Download According to the late American composer, Frank Zappa, "all the

A Musical Analysis: The Modesto Junior College Fall Vocal Recital
According to the late American composer, Frank Zappa, "all the good music has already
been written by people with wigs and stuff". (Music Quotes) Zappa's notion can be continuously
debated, but one thing is for certain: Today, many of us fail to recognize the beauty, the skill, and
the quality of music that originates before the postmodern world. On November 11, 2011 the
Modesto Junior College intermediate and advanced vocal students held their annual Fall Concert
which highlighted many works from the Baroque, Classical, and Romanic periods. Each song
consisted of voices with piano accompaniment, and the majority of them were not in English.
Because of this (and with the help of a translation sheet that was provided) I was able to listen to
and appreciate music that was not only in a foreign language, but also from another era of music.
The recital opened up with the only duet of the night, "Panis Angelicus", sung in French
by two women, Dee Ann Dutter and Pamela Aguilar. The piano began the song, and had a
lively, fast-paced tune, which indicated to me that the song was cheerful. The two voices then
chimed in together, singing the same lines. In the middle of the performance, the song contained
a polyphonic texture as one woman repeated a single line of the song while the other
simultaneously sang a different set of lines. The voices themselves contained a slow-tomoderate melody and rhythm, which differed from the piano introduction in the beginning. The
song closed with the two voices singing the same lines as they were in the beginning of the song.
The voices of the women were very soft and pleasant and the song was performed well due to
their in sync singing and enthusiastic stage presence. However, both women wore casual
clothing, which I felt was inappropriate attire for the recital and the religious song that was
performed. "Panis Angelicus" was composed by Cesar Franck, a French Romantic composer
and organist. According to Britannica Online Encyclopedia, Franck was a "…chief figure in a
movement to give French music an emotional engagement, technical solidity, and seriousness
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A Musical Analysis: The Modesto Junior College Fall Vocal Recital
comparable to that of German composers." (Cesar Franck) The song was actually originally
written for a tenor solo voice with organ and string accompaniment, which is a stark contrast
from the soprano-alto of the two women's voices and piano accompaniment. (Smith 56) Despite
being completely different from the original composition, I was able to easily identify the
"seriousness" and emotion that Franck wanted in his music in the performance. Overall, I
thoroughly enjoyed the duet.
The third performance, sung in Italian by Holly Reid, was Giulio Caccini's "Amarilli Mia
Bella." The song opened with the piano and the solo voice beginning at the same time.
Referring to the lyric sheet, I saw that this particular piece was a love song, and due to the
somber melody of the piano and voice together, I concluded that it was a sad love song. The
voice stayed in the same range throughout the song and did not vary dynamically, thus the
somber theme remained throughout the song. The voice was in tune, projected clearly, and the
few higher notes in the piece were all hit well. Despite initially appearing nervous, Holly
maintained eye contact with the audience. Her facial features were serious which matched the
tone of the song. However, she wore a bright-colored dress which clashed with the mood that
was set. The composer of the song, Caccini, was born in Florence, Italy in 1551 during the
Baroque period of music and continued to live and compose during the beginning of the
Renaissance period up until his death in 1618. Caccini is known to have contributed to the
establishment of monodic music in Italy, which contains an expressive melody accompanied by
"evocative" chords. (Giulio Caccini) "Amarilli Mia Bella" was originally composed as a
madrigal, which, according to Craig Wright, is "a genre of secular vocal music that originated in
Italy during the Renaissance, in which usually four or five voices sing love poems." (Wright 450)
The performance did contain the expressive melody that Caccini is known for, and was able to
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A Musical Analysis: The Modesto Junior College Fall Vocal Recital
do so without the four or five voices that it was originally written for. I enjoyed this piece and
found the performance and the lyrics to be beautiful.
