The perfect start for beginners to classical music

Classical music is one of the oldest music genres, but it can also be considered difficult and boring.
It may take some time to get used to it, but once you fall under the spell of classics, you will discover their true value.
Classical music is something that can be a 'lifelong friend' that provides comfort and happiness anytime, anywhere.
Let's open the door to this fascinating world with stringed instruments.
If you understand string instruments, which are the most used instruments throughout classical music, you will be able to understand classical music more easily and comfortably.

Classical music has a long history and many different types, so it may seem complicated, but it is easy to understand if you know the flow.
For example, the song “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” is also a classic.
It is a French folk song that has been sung since the 18th century, and Mozart created a piano variation based on the melody of this song.
This song is often sung with the alphabet as lyrics when first learning English, and is also the first song played when learning string instruments such as the violin or cello.
One song has been played in many different styles within classical music for a long time.
Classical music encompasses many different types of music and concerts, from pieces performed alone to pieces performed by up to 100 people.
--- p.11, from the 'Opening Remarks'

In an orchestra, the violin leads the main melody, so the leader of the violin part serves as the conductor, the leader of the entire orchestra.
The conductor is an important position that requires knowledge of not only the violin part, but also the entire string ensemble and even the roles of wind instruments.
So, in the case of famous orchestras, the news about who becomes the concertmaster is often in the news.
Until the 18th century, orchestras run by royal families or nobles were small in scale, and the conductor also served as conductor.
--- pp.56~57

Paganini was a world-renowned Italian violinist and composer.
It is said that Paganini had such amazing playing skills and musicality that the famous German poet Heinrich Heine commented after seeing him play, "It is impossible for someone to play like that without the help of the devil."
Paganini's Violin Concerto No. 2, 3rd movement, "La Campanella" means "little bell" in Italian.
The cute little paper violin theme melody that sounds like it's twinkling is very famous.
With this theme melody, violinist and composer Fritz Kreisler composed a violin piece, and Franz Liszt composed a piano piece.
It has also been frequently used as background music in various movies and TV programs.
BLACKPINK sampled the melody of "La Campanella" and used it in "Shut Down."
--- pp.60~61, Paganini - From the 3rd movement of Violin Concerto No. 2, 'La Campanella'

Mahler was a world-renowned conductor before he was a composer.
Even the great composer Brahms, after seeing Mahler conduct Mozart's opera "Don Giovanni," praised it highly, saying, "No one plays "Don Giovanni" better than Mahler."
Mahler unfolds his life in his First Symphony.
The third movement in particular contains a heartbreaking story.
Mahler, who grew up near a market, said that he was so poor as a child that he went without food more often than he did.
Because they couldn't afford to go to the hospital even when they were sick, five of the twelve siblings died of illness when they were young.
The third movement begins with a double bass solo.
'It's morning, so I need to get up, but I'm expressing my feelings toward my younger siblings who are too sick to get up all night, using the double bass, the lowest note in the orchestra.
--- pp.101~102, Mahler - Symphony No. 1 'Titan', 3rd movement

Mozart's music is so pure and perfect that it is considered one of the most difficult pieces for musicians to play.
If you restrain your emotions, the music becomes stiff, and if you overdo it even a little, Mozart's purity disappears.
So, the biggest challenge for performers is to produce the cleanest sound possible without any unnecessary details.
Mozart's music is about maintaining simplicity and cleanliness in the midst of profound music, and maintaining a rational balance even in the midst of fiery passion.
There is a record that Beethoven liked this piece so much that he studied it by writing down the sheet music in his notebook.
The beginning of the first movement of this song has been used in many famous singers' songs, dramas, and animations.
When you listen to it, you will be surprised and say, “Was this a Mozart symphony?”

--- pp.160~161, from Mozart's Symphony No. 40