The Saddest Concerto of All Time
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- čas přidán 12. 12. 2021
- Concertos aren't particularly well known for being sad, so in this video I talk about a piece I think is probably the Saddest Concerto ever written. I explain how it flips the norms of the concerto genre.
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VIDEOS
Jacqueline du Pre & Daniel Barenboim - Elgar Cello Concerto
• Jacqueline du Pre & Da...
Elgar - Cello Concerto - Sheku Kanneh-Mason [BBC Proms 2019]
• Elgar - Cello Concerto...
Yo Yo Ma Plays Dvořák’s Cello Concerto
• Video
Arabella Steinbacher : Beethoven Violin Concerto
• Arabella Steinbacher :...
Vivaldi | 'Storm' | Cole Rolland, Angel Vivaldi, Kristina Schiano
• Vivaldi | 'Storm' | Co...
Vivaldi Four Seasons: Winter (L'Inverno), original version. Freivogel & Voices of Music RV 297
• Vivaldi Four Seasons: ...
Elgar - Pomp and Circumstance March No. 1 (Land of Hope and Glory) (Last Night of the Proms 2012)
• Video
#elgar #cello #concerto - Hudba
*_This is the first time in my life that I heard someone describing music with such clarity and free of jargon. I am not knowledgeable about classical music theory and I never learned how to play an instrument. Nevertheless, I learned what a concerto is and something of the nature of a cello being a shy personal instrument unlike a piano or violin. This man is a good teacher. I am a retired man of 75 with a belief that it is never to late to learn. I am grateful for this lesson by David Bruce. I am an invalid, virtually bedridden, unable to attend a concert so CZcams is my window on the world. This video is a stupendous example of what good can be done by the internet._*
Very moving comment. I concur with your assessment of David's amazing ability to convey the heart of music.
And may you continue to enjoy music on the internet. Thank you for sharing- I agree on his excellent teaching abilities... 🍀🌹🌞
@Jean With music you do not need knowledge. It is a personal language without words. Take whatever you will from every piece. Be the expert on how you find the music you hear. Enjoy your listening.
@@thearcticlord3920 Your comment makes perfect sense to me.
@@raminagrobis6112 Nice you feel as you do.. I am a former classical player and played Classical thru Blues and Rock. I studied classical it in school.
After a concert I engaged in a conversation with both Zubin Mehta and Concert Master/Guest Ivory Gitles doing "Paganini's Violin Concerto No. 1 in D Major. In my opinion, it was played both sad and explosive, and was amazing. That combo of Ivory and Zubin embodies the elements spoken of here. I felt what i heard and saw what could not be written; that the musical notation was the beginning. So I asked Zubin how close do they keep to the music notation' Ivory was forgetting to turn pages; he raged like a rock star, he was unbelievable, and Zubin just smiled and said to me:
"Music is never played as it is written, or written as it is played."
Ivory just smiled and nodded.
Later in our conversation, they conveyed the master player soloist will 'express' his personal 'ideal' of the piece keeping to the original intent. Zubin was an animated giant; he drove the orchestra on to heights I previously had not seen. He conducted explosively with his full body movements, never the same twice. He and Ivory confirmed improvising can happen within the classical context. As was said, "Music is never played as it is written or written as it is played" is a direct quote from Zubin to me, after a concert. Here is a treat for you. czcams.com/video/4NFcVf6Pc7k/video.html
Jacqueline's Elgar performance was brilliant indeed. An amazing talent who left us way too soon.
When I was a kid, about a year after I started playing cello, I got to participate in a Q&A with Yo-Yo Ma. I was struggling with the cello at the time and debating whether to stick with it or switch to another instrument. I asked him why when he started, he chose the cello of all instruments. His answer: "To me, the cello sounds the most like the Earth." which I found pretty inspiring and continued with it for another 7 years.
What an incredible story. I went to a Yo-Yo Ma concert with my mom several years back. It was perhaps the most moving experience with music in my entire life. What s beautiful man and talented musician. Huge respect to all those who performed with him.
Elgar n Jackie.. made for each other. Ŕavishing, and doubly heartbreaking. MW.
@@malcolmwhitehead7225 and they played the same cello, each of them, for a time, the Davidov Stradivarius.
Yeah! I'm not a schooled musician, but that's the vibe I get from the sound of that instrument.
7 years? That's the time a beginner needs to learn how many strings create the sound. At least I know why nobody ever heard from you.
I saw Jacqueline du pré, read the title and knew it was Elgar's cello concerto! My favourite cello concerto!
