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waltz

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3K views 12 replies 6 participants last post by  Heck148 
#1 ·
Hi!
I understand that 3/4 is called waltz time (although not all pieces in 3/4 are waltzes). I've been told that in waltzes you do not not accent beat 1 but beat 2 and 3. This makes dancing easier.
So if the accent is on beat 1 then it's not a waltz in the formal definition, right?
And in 4/4 we often say that the strong beats are 1 and 3 which are accented/emphasised in classical music whereas beats 2 and 4 are accented in jazz/pop music. In 3/4 is the strong beats 2 and 3 or 1? Maybe we cannot really talk about strong beats in 3/4 as that only applies to 4/4 or 2/2?

In An der schönen blauen Donau I do not really hear the straight beat popular in classical music. The beat is not simply based on three crotchets but it's more swingy even if it's classical music. What do you make of this?
I played a country music progression on piano) with the straight crotchets (bass note then chord chord) and it sounded a bit simplified and boring. Even classical music sounded more swingy and dancy. I wonder if anyone can dance waltz to that...
 
#3 ·
If you want great recordings of Viennese waltzes, look no further than Carlos Kleiber conducting Strauss (I&II)

If you like the Blue Danube Waltz I highly recommend Kleiber's recording of it in 1992 with the Vienna Philharmonic at the New Year's Concert. You feel that the soul of the waltz is already imbued in the orchestra and its conductor even before they start playing!

I also do love his Die Fledermaus operetta (especially the overture) with the Bavarian State Orchestra.

As an added bonus, here's a video of Kleiber himself rehearsing that particular overture with the Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra:
 
#10 ·
"A waltz is just a 4/4 with one of its rear legs missing."
 
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