On Saturday, June 8, at 2:30 pm I attended Charles Jones’ free Piano concert at The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts at Lincoln Center with Annelids. HIS set Included pieces by Beethoven, Chopin and Ravel, Beethoven Is seen as the composer who bridged between the Classical and Romantic Era. Chopin was a Romantic composer, and Ravel was associated with the Impressionist Era. I found it interesting that the pieces were not performed in chronological order. The first piece was Sonata in C Major, Pop. 53, “Wieldiest” by Beethoven. After that piece, Jones reformed Chopping Etude in E Major, an extremely beautiful piece.
For the end of the last act, he played Juju Ahead by Ravel. Then there was a short Intermission. The first piece after the Intermission was Ballade In g minor. Pop. 23 by Chopin. After this there were Four Impromptus by Chopin. The first was A-Flat Major, Pop. 29. Then there was F-Sharp Major, Pop. 36. Following this, there was G-Flat Major, Pop. 51. Finally, there was the “Fantasies-lamppost” in C-Sharp Minor. After having done some research on this piece, I discovered that it was composed in 1834 and dedicated Tijuana Fontana, ho published the piece despite Chopping request not to do so.
The last piece In the entire show was Ballade In f minor, Pop. 52 by Chopin. My favorite pieces of the entire show were the “Hallstead” piece and the “Fantasies-lamppost”. The “Wieldiest” piece was beautiful because of its complicated rhythms and amazing flow. The first part of it was Allegro Con Brio. Repeating soft short chords opened up the piece and then unfolded into a fast upbeat musical chase. It really kept you guessing what the dynamics were going to be. This kept you listening. As the keys adulated, the rhythm relaxed to a calmer pace.
After this, the second movement was Introduction-Adagio molt, It started extremely soft, building a great amount of tension. The dark and deep chords made It even more mysterious than the first movement, which seemed to give the impression that the piece was light hearted and fun. The second movement changed that, and overflowed with so much emotion it almost made me cry. The music slowly stopped and started as if it was second guessing itself and which way to go. Then the final third movement, in Rondo-Allegro moderator. This picked up the pace from the second guessing and I feel like it left the piece with an overall negative feeling.
I do not mean that the piece sounded negative or bad. It felt like the composer had to choose between two different things throughout the piece, and then finally chose the one he didn’t really want but then finally accepted it. I really enjoyed Charles Jones’ concert and I’ll definitely keep my eyes open for any concerts that the Performing Arts Library has in the future. I think it’s wonderful that Lincoln Center and New York City provides free opportunities for people to go to concerts and hear beautiful music for free. It opens up the world of classical music to a wide range of people, and I think that’s great.
On June 2, 2013 1 attended Hot ass’s Summer Jam at the Midlife Stadium in New Jersey at 6:30 pm. Going into this concert I was extremely ecstatic because of the lineup. Most of the concerts I would usually attend were more on the classical spectrum, however this time I wanted to venture out past what I would usually go to. Being that I could listen and enjoy the music that is typically played on my pod, some of the mime at least. Summer Jam is a concert that is sponsored by Hot 97 and the musical influences that would usually be playing on the radio which is mainly Hip Hop and R music.
Hip Hop music is a genre that is categorized by the act to decaying or emceeing. It originated from the African and more specifically Reggae Ammoniac) influences and became a huge part of African American culture starting in the Bronx. Hip Hop is normally associated with rapping and it oral tradition predated from African cultures. This form of popular music was such an influential type of music hat it crossed over into a almost a lifestyle and mindset. It affect the way that listeners would communicate with others and also they way they dressed.
The content of the music often spoke about women at times in misogynistic terms,sex,money,drugs and life struggles. Due to the topics and issues that were discussed in these songs it was often looked down upon. However this idea has changed as an increasing amount of conscious rappers are emerging and has revolutionized the genre. Rhythm and Blues also known as R is another type of genre that is typically played at Hot ass’s radio station. It’s origins date from the sass that particularly came from and performed by African Americans.
It was often referred to as race music even though it was offensive and is characteristic for it’s evolution from Jazz music. It was also influenced by rock n roll, soul, and funk music. The content of this type of music was similar to Hip Hop Music but since it came before it, it is considered far more milder and more emotional. Not all songs had the same sort of content but it touched on each of them. At Summer Jam the lineup included famous artist coming from these two genres and they performed their most popular songs in collaboration with their own band and helped accompaniment by the screaming fans, myself included.
Big names like Joe Sudden, Maria Carrey, Wale, Kindlier Lamar, Chris Brown and Method Man were exclusive acts at this concert. One specific artist that I personally enjoyed was Chris Brown and is tantalizing songs about relationships. Brown is known as the type of artist that could hold a crowd, he did this with is very signature voice and dance moves that got the crowd wild and totally in the mix. Another artist that I enjoyed was Method Man and C. R. E. A. M. Which s a rap group coming from far back as the sass and ass performing their latest hits and greatest hits of their time. I found myself often reciting the songs of the various artist and I enjoyed everything about this concert. I personally wouldn’t change a thing since I was able to watch some of my favorite artist doing what they love to do. Seeing them perform, motivates me even more to progress and pursue this music in the future as my career even if it isn’t the same genre. I enjoyed every aspect of this concert and would love the opportunity to attend in the years to come.