Assignment5: 'Rustle of Spring'--Christian Sinding-----Jingwen

Assignment5: 'Rustle of Spring'--Christian Sinding 

 Jingwen Liang

             

'Rustle of Spring' is a solo piano piece written in 1896 by a Norwegian composer, Christian Sinding, who wrote this piece for entertainment, using the salon style, so it is very fun and joyous. 

The piece starts in B-flat minor, which gives me the feeling that the snow is melting in winter, that the silence is about to pass and that spring is about to creep in, and that the pianissimo notation is a good way to reflect the silence of winter. (0:03)

The key changes from B-flat minor to A-flat major, accompanied by several crescendos, which makes me feel that the spring breeze is blowing slowly, the winter snow has completely melted, flowers, grass and trees are slowly growing and sprouting, and the beautiful season of spring is quietly coming. (0:31)

The left-hand presents a chromatic descent until the chromatic descent of the octave, then a dominant chord in the right hand in B-flat minor and is with Fortissimo notation. In this place I can strongly feel that spring has arrived, the sun bursts its rays instantly, flowers bloom and the branches of the trees slowly grow leaves. (0:48)

The prominent chromatic upward movement of the left-hand makes me feel like this is the end of the animals' hibernation, and they are in groups, eager to welcome the arrival of spring. As they all return to the warmth of spring, the melody starts to get very soft, as if it's like all the creatures are quietly enjoying the warm, beautiful spring day. (1:35)

The theme reappears later, this time with a stronger mood than the previous one, making me feel that the growing flowers are swaying in the wind and the sky is blue. The strong emotion brings out the vitality of spring better and emphasizes that it is very much alive. (2:10) In this position the alternating chromatic progressions of the left and right hands are followed by left-hand arpeggios going down and right-hand arpeggios going up. It struck me that the range expansion was as if it described a country road becoming wider and wider, the road getting bigger and bigger. By the time the range is at its widest, it seems to be in the middle of a lush green meadow, as far as the eye can see. (2:47)

The right hand is mostly fast arpeggios throughout this piece. Some people think the fast arpeggios in this piece are a lot like a waterfall pouring down, but I feel it is more like a constant enhancement of the beautiful allegory of spring. I can feel the arpeggios meandering through the piece, but if I were to say it was like a waterfall, it would be similar, and Rustle's sound is very much like a description of a waterfall pouring down, with the water crashing down from a height and creating a beautiful wave. It makes me feel like the melody is always in motion. It's like a sign that spring is flourishing, and people, animals, and creatures all seem to be joyful and excited about the coming spring.