SKU: BA.BA06861
ISBN 9790260104211. 34.3 x 27 cm inches.
LeoÅ¡ Janácek’s symphonic fragment Dunaj (The Danube) dates from the period of the composition of “Katya Kabanovaâ€. The composer was not concerned with a musical-picturesque description of a river landscape, but with the mythical link between women’s destinies and water.“Pale green waves of the Danube! There are so many of you, and one followed by another. You remain interlocked in a continuous flow. You surprise yourselves where you ended up – on the Czech shores! Look back downstream and you will have an impression of what you have left behind in your haste. It pleases you here. Here I will rest with my symphony.†Thus LeoÅ¡ Janácek described the idea behind the composition project which occupied him in 1923/24. However, after further work, it remained incomplete in 1926. His “symphony†entitled Dunaj has survived as a continuously-notated, four-movement bundle of sketches in score form. It is one of the works which occupied him until his death. The scholarly reconstruction by the two Brno composers MiloÅ¡ Å tedron and LeoÅ¡ Faltus closely follows the original manuscript.A whole conglomeration of motifs stands behind the incomplete work. What at first seems like a counterpart to Smetana’s Vltava, in fact doesn’t turn out to be a musical depiction of the Danube. On the contrary, the fateful link between the destiny of women, water and death permeates the range of motifs found in the work. It seems to be no coincidence that Janácek, whilst working on the opera Katya Kabanova, in which the Volga, as the river bringing death plays an almost mythical role, planned a Danube symphony, and that its content was linked with the destiny of women: in the sketches, two poems were found which may have provided the stimulus for several movements of the symphony. He copied a poem by Pavla Kriciková into the second movement, in which a girl remarks that whilst bathing in a pond, she was observed by a man. Filled with shame, the young naked woman jumps into the water and drowns. The outer movements likewise draw on the poem “Lola†by the Czech writer Sonja Å pálová, published under the pseudonym Alexander Insarov. This is about a prostitute who asks for her heart’s desire: she is given a palace, but then goes on a long search for it and is finally no longer wanted by anyone. She suffers, feels cold and just wants a warm fire. Janácek adds his remark “she jumps into the Danube†to the inconclusive ending.To these tangible literary models is added Adolf Veselý’s verbal account which reports that the composer wanted to portray “in the Danube, the female sex with all its passions and driving forcesâ€. The third movement is said to characterise the city of Vienna in the form of a woman.It is evident that in his composition, Janácek was not striving for a simple, natural lyricism. The River Danube is masculine in the Slavic language – “ten Dunaj†– and assumes an almost mythical significance in the national character, indeed often also a role bringing death. The four movements are motivically conceived. Elements of sound painting, small wave-like figures in the first movement, motoric, driving movements in the third are obvious evocations of water. And the content and the literary level are easy to discover. The “tremolo of the four timpaniâ€, which was amongst Janácek’s first inspirations, appears in the second movement. It is not difficult to retrace in it the fate of the drowning bather. The oboe enters lamentoso towards the end of the movement over timpani playing tremolo, its descending figure is taken over by the flute, then upper strings and intensified considerably. The motif of drowning – Lola’s despair – returns again in the fourth movement in the clarinet, before the work ends abruptly and dramatically.One special effect is the use of a soprano voice in the motor-driven third movement. The singer vocalises mainly in parallel with the solo oboe, but also in dialogue with other parts such as the viola d’amore, which Janácek used in several late works as a sort of “voice of loveâ€.
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SKU: LO.30-4038L
UPC: 000308159974.
Ballads have been used throughout history to tell a story through music. Pepper Choplin has long used his signature musical voice to tell the meaningful stories of our faith, so itâ??s especially fitting that heâ??s brought the timeless story of Christmas alive once more with The Ballad of Bethlehem. Available for SATB or SAB choirs with rehearsal aids and accompaniment options ranging from piano only to a thrilling full orchestra written by Michael Lawrence to recorded tracks, this stunning cantata dramatically moves from a recollection of ancient prophecies through the quiet manger scene to its joyous conclusion featuring a rousing call to â??Shout with the Shepherds!â? This season, let the folk-like energy of Pepper Choplinâ??s unique voice bring The Ballad of Bethlehem to you and your listeners. â??O sing a ballad of Bethlehem. I want to hear it once more. I love that story so often told to generations before.â?.
SKU: PR.416415720
UPC: 680160636150.
Illuminating Journey is composed to celebrate Maestro Carl St. Clair's 25th Anniversary season with Pacific Symphony. Maestro St. Clair is one of the few conductors who has dedicated his time to new music and support for living composers. I first encountered Maestro St. Clair in 2004 when I was one of the finalists for the Young Composers Competition. After I won that competition, I had an opportunity to work with Maestro St. Clair on the piece that he commissioned for the Pacific Symphony in 2005. That's the beginning of the journey of our friendship. Illuminating Journey is inspired by Maestro St. Clair's personality and the music he loved. The piece is mainly based on the pitch material from Maestro St. Clair's name CARL which can be translated as C = C, A = A, R = Re, and L = La. That pitch material already has the character of Illuminating sound for the open 5th and octave. The piece also incorporates some musical references that have some meaning for Maestro St. Clair, such as the hopefulness of the melodic intervals from West Side Story, There's a Place for Us, composed by Leonard Bernstein, who was also Maestro St. Clair's mentor. Illuminating Journey starts with the rhythmic motion of the pitch C and moves on to create a set of pitches. The note C functions as a center for the endless energy of this piece and creates a triumphant ending. I would personally like to thank Maestro St. Clair for his dedication on my music and his friendship throughout the past 10 years. The work with Maestro St. Clair and the Pacific Symphony was an early step in my career as a composer. I often mentioned that I may not be able to come this far without that part of my life. Thank you very much, Maestro St. Clair and the Pacific Symphony. Let's celebrate our Illuminating Journey together.
SKU: PR.41641572L
UPC: 680160636167.
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