Felix Mendelssohn
Felix
Mendelssohn was a German romantic composer, one of the leaders of the
early romantic movement, along with Schumann and
Chopin. He was also responsible for the revival of the music of
J.S.Bach in the 19th century.
As
a composer, his music is very polished and charming, but sometimes lacking
depth. His overtures Fingal's Cave and the Hebrides are all-time concert
favourites. His incidental music for Midsummer Night's Dream, partly
written while he was very young, and then completed much later in life, has
fabulous orchestration, but with a very light touch, giving it a magical
quality.
His violin concerto is one of the top 5 violin concertos in the
world, a real favourite of concert audiences, especially noted for the wonderful
lyrical quality of its slow movement.
His Italian Symphony successfully
captures the warmth and jollity of an Italian holiday, and his Scottish Symphony
evokes the jilting rhythms of Scottish folk tunes.