In today's post of my Monday Music series I would like to take a wild turn towards the classical music of the 18th century, while at the same time talk about one of the weirdest musical phenomena of the 20th century. How can these seemingly opposing things be reconciled? The answer is by one name: Zappa. For anyone familiar with the 1960's counterculture, this will surely ring a bell: Frank Zappa, known for eclectic musical style and probably even more for his satirical take on American culture as a whole. So how does classical chamber music fit into this? The answer is again (almost) the same name, but of a different person: Francesco Zappa, a classical composer from Italy who lived between 1717 and 1803. Interestingly, these two Zappas created an album together...
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Is It A Spoof?
At first I certainly thought so! After all, the similarity was just too uncanny. The same exact last name, and an Italianized form of the first name, could only indicate that. Also, Frank Zappa was known for covering a great range of depth and width in his music, incorporating elements of not only rock, blues, and folk, as it was typical for his contemporaries, but also anything from jazz to orchestral arrangements, and even marching tunes. So it struck me as very typical to see him bring out an album of chamber music - even though, or especially because it was recorded on a modern electronic instrument. Granted, when it comes to technology, what's considered modern one day, can be old-school the next, and ancient and forgotten the following day. And that's exactly the case for the Synclavier Synthesizer: Back in the 80's it was the rage of modernity, while these days all there may be left of it is a distant memory.
A Forgotten Classical Master
As it turns out, Francesco Zappa was by no means a pseudonym Frank used for publishing classical tunes. He was an actual composer, a contemporary of Hayden and Mozart, who lived a similar lifestyle: Teaching, playing, and composing music, Zappa spent his days at the courts of European monarchs, eventually settling in the Netherlands. There must have been many of his likes in 18th century Europe, but his fame never made it to the schoolbooks, at least not the ones I was taught from. (This makes me wonder if any of you have heard of Zappa, especially experts in classical music, such as @mipiano ?) Maybe there was just too much competition in this golden age of classical music, between the eras of Bach and Beethoven. So could the Italian composer be a distant relative of the American counterculture icon? After all Frank's parents were also of Italian origin. According to The Real Frank Zappa Book, however, there is no relationship between the two... at least no known one.
His First Digital Recording In Over 200 Years
Looking for info on this album, I realized I wasn't the only one who had never heard of Francesco Zappa. By the time the 1960's rolled around, even Frank Zappa himself was amazed to find a fellow musician with his last name in the Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians. Of course he dug himself in to find out more about this obscure composer. His quest took him to the library of UC Berkely, where he found Francesco's sheet music. Other than that, there was nowhere anything published by him, so Frank decided to do him the honor. Since he used the Synclavier digital synthesizer for this, he could easily claim that it was Francesco Zappa's first digital recording in over 200 years.
Is It Any Good?
I have been listening to Francesco Zappa for the last week or so, and I have yet to grow tired of it. Classical music for me is a lot like ambient jazz or lofi hip-hop, music that helps me concentrate, and to keep a cool head while blocking out the noise of the city. It's great for reading, writing, thinking, or just concentrating on my existence. The old masters were certainly great at creating music that soothes the soul. What's particularly interesting in Zappa's recording, is the early digital sound of the Synclavier. It sure sounds old, for being synthetic. Still, the four decades of technological change are dwarfed by the two centuries between the composer and the performer. In this sense, I may even say that today Francesco Zappa is even better than when it came out in 1984. It is classic in the most classical sense.
Take a Look at the Previous Posts in my Monday Music Series:
The Sound of the Hungarian Zither
Obligatory Line-Dance at Mexican Parties - El Payaso del Rodeo
Floating Into the Night by Julee Cruise
Classic Canadiana - Stan Rogers
Party Like There's No Tomorrow, Cry Like Everything Is Lost - Hungarian Gypsy Music
The Harder Sound of the Middle Ages - Corvus Corax
The First Hip-Hop I Actually Liked - Things Fall Apart by The Roots
No Prophets in Their Own Land - Rodrigo y Gabriela
Beyond the Boundries of Styles and Genres - King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard
Accordion-Rock You May Not Know (But Really Should) - Los Tabascos
Songs of the Mexican Revolution - La Adelita
Memorable Weirdness - What Do You Want A Japanese To Do Again?
Gloomy Sunday - The Hungarian Suicide Song
Party Tunes from the Wild East - The "Russendisko" Experience
Folk Songs from Your Home Village - Hungarian Regional Sound Archives
Polynesian Salt Water Music
Images Conjured up by Tom Waits' Music
In Country: Folks Songs of Americans in the Vietnam War
Somebody Tell Me - Translating a Hungarian Song Into [EN] and [SP]
Somebody Tell Me - first trial & live performance [HU] [SP] [EN]
Horst Wessel in Mexico
Playing for Change: Old Favorites Played Around the World
Soothing Tunes and Gentle Rhythms of Mali Music
What Is It About Music? [Ecotrain's Question of the Week]
Halász Judit: Memories from my Childhood
Discovering Rocksteady
The New Generation of Banda
Horrible Music From Hungary: Dáridó or Wedding Rock
[ENG - ESP] 3 Songs From My Youth / 3 Canciones De Mi Adolescencia
Dick Dale: Surfer Tunes from the 60's
Tiny Desk Concert with the Kronos Quartet
Ghymes, Palmetta, Deep Forest: The Love-Hate of Hungarian Crossover
Crossover Styles: Cooking With Many Ingredients
Shady Grove: My First Impression Leading up to Discovering The Grateful Dead
The Grateful Dead: Endless Jams and Weird Imagery
Ratatat: Electronic Hip-Hop Beats for Studying and More
Flogging Molly: Irish Music With That Extra Bite
Manu Chao: International Sound of the Revolution
Dead Can Dance: Music for Dreaming of Times Past
Putumayo: Embarking on a Musical World Trip
An Audiovisual Return to Monkey Island
A Relatable Country Tale: Truck Got Stuck by Corb Lund
Charlotte Church: Lovely Vocals To Dream To