Classical Music Meme turned into a Thursday Thirteen

Posted on March 5, 2008 by Barbara Harper

Semicolon answered the question recently, “What are seven classical music works you love?” I started out answering the same question…but I couldn’t keep it to seven. So I decided to make a Thursday Thirteen entry of it.

These aren’t necessarily in order of preference — except the first one. 🙂

1. Pachelbel’s “Canon in D Major”

2. Samuel Barber’s “Adagio for Strings”

3. Tchaikovsky’s “Romeo and Juliet Overture”

4. Bach’s “Air on a G String”

5. Haydn’s Symphony No. 94 in G Major, the “Surprise Symphony”

6. Bach’s Suite for solo cello No. 1 in G major prelude

7. Smetana’s “The Moldau”

8. Debussy’s “Claire de Lune”

9. Bach’s “Wachet Auf”

10. The second movement of Dvořák’s “New World Symphony”

11. Chopin’s Polonaise No.6 in A flat, Op.53 -“Heroic,”

12. Puccini’s “Nessun dorma”

13. “Con Te Partiro” (Time to say Good Bye) (don’t know the composer for that one)

The links on some go to videos of performances of the piece on You Tube. The ones without links are a bit too long for that venue.

What are your favorites of the classics?

Love songs and chick flicks…

Posted on February 13, 2008 by Barbara Harper

…make for warm fuzzy Valentiney feelings. 🙂

I posted this last year but I have been wanting to post it again. The music is from the Irish Tenors CD Heritage. Unfortunately whoever made this clip cut the song off abruptly at the end, but it’s still nice.

Saturday Photo Scavenger Hunt: Music

Posted on September 7, 2007 by Barbara Harper

(Show and Tell folks, that post is below this one)

PhotoHunt

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We have photos of the boys at the piano for their recitals going back fifteen years to when Jeremy started when he was in third grade. Though it might be interesting to post a picture of each of them when they started and then at their senior recitals (for the older two) and last year for Jesse — it would probably look a little redundant and not be of interest to anyone but me. So I decided to use a different pictures. Jason, my middle son, is the only one who was interested in other musical instruments. He taught himself to play the penny whistle and ocarina and a little of the guitar. I do have a picture of him playing the ocarina, but it just looks like he has his mouth on a rock, so I won’t use that one. 🙂

This is a picture of only one of two times he payed the penny whistle in public.

The penny whistle is used in a lot of Irish music, which we love, and they are playing an Irish hymn, Be Thou My Vision. The other couple was at our church for a missions conference and are now missionaries in Ireland. We knew the family of the young man when he was a little boy and we all went to the same church in another town, so that was a neat experience all the way around.

He also played at a senior concert, but that’s it. I had hoped he would go on and use these talents for the Lord, and he may yet some day. But for now he doesn’t like to “perform” in front of people. He just enjoys playing at home in his room, and we enjoy the sounds filtering through the walls. 🙂

King’s Singers and Irish Tenors

Posted on March 15, 2007 by Barbara Harper

I was amazed at how many people commenting on my Irish Songs Thursday Thirteen were unfamiliar with them. I looked around You Tube (I’ve figured out how to do You Tube — I haven’t yet figured out how to do anything that plays music here) to see if I could find any of the King’s Singers or Irish Tenors. I couldn’t find any of them singing Irish songs, but I found several of the King’s Singers — the video of most of them isn’t great but the audio come through okay. This is an old Shaker hymn titled “Simple Gifts” or “Tis a Gift.” Then I found one of the Irish Tenors singing a non-Irish song, “My Heart Will Go On.” The video there is made up of scenes from different movies. The Irish Tenors have more of a belt-it-out style while the King’s Singers are softer and deeply harmonious (though of course the Irish Tenors harmonize beautifully and the King;s Singers can belt it out 🙂 ). If you’d like to hear snippets of them singing Irish songs, you can click on the links to CDs in my previous post

Thursday Thirteen #24: Favorite Irish Songs

Posted on March 14, 2007 by Barbara Harper

I mentioned a few weeks ago that the owners of Thursday Thirteen were closing down shop, but someone else bought the rights to it and it has been carrying on as usual without missing a beat.

Folks music of the British Isles is one of our favorite genres. We enjoy the Irish Tenors and the King’s Singers (Annie Laurie and Watching the White Wheat)as well as an old Robert Shaw Chorale recording I have of Irish folk songs. Today, for St. Patrick’s Day, I want to list some of my favorite Irish songs (I wonder how many people will do the same. 🙂 ) Most are folk songs; the last one is a hymn.

