Friday, October 19, 2007

Tears

Picking up a meme from Tim Mangan and Heather Heise, some music that makes me cry:
  • The Schubert Quintet, first movement, second theme, the first time I heard it and occasionally since.

  • Le Nozze di Figaro, too many moments to count, starting at the downbeat of the overture, and including some moments in the act 2 finale, Deh, vieni, that moment when Figaro and Susannah stop with the teasing, and the moment when the Count finally realizes he's been chasing the wrong, er, the right, woman around in the dark. Oh, and "Sua madre?!" Is it odd that the Countess's arias don't get me?

  • Beethoven, Op. 111, second movement, variation, um, three? four?

  • Tristan und Isolde, act 2, I'll find the measure or score marking when I have the score in front of me; it's pretty deep in the love duet someplace.

  • God, how I hate to admit this, but that moment in Madama Butterfly when she brings out the child, and then again at "Tu, tu, piccolo iddio." I knew I was seeing a great performance the time I burst into tears during "Un bel di."

6 comments:

Scott said...

I'm with you on the Schubert Quintet. I also love the second movement.

Lisa Hirsch said...

Oh, yeah. It's just a great piece from beginning to end.

Anonymous said...

For me, many Janacek moments, but in particular the end of Vixen. The tears start to rise during the forester's aria, really get going at the little miracle of the frog and forester understanding each other, then during the brass postlude I can hardly see the stage.

During the recent LA Opera Jenufa, Mattila's prayer to the Virgin in the second act had a similar effect.

Lisa Hirsch said...

Oh, interesting, my Jenufa moment is the point where the villagers are getting ready to stone her. (I'll have comments on the LA Opera Jenufa in SFCV this week, in the Music News column.)

Maury D'annato said...

Yeah, I find Butterfly more infuriating than touching...except when she brings out the kid. Weird, because I just can't stand kids, but the writing there is so literally stunning, as in I feel stunned when she sings the line.

Anonymous said...

My Jenufa moment is the end, the final scene when he and she get together. Corny? Maybe, but the music is transcendent.