Assign5--Yunong Zhang

An der schönen blauen Donau, Walzer, op.314

Romantic Music was born in the early nineteenth century, a period when composers' works expressed a reverence for subjective feelings, a love of nature and a fantasy of the future, and their music was imbued with color and emotion. The An der schönen blauen Donau, Walzer by Johann Strauss Jr. is unquestionably well-known from this period.

The title of the piece comes from the repeated lines of a poem by the poet Carl Beck. The composition of the piece follows a standard Viennese dance form, with an introduction, five Walzer, and a coda. The melody is beautifully executed in a typical triple meter rhythm and the rhythms are bright and elastic. I will analysis of the Introduction, Second Walzer and Coda in brief.

 

Introduction(0:00-1:42)

 

The overture is in A major and can be divided into two parts. The first part is introduced by the violin group playing a slow vibrato with a slight intensity; as if the Danube is calm at dawn and the fog is still above the water. 

As the horn plays a hopeful tone, it is as if the morning sun has lifted the mist from the Danube and awakened the sleeping earth, heralding the coming of dawn. This is followed by a weak eighth note from the woodwind section, which to my mind has a punctuating effect as if the morning sun is reflecting off the Danube, only sporadic glimmers are visible due to the mist. The woodwind section plays most of the notes on the main chord of A major, which also serves to emphasize the key of A major. As the piece reaches bar 13(0:44-0:53), the brass section joins in and the harmonies thicken, the intensity of all the instruments changing from strong to weak, as if the first rays of sunlight were shining on the Danube, but then the intensity changes to ppp, as if the mists were covering the Danube again, making it unpredictable. 

The second part is a lively motive played by the woodwinds, which accelerates in intensity and speed, with the intensity marked by fz in bar 30(1:16-1:26) and then shifting to p. Such a dynamic gradation and jump in intensity is exquisitely designed to evoke a vibrant sunrise scene with the Danube lapping at its banks, which is exciting and anticipated.

Second Walzer(2:41-3:28)

 

A: 2:41-2:55

B: 2:55-3:13

A: 3:13-3:28

 

The form of this section is in ternary(ABA). It begins in D major, modulates to E flat major as it enters the middle section, and then returns to D major. The A section is undulating and jumpy, with interval jumps in the woodwinds at the beginning (e.g. octave jumps in the flute) evoking images of people rafting on the Danube, dancing on its banks and the skirts of dancing girls swaying. 

In the middle section(B), the music is gentle and languid, adopting the expressive terminology of dolce and softening in intensity. The violin plays the main melody and the harp is accompanied by arpeggios in this section. The addition of the harp makes this section even more gentle, like the ripples of a boat on the Danube. When the piece reaches 3:01, the woodwind and brass groups echo each other, like young men and women whispering and sharing their feelings with each other in between a lively, joyful dance.

Coda(7:07-10:07)

 

This section is the largest in scale, reproducing in turn the material from the 3rd, 2nd, 4th and 1st Walzer, followed by the main tones of the introduction section of the piece.

 

From 9:40 to 9:54, the flute plays the main theme, while the other woodwind and brass sections play the harmonic part in a long line, which can also be seen as a pedal. The trill of the flute at this point is like a distant shot of the Danube, as well as a notice to the people rafting on the Danube and the inhabitants living on the river to go to the big ball ahead. 

As the music progresses, the scene advances, with all the instrument groups suddenly accelerating and gaining strength, bringing the piece to its climax, and ending in a stormy, festive atmosphere.

To sum up, unlike other works depicting natural landscapes, Strauss's work is more about the Danube and its vibrant people. It was written at a time when Vienna was under siege by Prussia and the people were in a state of pessimism and disappointment. The appearance of the An der schönen blauen Donau, Walzer brings sunshine and hope into the depressing 'winter night' of spring. In this way the composer also expresses how nature was conceptualized in the 19th century - both in terms of his love for the Danube, and his reverence for nature, and in an inspiring way by portraying the hopeful power of nature.