You can feel all the feeling he got through the time of the first world war. He even though the World would never be as great as it was before that war.
Thanks to Jacqueline for making it popular!
i thought it'd be kol nidre tbh
It was really horrific what happened to Jacqueline. To me it's why the Elgar cello concerto is the saddest. She was playing it when her MS first struck, she dropped her bow and lost all co-ordination, and couldn't contiue.
I still have very found memories of Jaqueline du Pré. She was born on the same day as I am (26th of Jan) in the same year as my mother (1945). When I first got into classical music as a little boy in the 70s, her career had already come to an end (I think her last concert was in 1973), but her records were still selling. Among the first records I bought was of course stuff by Karajan and the Berliner Philharmoniker and an LP by Jaqueline du Pré. Can't remember exactly, but it must have been the Elgar concerto with the Dvorák concerto on the back side. And I loved here ever since...
Still remember the sad day end of 1987, when the news of her death was announced. :-(
@@49mrbassman There was a movie made about her and her sister called "Hilary and Jackie" very sad and somewhat controversial. Still, beautiful music and perhaps more meaning from the tragedy...
same, her interpretation was the one that popularised the concerto
Im a young cellist myself. Started when I was 11 but I never really practiced in between lessons and stuff. It was just something I did besides school. Then I found this piece, and it just absolutely changed my entire world. Classical music has been the most important thing to me ever since and I have been practising my passion intensely. When I was little this piece was the most intimidating thing for me to try and play, now I am proud to say that I will be auditioning for an orchestra with this piece :) what a long and emotional journey it has been, and to finally be able to pour myself out into playing this piece has been the most cathartic and transformative experience ever.
The best of luck to you.
*_I envy you. Nurture your talent and never lose your passion._*
the same thing happened to me, but with faurè's elegy, beautiful 💕
Congratulations to you! I absolutely love Elgars cello concerto. If I ever played the cello this would be one of my pieces I’d want to perfect. This and Dvorak’s cello concerto. I wish you all the success! But also just enjoy playing! ❤
How did the audition go? I’m a cellist too so I am routing for you!
I've always seen the cello concerto as a requiem for the generation of young men who failed to return from the trenches. Thank you for a lovely assessment of this moving work.
It was a double tragedy that moved Elgar to compose the Cello Concerto the way he did. Not only the unspeakable horror of WWI which Elgar felt in a since had been the result of the jingo patriotism of his earlier works, but the final illness of his wife Caroline who had defied her family (Elgar was a Catholic) to champion him.
Wow! That's deep man. I love it "A requiem for the generation of young men who failed to return from the trenches." verdiguy. I just had to write it. Thank you.
@@tainorosario8902 Ralph Vaughan Williams' Fourth, Fifth and Sixth symphonies are all coloured/influenced by World War Two. Give them a listen, especially the haunting Romanza from the Fifth with its English Horn solo and shimmering strings.
Any idea what the 3rd movement was about? Apparently Elgar and Felix Salmond had an interesting correspondence about this movement.
I imagine it has something to do with the peace and happiness of being at home, while something is missing, being hoped for, waited upon day after day without a resolution.
I think he wrote this piece for the king, two generations ago.
Very interesting! Love this! However, Jacqueline du Pre is much much more than just a sad story. As a musical genius and one of the greatest cellists of all time it’s a bit unfair to characterize her based on the illness which (albeit sad) caused her untimely death. She put the Elgar Concerto on the map, made the benchmark recording of the piece and performed it with all the finest orchestras around the world. While her career was brief, she won the hearts of millions around the world and paved the way for the younger generation of players. She was the pioneer. Her passionate style of playing and body movements were highly criticized at the time, but are emulated even today, I’d have loved to have seen more of her performance in this. Just sayin’ 🙂
YES
There's a saying among people dealing with ongoing medical problems: "I won't allow myself to be defined by this condition."
The message of tragedy-obsessed pop culture is: "Don't worry - *WE'LL* define you by your condition."
@@TheStockwell Very well said!
yes, a tragic story adding to the sadness of the piece. I also du Pre perform it.
broke Slava's heart
As a cellist I find myself disagreeing for the first time with David Bruce regarding the Dvorak cello concerto. I don't think there's really any tension between the instrument and the idea being conveyed. The passage at 5:16 is meant to be bold and noble, which perfectly fits the character of the instrument, and not just "happy". And besides, you just have to listen to Bach's 6th suite gavotte or Haydn's C major concerto third movement to realize the cello is perfectly suited to convey pure, unabated, joy as well. As for the saddest cello concerto: Elgar is fine, but I'd rather go with Shostakovich's second cello concerto. While Elgar was simply talking about death, Shostakovich is expressing what was actually killing him. I recommend you check Sol Gambetta's rendition with the Frankfurt Symphony orchestra and Pablo Heras Casado here on CZcams. She quite literally dies while playing at the end. While it's true that a good Elgar's performance may leave me in a melancholic and pensive state, a good Shostakovich makes me feel just devastated. There's a huge difference between the two.
