One of the performances was titled “Romeo and Juliet” by Sergei Prokofiev, a ballet based on the play by William Shakespeare titled “Romeo and Juliet.” The performance of Sergei Prokofiev’s work ended differently from the William Shakespeare’s play, which had a sad ending. The performance exhibited Juliet returning to life in Romeo’s arms, thereby creating a happy ending with the couple dancing together. In my view, the altered ending in Prokofiev’s work metaphorically exhibits his sincere Christian Science faith, where illness, pain, and death do not exist. Instead, he considers death as mental illusions, which can be overcome by spiritual discipline and faith.
Another performance was titled “Cello Concerto” by Franz Joseph Haydn. The solo (cello) section of the music embraced the use of idioms, and the entire work reflected a new structure of the sonata-allegro form of the baroque concerto. Besides, the ensemble that accompanied the music was small, which gave the music distinctive sounds that were in agreement with the main theme of the piece.
The last performance was titled “Enigma Variations” by Edward Elgar. The performance began in a spirit of humor and continued with deep seriousness, with the performers making various sketches that reflected the original theme of the music, the Enigma. Each of the fourteen variations used in the music represented a unique idea founded on a personality or an incident that might only be known to the composer of the piece. The title of the piece, “Enigma Variations,” posed a challenge to the audience in trying to understand the main theme of the music. Besides, the hidden melody used in the performance of the piece exhibited the general impression of the personality of its subject.
Comment on the concert mannerisms that the performers used.
“Romeo and Juliet” by Sergei Prokofiev embraced the use of Capulets and Montagues, which showed the hatred that existed between the young men and the rival families to which Juliet and Romeo belonged. The ballet also employed the use of a jovial dance known as Masks during the arrival of Romeo and his friends, Benvolio and Mercutio, which added quality to the performance. The use of a dramatic sound when Romeo killed Juliet’s cousin, Tybalt, aimed at exhibiting the emotional aspect of Romeo’s actions. The music also makes use of different instruments, including flutes, piccolo, oboes, clarinets, bassoons, tenor saxophone, trombones, trumpets, timpani, tuba, strings, and harp.
The "Cello Concerto" performance embraced the use of three movements, which included allegro moderato, Adagio, and rondo. All the three movements were in the sonata form, and they helped in conveying the theme of the music to the audience in a series of short motives, and a broad range of changing moods. The "Cello Concerto" performance also embraced the use of other instruments, such as oboes, strings, and horns, which gave it a standing quality.
The "Enigma Variations" performance involved the use of 14 variations which sprang from the harmonic, melodic, and rhythmic elements of the work's theme to the last variation, which marked the end of the performance. The musical portraits used in the piece depicted different themes; friendship and the composer's personality. The performance of the piece also embraced the use of various instruments, including flutes, piccolo, oboes, clarinets, horns, trombones, tuba, strings, bassoons, trumpets, and contrabassoon. The combination of such instruments gave the music the intended sound quality.
List your favorite selections.
My favorite selections include;
i. “Romeo and Juliet” by Sergei Prokofiev
ii. “Enigma Variations” by Edward Elgar