1. Star of the County Down (I like the King’s Singers’ version of this much better than the Irish Tenors.)

2. The Minstrel Boy

3. Molly Malone

4. Johnny, I Hardly Knew Ye

5. The Last Rose of Summer

6. Mairi’s Wedding

7. The Girl I Left Behind Me

8. Bantry Bay

9. How Are Things in Glocca Morra? (This isn’t a true folk song, but it has an Irish flavor.)

10. Red Is the Rose

11. Too-Ra-Loo-Ra-Loo-Ral

12. Wild Mountain Thyme

13. Be Thou My Vision

Updated: I put YouTube links to both the King’s Singers and the Irish Tenors in my next post)

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!View More Thursday Thirteen Participants

That one lost sheep

Posted on March 4, 2007 by Barbara Harper

Safe were the ninety and nine in the fold.
Safe though the night was stormy and cold;
But said the Shepherd when counting them o’er,
One sheep is missing, there should be one more.

Although His feet were weary and worn,
And though His hands were rent and torn,
Although the road was rocky and steep,
Still the good Shepherd searched long for his sheep.

There in the night He heard a faint cry
From the lost sheep just ready to die.
Then in His arms to shield from the cold
He brought the lost sheep back safe to the fold.

The Shepherd went out to search for the sheep,
And all through the night on the rocky steep
He searched till he found him,
With love bands He bound him,
And I was that one lost sheep.

The Lost Sheep

by Alfred Soord

Courtesy of AllPosters.com

NOTE: I do not have the sheet music for this song. To those who have inquired about the sheet music for this hymn, I e-mailed Gordon Greer (http://www.greermusicministries.com/), on whose CD I heard the song, to see if he knew where the music could be found, and he said it was in Volume 2 of Singspiration Favorites. I hope you can find it!.

Lord, You’re All I Need

Posted on February 24, 2007 by Barbara Harper

This song has been on my heart today.

Lord, You’re All I Need

Words and music by James Tilson

Oft times I’ve tried to live my life
According to my will.
When darkness comes it’s difficult
To rest and just be still.
But Lord, You are my shepherd
That guides me in the way,
And I will learn this glorious truth
If I Your Word obey.

You’re all I need.
You’re the Lord of everything.
All I need —
This is why I humbly sing.
Your strength is sustaining
And your grace has made me free.
You’re my heart’s lone desire,
You’re all I need.

By wanting more I’ve wanted less
Than all You’ve given me.
You gave your all by laying down
Your life at Calvary.
So I surrender all, Lord
My best to You I give.
And thank you now for giving me
A reason to live.

More than enough,
You’re all I need.

You can hear the first 90 seconds of this song here — scroll down to the title and click.

Almighty, Unchangeable God

Posted on February 18, 2007 by Barbara Harper

Who spread out the clouds before Him?
Who fashioned the earth with His hands?
Who created the starry host,
And formed the earth at His command?
Who scatters lightning before Him,
Commands the rain and snow to fall?
Who makes the nations tremble?
Who is Lord over all?

He is Almighty, Unchangeable God,
King of kings,
Lord of lords,
robed in majesty.
He rules and reigns,
For all eternity,
Almighty, Unchangeable God.

He is like the light at sunrise,
Like the brightness after the rain.
Robed in splendor,
He’s seated on His heavenly throne above.
His glory fills the heavens;
He is exalted over all.
Yet this God of Heaven loves me
With an everlasting love.

He is Almighty, Unchangeable God,
King of kings,
Lord of lords,
robed in majesty.
He rules and reigns,
For all eternity,
Almighty, Unchangeable God.

By Cindy Berry
©1996 by GlorySound (a div. of Shawnee Press)

You can hear the first 90 seconds of this beautiful song here.

Sometimes a Light Surprises

Posted on February 12, 2007 by Barbara Harper

Sometimes a light surprises the Christian while he sings;
It is the Lord, Who rises with healing in His wings:
When comforts are declining, He grants the soul again
A season of clear shining, to cheer it after rain.

In holy contemplation we sweetly then pursue
The theme of God’s salvation, and find it ever new.
Set free from present sorrow, we cheerfully can say,
Let the unknown tomorrow bring with it what it may.

It can bring with it nothing but He will bear us through;
Who gives the lilies clothing will clothe His people, too;
Beneath the spreading heavens, no creature but is fed;
And He Who feeds the ravens will give His children bread.

Though vine nor fig tree neither their wonted fruit should bear,
Though all the field should wither, nor flocks nor herds be there;
Yet God the same abiding, His praise shall tune my voice,
For while in Him confiding, I cannot but rejoice.

This hymn on the “A Quiet Heart” CD from Soundforth was new to me, but it was written in 1779 by William Cowper. The Cyberhymnal site lists a few different MIDI portrayals of different tunes for it, but I love the lilting one from the CD — you can hear a 90 second snippet here (you have to scroll down the page a bit to see the song listings on the CD, then click on the link beside the title). One of our teen-age girls at church sang it last week as a solo and it had almost an Irish-sounding lilt to it.

I love all the Scriptural references and the joy and hope it portrays.