Wholeheartedly agree with EVERY word of this. For me the Elgar concerto is tinged with sadness, but i never thought of it as just, or even predominantly sad. It has everything from contemplation, to beauty, to hope and optimism.
I would only add that I have never thought that the cello is particularly unsuited to the concerto. That would be somewhat similar to the claim that the tenor voice is unsuited to opera. I would certainly need more than two hands to list my favourite cello concerti 😛
Completely agree. I admire those in the audience that can bring up their hands to applaud at the end of a Shostakovich 2nd performance. No physical movement is possible from me.
@@nathan87 You've put into words how I feel about the Elgar better than I could. I'd say the Elgar may be one of the most "melancholic" or "longing" cello concertos ever, but perhaps not the saddest. The sheer bleakness and hopelessness of the Shostakovich second concerto is what feels profoundly sad and shattering. I've always thought the percussion at the end represents the clock of death closing in on you. And it's not even an epic, memorable, death. It's a meaningless, sad, lonely and insignificant one. Like no one cares, you're dying alone. How can anything get sadder than that?
Regarding the Dvorak, I'd like to add that, from a technical standpoint, it's incredibly well written for the cello. So much so that even the most virtuosic passages always have a "cellistic" feel to them that makes the soloist feel grounded and confident at all times (in that regard it's the polar opposite of the Prokofiev or the Schumann cello concertos). Isn't it ironic that David thinks that it doesn't always fit the "character" of the instrument?
Ha! When I saw the title of this video I thought about Shostakovich too. Thank you for the recommendation, will check it out.
The passage at 5:16 is the Cello trying to be a Viola or Violin...
Insightful! I was lucky enough to hear du Pré perform the Elgar with Barenboim shortly after their marriage. I've seen many of the greats, but never have I seen anyone throw themselves into a performance like du Pré. An unforgettable experience.
Strangely just yesterday I was talking with an old friend who had studied with her at the Guildhall. She said that everyone was in love with her, but not a little jealous of her verve and talent. My friend was recalling how she was devastated by du Pré's early illness and death, feeling that the world was robbed of an all-time great, and also one of the loveliest souls she had ever known ...
I was also in that performance.The way she physically enveloped the instrument, almost made love to it - it's not difficult to understand why the whole audience was in love with her.
i have only seen and listen du Pre here, on CZcams. I watched a documentary about her, and she was like an angel. Just for what I saw it seems impossible that anyone could have any negative feeling about her.
she deserved a good marriage& a long life
I first heard this concerto in 1992 on a tape I was listening to while I was driving the car. It was a recording of Jaqueline du Pre. On hearing it I started to cry. This has never happened to me before because I just don’t cry. It was one of the four times in my long life I think I cried since early childhood. What an amazing piece of music.
I agree 100%. I always fill with tears watching JDP playing with such emotion and sensibility, with her husband conducting. Little did either of them know what was to be.
My first concerto with Jacqueline DuPre was her playing Elgar… I love her declared passion to this piece and I melt each time I hear her play it …years after her departure. God bless recordings and film footage that was archived.
Excellent Presentation Dave !! Great work !!
RIP Jacqueline du Pre.. !!
We ❤️ You !!
An extraordinary eulogy for Jacqueline du Pré. Thank you.
Agree.
Besthoven's violin is not a virtuose show off concerto, but the musical intentions are so powerful, pure, clean and pure. I just love it. I can't get enough it.
Magnificent, eloquent speech and storytelling, thank you David.
I hadn't heard this concerto before seeing this video. When the title was first shown on screen, I paused the video and listened to the Sheku Kanneh-Mason recording with London Symphony Orchestra on my headphones. Skeptical at first, I thought "how sad can it be, really?" 4 movements later I felt the wrung out catharsis saved for times like 'leaving a therapist's office' or 'driving home from a funeral' and had to go wash dried tears off of my face. Wild stuff! Incredible music!
Oh then I suggest watching Jacqueline's Du Pré's performance and let me know how did it go...xD
@@nicolaberti7698 Came here to say this. Now go listen to Jackie.
