Tony Conigliaro, also referred to by his nicknames, “Tony C” or “Conig”, was an outfielder in the Major Leagues from 1964-1975. Tony was born in Revere, Massachusetts in 1945, graduated high school in 1962, and was immediately drafted that same year by the Wellsville Red Sox from the New York-Penn League. He would soon be called up to the majors and by the age of 19 was playing for his hometown team, the Boston Red Sox. Tony’s rookie season with the Red Sox was very impressive. Conigliaro batted .290 with 24 home runs and 52 RBI’s in only 111 games. What’s even more impressive is that his first ever major league at-bat ended in a home run. Tony would lead the Majors in home runs his sophomore season with 32, and become the
Ludwig van Beethoven was born in Bonn, Germany, and studied with his father, who was a singer in the electoral choir. Displaying talent as a pianist at an early age, he was able to study and be mentored by multiple instructors and composers, including Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Franz Joseph Haydn. Although he made his public piano debut in 1800, his growing deafness hindered his public performances. Even with his disability, nothing could stop or discourage Beethoven from doing what he loved and pursuing his passion. He continued to compose music and never looked back. His early works in the 1800s included piano sonatas and chamber music. His best-known compositions include 9 symphonies, 5 piano concertos, 1 violin concerto, 32 piano sonatas, 16 string quartets, his great Mass the Missa solemnis and an opera, Fidelio. He is a crucial figure in the transition between the Classical and Romantic eras in Western art music and remains to be one of the most famous and influential of all composers. (www.lvbeethoven.com)
Thomas Tallis was said to be born sometime around 1505 in Kent, United Kingdom. There is not a lot known about when Tallis was born or what his early life was like. He was born towards the end of King Henry VII’s reign. It is believed that when he was young, he was a choir boy of the Chapel Royal St.James palace. In 1532 he started as an organist at the Benedictine Priory in Dover. He then moved to London where he was an organist at St Mary-le-Hill in Billingsgate, London and then also at Waltham Abbey. The Abbey was shut down in 1540 and Tallis had no work. In 1541 he found work as a lay clerk at the Canterbury Cathedral. In 1543 he was appointed the Gentlemen of the Royal Chapel.
Michelangelo Merisi, also known as Caravaggio, had a wide impact on the Arts during the Baroque Era. Caravaggio was interested in the arts from when he was a child; he was an apprentice to a painter in Milan for four years. It was with this painter Caravaggio was able to learn and gain a great amount of interest in painting. At age 21, he travelled to Rome in order to make a name for himself, and to seek out a successful career. Rome was a site that attracted many aspiring and upcoming artists who either worked for the Church or were commissioned by private collectors. Caravaggio started his career in Rome painting small still-life pieces; but during the 1590’s Caravaggio became very well known for his religious works, and by 1599 Caravaggio
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was a musician capable of playing multiple instruments and profoundly shaped classical music. Mozart was introduced to music at an early age by his father Leopold a successful composer and violinist he taught wolfgang and his brother. Wolfgang excelled and showed a strong sense of understanding. Wolfgang learned from different angles his father tried to make his lessons fun since Wolfgang was young. Wolfgang produced over six hundred pieces of music and when he was young he did not play with toys he composed at the age of five because he knew violin and piano. Wolfgang forced relationships while on tour he traveled to europe and met multiple accomplished musicians and became familiar with their work and strategies, one of his important meeting was Johann Christian Bach.
The Baroque period was identified as the “Age of Absolutism” because it was a period where rulers practiced their full power to control subjects. Also during the Baroque time frame music became more leant about where it was played. Instead it only being played at churches and occasionally in some courts, it was being played at specific functions and operas. It was at this time that operas were established for the first time in history. Musicians at this time were employed for aristocrat’s courts, churches and operas although they were considered high positions yet still viewed as servants. Some characteristics of Baroque music focused on the unity of mood, rhythm, dynamics and melodies. As for texture it consisted of being polyphonic with an emphasis on the highest and lowest melodies. Also the importance of bass and soprano and imitation were present. Word painting and symbolism kept making an appearance too. Chords and basso continuo were key elements to this period. A basso continuo is an accompaniment made up of bass parts usually played by two instruments. It was here that baroque orchestras started to gather which contained about ten to forty musicians. Through
At the beginning of the seventeenth century central Europe was plagued by a series of unremitting of religious conflicts and which were known as the Thirty Year’s War. The main cause for this was the arrival of Jesuit priests in Germany. Their mission was to convert the vast majority of Protestants to Catholicism. They faced strong opposition, and a revolt began in Bohemia in 1618 by the Protestant Nobility against the Holy Roman Empire. This marked the start of the Thirty Years’ War. This conflict spread all across Germany as more countries began to take part with the Scandinavian kings to the north of Germany taking up the offensive against the Austrians in the south. These conflicts continued until peace was declared in 1635, however this did not last as France joined forces with Sweden which led to the final stage of the conflict. In 1640 peace negotiations began but the hostility between countries remained rife until 1648, which marked the end of the war.
