Goosebump Music

[Amphissa]

 
Last week, I was enjoying my after-work ritual, a glass of wine and an hour of music before dinner. Having nothing in particular on my listening agenda (no new, unheard acquisitions), I fell back on my common practice. I have my LPs organized in file boxes, alphabetically by composer. The boxes are in order, but they are not labeled and the albums in a box are not organized. So, for example, the boxes containing Beethoven LPs are sequentially after the boxes containing Arensky, Arnold, Bach, Balakirev, etc, and before the boxes containing Borodin, Brahms, Busoni, etc. But within the boxes of Beethoven music, the LPs are randomly filed.

So, on this night, I pulled a random box from the B's that turned out to be a box of Brahms. And flipping through the Brahms LPs, I found one of my many recordings of the second piano concerto. This particular recording was by Rudolf Serkin with the Philadelphia Orchestra conducted by Ormandy. This was the Philadelphia Orchestra in their prime and Serkin's performance is excellent. So I happily put this on the turntable and settled in for sublime music.

The Brahms Concerto No. 2 is one of my favorites. I have many recordings, both LP and CD. Some are better than others, but the music itself never fails to draw me in.

There is a spot in the final movement that is "goosebump music" for me. Those of you familiar with the concerto know the spot, I'm sure. No matter how often I listen to this concerto, no matter who recorded it, I always get goosebumps at that particular spot. Always. I get goosebumps just re-playing it in my head!

There are many pieces of music that I love, that provoke strong emotional responses in me. And I've experienced goosebumps on many occasions in live concerts. But, off the top of my head, I cannot think of any "goosebump music" by unsungs.  I suspect that is just because I've got Brahms in my head right now.

Is there any music by unsungs (or by sungs for that matter) that invariably give you that kind of very visceral response -- music that is "goosebump music" for you?

[Peter1953]

Oh yes, both Brahms's Piano Concertos give me the goosebumps, the overwhelming opening of the 1st (Arrau) and the slow movement of the 2nd (Zimerman). How about the opening bars of the slow movement of his VC? The Alto Rhapsody (Ferrier). Unrivalled. Pffff. Typing this sentence already gives me the goosebumps.  The opening of Elgar's Cello Concerto (Dupré).... I have to stop.
Unsung? Moscheles in his PC 3, already the theme presented in the opening bars, and again in the finale of the 1st movement after the cadenza.  The most emotional, brilliant piece of music he ever wrote IMO. And Raff. The Larghetto of Symphony 1, the Adagio of VC 2. But there are more examples.
I've always wondered in what state of mind these composers were while writing such utterly touchy music. They surely knew how to touch a sensitive chord.

[jerfilm]

The last few sections of Dream of Gerontius always brings me to tears.  (I don't get goosebumps, I guess.  I just cry......) Strange that an old Methodist would get torn up over Purgatory.......

[John H White]

I find certain passages in the finale of Louise Ferranc's  1st symphony do that to me.

[chill319]

I hope Oliver Sacks lurks occasionally on this forum. I've never considered before, Amphissa, how different goosebumps are from other manifestations of the limbic system -- blushing, raised hackles, butterflies in the stomach, and so on. Goosebumps are often fear induced --they make the porcupine's needles stand on end, for instance. But of all the limbic responses, they are the only one I have experienced through music -- and certainly not through fear. Perhaps more through awe. Most recently through the second movement of Gliere's Symphony 3.

[JimL]

The coda of the finale of Schumann's 2nd Symphony.  Sublime from beginning to end, but particularly when the trumpets and trombones play the "motto" theme for the last time, juxtaposed against that wonderful derivative of the finale's opening measures that forms the bulk of the coda.  Also, I get chills from the 2nd trio of the scherzo of the same work, especially the forte section.

[febnyc]

Is there any music by unsungs (or by sungs for that matter) that invariably give you that kind of very visceral response -- music that is "goosebump music" for you?

Oh, many.

To mention a couple:

The Finale of Mahler's Second Symphony - at two points - when the chorus enters almost imperceptibly and then, later, when at full throat, it builds up enormous tension as it approaches the "Aufersteh'n" Eb chorale.

The Finale of Sibelius' Fifth Symphony - early in the movement - when, after the rustling and thrusting strings, the mighty rocking horn theme enters and grows and modulates as it gains power. 

There are so many more...