@@lauraharding3101 I've listened to her performance a lot of times before. Actually, it's my favorite performance of a cello concerto
Thank you. One of the most interesting, enlightening and beautiful CZcams videos I’ve ever seen.
Jacqueline du Pre! Yes, yes, yes! I absolutely love her playing, but I don't listen often any more because it makes me cry. There is no one like her. During the Covid period I looked at some great musicians from before my time to see who they really were, what made them great. I just fell in love with her playing and was so grieved about her story. It seems like we had her for one brief, spectacular moment. Thank you so much for remembering her.
while not a cello, i always found sibelius violin concerto as a very sadness/anger/melancholy provoking piece.
thank you for these great vids.
This is the comment I am looking for.
Yes, indeed!!
YES but Sibelius is also very romantic
Yes, but just the first movement. The second movement is uplifting and the finale is joyful.
@@doctorjames7454 Uplifting? For me the second movement is incredibly sad. It has some moments of deliverance but they're always brought back to the ground by either grief, sorrow or total acceptance and surrender. Which is why I've always found the 3rd movement not really fitting the two other movements.
I don't think I've ever gotten through listening to the Elgar Cello Concerto without having tears gather in my eyes. It often feels like someone is swinging on a chord in my throat and hollowing out my chest, all at the same time.
One thing to add: An instrument can be anything a good composer wants it to be.
Thank you SO much, for all of these beautiful analyses! You provide musicians and enthusiasts with a source of immense value
Lutoslawski's Cello Concerto is like a dagger in the heart that's twisted before being pulled out.
I think the viola is a far more “introverted” instrument than the cello, which is the charm of the few viola concertos in existence.
Check out Rubbra’s viola concerto. It is my absolute favorite in the viola concerto repertoire.
David I love it when you tell story around a piece.
So grateful for your dedication and passion which makes each of your videos a privilege to watch.
Coincidentally I listened to this concerto and soloist two nights ago while lying still and in darkness. I realised the greatness of them, which you have so eloquently explained. Thank you.
Many thanks for this.
Perhaps in the preceding 557 comments, someone has already said that they were there.
I saw Jacquiline du Pré perform this piece at the Royal Festival Hall in the mid 1960s. I must have been in my early teens. I can still remember it. There was this tiny beautiful girl playing such wonderful music.
If grief is the price you pay for love then this is its song.
Daniel Barenboim left his wife, Jackie, after she became ill. He found a healthy, younger female to have a baby with.
@@beaupianiste3738 Yes, to me that is THE saddest part of this whole story. Just when the girl needed support, it was ripped out from under her. It was the motor nerves that failed, not the mind. Just imagine the turmoil of loss finger control, then finally major incapacitation. Only to lose her major support and see him shack up with another. Ouch!
@@beaupianiste3738 Barenboim is a cad. I've never forgiven him.
Years ago, I attended a performance of Rachmaninoff's Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini - a work for piano and orchestra, very similar to a piano concerto. During the eighteenth variation, which is the most popular part of the work, I looked around to see that half the audience was in tears, as was I. While not really sad, I think it is the most emotional three minutes of classical music ever written.
Incredible video, yet again. You ALWAYS pull it out of the bag. Legendary educator.
What a fantastic introduction to your channel this was! This concerto is indeed a brilliant work of art, and your commentary has opened up the concerto in a fresh way for me. Thank you!
When you mentioned it last video, I thought: It has to be the Elgar concerto!
Me too! As soon as "saddest concerto" got mentioned it just had to be the Elgar Cello.
@@seasideman Me too.
David, you have outdone yourself. Thank you for this beautifully and carefully crafted video paying reverence to a truly special piece of music. I sincerely enjoyed this, and as an introspective and somber person, this piece of music held a special place in my heart ever since first hearing it in the movie August Rush.
Well said.
I have listened to this song so many times (on repeat), and you just gave me more appreciation of it. Thank you!
Thank you so much for giving Jacqueline Du Pré the well-deserved recognition that she deserves when it comes to the contribution of this concerto towards making it one, if not the best concerto for cello ever written. Most people watch Yo Yo Ma's & Sheku performances but many don't realize that Jacqueline's performance is just out of this world.
Yo Yo Ma and Sheku stinks. God Save Jacqueline Du Pré. She was the best cellist in the world.
@ I don't know that I would go that far, Cesar. Yo Yo Ma is now using the Stratavari Cello that Jacqueline du Pre was using during her sadly abbreviated career. He is certainly not some kind of rookie with it - he would never have had the possession of the cello if that was the case. While I might agree that du Pre was a more natural cellist, with so much innate ability and love for the instrument, respectfully I'd say that Yo Yo in particular is no slouch.
