Song of the Day #13 - George Gershwin - Prelude no. 1 B flat major

I have played the piano since I was 6 and over the years I have found a few pieces that I really really love and would love to play. Gershwin's Prelude no. 1 B flat major is one of them. I have even gone so far as to actually have the sheet music for it, but oh my, it's tricky and my fingers are out of shape these days. One day, my friends, one day.

What I love so much about the play is the springy, playfulness of it. It is just all over the place and all around, it takes unexpected turns and twists and thrills you more and more. It has fantastic chords as well and as a piano player it is one of those pieces who almost allows you to dance in front of the piano, and also be a bit of a rocker; you can really hit hard on those chords and also the enjoyment of being able to master passages who requires a lot of training to get just right. 

(In this blog post there is first one video of the music with the sheet music, so if you are a musician, you will really enjoy the complexities there. The second video is the best performance of the piece I could find of YouTube; namely Gershwin playing Gershwin, Thirdly my favourite recording of the piece. I had to search far and wide to find someone who finally put some dynamics and drive into it! Well done :)

Great live clips: The soundtracks of Harry Potter movies

To me, seeing music performed live, always adds an extra dimension to music; weather it is rock, jazz or classical music. It's a peak into what is really happening and all the details. This afternoon I have been watching some documentaries behind the scenes of the making of soundtracks for the Harry Potter movies, and they show this feeling at it's best. And oh, how I wish I could play a orchestral instrument. Maybe it's not to late?

Song of the Day #12 - Melanie C feat. Emma Bunton - I Know Him So Well

This morning I woke up with Les Miserables music on my mind, not so surprising since the movie is everywhere these days. I started searching for good performances on Les Mis music online for the Song of the Day, and before I knew it, I had found this; there in the middle of sappy, musicalland. Sometimes my heart goes back to being a teenager, I guess. I loved musicals with a new-found joy back then, and even though I am a bit fed up off of them now, the tears still fall when I hear a good vocal performance with a melody, and oh, there are so many of those in the musical world!

The late 90's, aka my late teens, where also filled with Spice Girls-mania. I soon got a favourite among them; Mel C and has always though that she was the unique one, with a fantastic honest, soul-pierceing voice. In short; this is a combination of some of the best from the late 90's in my life; Mel C and Emma Bunton singing, "I Know Him So Well" from Chess. It made my eyes water, home it touches you too.

(Hm..seams like Mel C has new album out too. Must check out.)

Song of the Day #11 - End of Fashion - The Game

Since I am a bit behind this week and you surely have been missing a post on Thursday and Wednesday, I think it's OK with a double dose on Friday. Time to share one of the greatest rock songs I know, it's just a perfect way to celebrate the weekend. I have written about it before in this blog post, so you can read about the thrill I felt the first time I heard it, but the thrill has not disappeared since. It has a punch that is truly boneshaking and still makes me want to jump around the room, tear down the wallpaper and scream along. I twists and turns and surprises again and again with even more fantastic parts and tops itself again and again through the song. And still that vocal is truly fantastic!! Listen to what he does; he goes from metal to classical to rock, high and low. Truly amazing. I hope this makes you just as thrilled as it has me.

Song of the Day #10 - Radiohead - Bodysnatchers

As the ones of you who have read this blog a bit over the years might have discovered, I am a massive Radiohead fan. Or, that is, the last record, hm, that is just a bit blend. I hope they get back to things like this. Cause this, my darlings, is frankly brilliant. This whole concert where this clip is from is just totally and utterly brilliant, and maybe my favourite live concert of all time. Listen to the guitar riffs, the layers, the build ups, the corners, they way they tone it down just at the right moment, the bass riffs and the drum beats, the vocals and last but not least the energy in this room. These people are having A LOT of fun, and I am so so envious of them. This is almost musical heaven. Close to it at least. Oh, and I hope you get some joy out of it too ;) Have a good weekend!