Introduction
Classical music has a long history that dates way back in the medieval times, which was the beginning for a great deal of music which has actually survived. The Baroque period saw the rise of musical genres that maintain a hold for the musical composition in the future, yet the classical period came with the development of the modern concerto, sonata, symphony, quartet and trio. The classical era is defined by the near obsession that holds with structural clarity. Classical music is sown by many composers like Schobert and Honnauer, Gluck, Boccherini, Carl Emmanuel among others. Just like any other classical artists, Mozart made tremendous contributions to the development of classical music, especially, with the use of C minor and D minor to some of his music like Don Giovanni and The Magic Flute
Purpose statement
Based on the two songs; Don Giovanni and Magic Flute by Mozart, the following research paper seeks to compare the two songs highlighting some of the contributions each of the song made to the development of classical music. Don Giovanni featured in the National Theatre in Prague in October 1787 with the subject of the opera being Don Juan, the drag to hell and the notorious libertine od fiction by Mozart. The composition was not entirely understood during his time but became among the greatest operas for many years. Mozart revised the opera in Vienna and performed it in May 1788, the change added a comic scene and substituted the simpler aria for Don Octavio in the second Act. It is notable that Mozart matches the musical keys according to the adjectives, which portrays the women’s petite with the short notes.
The Magic Flute by Mozart, on the other hand, narrates a young prince who puts up the trial all by himself by a fraternal priesthood who needs truth and love Giovanni uses musical touches with alternative versus so as to blend harmony and the music is a reflection of the emotional unity. The character of Papa Geno in the song Der Vogel anger in Magic Flute seeks the earthly desires like wine, food and the female friendship. The success of Magic Flute was significant in the life of Mozart since it marked his financial stability until his death.
Body
Amadeus Mozart was born on January 27th, 1756 and died on December 5th, 1791. He was recognized as one of the greatest composers of classical music in the history of western music. Mozart with Haydn and Beethoven brought classical music to its heights in the achievement of the Viennese Classical School. Unlike other musical composers, Amadeus Mozart wrote all the musical genres of his day and excelled in all. Amadeus Mozart taste, command of form, as well as his range of expression, made him the most universal of all the musical composers.
Brief history and analysis of Don Giovanni by Mozart
This song was an example of comic opera, which was popular during the Enlightenment.
The middle-class audience loved this opera since it was entertaining. The song centers on the dubious adventures of the legendary nobleman Don Giovanni, who traveled through Spain seducing women. Don Giovanni is protected by his wealth and power from facing the consequences of his deeds, but one day he committed murder that led to his downfall. Don and Donna are not names as depicted in the song, but they are aristocratic titles that correspond to Lord and Lady.
Analysis of Don Giovanni
The words in the opera follow the popular sung comedies known as opera buffa. However, the story of Giovanni was too stark and did not fit in the comic opera. The overture of the instrumental composition Giovanni uses a typical pattern. The thunderous opening chords in the D minor, show the slow section which the audience expect to hear the serious work even if it gives lots of surprises. The music creeps and is brought to a halt by the thrust of the harmonies, with the melody left in pieces. The little patterns rise up and builds with energy, but later drops down with intensity. The music then shifts to an energetic mood as if sneaking through a window, and develops a cheerful theme in D major.