Du Pre's and Casals' renditions are the best I've heard. Highly recommend Casals, while less fiery, shows things even Du Pre doesn't.
It's magical to consider how a specific interpretation can continue to haunt the peice well into the future. Excellent video David!✨
Thank you for doing this brief analysis of a piece which has been my favourite piece since many many years! I remember when I made my godmother cry during my performance of the piece - what a memory...besides my own innumerable tears which I shed while listening to this poignant piece.
Edward Elgar also has an interesting story: He was a catholic, living in a anglican country and he became part of the nobility but only through the marriage with is wife. So his whole life he was a part of something but not really and remained a bit of an outsider. To me that's also the meaning of the melodic minor scale which he uses in this piece: It's extreme sadness but combined with sparkles of hope and joy!
Jolly interesting narration. And delightful music - including the sad stuff! Thank you, David.
Great video! Those first three minutes of the Elgar concerto get me every time.
Rautavaara, being my favorite composer, has written some of the most beautiful concertos in my opinion that I feel meet many of your points (in terms of tone). Particularly his cantus arcticus as you mentioned, but also his violin concerto and bass concerto.
I love that you mentioned his works here!
An inspiring and masterful analysis of Elgar’s concerto, I must suffer from melancholia, but sad music has appealed to me since I was very young, from the lamenting and mournful ambience of much of Purcell’s music to Elgar’s concerto to Bruch brilliant rendition of Kol Nidre from the Yom Kippur service. I am know a subscriber to this channel.
I agree with you. I've always loved sad music and chose the cello bc of its depth of emotion. I am also enamored Purcell's music. Also Berlioz can be very sad, very moving, but expressive of every emotion.
Cheers Bruce! Thanks for the amusing (as always) video :)
One of the most beautiful works I've ever listened to, and that also happens to be a cello concerto is Qigang Chen's "Reflet d'un temps disparu". It's absolutely incredible to see what this instrument and an orchestra can do in the hands of such a talented composer.
Wonderful - thank you very much for putting this together; I learned so much.
I just saw the Elgar Concerto a few days ago. It absolutely ripped me apart! I wasnt prepared for that first movement at all. Brilliant, brilliant and emotional piece. The Essener Philharmoniker with Johannes Debus and Camille Thomas did a great job!
I think Camille Thomas is definitely contemporary (or maybe even all-time in my opinion) champion of this concerto. I saw her a few years ago in Bratislava and every time I hear this concerto, I'm instantly in this wonderful evening, full of emotions and tears in my eyes. Best cello concerto forever!
@@terezajadudova Definitely! She put so many emotions into the concerto, her expressions were perfect. It simply blew me away and I had tears in my eyes.
Have you watched Jacqueline Du Pré's performance?
@@nicolaberti7698 Yes, but it is still a recording. It cannot be compared to the live sound. And because she isn't alive anymore, and I haven't seen her in a concert, I can't consider her performance better
How strange! The first word, and emotion, that comes to my mind when thinking of the Elgar concerto is not sadness, but JOY! Really intense, profound joy too - I can't think of any piece of music which exceeds it's power. However, as soon as I saw the title of this video, I knew it would be about this concerto. The joy of it is ecstatic, breaking out of a sea of profound sadness and grief - and that very thing is what makes it so joyful, triumphant, beautiful and poignant.
There is joy in the Paganini violin concerto we hear early on in the video, but it is not at the same level. It is delightful and beautiful - playful and fun. It makes me think of a child dancing in a garden, without a care in the world. The Elgar cello concerto is profoundly different - it is sublime, wise and uplifting. It laughs and smiles through its tears and sorrow. You can never forget that feeling of smiling through tears.
Those are my thoughts, for what they're worth - does anyone agree with me?
Yes, I do! Yours is a wise comment. As a side issue, it's also wonderful the way Elgar has come into his own now as indisputably one of the greats.
@@orglancs Thanks! I agree with you too! :)
I admire your clear and thoughtful unraveling of the beautiful and painfully personal impact, and mystery of both the cello and this exquisite peace.
Thank you very much, David, for this really moving glimpse into melancholy in music.
Really appreciated this video essay on this great piece. The upward scale in the first movement is a complete surprise and the most spectacular musical depiction of a cry of despair that I have ever heard. As a cellist I feel it is one of the signature moments of our repertoire. I am not certain that the cello is inherently melancholy as an instrument, but I do think that it is likely that Elgar's piece and Jacqueline Du Pre's immortal performance have helped the instrument acquire that reputation. Human beings need to voice and process their sadness, and if Elgar and the cello do it better than anyone else, there are worse fates.
