Sporting the Music Life

Classical music and sports intersect through composers who were athletes or were inspired by sports in their compositions. Piano music has also inspired athletics in training and performance. And think of all the band music...

Composers with Sporting Connections

• Charles Ives: An avid athlete who captained his baseball and football teams in college, Ives composed distinct sports music for the piano. His work "Some South-Paw Pitching" is a famous piano etude designed to strengthen the pianist's left hand, drawing on both baseball and boxing slang. 
• Frederick Septimus Kelly: A highly accomplished pianist and composer who was also an elite Olympic athlete. He won a gold medal in rowing at the 1908 London Summer Olympic Games.
• Maurice Ravel: Though not a sports enthusiast himself, Ravel’s famous impressionist piano piece "Jeux d'eau" (Water Games) evokes images of flowing and splashing water, and was featured during the opening ceremonies of the 2024 Paris Olympics. 
• Erik Satie: A French composer whose minimalist piano works like "Gymnopédies" are widely used for calm, focused sports warm-ups and golf training. 

Piano Music for Athletic Training

Classical piano works can enhance athletic performance by establishing a steady, motivating rhythm, as tempos between 120 and 140 beats per minute are perfect for high-energy workouts. Here are some good choices.

• Beethoven's Sonata No. 14 "Moonlight" (3rd Movement): Features a frantic, driving tempo that matches high-intensity training.
• Chopin's Etudes (e.g., Op. 10 No. 4): Lightning-fast, repetitive runs that provide an excellent pulse for sprints or rigorous cardio.
• Bach's Preludes (from The Well-Tempered Clavier): The steady, driving basslines in Bach's work are great for maintaining a consistent pace during long-distance running or cycling.

Information found at Spotify, WFMT, Classic FM, 

Step to the Music

 

Late May and early June are the traditional times for graduation ceremonies. When Tomoko taught at San Domenico School, the girls graduated to classical music – often Vivaldi. Classical piano music is perfect for graduation ceremonies. Here is the ultimate graduation piano repertoire.

 

1. Processional Music (Walking to Seats)

This music should be steady, dignified, and elegant.

• "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring" by J.S. Bach: A serene, uplifting chorale that brings a sense of grace and accomplishment.
• "Clair de Lune" by Claude Debussy: Smooth, dreamy, and atmospheric. Perfect if you want an ethereal, reflective background during the walk-in.
• "Gymnopédie No. 1" by Erik Satie: Minimalist and calm, ideal for a quiet, focused processional.

 

2. Interludes & Diploma Presentations

Music played softly while diplomas are handed out should be engaging without overwhelming the speakers.

• "Waltz in A-flat major, Op. 39, No. 15" by Johannes Brahms: A bright, buoyant, and joyful waltz.
• "Für Elise" by Ludwig van Beethoven: Highly recognizable and gentle, excellent for quieter moments.
• "Nocturne in E-flat Major, Op. 9, No. 2" by Frédéric Chopin: Luxurious and flowing, offering a warm, celebratory elegance.

 

3. Recessional Music (Exiting the Ceremony)

The final walk-out music should be triumphant, energetic, and grand.

• "Rondo alla Turca" by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Fast-paced, bright, and sparkling with victorious energy.
• "Triumphal March" from Aida by Giuseppe Verdi: While originally an orchestral piece, stellar piano arrangements capture the exact triumphant, crowning-achievement.
• "War March of the Priests" by Felix Mendelssohn: A robust and commanding piece from Athalia that projects an undeniable sense of triumph and accomplishment.

 

 

Composers' May (Birth) Day

 Several famous classical piano composers were born in the Merry Month of May:

Johannes Brahms (May 7, 1833 – 1897): A German virtuoso pianist and Romantic-era composer known for his symphonies, chamber music, and piano works.

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (May 7, 1840 – 1893): Russian composer renowned for his ballets, symphonies, and the famous Piano Concerto No. 1.

Louis Moreau Gottschalk (May 8, 1829 – 1869): American pianist and composer known for his virtuoso piano performances.

Gabriel Fauré (May 12, 1845 – 1924): French composer and pianist whose works influenced many 20th-century composers.

Erik Satie (May 17, 1866 – 1925): French composer known for his unique, minimalist piano pieces such as the Gymnopédies.

Johann Jakob Froberger (May 19, 1616 – 1667): German Baroque composer and organist/pianist.

Isaac Albéniz (May 29, 1860 – 1909): Spanish pianist and composer famous for piano suites based on folk music, such as Iberia.

Erich Wolfgang Korngold (May 29, 1897 – 1957): Known for his operas and film scores, but also a talented pianist and composer.

Laboring Music

 Labor Day celebrates workers, which includes pianists and other musicians. Here is a sampling of classical music that honors labor. While most of these pieces were not originally composed for the piano, arrangements for piano are usually available.

Probably the most renown piece that celebrates labor is Copland’s Fanfare for the Common Man, which honors those who fought in WWII. In response, Joan Tower wrote Fanfares for the Uncommon Woman, which is scored identically to Copland’s Fanfare. Copland also honored cowboys in his ballet Rodeo; the selection “Hoe-Down” is frequently performed on the piano.

For most of civilization, farming has been the job of the majority of people. Schumann's “The Happy Farmer” is one piece from his collection Album for the Young,  which was written for his own children to teach them about the piano. All the pieces are relatively easy to play, unlike the work of the farmer.

