If you have watched the Boston Pops on the 4th of July, you have no doubt heard Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture. For many years, it was the climax to the fireworks display over the Charles River.
While more modern music might seem more appropriate regarding a discussion of Pop Culture, there are many classical pieces that are known and loved by people around the world today. I had considered featuring Rossini's William Tell Overture, but I've shared that one before. So, I chose this one which is in my all-time favorite top five.
For me, dramatic overtures of this kind well exemplify the concepts of yin and yang. At times, the music is frenetic, while at other times it is serene and tranquil. If you watch the musicians in the orchestra, there are times that almost every one of them are playing their instruments. At other times, most of them sit quietly awaiting their turn.
Yin and yang is about ebb and flow, movement and stillness. It is the one constant of the world. Within its dynamic of continuous change, the symmetry of flow pervades.
The other facet that I believe an orchestra well illustrates is the importance -- though not ascendancy -- of each section. It is the blending of all these different instruments and musicians that provides us with such a majestic piece. Remove even one of these threads from the tapestry -- say the French horns, the oboes or the drums -- and the unity is compromised.
Yes, the Overture of 1812 CAN be played by less than a full orchestra, but it loses its grandeur in the process. When performed by an elite orchestra such as this one -- replete with pyrotechnics to boot -- I am moved to tears every single time. I don't know what it is, but my emotions come bubbling out when the dramatic climax is reached. Even sitting here alone in my office watching these videos on YouTube, I find myself clapping and giving a one-man standing ovation.
To see what other aspects of "pop culture" I've written about, go here.
While more modern music might seem more appropriate regarding a discussion of Pop Culture, there are many classical pieces that are known and loved by people around the world today. I had considered featuring Rossini's William Tell Overture, but I've shared that one before. So, I chose this one which is in my all-time favorite top five.
For me, dramatic overtures of this kind well exemplify the concepts of yin and yang. At times, the music is frenetic, while at other times it is serene and tranquil. If you watch the musicians in the orchestra, there are times that almost every one of them are playing their instruments. At other times, most of them sit quietly awaiting their turn.
Yin and yang is about ebb and flow, movement and stillness. It is the one constant of the world. Within its dynamic of continuous change, the symmetry of flow pervades.
The other facet that I believe an orchestra well illustrates is the importance -- though not ascendancy -- of each section. It is the blending of all these different instruments and musicians that provides us with such a majestic piece. Remove even one of these threads from the tapestry -- say the French horns, the oboes or the drums -- and the unity is compromised.
Yes, the Overture of 1812 CAN be played by less than a full orchestra, but it loses its grandeur in the process. When performed by an elite orchestra such as this one -- replete with pyrotechnics to boot -- I am moved to tears every single time. I don't know what it is, but my emotions come bubbling out when the dramatic climax is reached. Even sitting here alone in my office watching these videos on YouTube, I find myself clapping and giving a one-man standing ovation.
To see what other aspects of "pop culture" I've written about, go here.
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