Elgar was a genius. Whenever I listen to his music, it's as if I can hear the sound of England or at least England as it used to be.
This is such a good insight!
@david bruce
Excellent content and great delivery. Truly and uncommonly so on both counts! Thank you so much.
got chills when you said the elgar concerto!!! it’s one piece of music that will always hit me so deep. absolutely in love with it. thank you for your perspective on it!
Really love that Concerto for Bird and Orchestra and really hope you would make a video on Rautavaraa one day! He has such a district voice.
Oh yes I love Rautavaara too! His (cello) works are also really sad and touching.
i like that piano concerto of his where it uses huge clusters to play melodies
@@starchythepotato2877 Yes it's genius hahaha! He uses this technique also in the Cello and Piano Sonata but not in this extense.
His flute concerto is super cool! He uses a different kind of flute for each movement and he wrote the concerto specifically for the former principal piccolo of the Chicago Symphony Walfrid Kujala
@@kiaraeijo Oh God piccolo. The anti-cello.It's an instrument I can't stand. Too high and piercing. Really irritating. Good for colour only in my book.
Between leaving school and going to university, I had a six months break, so I got a job in London. There were these things called Prom Concerts going on: I knew nothing about music, but I thought I should try it out, so one evening at random didn't go home after work but turned up to the Albert Hall, which was a buzz in itself. There was this cello concerto, and I just about knew what a cello was. Of course it was 1962, and I didn't know what was going on, but I knew I had been at something staggering. I prefer, now, my soloists untheatrical, but part of what moved me was the sight of Du Pre all over her instrument; I don't think it was theatricality so much as a profound physical engagement (and, perhaps, size and reach). Memory still with me, and it looks now as though it will stay as long as I have memories, but I don't recollect it as being sad--or perhaps, I need to reconsider what "sad" means. Thank you for the exposition.
I enjoyed every minute of this thoughtful analysis, gracefully delivered and illustrated. Thanks !!!
Superb analysis of a piece that just seems to get more and more profound as time goes on.
I do love the shout out to Rautavaara! Totally agree that that was a good contender as well :)
I love that you break down the showyness of the concerto format, and the original fast/slow/fast format as incompatible with sadness. I find myself for this reason often attracted to second movements of concerti. And I want the concerto to end in despair, yet my moodiness and wallowing is disrupted by the annoying 3rd movement, as if the introspective nature of the 2nd mvt is discarded or even ignored. As for lovely 2nd movements in the sadness-category: all 3 Barber Concerti (Cello, Violin, Piano), the unknown Englund Piano concerto, both Shotakovich piano concerti have lovely sad 2nd mvts. Adding to the Rautavaara Concerti, the Clarinet and the Flute concerto have lovely sad 2nd and 3rd movements respectivly. And also Frank Martins Cello concerto brings me to tears.
😊
What I've seen throughout the pandemic brought me here. I saw Jacquelline du Pre's photo, thought it was the Elgar's Cello Concerto itself. Thank you for your very interesting talk. I didn't know they once "banned" concertos" in London!
That was well worth the watch, as is always the case on this channel.
Something I haves learned watching this channel is that one can know and love a piece their entire life and still find new reasons for appreciating it.
I had to take one semester of music history for my degree back in the day. I must say I have learned more about the context and meaning of music history in one episode on this channel than in that whole semester.
Wow - what a glorious video. Thanks. I have always loved that concerto and now even more.
I think one of the most musical concertos I’ve ever heard is Philip Sparke’s first euphonium concerto. Beautifully melodic but still requiring a high degree of virtuosity from the player. I played the second movement for my last euph performance a few months ago.
Fitting: One common nickname for the euph in Swedish is "plåtcello" (tin cello).
(Another is vibrato bucket.)
Yes indeed. Euphonium is terribly underrated. A lovely melancholic piece for Euphonium by Piazzolla is Cafe 1930, played beautifully here by Anthony Ciallet;
czcams.com/video/mf2uYqDX8QA/video.html
For me the saddest concerto is the Shostakovich first violin concerto, especially the passacaglia which is heartbreaking. I haven't found anything more powerful emotionally.
Oh yeah, it's incredible. Especially Hilary Hahn playing it
Was doing some research on Shostakovich as I do, and I came across this quote attributed to him in a Russian research paper- "my life is loneliness in public." That's what it makes me think of.
I've always thought that the Sibelius VC 2nd movement was similar. Not as hopeless, but it speaks about the same struggles to me.