[mbhaub]

Goosebumps are what makes the music we listen to worth listening to. The closing group in the exposition of Raff's 5th (first movement) is one of them. Others:
Elgar 1st - closing pages of 2nd movement
Elgar 2nd - closing passages of 2nd movement (what is it that Elgar knew to evoke such strong emotions?)
Elgar - Pomp and Circumstance #1. Hackneyed, overplayed, yes. But after all these years that last run thru the big tune is goosebump inducing to the highest degree.
Bloch - Symphony in C# minor - climax of slow movement
Mahler - too many to count
Bruckner - coda of the first movement of symphony 6
Balakirev - last big statement of tune in 3rd movement of 1st symphony
Vaughan Williams - overtue to The Wasps, the big tune. Glorious.
And maybe the quintessential moment: the closing page of the Dvorak Cello Concerto. It's a tear jerker.

[JimL]

Speaking of Bruckner, the second theme from the first movement of the 7th Symphony has sequences that give me the shivers.  So does the first theme from the 5th Symphony's 1st movement.

[thalbergmad]

I get goosebumps whenever I listen to Fricker's organ transcription of Finlandia.

Thal

[Syrelius]

I have no problem finding examples of unsung works that have that effect on me - however, the effect often depends on what mood I am in when listening. Just a few examples:
- A short but very beautiful "pastoral" theme in the finale of the Sinfonie Singulière by Berwald
- The passionate "singing" variation on one of the two themes in the finale of Stenhammar's 2nd symphony
- The end of Magnard's Chant Funèbre
- A few passages in the first movement of Joachim Eggert's E flat symphony.

[eschiss1]

A couple of (things? ) in Magnard actually- already mentioned how a call near the opening of the 4th symphony sometimes made me think 'this would sound so much more present in the concert hall' (not meant as a knock on the much-batted-about Plasson whose recording I usually hear...)

The chorale in the 3rd symphony, on most of its entries. Not the only composer to think of such an idea (well, Melartin 5 was later, but there were earlier examples) but Magnard does it mostly wonderfully well. (When I wrote my - admittedly only ok at best, sigh - prefaces for two MPH pocket scores - works by Reger and Martucci - I was paid in pocket scores - I chose one symphony by Fuchs, and: Magnard 3.)
Eric

[jerfilm]

Oooops, another vote.  The opening movement of Bruckner's 9th.  Especially the old Bruno Walter recording.  And yes, the closing moments of Starker's Dvorak Cello Concerto.  So I lied, another TWO votes.....

Jerry

[Alan Howe]

The coda to the first movement of Brahms 4 - gets me every time.
The introduction to the Prize Song in Act 3 of Die Meistersinger.
The start of the Trio in the final Act of Rosenkavalier.
The Nile scene through to the end of Act 3 of Aida.
Placido Domingo in Forza del Destino under Muti.
Ghiaurov in Boris Godunov under Karajan, especially the Death Scene.
The 1st movement of Raff 3, especially the 'horn calls'.
The coda to the 1st movement of Draeseke 3 and the trio of the third movement of the same.
Rufinatscha 6 - the climax about 14 minutes into the 1st movement.
The openings of Reinecke PC3 and Röntgen PC2.
The orchestral climax following the words 'der freier als ich, der Gott' in Wotan's Farewell at the end of Die Walküre.
The climax of the slow movement of Bruckner 7.
The opening of Ein Heldenleben.
The opening of Walton's VC and the slow movement of the Barber VC.
Vaughan Williams 5 - all of it.
Chausson's Poème played by Francescatti.
The slow movement of Moskowski's VC.
The first movement of Raff's 1st String Quartet.
Draeseke's VC - how good will it be when it has been orchestrated?
Freni in the Libera Me of Verdi's Requiem, c. Karajan.
Nessun Dorma/Pavarotti - sorry, can't help it!
Anything sung by the next great soprano, Sondra Radvanovsky.
The cello solo which opens the slow movement of Schmidt 4.
The hallelujahs at the end of Schmidt's Buch mit Sieben Siegeln.

And many, many more. I have a whole collection of Goosebumps!

[Steve B]

Wow, alan; the slow movement of the Moszkowski VC. I am no longer alone. The section in the middle when eveything stops for a moment and there are some drum taps and that ineffably heart-rending/melting main melody returns. I have posted on this before; it is not saccharin, it is just DEEP and moving and reminds me slightly of the Elgar CC.

There are places too in the Moszkowski PC-eg end of first movt and near end of finale, where the music slows and Moszkowski pours out his heart in the happy-sad strange combination of yearning for times past. There is always sadness and hiraeth in Mosz., even amongst the (perfect) glitter. The Hyperion version(sorry- to the great maestro, MP)brings out the sadness near the end of the finale better because the conductor does actually slow down. Steve