Thursday, December 10, 2009

L.L. Arcangelo Corelli - Concerto no. 8 in g minor

In the five movements of this piece, the listener is taken through just about every conceivable tempo and mood the early Baroque period has to offer. The movements are:

Vivace-Grave
Allegro
Adagio-Allegro-Adagio
Vivace
Allegro

This piece is more popularly referred to as the Christmas Concerto. I haven't been able to discover any actual programmatic reason for the reference, but personally I can see its sincerity, ecstasy, and profundity as perfect music for the season, especially the second movement.

Corelli was born is 1653 and died in 1713. Overall, he is most famous for extremely lyrical melodies and his more personal treatment of accompaniment figures, which freed up the music from the more strict bounds of counterpoint. Corelli is buried in the Pantheon.
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1 comment:

  1. Dr. PierceDecember 11, 2009 at 1:10 PM

    There is something about the piece being commissioned for performance on Christmas Eve 1690. I agree with your assessment of the character of the piece.

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