Daily Log: January 14, 2015

Today was VERY productive!

Before class, I studied Webern's String Quartet op. 22 and the first movement to his String Quartet op. 28.  Determining rows is really fun if I know what it is I'm looking for.  My scores are nice and colorful.

I didn't quite complete them; that will be a project for another time.

We discussed those pieces in class, and Dr. Asplund then asked us to spend the weekend composing a piece that uses Webern's serialism, canonic techniques, and pointillistic texture.  It's been a while since I sat down and composed a piece.  This may take a while.

In 304 we discussed JS Bach's Sonata, one of the first known "Sonata-form" pieces in a definitive sense.

I read up on HARMONY in LaRue's Guidelines and took creative notes.  Harmony is easily the most "analyzable" aspect of music, but it's also one that is difficult for me, especially in romantic orchestral scores.  Fortunately, I'm currently in Webern and early Classical lands, and they're easier to digest.  Work your way up, right?

I had a short discussion with Dr. Johnson yesterday, and he told me that the best way to be better at analyzing is to read how other people come to their analytical conclusions.  The more I expose myself to good analytical thinking from others, the more their thoughts become my thoughts.

I studied the second song in Pauline Oliveros's Three Songs.  This one was about a spider.  I anxiously await the whole score so that I can REALLY look at it and maybe even find an opportunity to perform it.

I also spent about an hour (less, actually) translating a page from Goethe.  This was my easiest one yet.  Yeah, I'm still looking up words, but it looks like I'm overcoming the grammar.  I'm comparing my translation work to another English translation, and I'm coming up with pretty much the same content, albeit often using different words.

I checked out more books about Haydn today.  Once I'm finished with this post, I'm going to sit back with my Urtext copy of The Creation and watch/listen to a performance of The Creation that I found on YouTube.  Great way to end a day.

Possible Paper Angles on The Creation: 

Haydn and Enlightenment ideals
Haydn and his connections with Freemasonry
Use of dark and light imagery in The Creation. 
Censorship and The Creation

Goals for tomorrow:  Make some headway on Haydn sources.  Start my Webern piece.  Get through Oliveros's final movement of her Three Songs.