Musical Musings: gade

Saturday, November 12, 2011

Jacob Gade - Tango 'Jalousie'

Jacob Gade (1879 - 1963) was a Danish violinist and composer of orchestral popular music. He's remembered for only one composition, Tango Jalousie, (or Jealousy ). He was appointed the conductor of a large theater orchestra in 1921 that accompanied silent movies. He wrote the tango in 1925 to accompany a movie titled , "Don Q, Son Of Zorro". It was a popular song, but it wasn't until Arthur Fiedler and the Boston Pops Orchestra made the first recording of it in 1935 when it became an international hit. Gade was able to retire on the royalties and compose music as he chose, although Arthur Fieldler said that Gade showed him a symphony that he wrote and Fiedler said it was one of the worst pieces of music he ever saw.

Jalousie has been used in over 100 movies and is still a popular tango today. The piece earns a sizable amount of royalties which are used to fund the Jacob Gade prize awarded to the most promising young musician in Denmark.

Gade's Tango Jalousie:

Welcome!

Welcome to my music blog. Most of the music discussed here is what is termed 'classical' music. But every once in a while there will be a posting about music or a musician that could be considered outside the traditional classical designation. My taste in music does run to the classics, but what is exactly meant by a classic to me can be a different thing. A classic to me is a piece of music that lasts, no matter what type of music it is.

Thus Beethoven will be duly represented and so will the blues musicians I like, the avant garde, the obscure and the just plain different. In my opinion, too many folks get too comfortable listening to the same type of music over and over again. Music for me is a way of life, a reflection of life, with all its different facets. I'm a firm believer in the adage that 'Diversity is the norm' in humans and therefore in music also.

The only criterion used in the selection of which composer to write about or what composition to include is a purely personal one: If it shows up on this blog... I like it. Pure and simple.