After seven years of playing the violin, I can proudly say that music has become a part of me.Throughout my experience with playing the violin, there has been one individual who has helped shape the person I am. Providing the enduring teachings that will shape me into a greater human being, this person deserves the utmost respect for establishing my interest in the violin and in music. For the sake of this story, he will be referred to as Maestro Johnson. If I had a ticket that could take me anywhere, I would use it to go back in time to the time when Maestro Johnson was my musical advisor.
The Romantic Era was an artistic and scholarly evolution, which originated in Europe at the end of the 18th century. This era is best known for its emphasis on emotion and individualism. Throughout this time, fantasy and mystery took over the arts. Other trends throughout this time were the interest in nature and an interest in the bizarre cultures of the past. The popularity of music was soon growing and evolving. This expansion of music included a greater selection of timbre, and a greater use of chromaticism. Timbre, or tone color is defined as the quality of a musical note, sound, or tone that distinguishes different types of sound production. Tone allows a person to contrast a sound being composed by a specific instrument and to tell apart
Sandro Botticelli formerly known as Alessandro di Mariano Filipepi, was born the youngest of four sons on March 4, 1445, in Florence, Italy. There are a lot of discrepancies when it comes to the life of Sandro Botticelli. One thing that is clear is that Botticelli started working with art very early in his life. He first started out working as an apprentice for a goldsmith, after his father decided to remove him from school after observing the artistic talent his son possessed. It is unclear where his nickname Botticelli meaning ‘little barrel’, comes from but most believe it was given to him during his apprenticeship. There is also a consensus that Botticelli first found an interest in painting during this time. From the goldsmith, Botticelli
The stage lights shone brightly, heating up all that was beneath them. I was seated in the first chair, with the rest of the violin section behind me. My eyes scanned the notes as the conductor waved his baton with gusto. I felt my fingers move swiftly across the fingerboard as my bow danced up and down across the strings. It was magical. The violin, an instrument that I once despised, has led me to the point of being able to perform anywhere. Furthermore, without having had the perseverance to continue to play this instrument, I would not have become the person and musician that I am today.
The music in the baroque period was a new age experience for all and has even influenced modern music today. The style and influence given has progressed music in ways that many do not even know. A prime example of this is ornamentation. This simple concept is preceded by the new ways that people of the baroque period have changed the theory of music as well as how the instrumentation, rhythmic, and tonal structure. These small changes have changed everyday aspects of music, everything from the classic musical periods after to everyday pop and rock and roll. This baroque style theory is everywhere and this is how it changed the modern music humans can listen to.
Music exists in every known cultural group of the world and it is likely to have existed among the ancient ancestral communities. Music may have started in Africa, having existed for at least 55,000 years before evolving into an essential constituent of human life. Different people have different perspectives towards music. For instance, some may take music as jazz set, an orchestral symphony, an electronic beat or even a simple thing as the chirping of birds. Music has both positive and negative effect on humans and it depends on how it is applied. There are several theories that regard where and when the music originated. The historiographers pointed out that there are different periods of music with each period having its own characteristics, its composers, its instruments, its rhythm and significance to the existing music today. The first three periods; Medieval, Renaissance and Baroque are expounded in this essay. The periods span through different times albeit some overlapped one another. The essay also focuses on the common factor that triggered the existence of the music periods and its impacts on each period.
Baroque music is a style of western art music. It was followed after the Renaissance music and was followed in turn by classical music. It emerged in the seventeenth century as a shorthand notation for keyboardists who were accompanying a soloist or small ensemble performing a work originally composed for a larger group. Key composers of the Baroque music are Antonio Vivaldi, Johann Sebastian Bach, Henry Purcell, Arcangelo Corelli, Alessandro Scarlatti, Jean Philippe Rameau, Johann Pachelbel, George Frideric Handle, Claudio Monteverdi Domenico Scarlatti and many others.