Revival: Arnold Dolmetsch

The recorder’s story could have ended there, but something remarkable happened in the early 20th century thanks to a man named Arnold Dolmetsch.

Dolmetsch was born in France in 1858 into a family of piano makers. He studied music in Brussels and London, where he became fascinated by old instruments and music from earlier centuries. He began collecting historical instruments and researching how to play them.

In 1919, an unfortunate accident changed everything. Dolmetsch’s son Carl accidentally left a valuable 18th-century recorder on a platform at Waterloo Station in London when boarding a train. Despite searching everywhere, they couldn’t find it.

But Arnold Dolmetsch didn’t give up. He had detailed documentation about old recorders, so he used his instrument-making skills to build a new one. This became the first modern recorder, based on Baroque designs. Soon he created complete sets of soprano, alto, tenor, and bass recorders.

Research project: Visit the Yamaha Musical Instrument Guide website or Britannica to learn more about Arnold Dolmetsch and his contribution to music.

Spreading Around the World

The recorder’s revival spread across Europe and beyond:

In Germany, a man named Peter Harlan began mass-producing recorders, making them affordable for schools. He created what’s called “German fingering,” which was easier for beginners but had some tuning problems.

In Japan, a man named Yoshitaka Sakamoto attended the 1936 Berlin Olympics and saw large groups of children playing recorders. Impressed by the instrument’s educational value, he brought recorders back to Japan and worked with Yamaha Corporation to manufacture them. This is how the recorder became popular in Japanese schools.

In England, educator Edgar Hunt imported recorders but insisted they use traditional “Baroque fingering” instead of German fingering because it produced better intonation. During World War II, when importing from Germany became impossible, he arranged for recorders to be made from plastic in England—first using Bakelite, then later ABS plastic.

The Recorder Family Today

Modern recorders come in many sizes, each with its own name and pitch:

From smallest to largest:

 

The larger recorders are so big that players can’t blow directly into them—they need a special pipe called a blowpipe that extends from the instrument to their mouth.

Fun fact: A great bass recorder is twice the length of a tenor recorder. Some are over two metres tall!

 

Watch and Listen:

Sarah Jeffery introduces us to all her recorder instruments here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gpXtkVafvck

 

The Sub-Great Bass Recorder:

https://youtube.com/shorts/MkqmLQ1nLvk?si=Aurda0jEfvgoFj8E

 

The Recorder in Education

Why do schools around the world use the recorder to teach music?

  1. It teaches musical basics: Students learn to read music, understand rhythm, and recognise pitch
  2. It develops coordination: Players must coordinate their breathing, fingers, and tongue
  3. It builds finger skills: The finger patterns prepare students for other instruments
  4. It’s affordable: Plastic recorders are inexpensive compared to most instruments
  5. It suits pupil’s range: The soprano recorder’s pitch range matches children’s singing voices
  6. It’s portable: Easy to carry and doesn’t require complex assembly

The recorder helps develop skills that transfer to other instruments—especially wind instruments like flutes, clarinets, and saxophones.

The Recorder as a Serious Instrument

Today, the recorder isn’t just for beginners. Professional recorder players perform complex music in concerts worldwide. The instrument has three important roles:

  1. Historical performances: Playing Renaissance and Baroque music on authentic instruments
  2. Contemporary music: Many modern composers write new pieces for recorder
  3. Film and television: The recorder’s distinctive sound appears in soundtracks

Composers in the 20th and 21st centuries, including Lennox Berkeley, Gordon Jacob, and Hans Gál, have written challenging new works that show what a skilled player can achieve.

Conclusion: An Instrument with a Story

The recorder’s journey is extraordinary:

When you pick up your recorder, remember: you’re playing an instrument with over 700 years of history. The same basic design that entertained Renaissance courts and inspired Bach and Vivaldi now helps you learn about music.

 

Watch and Listen to some of the best recorder players in the world:

 

J.VAN EYCK played by Dan Lauren:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GPO-eHeqyPI&list=RDGPO-eHeqyPI&start_radio=1

 

 

G.F. HANDEL played by Lucie Horsch:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_AJMrub11Lk

  1. VIVALDI played by Dorothee Oberlinger:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DXiZi7yX7bY&list=PLhv3jXtZY4elQVYIsNPV-Sdle22OOrErv

 

 

J.S. BACH played by Maurice Steger:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MAFJXPWjKJ0&list=RDMAFJXPWjKJ0&start_radio=1

  1. BOWEN played by Semin Kim:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9kIHvqgyNys&list=RD9kIHvqgyNys&start_radio=1

 

C.JENKINS played by Pamela Thorby:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gQS9BYKEN0A

 

 

Further Research Activities

Websites to explore:

  1. Yamaha Musical Instrument Guide – Comprehensive information about the recorder’s history and construction
  2. The Metropolitan Museum of Art – Images and information about historical recorders
  3. Britannica Encyclopedia – Articles about the recorder and Arnold Dolmetsch
  4. Recorder Home Page (recorderhomepage.net) – Detailed historical information

 

Listening suggestions:

Discussion questions:

  1. Why do you think the flute became more popular than the recorder in the 18th century?
  2. How did an accident at a train station lead to the recorder’s revival?
  3. What skills do you learn from playing the recorder that might help with other instruments?
  4. Can you find examples of recorder music in films or television programmes you’ve watched?