Now that I think about it, all the sad concerto movements I can think of are 2nd movements, which tend to be slow, which isn't a place for virtuosity. I guess concertos aren't the most ideal musical form for sadness after all.
@@sophiatalksmusic3588 He endured the Stalinist years.
Thanks for everything you do. I love your videos.
I too saw Jacqueline du Pre in London many years ago. Her interpretation had me in tears. 😢 Suzette SA
The concerto is also an expression of the terrible sadness Elgar felt on the death of Alice, his beloved wife, from which he never really recovered.
Alice actually died the year after the premiere of the Cello Concerto.
@@gwydionrhys7672 Thank you. Was she ill when it was written?
@@phillipvietri8786 I’m not sure; her illness seems to have been rather short - she died of lung cancer in April 1920.
@@gwydionrhys7672 athanasius you. Perhaps one should research it further.
Elgar's Cello Concerto may be the saddest but to me it is his masterpiece. I first heard it in the recording coupled with Janet Baker and the song cycle. It is truly a "record of the century".
David , What a fascinating video. This piece of music means a great deal to me , so interesting to see your slant on it.
Thank you, Mark.
Very beautiful piece, thank you for bringing it to attention. Also the soloist is very impressive!
Orchestra musicians have accompanied concertos and solo pieces their whole lives, so it isn't often complained about, even having to play very sparse or boring parts serving as pure back-drops. Listening to world-class soloists can even be a great inspiration for the orchestra members! But: the soloists need to keep their part of the deal, not only having prepared their part to perfection, but also know how to become a unit with the orchestra and conductor in minimal rehearsal time (in the cut-throat market for soloists these days, they almost alywas do).
The English like to create drama.
If Elgar’s is the saddest, Shosti’s first is certainly the bleakest.
Shostakovich 1st is definitely bleak in places, but on the whole, I'd say his 2nd beats the first in bleakness!
Wonderful analysis that has opened up this music for me. Thank you 👍😊
One of my favorite concertos of all time, and I guessed the piece just from the thumbnail and title. Thank you for making this video!
It seems to me that the passage from the Dvorak Concerto is not the cello trying to be happy whatsoever. It's in minor, and the whole thing is very tense, which works really well with the instrumental tension at such exertion. Also it gives the effect of the cellist struggling through an orchestral onslaught of sound, which I think is amazing.
To me it is a work of great intimacy. Elgar's world was shattered. 'The lights have gone out all over Europe, and I do not know when they will be lit again'. He shares his person pain, grief and melancholy. This connection with Elgar, the man, spans across time and helps us all to deal with sadness and loss. Death is always part of life. Edward Elgar is here with us in our hurt.
Thanks for sharing the spirit of cello through this wonderful piece of music!
She's gonna live forever through this concerto, lovely!
Great video. 👏👏
New sub.
As a cellist, this description of my instrument really bothers me. You even said in this video that the cello is close to the human voice, and yet you relegate it to simply being introverted and sad? You're right that it's close to the human voice, and it has just as much expressive range too. You don't need to look all that hard to find truly joyful music on the cello. It's not "trying to be another instrument" just because they play high on the A sting
indeed, the most famous piece for cello, Bach's Prelude from Suite 1, is enough of a counter-example to show that it's not just a melancholy sounding instrument.
@@AnRuixuan Thank you, yes. Literally the first piece people think of when you mention the cello is a very happy one.
Its a deeper instrument, do you expect its tone to be happy? Difference between it and a bassoon eg is its much softer hence why id call it 'depressing.'
Not like id ever call a bassoon exciting though.
@@abillionjivebars9888 Go listen to Popper's Elfentanz and then come back and tell me the cello is depressing
@@osmium3691 Im talking about the general tone of the cello, which is low. As a cellist you should know by now that its not as lively as a violin or anything higher pitched. At the same time it seems you're offended by that so it makes sense.
Arrange eine kleine for instruments below c4 and tell me its got the same character. Deeper = less lively not going to say it again, its fact.
Venetian Snares samples the Elgar Cello Concierto heavily in his breakcore track "Szamar Madar". Really cool use,. and I highly recommend checking out the entire album. Another track samples Billie Holiday's version of "Gloomy Sunday", another song that's gotta be one of the saddest of all time.
now there's a name i did not expect to see here! excellent taste, my friend
I was about to post the same, good thing I looked first.
Gloomy Sunday was composed by a Hungarian songwriter, Rezső Seress in 1933, (Szomorú vasárnap). It caused a high number of suicides. It's notorious for that. Music is powerful.