The overture at this point is similar to many overtures like those in Mozart’s day. The contrasting middle section is referred to as the “the development”, the themes at this point are reworked and varied. There is a form of suspense that then leads to the final part of “the Recapitulation” which reveal the theme of Exposition. We fast meet the guy Giovanni, who sets off to seduce a noble lady. As the act ends, Giovanni kills the father of the lady, which is not humorous. There are lovely moments, but the opera is dark. The surprising scenes in the opera occur when the stone statue is placed over the tomb for the slain father, which Giovanni cheers. The statue is well known in the western drama. He mocks Don and within no time moves to Giovanni’s house for supper. Giovanni however likes this proposal and the statue appears later that night and is confronted with a choice to either repent or die. He rejects redemption and chooses to go to hell
Mozart was aware the opera needed to have a happy ending but in this opera, it ends with a feeling of shaky upbeat. The thunderous chords of the overture foretell the whole occurrence of events. The chords are heard in the spooky scene as the statue gets into Giovanni’s house, calling out his name and summoning him to account. The rising themes from the slow introduction of the overture also return, and tightens like steel coins, when Giovanni refuses to repent and is sent to hell. Giovanni has been regarded as a key work in the development of classical music in the current world and the development of the German Romanticism in the 19th century. The opera is admired for the sweet melodies, the engagement of the characters and the dynamic ensemble of the composition. Generally, the opera is well drawn into the darkness and is able to grip the modern audience.
Brief history and analysis of Magic Flute by Mozart
The opera focuses on the triumph of reason and virtue over evil and irrationality. This concept was vital in Freemasonry (a fraternal order that was prevalent during the enlightenment and Mozart was a member). It borrows symbolism from Masonic rituals in which the members developed through self-understanding for knowledge. The opera is set in Egypt and centers around Tamino who is a young prince that has a quest to win the hand of a princess named Pamina. In order to marry Pamina, one had to undergo a series of rites that tests one’s dedication to reason. The mood of the Magic Flute is solemn.
Analysis for Magic Flute
The opera Magic Flute by Mozart has a longstanding reputation and certainly has symbols at puzzling with a vague sinister. The plot of the opera appears scrambled with many productions seeking to make corrections to the measure the extreme. It has appeared to be a fair game for any type of mutation so as to ensure the satisfaction of the audience. The music that Mozart wrote has remained constant and has been reordered so as to make the clarification for the story. The lore that surrounds the opera is associated with the rituals in freemasonry, which has become difficult to get through to the original work. The macrostructure of the opera gives the key understanding of Magic Flute. The plot works like a Hegelian dialectic, which is parallel to the musical process known as the sonata allegro form, which is the general construct of the music.
The overture in the key for the E-flat is through the Pamina/ Papageno duet that is the mid of the first act. It is dramatically the first theme group in the structure of the sonata allegro and is dominated by the Queen of the night. The queen summons Prince Tamino to rescue Tamino away from Sarastro. Tamino is given a magic flute that will him together with the bird catcher, Papageno. In the end of the first Act, Tamino is guided into Sarastro realm by three boys. The opera at this point uses C major which functions as the contrasting key group in the structure of Sonata allegro. The dominance of the Sarastro society uses a new dimension for introducing the plot, that Sarastro is not evil and Tamino will need to prove himself as worthy so as to rescue Pamina.
At the beginning of the second Act, the early trials of Tamino, Papageno and Pamino tried to force her to commit suicide. This is the development of part of the sonata allegro structure and the success of the number move away from the E-flat key and back. The attempt by Pamina to commit suicide is the recapitulation of the sonata allegro. The main key is the E flat major, which is parallel and the opera also concludes with E flat. The threads are tied and every character reaches the final stage. The dialectic process underscores the change and the structure replicates the alchemical process, more so the isolation, identification, purification and the union for gold and silver, as a procedure of achieving the philosopher’s stone. The magic flute intends to affect the audience and the short statements for the moral lessons in the story which the middle and lower class audience can understand. The opera points the way to the social and political reforms in Austria, during the ascend to throne of a young ruler. It could also apply to the Roman empire, when the sister and the brother in law to the ruler in France were thrown out of power by revolution.
Comparison between Don Giovanni and Magic Flute
Both the songs are classified under classical songs and have been composed by the same artist and have the same mood. Both of these songs were written during the Enlightenment times. Both of these songs were done using Minor keys
Conclusion
In conclusion, it is true to say that classical music has developed over years and Mozart was an iconic composer. Just like other Mozart songs, Don Giovanni and Magic Flute was composed in the enlightenment period and has the following:
Composed by the same artist
Both the songs were done in solemn mood
Both of the song uses minor keys
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