WINSTON ARVIDSON: Welcome to SPAtify, episode 1 of 3. On this episode of SPAtify in the RubicOnline podcasts, I, your host, Winston Arvidson, will discuss classical music. We interview the student body on their thoughts on our genre, and their favorite songs to listen to.

WINSTON ARVIDSON: Classical music has been around since the 5th century. It originated in Europe and was a main tradition in Western culture. Classical music has been developed for hundreds of years. There are many types of classical music, such as operas, concertos, and sonatas. Some of the most well-known composers include Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Ludwig van Beethoven, Pyotr Tchaikovsky, Johann Sebastian Bach. Classical music was the most popular in the Baroque period, which was in the 17th to 18th century. Some of the most well-known classical music instruments are the cello, violin, viola, and flute. I interviewed Sophmore Aldegundo Brenneman for his takes on classical music.

ALDEGUNDO BRENNEMAN: It’s really relaxing, some of it, I also find different classical pieces exciting to listen to. But actually, the main reason that I listen to classical music is because it helps me get better at playing the cello.

WINSTON ARVIDSON: Aldegoundo listens to classical music on NPR, whether it be in the background while he’s eating dinner, or it’s the main focus while improving on his cello skills.

WINSTON ARVIDSON: Next I interviewed 9th grader Darien Hull. Hull has been playing the piano for many years now and started playing the violin in 6th grade. I interviewed Hull about his favorite aspect of classical music.

DARIEN HULL: I like the harmonies coming together to create a bigger picture.

WINSTON ARVIDSON: Next I interviewed senior Deling Chen on her thoughts on Classical music

DELING CHEN: I find classical music relaxing, and what I especially like about it is that a lot of times there aren’t lyrics, and so I can kind of use it as like a background noise, or when I like study or when I do other things. Second answer. Let’s say if I’m playing a certain piece, I play the piano. If I listen to a recording, I understand the piece and like the themes behind it better when I listen to different interpretations.

WINSTON ARVIDSON: Chen has been playing the piano for 15 years now. With all of her experience, I asked her what her favorite song was.

DELING CHEN: One of my favorite pieces is the first ballad by Chopin. This is in G minor, Opus 23 it’s about nine minutes long. I think this is the piece that really got me listening into Chopin’s music and classical music.

WINSTON ARVIDSON: Some of my personal favorite classical music pieces are the Cello Suite No. 1 in G Major, Prélude by Bach, and Swan Lake by Tchaikovsky. Both are cello pieces, as I’m a little biased because I have also been playing cello for 11 years.

Classical music has always been a part of my life, as I started playing and listening to classical music when I was
four. I usually listen to classical music in the car with my mom, on our way to school, as it helps me improve my cello skills. I think classical music is an underappreciated genre of music and I recommend that you guys should listen to a little bit of classical music.

WINSTON ARVIDSON: Thank you for listening to SPAtify. We hope you enjoyed listening to and learning about some interesting music. If you loved any of this music we linked every song on YouTube for your listening pleasures. If you want to listen to more podcasts, visit the Rubicon’s website to explore the other podcasts we have. Thanks for listening!