"Music in the Age of Reason." Topic

Having just finished re-basing von Kleists 'orchestra' in 28mm it got me to wondering what genre of music they would have played.Presumably something Balkan to encourage his Croats, but I'm open to other suggestions.

Considering Frederick the Great wrote it..
YouTube link

They must have spent a lot of time cleaning the spit valves…

And of course, anything form "Barry Lyndon"…
YouTube link

Whether the von Kleist band would play it is another story…

Music by my favourite composer. The one and only Johann Sebastian Bach.

Telemann was arguably the most widely known composer in the middle part of the 18th century, and easily the most prolific.

Unfortunately, Gozzaoz, J. S. Bach was actually a fairly obscure figure at that time, and his music was considered to be stuffy and old-fashioned by the middle of the 18th century. The music of his sons Johann Christian ("The London Bach" whose death was so lamented by Mozart) or Carl Phillip Emanuel (who was one of Frederick II's most valued chamber musicians) would have been more likely. If leaning towards music more popular in eastern Europe, they might have played Haydn, whose early work was just becoming popular, Gluck or Roessler (a Czech, later known as "Rosetti" after he Italianized his name, a not uncommon practice among musicians of the time).

Of course, that was all "court" music, and Von Kleist's players would have been familiar with a large repertoire of street and military music as well.

Other composers known to have contributed to Frederick's court are Hasse, Quantz (a long-standing favourite) and Graun, all of whom point to the baroque style rather than to the emerging classical style of Haydn. An interesting CD that came out in 2011 called The Flute King, purporting to be a collection of pieces performed at the court, includes both generations of Bachs, as well as Frederick himself and his sister Amalia. My impression is that his taste was quite conservative.

As to the Kleist band – surely a bit of flattery would be in order?

<<Other composers known to have contributed to Frederick's court are Hasse, Quantz (a long-standing favourite) and Graun, all of whom point to the baroque style rather than to the emerging classical style of Haydn.>>

Well, if it ain't baroque…..don't fix it.

Prussian music I've got; British music yes; some French music; Loads of bagpipery! However it seems there was no music in Austria prior to Mozart!

Dear Sponton

What? Was Haydn chopped liver? There was also Salieri, which despite his reputation being consistantly trashed produced some very good things. Unfortunately I suspect only War Artisan is familiary witht he truly "international" character of music in the 18th century. Nations did not at this time take it a point of pride of turning out composers like heavy artillery. That's not how it worked back then. It didn't matter where you came from, it mattered where you made your fame, and composers drifted from patron to patron.

As for Barry Lyndon, remember that many of the best from that is by Schubert who is virtually post-Napoleonic (being born in 1797).

Remember too that as War Artisan says, there is a clean difference between Court Music and popular music, and especially between marches and military music. Remember too that MOST of the Military music we know today was produced by the Drill-Field Hacks of the 19th century. Good stuff, for marching, but again, from the standpoint of the age of reason, those were all at the "quickstep." Military Maneuver in the 18th century was at the rate of 72 paces per minute. Try it some times. The pace is more suited to the minuet or the contretanz. Of course when you mention Mozart you are mentioning a virtuoso who makes up for a lot of lost ground. I don't think there's an aria or phrase from his operas that hasn't been broadened and elaborated into a military march, though again, at the much slower pace. Figaro's Aria about Cherubino going into the army (in the Marriage of Figaro) actually makes it to the movie The Scarlett Pimpernell, and in the proper time. The entry of the Guards at the start of that movie is a good example of how the marches of the time were played.

The Netherlands Wind Ensemble about 20 years ago made an excellent record of Marches from the 18th Century, including some of the "Turkish Style" marches.

Handel, Hayden (?) 100 (military) and 103 (Drumroll) Synphonies?

OSchmidt, the Turkish style marches sound interesting, may have to look some of these up. Just to add a little more food for thought the Von Kleist band feature a bassoon ( or dulcian), a clarinet, flute, drums, cymbals & a bizarre set of bagpipes fashioned from a whole sheep. Probably not the best combination to play baroque chamber music.

"Military Music From The Age of Reason"

link

@ O'Schmidt;

Spent 33 seasons marching about at 75 paces a minute! Sometimes hard for someone raised on bagpipes! Especially if there were bagpipes within earshot!

Drill-field-hacks! Now that's what I'm talking about! The more ribald the better. I have quite a store of off-colour versions of British Grenadiers and Rule! Britannia!. My favourite; " The Woad Song"!

Some of the major composers got it right, but a lot of their "military" music is too finicky and fussy. Give me Johnnie Cope Are Ye awaukin' yet? on fife an drum and it sets the hairs on end on the back of my neck!

So, who are the drill-field-hacks for the Austrians?

@ HandGrenadeAlien;

I think only the bag cover is made of a "whole sheep". Probably a sheepskin bag, maybe some horn or hoof used in decoration.

I've a half sized set of pipes I want to make a cover for out of a raccoon skin, or two; with a tail hanging from each drone!

@ Rallynow;
Frustrating site! samples way too short!

@Spontoon
Stop being so finicky! Can you not see the model possibilities? A piper with a whole sheep strapped to his body, struggling amidst the rank and file to keep up with the troops? The sheeps head hanging down, still with horns of course, the blow pipe (or whatever it's called, stuck into an available orifice, the legs lashed together and extended into the pipes… Him, huge red cheecks, huffing and puffing to fill the blasted thing with air. The men on either side leaning away from the noise and probable stench.

Now THAT would certainly brighten up any unit.

I'm kinda thinking Bjork right now, in her swan dress of course.