The Value of Twitter Part 6: Pi Day Classics (an annotated Twitter conversation)

What I really enjoy about Twitter is not just the conversations, but the depth of those conversations. In real life, the following exchange would have been a non-starter -- unless I was at a convention of public radio classical music broadcasters.

On Pi Day (3/14/14), WUOL Classical 95.5 fm, Fine Arts Radio for Louisville, KY, sent out a tweet calling attention to their Pi Day-oriented classical programming. It got my attention, and the following exchange ensued. If it appears a little obscure, I've included an annotated version directly below it.

The takeaway from this is simple: on Twitter you can find folks as passionate and knowledgeable about the same things as you --- no matter how obscure the topic may seem to the general public. Just as at a social gathering in real life, if you say interesting and thoughtful things in a pleasant manner -- and respond to others doing the same -- you'll have a rewarding experience.

The conversation:

WUOL: #PiDay on WUOL means we've been playing Op. 314, K. 314, BWV 314, RV 314 and HWV 314 all this hour. Did we miss a connection? 

RalphGraves: @WUOL Which Op. 314 did you air? Hovhaness' Symphony 38 or J. Strauss' Blue Danube? #PiDay

WUOL: @RalphGraves Strauss

RalphGraves: @WUOL Well, there's the Pi Symphony itself... youtube.com/watch?v=CGK2i2…

WUOL: of course there is! RT @RalphGraves: @WUOL Well, there's the Pi Symphony itself... youtube.com/watch?v=CGK2i2…

RalphGraves: @WUOL Also, what about Schubert's lieder "Nachtgesang" (D. 314) #PiDay

WUOL: @RalphGraves Good suggestion!

RalphGraves @WUOL Another option: Czerny's Op. 314, Grande polonaise brillante précédés d’une introduction pour le pianoforte et violon concertane

RalphGraves: @WUOL With the competing catalog systems, you could have three Domenico Scarlatti keyboard sonatas for the price of one! [1 of 2]
RalphGraves @WUOL P. 314, Sonata in C (K.251, L.305); K.314, Sonata in G Allegro (L.441, P.505); L.314 Sonata in D K.511, P.388) [2 of 2]

WUOL: @RalphGraves there are many ways to slice it.

RalphGraves @WUOL D'oh! Well put.

The annotated conversation:

WUOL: #PiDay [using this hashtag creates a link in Twitter, and ties it to all the other tweets using this hashtag. This is a smart way for WUOL to get into the general conversation surrounding Pi Day celebrations -- and attract more online listeners.] on WUOL means we've been playing Op. 314, [Since tweets are limited to 140 characters, this is a clever way of communicating a lot of information. These are all catalog numbers for various composers. If you know a lot about classical music, you'll know the composers. The only exception is the opus number. Since it's just a publication designation, it can belong to any composer prolific enough to have that many works published (a concept I run with in my response).] K. 314 [Mozart: K.314 is his Flute Concerto in D major. K. stands for Ludwig von Köchel, who first cataloged Mozart's music in 1862.] , BWV 314 [Johann Sebastian Bach: Chorale "Gelobet seist du." BWV is an abbreviation for Bach-Werke-Verzeichnis (Bach Works Catalogue), first published in 1950.], RV 314 [Vivaldi: Violin Concerto in G major. RV stands for Ryom Verzeichnis, the catalog of Vivaldi's works compiled by Peter Ryom and first published in 1972] and HWV 314 [Handel: Concerto Grosso in G major, Op. 3, No. 3 -- although this work has an opus number, so few of Handel's works were published, the HWV catalog number is a much more useful way of identifying the work. HWV is an abbreviation for Händel-Werke-Verzeichnis (Catalogue of Handel's Works)] all this hour. Did we miss a connection? 

RalphGraves: @WUOL Which Op. 314 did you air? Hovhaness' Symphony 38 or J. Strauss' Blue Danube? #PiDay [In my response, I also included the Pi Day hashtag to ensure it was part of the larger conversation. Also, don't be too impressed. I don't know a lot of opus numbers off the top of my head. I first had to remember which very prolific composers actually used opus numbers for their works and got into the 300's. A search of the catalogs of Johann Strauss the Senior and Alan Hovhaness lead me to the specific works quite quickly.]

WUOL: @RalphGraves Strauss

RalphGraves: @WUOL Well, there's the Pi Symphony itself... youtube.com/watch?v=CGK2i2…[Lars Erickson composed a symphony based on the numbers in Pi. I provided a link to the YouTube video of the work (YouTube is an amazing source for classical music). In Twitter, the link is valid, even though it extends beyond the character limit. I've added the correct link so you can follow it.]

WUOL: of course there is! RT @RalphGraves: @WUOL Well, there's the Pi Symphony itself... youtube.com/watch?v=CGK2i2…[WUOL liked the idea so much, they retweeted it.(That's what the "RT" means -- "retweeted from the name that follows.") The conversation just got broader.]

RalphGraves: @WUOL Also, what about Schubert's lieder "Nachtgesang" (D. 314) ["D" refers Otto Erich Deutsch, who assigned catalog numbers to all of Franz Schubert's works. The catalog was published in 1951.] #PiDay[I didn't have room for the hashtag in the Pi Symphony tweet, but I do here -- keeping the Pi Day conversation linked in!] 

WUOL: @RalphGraves Good suggestion!

RalphGraves @WUOL Another option: Czerny's Op. 314, Grande polonaise brillante précédés d’une introduction pour le pianoforte et violon concertane [Carl Czerny was a prolific composer and pianist. I happened to know his opus numbers extended up into the eight hundreds (he wrote a lot of piano exercises and etudes, each with its own opus number).]

RalphGraves: @WUOL With the competing catalog systems, [Domenico Scarlatti wrote 550 keyboard sonatas. Three different musicologists have cataloged his works, and all three systems are still in use. Alessandro Longo grouped them by keys in the 1920's, Ralph Kirkpatrick did a chronological listing in the 1940's, and in the 1960's, Giorgio Pestelli did a completely revised listing.] you could have three Domenico Scarlatti keyboard sonatas for the price of one! [1 of 2][I couldn't fit this all into one tweet, so my "1 of 2" note says that this tweet is to be read in conjunction with the one immediately following.]
RalphGraves @WUOL P. 314, Sonata in C (K.251, L.305); K.314, Sonata in G Allegro (L.441, P.505); L.314 Sonata in D K.511, P.388) [2 of 2] [P. stands for Pestelli 's catalog listing, K. for Kirkpatrick's catalog listing, and L. for Longo catalog number. Each D. Scarlatti sonata has three different catalog numbers, which was my point; one composer, three different Pi Day numbers! (And no, Scarlatti didn't number his own works, so there is no "Sonata No. 314"--technically.)]

WUOL: @RalphGraves there are many ways to slice it. [Brilliant punning reference to pie/pi.]

RalphGraves @WUOL D'oh! Well put.[That pun was the perfect place to end the conversation so both of us could get back to work. But what fun!]