Superb, I loved every minute of it. Your insights are examplar, yet so approachable for musical non practitioners😊 a big thank you from Victoria, Australia
An eloquent and insightful analysis. Wonderfully done.
The third movement is one of the most sublime things ever written. I wept when I played this with an exceptional soloist.
I agree. I cannot get through it.
Just before Jacqueline du Pres died in 1987, I was with her in her home in London, She was alone except for her Nurse; Daniel Barenboim, her husband, arrived later so met him too. I was there to help her with some equipment that would facilitate an easier getting into and out of a car while still in her wheelchair. While there, we talked about her music - at the time, I was a singer in a Barbershop quartet but I already knew about the Elgar cello concerto so could share some of that with her. Her speech was laboured due to her worsening MS condition. We were both in tears as we sat and listened to her own rendition of the concerto that I understood later to be on a continuous loop all day long as she wanted! She said something to me that I always still remember. In a tearful voice, she said, "I still have perfect pitch, you know!" I held her hand and soon I had left to discover two months later she had passed away. Jacqueline du Pres was born just 23 days before me and through MS died at only 42. My own Mother died of MS when I was only 4 years old - I didn't tell her that! Yes, she was the Master of the Elgar Cello Concerto!!
A great story. Crying here.
Thank you.
Well done!!! du Pre's story saddens me to this day. I never knew of her until years after her death, yet still grieve the loss. How ironic that her sublime and quintessential performance of this grieving concerto foretold her life story, a devine talent who left us far too soon.
Nicely done. I really like your approach, and thoroughness and even-handedness dealing with these subjects.
Well, it certainly wont get demonised , that’s for sure! I enjoyed that a lot and feel I’ve learnt from it too, as a classical music ignoramus, so I will listen again to the one version I know, the Du Pré. Many thanks. I’ll subscribe too, and keep listening and learning.
as a cellist, I was hoping you'd mention Kol Nidrei. Has to be one of the saddest pieces.
he did
@@nealhurwitz I know I watched the video!
But beautiful
Thank you David. Very moving; I learned a lot. ... I loved the count-down clock. That really helped me "stay in tune" with your 10 points without you having to verbally count-down the numbers yourself ... a very clever way of doing that.
Amazingly presented, as always!
Great video David, as usual...just wanted to add another sad true story associated with this concerto. It is the last major orchestral piece that Elgar completed, and that is partly because his wife Caroline Alice was his biggest supporter and she was ill as he composed this (plus his last great chamber works) in that Summer of 1919, and although she attended the premiere of the concerto, she died 6 months later and Elgar couldn't really write anything more...he may not have known for sure that her illness was terminal as he composed this concerto, but it is a sad fact nonetheless
The Elgar concerto is so special in it’s dark melancholy and raw emotion, and for me another dark cello concerto with haunting themes is the Myaskovsky Cello Concerto, equalling the Elgar in its pathos. I discovered it about 40 years ago. If you don’t know this beautiful work try to hear it.
Agreed!
Oh what utter nonsense.
Wow. What a joy to stumble upon your compelling, inspired and wonderfully accessible examination of this, my favorite concerto of all of them. Part of me always wondered whether my own tendency to tear up whenever I heard it was in some way directly tied to my having first heard it as played by Jacqueline du Pre... her tragic life story impossible to ever forget. So glad I found you. Now I've got exploring to do.
This was so well done....thank you!!!
For me another really sad concerto is Grøndahl's Trombone Concerto. The 2nd movements are the same kind of introspective melancholy that Elgar uses that conveys unbridled sadness. However, the first and third movements are much livelier, almost an angry reflection.
This piece will ALWAYS be associated with the great Jacqueline du Pre a complete genius of the instrument and totally irreplaceable. That opening is so dissonant; it's almost like a chord played by Frank Zappa.
Thanks! Loved this video about one of my favorite pieces of music. The concerto inspired me to visit Elgar's home in the Malvern Hills when I was a young man !
What a wonderful presentation. I listen to the Elgar now with a new set of ears
Honestly I thought the "mismatch" was part of the aestetics of the concerto. It seemed to me that one of defining features of the form was an exploration of the outer reaches of the solo instruments possibilities..
At least this has been the assumption I have been suffering under my "hopefully before I die I can do this" electric bass concerto.
Jacqueline du Pre's performance of the Elgar has always made me cry, probably because of her premature death. However, this discussion of the piece makes me realize that it is inherently sad.
so wonderful we can search on CZcams and select from so many astounding concertos! Thank you excellent educator!
what a beautifully orchestrated and informative video. with such a sad ending. well done.