Top 10 Tuesday – Music and Christmas
Because I’m feeling generous and also Christmasy today, I have two Top 10 Lists!
Top 10 Favorite Classical Music Movements, excerpts, Recordings, etc. No surprises here:
10. Debussy Nocturnes – in general
9. Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 – NOT the choral movement but the Scherzo – 2nd movement.
8. Con te Partiro - Trumpet Solo – Chris Botti.
7. Nessun Dorma – ONLY the Pavarotti recording will do. I cry EVERY single time I play this.
6. Gounod’s Faust. There is so much beautiful music in this opera that it’s hard to distinguish what I like. I’m bias as this was the first professional performance that I was in.
5. Debussy’s Clair de lune – I don’t know why but this piece just gets to me. The entire piece feels like a resolution that is so complete that it reminds me of exhaling.
4. Orff’s Carmina Burana – what a shocker, right? Who doesn’t love to sing this one? I can sing it in my sleep at this point.
3.Dido and Aeneas – When I am Laid to Rest – Act 3. I don’t particularly like Purcell. But I must say that this is the most haunting and beautiful piece. I am a sucker for explicit composition and the fact that the entire solo is accompanied with a descending line (as when being laid to rest, of course) wins me over.
2. Rachmaninoff – Piano Concerto No. 3 – Oh, how I love this entire piece. I have a difficult time figuring out if I like the Allegro, the Intermezzo, or the Finale best. I’m leaning towards the Intermezzo for its lush melody. I also have a thing for minor key/major key shifting.
1. Verdi’s Requiem – the entire work. – I mean, I like everything. Vienna Philharmonic with Sutherland, Horne, Pavarotti, and Solti. However, if you want to get really specific about this, I particularly love the Trumpets in the Tuba Mirum (#3).
Top 10 things I like about Christmas:
10. Playing Vince Guaraldi’s Trio – A Charlie Brown Christmas, until my cubical neighbors want to jump out their window
9. Decorating the tree while drinking Bailey’s Irish Cream
8. Christmas Brunch
7. Opening presents
6. Watching Christmas Specials on TV
5. Seeing New York City at Christmas
4. Seeing old Ornaments from Christmas past.
3. First opening your eyes on Christmas morning but not yet getting out of bed
2. Knowing that Ski Season has started
1. Did I mention presents?
Bio
Hi! I’m currently a singer with the Voices of the Pops, the featured vocal ensemble for Peter Nero and the Philly Pops, with performances at the Kimmel Center, and the Philadelphia Singers, the featured choral ensemble for the Philadelphia Orchestra, with performances at the Kimmel Center, Carnegie Hall, and the Saratoga Music Festival. Past engagements included the soprano fairy soloist, Midsummer Night’s Dream, with the Philadelphia Kantorei in their performance with the Pennsylvannia Ballet, the title role in Suor Angelica with the Denver Opera Company, and several performances, too many to number, with Opera Colorado, and the Choral Arts Society of Philadelphia.
I was recently in the Philadelphia Singers’ Singer Spotlight where I answered some fun questions that you can read about here.
For my full resume, visit LinkedIn site at the following Link: http://www.linkedin.com/in/amyarmstrong . You can also find me on Facebook , follow me on Twitter and listen to my Blip.
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