Brass Macabre
There seems to be an unwritten rule in my household that one only listens to Camille Saint-Saens' Danse Macabre on Halloween, but this is too fun not to share.
Danse Macabre was originally written in 1874, and wasn't necessarily received well, with its overt musical references to death and the devil (by using the dreaded tritone interval!). However, there is some great musical imagery, from the use of the xylophone representing the rattling of skeleton bones to the plucking of harp strings representing the chiming of the clock at midnight.
Check out this great article to learn more about the piece and its history.
For a recording of the original orchestra version, click here.
Today, people aren't nearly as offended by this piece, and it has frequently been used in films and commercials, and of course is wildly popular around Halloween.
This recording is from the album Round Midnight, released in 2016 by a group of brass musicians from the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin (German Symphonie Orchestra Berlin). Their rendition of this piece, anonymously arranged for brass quintet, captures the playful, dance-like nature of the piece. So have a piece of candy and maybe wear some black, and get yourself into the Halloween spirit any time you'd like.
Is this classic spooky piece Better in Brass? That's for you to decide.
Comments
Post a Comment