Material Culture: Soiree for Music Lovers

On October 23, I attended the Soiree for Music Lovers, which was free if you had a student ID. It was held in the Conrad Prebys Concert Hall, located in the Warren Music Center across the street from Pepper Canyon Hall, at 8:00 PM. The concert was directed by Janos Negyesy and was a great way to relax and enjoy some classical music. I have some musical background, so it was nice to attend this concert since I hadn’t heard any classical music in a while.

There was a variety of instruments that were played at this concert, not all of which would be heard at Western classical concerts. For example, the last piece of the night, Concerto for Sitar and Ensemble, featured a sitar, which is an instrument used predominantly in Hindustani classical music--not something that would be associated with European composers like Mozart or Brahms. Nonetheless, the music was entertaining. The sitar can have between 21 to 23 strings, of which only six or seven are actually played. The rest of the strings are called sympathetic strings, and lie underneath the frets, giving the sitar its resonance. To play the sitar, the instrument is balanced between the player’s left foot and right knee (while sitting cross-legged), so that the hands can move freely. One hand pluck the strings with a pick, and the other hand fingering the strings, somewhat like a guitar.

The rest of the instruments used are much more common (in American culture): the violin, viola, cello, string bass, and piano. Violins, violas, cellos, and string basses all have 4 strings, and are played either with a bow or by the player plucking the strings. The first piece, called Concerto for four violins in D Major, No.2, composed by Georg Philipp Telemann, was quite enjoyable. The quartet of violinists all played energetically, and it was fun to listen to. The third piece was the String Sextet No.2 in G Major, Op.36 by Johannes Brahms. The sextet consisted of two violins, two violas, and two cellos. In this piece, the plucking of the strings, called pizzicato, was used often. Also used in this concert were pianos, arguably the most popular instrument. The second piece in the concert, the Sonata for two pianos in D Major, KV 448, by Mozart, was a duet between two pianos, which were set up facing each other on the stage. The pianos they used were grand pianos, a standard for classical music. In the sitar piece, however, an electric keyboard was used. It was very interesting to see that classical music could fuse with modern technology.

Overall, I’m glad I went to the concert. The instrumentalists were all brilliant, and the concert being free was, of course, a plus. I believe that having a little bit of musical background helped me appreciate it better than others who have none at all. Although classical music is considered something of the past by many people, the last piece, written by a modern composer, played on the sitar, and accompanied by an electric keyboard, definitely would not have happened in the “classical music” that most people would think of. However, this makes me realize that music is timeless, and it will always be a part of our culture.