Remember: Every great musician started somewhere. Your recorder might seem simple, but you’re part of a tradition that stretches back centuries!

Giuseppe Sammartini

Concerto in F Major for Descant Recorder and Strings

Meet the Composer: Giuseppe Sammartini (1695-1750)

Imagine being known as “the greatest oboist the world had ever known”—that was Giuseppe Sammartini! Born in Milan, Italy, on 6 January 1695, Giuseppe came from a musical family. His father, Alexis Saint-Martin, was a French oboist who had moved to Italy, and he taught Giuseppe to play the oboe from an early age.

Giuseppe had a younger brother named Giovanni Battista, who also became a famous composer. To tell them apart, people called Giuseppe “St Martini of London” and his brother “St Martini of Milan,” after the cities where they worked.

In the late 1720s, Giuseppe moved to London, where he became a sensation. He joined the opera orchestra at the King’s Theatre and even played in the great composer George Frideric Handel’s orchestra. People were amazed by Giuseppe’s playing—witnesses said he could make the oboe sound almost like a human voice!

From 1736 until his death in 1750, Giuseppe served as music master to Frederick, Prince of Wales, and his wife Princess Augusta. He taught music to their children and wrote special pieces for royal birthdays and celebrations. He dedicated many of his compositions to the royal family, showing how important he was to them.

Although Giuseppe was primarily an oboist, like many musicians of his time, he could also play the flute and the recorder. This was common practice in the Baroque period—players needed to be versatile to perform in orchestras and chamber groups.

About the Concerto

Giuseppe Sammartini’s Concerto in F Major for Descant Recorder is his most famous piece today, and it’s one of the finest works written for the small recorder during the Baroque period.

When was it written? The concerto was probably composed in the 1730s, during the height of the recorder’s popularity in London. The manuscript (handwritten copy) survived in Sweden, and that’s how we know this wonderful music today!

Why was it written? At the time Sammartini wrote this concerto, small recorder concertos were all the rage in London. From about 1715 onwards, audiences loved hearing a little recorder “piping away” above a string orchestra in public concerts and in special entertainments given during theatre intervals. The bright, cheerful sound of the descant recorder was perfect for showing off both the instrument’s agility and the player’s skill.

Sammartini likely wrote this concerto to perform himself. Although he was famous as an oboist, he was skilled enough on the recorder to dazzle audiences with this piece. By the mid-1730s, however, the fashion for recorder concertos was ending, and the modern flute (which could play louder) was taking over in professional concerts.

The Music: What to Listen For

The concerto has three movements, following the typical Italian concerto pattern of fast-slow-fast:

First Movement: Allegro

The opening movement uses what’s called ritornello form—a structure perfected by the famous composer Antonio Vivaldi. Think of the ritornello as a catchy tune that the orchestra plays several times, like a refrain in a pop song, whilst the soloist shows off with brilliant passages in between.

What makes this movement special:

Second Movement: Siciliano

A Siciliano is a type of slow dance in 6/8 or 12/8 time that originated in Sicily, Italy. It has a gentle, lilting rhythm that sounds a bit like a lullaby—you can almost imagine rocking a baby or swaying to the music.

What makes this movement special:

Third Movement: Allegro assai

Allegro assai means “very fast”—this is an exciting finale! Written in 6/8 time, the movement begins like it might be a giga (or jig), a lively dance, but the syncopations (off-beat rhythms) make it more rhythmically complex and interesting.

What makes this movement special:

Musical Style: Between Baroque and Classical

Sammartini lived during a fascinating time in music history. The Baroque period (roughly 1600-1750) was coming to an end, and the Classical period was just beginning. His music shows characteristics of both styles:

Baroque features:

Looking forward to the Classical style:

This makes Sammartini’s music feel both familiar (if you know Vivaldi or Handel) and fresh at the same time.

Performance Notes

Instrumentation:

Duration: About 13-14 minutes (roughly 5 minutes, 3 minutes, 5 minutes for the three movements)

Technical challenges for the recorder player:

Why This Piece Matters

Sammartini’s Concerto in F Major is important because:

  1. It represents the golden age of recorder concertos in London during the 1720s-1730s
  2. It shows the recorder as a serious solo instrument, capable of both virtuosity and deep expression
  3. It’s beautifully written, with imagination and flair that goes beyond just showing off
  4. It’s a bridge between musical periods, showing how the Baroque was transforming into the Classical style
  5. It survived when many similar pieces were lost, giving us a precious glimpse into this repertoire

This concerto proves that the recorder isn’t just a beginner’s instrument—in the hands of a skilled player, it can move audiences with its brilliance and beauty.

Things to Think About

As you listen, consider:

After listening:

Further Exploration

Listen to other Baroque recorder concertos by:

Learn more about:

Enjoy Clodagh Sweeney’s performance on the concert! Listen for the brilliant playing, the beautiful melodies, and the joyful spirit that Sammartini captured in this wonderful concerto.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6W-hfSCrduk

 

 

Secret Link