The eighth piece of the night was Giuseppe Giordani's "Caro Mio Ben" and was
performed in Italian by Uriah Brown. The piano and solo voice began simultaneously and stayed
the same throughout the song in regards to melody and dynamics. After each line of the song
both the piano and the voice pause at the same time, utilizing silence as emphasis. Overall, there
were few points of 'loud' and 'soft' in regards to dynamics. When the solo voice held a long note,
the piano stopped in order to bring attention to the voice. Uriah had a very strong, steady voice
and performed the song very well. He dressed nicely, a button-up shirt, slacks and a tie, which
conveyed professionalism. Giuseppe Giordani, a Classical Italian composer was born in 1751 in
Naples, Italy and lived until 1798. He was mostly known for his oratorios, operas, and sacred
music. (Cummings) "Caro Mio Ben" was written as an aria, "an elaborate lyrical song for a solo
voice," which is perfectly depicted the performance. (Wright 445) The piece is a love letter that
contains an emotional catharsis, highlighting the elaborate lyrics that arias are known for. This
was one of my favorite performances, and it received one of the loudest applauses of the night,
which confirmed that the audience enjoyed this song as much as I did.
The first half of the performance closed with Alyssa Smith singing "Er Ist's" in German.
The lyrics of the song describe the season of spring, which is portrayed by the lively melodies of
the solo voice and piano accompaniment. The piece varied dynamically; the points of 'loud' and
'soft' contributed to the cheerful tone. Alyssa's voice was a stark contrast from the other voices;
it was very strong and carried throughout the hall. Her features definitely matched her voice she is tall and blonde, noticeable like her voice. She dressed nicely in a blouse and skirt,
maintained a smile and eye contact with the audience, and appeared confident and happy to be
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A Musical Analysis: The Modesto Junior College Fall Vocal Recital
there. Hugo Wolf, an Austrian critic and composer wrote this lied, or German art song, during
the Romanic era of music. Lieder were written for voices and piano accompaniment, which was
just how it was performed. Wolf during his musical career composed art songs such as "Er Ist's"
as well as symphonic poems and operas. However, he maintained his successes mainly from the
art songs. In his lifetime, Wolf wrote three hundred art songs, which contained themes ranging
from love, to satire, to spiritual suffering. (Hugo Wolf) Alyssa Smith successfully displayed the
theme of Wolf's piece and, to me, was one of the strongest performances of the night.
Despite not being able to understand the majority of the performances, I enjoyed the
vocal recital. I appreciated the variety of music, voices, and performers. All of the singers had
good stage presence and appeared happy to be there. What surprised me was that some of my
favorite pieces were not in English and from the Baroque and Classical periods such as "Amarilli
Mia Bella" and "Caro Mio Ben." Frank Zappa may not be entirely correct; not all of the good
music was written when men wore big, white wigs, but certainly, as I learned from this recital,
some excellent pieces did derive from those times.
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A Musical Analysis: The Modesto Junior College Fall Vocal Recital
Works Cited
"Cesar Franck." Encyclopedia - Britannica Online Encyclopedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Nov. 2011.
<http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/216892/Cesar-Franck>.
Cummings, Robert. "Giuseppe Giordani." AllMusic.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Nov. 2011.
<www.allmusic.com/artist/giuseppe-giordani-q2364/biography>.
"Giulio Caccini ." Encyclopedia - Britannica Online Encyclopedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Nov.
2011. <http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/87773/Giulio-Caccini>.
"Hugo Wolf ." Encyclopedia - Britannica Online Encyclopedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Nov. 2011.
<http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/646494/Hugo-Wolf>.
"Music Quotes." Famous Quotes Homepage and Commentary. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Nov. 2011.
<http://famousquoteshomepage.com/Music_Quotes_by_Musicians_&_Composers.htm>.
Smith, Rollin. Playing the Organ Works of César Franck. Series: The Complete Organ No. 1.
Hillsdale, NY: Pendragon Press, 1997. Print.
Wright, Craig M.. Listening to music. 6th ed. Australia: Schirmer CENGAGE Learning, 2008.
Print.
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