BrahmsViolin Concerto excerpt in Alicia Keys' Song
Now, i could be ENTIRELY mistaken, but i could swear that the violinist playing in the background of Alicia Keys' song KARMA, is playing a few phrases from the beginning of the Brahms Violin Concerto. Listen closely,,,maybe others can hear it too and possibly confirm it
http://music.yahoo.com/ar-284870-videos--Alicia-Keys
go to this link and click on the light blue headline, KARMA
thanks for listening!!!
Replies (29)
Yeah, I heard that too- it definitely sounded just like the first solo violin entrance in the first movement.
Right, as second violinist you play 6 bars 4321 4321 4321 4321 4321 4321 several times with your left hand fingers and the soloist enters. That fragment, used as a sample, is often repeated during the number and I also recognised it.
that song about something going up must come down...
yea it's the first bar of Brahms, then the decsending arpeggio is played twice, 2nd time in 3rd position for different color.
blasphemy...in my opinion.
Brahms would have been disgusted
that's horrific.
I read somewhere that Alicia Keys was a Suzuki piano prodigy. Maybe she actually just enjoyed the brahms violin concerto and wanted to add it into her music.
Yes... I noticed it when I was flipping channels and saw a violin on MTV.
It does sound a lot like brahms. But the "violinist" in the music video looked like he had horrible technique.
Oh well... It's just another thing we have to put up with.
the 'violinist' in the video doesnt look likes he's actually playing. They probably put him in instead of the real violinist so that it looks more ghetto or something like that.. i wish they would use the actual violinists
Most of the time they actually do, that Israeli girl is being used extensively by Kanye, Jay Z and some others. She's a good player.
Poor Brahms...
Oh, I wouldn't get so worked up over it. I was listening to her CD when I immediately recognized the Brahm's excerpt. I thought it was cool that classical music continues to influence musicians of all genres.
I agree... I really like it!! It's pretty cool!!
i love alicia keys work, she writes her own lyrics, composes all of her music and plays the piano part in all of her recordings an concerts. She is a truly unique musician. And yes, unlike most of the performers out there in the music industry, keys is one of the few who id call a "musician"
i think its snobby to say its an abomination of the brahms. The BVC is meant to be interpreted in many ways, and i think its great a modern artist would give a nod to such a great work.
"put him in instead of the real violinist so that it looks more ghetto"
GHETTO is an awful word to use I think URBAN is better!
uhhh.. urban is different from ghetto- i know since im from new york. and it's not a demeaning term. i know many people that are 'proud', or at least not ashamed to describe themselves as 'ghetto'. it's more of a way of acting, a style, a sub-culture. don't try to be so politically correct
Jerry, people who "act" ghetto are ridiculed. Ghetto is about comming from something and representing that culture. That doesn't necessarily mean that you have to be a thoughtless gangster. Nas is a great example of someone from the "ghetto" (Queensbridge) who has great music.
well said Pieter.
Also if the current trends continue to embrace classical music by utilizing them in the mix, it brings "that small bit" of classical music to a whole new generation and audience that may never have been exposed to it before.
It can only be a good thing :)
Seriously though, most of them will just go "Oh, that's cool" and not actually go through the trouble of trying to get their hands on the actual Brahms violin concerto.
And to be honest, I don't think that it's horrid. If you want to hear bad, listen to the more commercial stuff comming out of the south... Alicia Keys is pretty terrible, but I think the way Miri Ben Ari uses Brahms in that just proves how effective that material is.
The entrance of Brahms violin concerto is probably one of the most exhilerating entrances in the entire romantic cannon, at least for me. I think it's really cool how she uses that entrance, then repeats the descending arpeggio a few times. It makes for a strong gesture, and if you listen to the (admittedly vapid) lyrics, there is some word painting there.
I'd definately never buy an Alica keys CD, but I wouldn't rip on this track in particular.
Enosh,
but perhaps it will be the moment they may start appreciating something new for them?!
Don't underestimate the power of music (and the people listening to it).
You don't have to be a white upperclass American, to enjoy classical music. (just a thought....)
I was thinking it wasn't that bad until I heard it. I hope I never associate Brahms with hip hop again... just kind of ruins it.
"You don't have to be a white upperclass American, to enjoy classical music."
Indeed Gennady, you're right on the money...
By the way...do you have any great playing bows in the 6k range to recommend? How are Morizots holding their value these days?
You might as well get a Rolland or something for that price.
the violinist in the video is a kid who plays on the subway a lot...he goes through the cars playing vivaldi a minor a little out of tune, while he listens to hip-hop on his heaphones, and then solicits tips....
nobody's associating brahms with hiphop or R&B.
a few years ago there was a rapper who sampled the opening of the mendelssohn concerto and rhymed over it. i forget his name. that should tell you something.
What's it supposed to tell you?
when good music goes bad...
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August 6, 2005 at 01:34 AM · i noticed that as well when i got the CD last year.
the violinist is Miri Ben-Ari. She's all over both Alicia's CDs as well as Kanye West's CD. She has her own CD coming out as well.