He’s Probably Listening to Blasted Wagner Again
So, given that Holmes has an iPod, what is he playing on that thang?
| 1 | Liebestod – Tristan und Isolde – Wagner | [1] |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | Siegfried’s Tod und Trauermarch – Götterdämmerung – Wagner | [2] |
| 3 | Requiem – - Mozart | [3] |
| 4 | String Quartet No. 8 – - Shostakovich | [4] |
| 5 | Moonlight Sonata – - Beethoven | [5] |
| 6 | Komm oh Tod, du Schlafes Bruder – Cantata 56 – Bach | [6] |
| 7 | Élégie – - Fauré | [7] |
One of these things is not like the others; one of these things just doesn’t belong. Can you tell me which thing is not like others before I reach the end of this ….
Hey, found your blog thing through Holmesian.net =]
I just wanted to say that while I pride myself on my classical collection on my iTunes, I don’t have half of these songs xD The only two I recollect in particular in those above would be Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata, which is heavenly, and Mozart’s Requiem, which will be forever branded in my mind by that movie, Amadeus.
So, I will make a random guess. Does the Moonlight Sonata not fit because it is a piano song?
Hi Purple! Thanks for stopping by and commenting. :)
Yeah, these works are a bit obscure in popularity. But they are generally agreed upon to be among the ranks of the most depressing and introspective classical music evah. Which befits Holmes when he’s moody, although he does seem to like happy music as well. I tend to think of him as mostly moody.
Moonlight Sonata is indeed the only piano song and does not fit in. It cannot really be done on a violin family instrument, or even a multitude of violins/violas/cellos/what-have-you (arrangements for violin accompanying piano exist). As such, it’s questionable if this would be favored of Holmes, since he seems to like a) solo violin and b) opera, which tends not to feature piano.
But he might appreciate Moonlight Sonata for its own virtues, since it is indeed one of the best pieces in classical music.
There is one other song that qualifies for not fitting in, if only because it would be an anachronism in Holmes’ time: Shostakovich was not born until 1906 and did not compose his String Quartet No. 8 until nearly the end of his life, in 1960.
Then again, the iPod’s also an anachronism. ;)
Hey – just found this blog today when Bear recommended it. I’ve enjoyed your Peter Wimsey columns on Tor.com. I lurk on Shadow Unit-related blogs and on the Whatever and have seen you commenting there as well.
My guess about what these pieces have in common was that they almost all mention death in the titles. The exceptions are the Beethoven and the Shostakovich. That totally fits with what you say in the previous comment, though, about Holmes liking depressing music.
I particularly love the title “Siegfried’s March of Death and Despair.” It is just so over the top and so very, very german.
I’m enjoying all the Holmes analysis!
Hello stfg!
About Lord Peter Wimsey on Tor.com, I’m afraid I don’t deserve much credit; I only wrote one Lord Peter Wimsey column as part of a 4-part series about PTSD in fiction, covering him as a character in general.
On the other hand, Jo Walton, award-winning author, who has written more, one about Gaudy Night and the other about Nine Tailors. Both are quite excellent columns, and her earlier column about Nine Tailors is partly what inspired my venture into the Lord Peter Wimsey series.
I’m glad you do like my Holmes analysis.
Oops – my mistake. I did also like all of your PTSD posts. I just liked the Peter Wimsey one the best and it overshadowed my memory of the other ones. Somewhere in there, you listed the three Wimsey books that really did a good job with PTSD, one of which was The Nine Tailors. I had thought I had read all of the Wimsey mysteries, but had never heard of The Nine Tailors. It’s apparently published by a different company and so was not listed in the front of the other books I had. Your post alerted me to fresh, unread Peter Wimsey, which was very exciting.
I really enjoyed Jo’s posts too.
stfg,
I’m glad you like my PTSD posts. :) I also liked the one about Peter Wimsey the best. ^.^
And everyone should read The Nine Tailors. Awesome all around, both for experienced Wimsey fans and for newbies!
Jo is awesome. (And prolific. One of the best bloggers I’ve ever seen, in addition to being a great author.)