John Field—More Discoveries

During my second lesson with Mr. Cosmo on John Field’s Nocturne No. 5, I was able to refine the added ornaments a great deal more. This post contains the entire nocturne.

Following up on my discussion of the word “nocturne” in The Lightbulb Series this week, nocturne is a French word derived from the Latin nocturnus, which translates to nocturnal, meaning “night.” Another genre of music associated with night is Serenade, which derives from the Latin serenus, meaning serene.

I've read that nocturnes are pieces created with the night in mind (usually for solo piano), while serenades are pieces "to be performed" at night (usually for string ensembles). Incidentally, serenades apparently originated from music performed outdoors at dusk in ancient Greece for close friends and loved ones. A famous example is Mozart's Eine kleine Nachtmusik.

Indeed, the nocturne gives a strong sense of reminiscing and remembering the night.

For me, what makes for an impressive night is one where I feel the concert went well and I can't sleep because of being happy, with a sense of fulfillment and success, anticipating the future, paired with deep gratitude for the present.

Please tell me about one of your own best performance nights: where, when, with whom, and what your heart said.

I’m looking forward to your thoughts.

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