Here's a query: What great unsung classical works are there for fathers. There are numerous popular songs for fathers (Oh My Papa, etc...) and there are tons of works for mother's (include every Stabat Mater, various requiems (most notably Brahms). Faure's requiem may have been inspired by the death of his father (and also his mother two years earlier). But are there any great works extolling the virtues of fathers and fatherhood. On quick reflection none come to mind, but I'm sure the members here can come up with something.
Quote from: John Hudock on Sunday 20 June 2010, 14:44
Here's a query: What great unsung classical works are there for fathers. There are numerous popular songs for fathers (Oh My Papa, etc...) and there are tons of works for mother's (include every Stabat Mater, various requiems (most notably Brahms). Faure's requiem may have been inspired by the death of his father (and also his mother two years earlier). But are there any great works extolling the virtues of fathers and fatherhood. On quick reflection none come to mind, but I'm sure the members here can come up with something.
The most obvious example (which isn't quite right, being to father-in-law rather than father...!) is Suk's Asrael dedicated to his father in-law and wife, but I'll look for others. ) A google search turns up quickly quite a few modern works very easily by the way, but nothing in our time period and nothing can vouch for as great.
Wasn't Eine kleine Nachtmusik a tribute from son to recently deceased father?
Quote from: chill319 on Sunday 20 June 2010, 20:48
Wasn't Eine kleine Nachtmusik a tribute from son to recently deceased father?
All I've read say they don't know why he wrote that piece. The first piece after his father's death was, actually, A Musical Joke (which is only 3 K numbers earlier than Eine Kline, though).
There's of course Richard Strauss who wrote a horn concerto, assumedly, for his father to play...
Quote from: TerraEpon on Sunday 20 June 2010, 20:52
Quote from: chill319 on Sunday 20 June 2010, 20:48
Wasn't Eine kleine Nachtmusik a tribute from son to recently deceased father?
All I've read say they don't know why he wrote that piece. The first piece after his father's death was, actually, A Musical Joke (which is only 3 K numbers earlier than Eine Kline, though).
There's of course Richard Strauss who wrote a horn concerto, assumedly, for his father to play...
Apparently the piano reduction of Richard Strauss' first (of two) horn concertos (though not the orchestral score...) is dedicated to his father (one of the best horn players of his era, I gather).
(In a generally Romantic style Howard Hanson's 4th symphony is "To the Memory of [his] Beloved Father", btw.)
Going the other direction, there must be any number of pieces by fathers inspired by their own children. Chadwick's Noel comes to mind (second movement of Symphonic Sketches-- very nice performance by Leppard/Cincinnati of it as a stand-alone movement).
Quote from: chill319 on Monday 21 June 2010, 01:21
Going the other direction, there must be any number of pieces by fathers inspired by their own children. Chadwick's Noel comes to mind (second movement of Symphonic Sketches-- very nice performance by Leppard/Cincinnati of it as a stand-alone movement).
I think Shostakovich wrote his Concertino for Two Pianos to play with his son.
Malcolm Arnold's 7th Symphony (1973) consists of musical portraits of his three children Katherine, Robert and Edward. A deeply troubled masterpiece, this is essential listening!
There are a few requiems I've found dedicated to the memory of the composer's father. These include the Rutter, Durufle, Andrew Lloyd Webber and Karl Jenkins, all very beautiful works. The Durufle particularly is one of my favorite pieces of music and I love it as much or even slightly more than his teacher Faure's requiem which I also adore.
Sculthorpe composed a requiem dedicated to both his mother and father.