Music : Composition

Frédéric Chopin (Polish: March 1, 1810 – October 17, 1849) was a Polish virtuoso pianist and piano composer of the Romantic period. He is widely regarded as the greatest Polish composer, and one of the most influential composers for piano in the 19th century. Chopin was born in the village of Zelazowa Wola, in the Duchy of Warsaw, to a Polish mother and French-expatriate father, and came to be regarded as a child-prodigy pianist. In November 1830, at the age of twenty, Chopin went abroad. After the suppression of the Polish 1830–31 Uprising, he became one of the many expatriates of the Polish Great Emigration. In Paris he made a comfortable living as composer and piano teacher, while giving few public performances. A great Polish patriot, in France he used the French version of his given name and, to avoid having to rely on Imperial Russian documents, eventually became a French citizen. From 1837 to 1847 he conducted a turbulent relationship with the French writer George Sand (Aurore Dudevant). Always in frail health, at 39 in Paris he succumbed to pulmonary tuberculosis. Chopin's extant compositions all include the piano, predominantly alone or as a solo instrument among others. Though his music is technically demanding, its style emphasizes nuance and expressive depth rather than technical virtuosity. Chopin invented new musical forms such as the ballade, and made major innovations in existing forms such as the piano sonata, waltz, nocturne, étude, impromptu, and prelude. His works are mainstays of Romanticism in 19th-century classical music. His mazurkas and polonaises remain the cornerstone of Polish national classical music. [Adapted from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fr%C3%A9d%C3%A9ric_Chopin under the terms of the GNU-FDL] more...

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From Ben Hur to Star Wars and Psycho to Scream, film music has played an essential role in such genre-defining classics. Making us laugh, cry, and jump with fright, it's the manipulative tool directors cannot do without. There are many differing approaches and opinions about what achieves a desired emotional effect, with composers always hunting a golden rulebook of tricks they can employ. This isn't that particular book. What's in it? The turbulent history, the ever-changing craft, the reclusive or limelight-loving superstars, the enthusiastic world of fandom surrounding it, and the best way to build a collection. It's all streamlined into a user-friendly guide for buffs and novices alike. more...

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Stephen C. Meyer details the intricate relationship between the operas Der Freischütz and Euryanthe , and the contemporary discourse about the 'Germany of the imagination' and the new nation itself. In doing so, he presents excerpts from a wide range of philosophical, political, and musical writings, many of which are little known and otherwise unavailable in English. Individual chapters trace the multidimensional concept of German and 'foreign' opera through the 19th century. more...

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Song has been a part of people's culture since the beginning. From classical and rock and roll to country and jazz - there are hundreds of thousands of budding and established songwriters burning to write the next great hit. The Complete Idiot's Guide to Songwriting is the one-stop resource for all inspiring songwriters to learn how much musical training is needed, how to put together the basics of a song for various popular genres, how to tailor songs to different industries (TV and film), how to get great ideas, where to find collaborators, publishers and agents and how the Internet is impacting the world of songwriting. more...

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Known for his growling vocals and for the distinct poetry of his lyrics, Waits has amassed over the course of three decades a devoted cult following. This work collects the lyrics--formative and classic--from the first ten albums of this true bard of hard living. more...

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