Traditionally, learning a job was done through apprenticeships. Dukas’ The Sorcerer’s Apprentice musically demonstrates how a little knowledge can do damage.

Satie's Sonatine Bureaucratique is a humorous parody of Clementi's Sonatina Op. 36 No. 1. It musically depicts the daily life of the Parisian bureaucrat.

Another pointed message about labor is conveyed in Antheil’s Ballet Mecanique. It was written the same year as Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue, and focuses on urban labor. In this case, the repetitiveness of factory work is emphasized.

On the other hand, Verdi’s Il Trovatore is best known through its “Anvil Chorus”, sung by gypsies who are proud of their hard work.

The sometimes-troubling life of the worker is depicted in music as well. Mozart’s Figaro, a valet, has trouble with his Count master in The Marriage of Figaro. Later, in Rossini’s The Barber of Seville, Figaro becomes a barber, but still has troubles with the Count.  Bizet’s Carmen follows the deeper troubles of a seductive cigarette worker.

Workers’ hard labor often led to unionization. Arnold’s Peterloo Overture was written for the 1968 centenary of the Trade Union Congress.

This Labor Day, we honor the labor of pianists and other musicians everywhere who make our labor a little easier to bear.

Fruitful Music

 

Fruit probably isn't the first thing that comes to mind when thinking about piano music – except maybe the advice of the piano teacher who recommends playing the piano with hands curved as if holding an orange. Nevertheless, piano composers have been inspired by fruit, as evidenced in the following pieces.

Speaking of oranges, Prokofiev wrote the farcical fairy tale opera For the Love of Three Oranges. In this story, the cursed prince has to search for three oranges and finds love in the process. In one production, the audience received “scratch'n'sniff” cards to get more engaged. Piano arrangements are available, but not while sniffing....

It's a bit of a stretch, but Tchaikovsky's “The Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy” from his Nutcracker Suite does have a sweet sound. In this case, plums have been “dressed up” for the holidays as was the suite itself.

Plums, especially within the context of cooking, also inspired Bernstein. His work La Bonne Cuisine (Four Recipes) has as its fist “Plum Pudding,” which was composed for voice and piano. The lyrics were adapted from Emile Dumont's 1899 cookbook

Satie took a tongue-in-cheek approach to incorporating fruit in his piano suite Three Pieces in the Form of a Pear. There are actually seven pieces, and they have surprising features. As for the pear, the suite was compased for a piano duet: a pair of performers. So not really about fruit – but maybe he sounds a bit fruity.

Obviously, grapes consitute the basis for wine, which then led to several other music, but we'll let that vein age for now...

If Music Be the Food of Love, Play On

 In the play "Twelfth Night," Shakespeare wrote: "If music be the food of love, play on." In reality, food can inspire composers. Tomoko appreciated good food herself, and likely played to fuel her own soul Here is a sampling for you to taste.

Probably the most famous food-related piece -- and comic opera -- is Bach's Coffee Cantata. Bach himself liked coffee, and it is told that this piece was performed in a coffee house. The underlying story tells of a young woman's obsession with coffee, which her father wants to curb. 

Prokofiev's opera (which has been arranged for piano) Love for Three Oranges tells a fanciful tale of a prince cursed by a witch to search for three oranges, and finds love on the way.

Another performance piece, in this case a ballet, that food inspired is Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker Suite, especially "The Dance of the Sugarplum Fairies." The then new piano-like instrument the celeste, with its high-pitched glittery tone, evoked the crystalline texture of sugar plums.

Schubert was inspired by the unlikely food-related song "The Trout", which used the metaphor of fishing as a girl "hooked" a mate. He transformed the piece into The Trout Quartet, which is performed by a piano and four stringed instruments. The work is rather melancholy, as was Schubert at the time. 

Want to play a piano duet about food? Taste-test Satie's piano suite Three Pieces in the Form of a Pear (which actually includes ten morsels). It's a very playful set of miniatures with a surprising variety of moods. Get you get the joke about pears and (piano) pairs?

The (food) take-away? Food-inspired music can be a buffet of delight to feed the soul.

A Little Travel Music

 

Tomoko has a lifetime love of driving. She bought her first car when she was studying at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, and she kept driving to the school during her fifty+ years teaching there.

Composers have also loved cars and used them to inspire their compositions. Here is a sampling of those works.

Probably the best known composition, which has been arranged for piano, is George Gershwin’s 1928 “An American in Paris.” Not surprisingly, the piece was inspired by Gershwin’s time in Paris when he studied with Ravel. The original composition was a jazz-influenced orchestral piece, which even imitated street noises such as taxi horns.

Another French-inspired piano composition, “L’omnibus automobile,” was written by Eric Satie.  This cabaret song, with piano accompaniment, evokes a Bastille Day when an empty bus carrying plaster drove through a crowd.

Frederick Converse was inspired by the early Ford cards in his imagined “The 10 millionth Ford Flivver” orchestral piece. Most of instruments are wind and percussion ones, but an organ is also played.

Even car companies have used classical compositions when naming their models. For instance, Bach’s “24 Preludes” was the inspiration for the Honda Prelude.

Of course, lots of rock and roll music featured cars, such as the Beach Boys and Chuck Berry, but car-inspired music is as class as the cars themselves.