'La Musica Notturna delle Strade di Madrid' van Luigi Boccherini

Persoonlijke getuigenis of sociaal politieke boodschap?

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'La Musica Notturna delle Strade di Madrid' depicts the nocturnal street life of Madrid, but is also full of strange symbolic clues. It inspired Dick van Gasteren to study it in an attempt to discover the meaning of this work. Van Gasteren analyzed the work by analogy and example of iconography in the visual arts, with spectacular results. He came across countless references and connections to politics, visual arts, theater and... love. This book takes you on a fascinating journey through the nighttime streets of eighteenth-century Madrid. A book for anyone interested in the history of classical music, theater and visual arts.

 

[…] Van Gasteren, who is keen on symbolism, found numerous hidden clues that it is a serenade for the celebrated actress María del Rosario Fernández, portrayed by Goya. He spins a theory around it that is as elegant as it is profound and scientifically careful. This beautifully designed and illustrated booklet provides a sketch of Madrid in the eighteenth century, an iconographic analysis of the work itself and of course a solid and credible substantiation of Van Gasteren's theory about La Tiranna: the actress's nickname, but also a dance that Boccherini used more often.[Luister, mei-juni 2023, p.99]

 

 

'Over jeugdorkesten en de didactiek van het dirigeren'

 

In the Netherlands, a growing number of youth  enjoy their music hobby in a group setting. But playing in an amateur orchestra is not just a pleasant pass-time. Since quite some time, making music in an orchestra has been acknowledged as having beneficial effects on both cognitive, musical and emotional competence. Recent scientific studies are in agreement with this train of thought.

 

In this publication, Van Gasteren goes into the nature, origin and possible goals of the phenomenon of the youth orchestra. He studies meaning and purpose of making music together and the valuable contribution that playing in an orchestra can be towards the psychological development of a child in general. He formulates aims and logistical conditions which function as a basis for his design of a practical method of conducting for youth orchestras. During the learning process, he puts the exchange between individual and collective first and he strives for an optimal development of both.

 

The four basic musical parameters, duration of sound, pitch, loudness and timbre, function as a musical frame which is being used to illustrate the methods of the conductor. "About youth orchestras and the didactics of conducting", is recommended to conductors (during their education), orchestra managers, music teachers and musicians, but also to adult amateur musicians and those involved in the music society.

 

More information: Walburg Press, Zutphen

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Johannes Josephus Viotta, Symfonie in Es (1833) &
Ouverture in D,           Deuss Music, The Haque, 2014.

Wie kent niet 'Karretje op een zandweg reed' en het sinterklaasliedje 'Zie de maan schijnt door de bomen'? Dat Johannes Josephus Viotta de componist is van deze en nog veel meer bekende negentiende eeuwse kinderliedjes is minder bekend. Nog minder bekend is dat deze componist in zijn studententijd in Leiden in 1833 een prachtig symfonie en ouverture schreef. Van Gasteren was onder de indruk van het vroeg Nederlands romantische werk en verzorgde een mooie uitgave van beide werken.

Voor meer informatie: Deuss Music / Albersen  Den Haag

 

Coming soon:
'Johannes Josephus Viotta, 'Dienaar der Volksverheffing', Biedermeier in music.

In this biography of Johannes Josephus Viotta, Van Gasteren provides an image of Dutch musical life in the first half of the nineteenth century and gives a new interpretation to the concept of Biedermeier in music.