M. Zachary Johnson
M. Zachary Johnson is a composer and musicologist living in the New York City area.
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Articles by M. Zachary Johnson
March 28, 2005
Record stores began selling *Fantasies and Delusions*, an album of romantic-style piano music composed by rock star Billy Joel with the assistance of several arrangers. Since its release the record has remained at the top of the classical charts, proving that there is interest in and demand for new ...
March 28, 2005
A gently rollicking romantic waltz sets the mood, bringing us back to the emotional world of America over a half-century ago. The music fades into the background, and we hear the clear, articulate voice of a radio announcer:
"From Vienna to New York comes an ambassador an ambassador who makes mus...
March 23, 2005
-Rachmaninoff´s Piano Music-
A series of dark, haunting piano chords, gradually growing louder, opens Rachmaninoff's Second Concerto. It leads us into the heavy low notes that make the base of the accompaniment, and then we hear that famous romantic melody played by full strings, the higher...
March 23, 2005
-Bizet's *Carmen*-
A masterpiece of the romantic stage is Bizet’s tuneful opera *Carmen. It was premiered at the Paris Opera Comique in 1875. It continued for 37 performances during its first season and has been performed there more than 3000 times. "Within a decade of Bizet's death, *Carmen* was...
September 09, 2005
One of the most beautiful and moving musical performances I've ever heard was the University of Michigan Pops Orchestra playing the Rachmaninoff "Vocalise" with the vocal line played by Don Sinta on alto saxophone. Of the many concerts I've attended, this one stands out in my memory because of this ...
May 09, 2005
Have you ever noticed that during occasions with a special spiritual significance people's taste in music improves? The longest-lasting and most striking example of this is Christmas time, when people who are otherwise content with whatever deejays put on the radio turn to music that is more beauti...
March 31, 2005
-Brahms's Chamber Music-
Johannes Brahms's special distinction in music history was that he was "a Romantic in expression but a Classicist in form and technique." He had both the passionate, uniquely individual voice of a Romantic, and the serious, disciplined, scholarly approach of a Classicist—...
March 29, 2005
When asked what his occupation was, John Philip Sousa--composer of marches, operettas, songs, and a host of other works; leader for twelve years of the United States Marine Corps Band and for nearly forty years of his world-famous Sousa Band; entrepreneur, inventor, author, political activist, sport...
March 23, 2005
A series of dark, haunting piano chords, gradually growing louder, opens Rachmaninoff's Second Concerto. It leads us into the heavy low notes that make the base of the accompaniment, and then we hear that famous romantic melody played by full strings, the higher tones of the piano accompaniment swir...
March 23, 2005
-Tchaikovsky Concertos-
It is hard to imagine any work as quintessentially romantic as Tchaikovsky's First Piano Concerto. The unforgettable "big tunes," the lush orchestration, the tremendous climaxes, the vigorous rhythms of this piece and its overall seamless integrity make it irresistibly exp...
March 23, 2005
-Chopin's Nocturnes-
Frederic Chopin introduced some of the last key aspects of musical romanticism and completed the 19th-century romantic sound. He is responsible for major innovations in composition for the piano, in playing technique and interpretation, and in harmony.
Chopin's Nocturnes a...
March 23, 2005
-Schubert's Songs-
After Beethoven's revolutionary expansion of the expressive scope of music, the next major development in the history of musical romanticism was brought about by Franz Schubert. Schubert's work is outstanding for one reason: melody.
In the works of Bach and other composers o...
March 23, 2005
-Beethoven's "Eroica"-
Beethoven's career as a composer is divided into three periods. In the first period, we find a somewhat immature Beethoven, who was still learning his craft, developing his technique, and finding a distinctive voice. The influences of Beethoven's idol, Mozart, and his teach...