SKU: PR.111402890

ISBN 9781491134672. UPC: 680160685264.

Whatâ??s in a name? While the title is French for â??Eight Flower Songs,â? the texts are all in English. The poemsâ?? flowers metaphorically evoke fragrance, love and loss, life and death, rebirth and regrowth. Perhaps the texture and beauty of Gordonâ??s music are themselves French. The 20-minute song cycle draws on poems from Wordsworth to Dorothy Parker, as well as from contemporary poets including the composer himself.
When So-Chung Shinn came to me with the idea of commissioning a song cycle with her spectacular husband Tony Lee, she had in mind something having to do with flowers. Tony had asked her what she wanted for her birthday, and she said she wanted to be behind the creating of a new work. Lucky me, I was the recipient of the commission. So-Chung sent me a little description of all the flowers she loves, but I had to take the idea and create a narrative in my head.It is always a matter of pleasing the commissioner, yet coming up with something you can get behind and hear music for as well. I already knew I wanted to use my â??Tulipsâ? poem which is really about the arc of a relationship as represented through the life span of the Tulips, and, in many ways, disappointment; and Dorothy Parkerâ??s â??One Perfect Rose,â? which is wry, bitter, cynical, and funny, in a way only Dorothy Parker can so pithily express.I thought of Jane Kenyonâ??s exquisite â??Peonies at Dusk,â? because knowing she died so young (46) of leukemia, the poem has such a particular resonance, almost humanizing the Peonies, casting the moon as a sentient being, illustrating so beautifully how connected everything is, alive here, and revolving around these exquisite blossoms. Then, I remembered her husband Donald Hallâ??s poem â??Her Garden,â? which he wrote after Jane died, his grief intermingled with his inability to care for what she had created, to keep alive what so represented her aliveness, broken as he was, and I felt I already had a story.I found the Wordsworth, because it felt like pure joy to me, but also, if each of the songs has a color in my head, â??The Daffodilsâ? is pure yellow and a good place to start. My partner Kevin and I live on a lake, and every year, the first Daffodils, the shock of yellows, the oranges, the blinding whites, after the long snowy winters, sing of the newness that is about to enfold us in its green miraculousness.At first, the cycle ended with the Langston Hughes poem â??Cycle,â? or â??New Flowers,â? because it was lovely, and about rebirth, which is obviously optimistic, and apt, but then, my friend Telmo Dos Santos, a wonderful Canadian poet whom I met at Banff, sent me his poem â??Afterlife With Lilacs,â? having no idea what I was working on. I felt I had to add it because it is so dazzling, and it immediately felt like the missing link. Finally, there were unfortunately rights issues, namely, we could not, no how, get in touch with the Langston Hughes Estate, after so many happy collaborations.After almost a yearâ??s frustration, I wrote my own text, â??Play, Orpheus,â? which ended up being fortuitous, because the first time I met So-Chung, she entered the room and the most exquisite scent of Lillies of the Valley, Muguet de Bois, filled the room. I went right over to her and rudely put my nose to her neck, for the intoxication of the scent. So â??Play, Orpheusâ? is for So-Chung, to remind us of the precious treasures of this world flowers remind us of. Everything and everyone lives and dies, lives and dies. Death and resurrection.And of course, this is music, this is song, so the inclusion of the God of music, Orpheus, seems apt. Huit Chansons de Fleurs is really about what flowers represent, their radiance, their flickering impermanence, the way they are used to celebrate, as well as to mourn...... and of course, their fragrance. Their fragrance.Ricky Ian GordonJuly 28, 2021.

SKU: BT.DHP-1063946-140

9x12 inches. English-German-French-Dutch.

The Hida High School is in a highland city called Takayama in Gifu Prefecture. Takayama City has some of the highest mountains in Japan, atmospheric rows of houses and streets, and a beautiful landscape. The magnificent views from these mountains can be described as a paradise above the clouds. When the composer visited there in the summer of 2001, the lovely flowers spreading through the valley and the refreshing air welcomed him. The flowers looked as if they were fashionably dressed and fully enjoying conversation and a short summer at a reunion party. The composer was inspired by this scenery to compose this piece. The musical party opens with happy greetings of a reunion andjoyful themes follow one after another. A light xylophone solo, a waltz and an adagio featuring alternate solos by alto saxophone, euphonium and trumpet lead to a brilliant finale featuring brass and percussion played in irregular time. A beautiful musical picture that your band will enjoy performing for many years.

Takayama is een hooggelegen stad in de Gifu-prefectuur (Japan). Het oostelijke stadsdeel Tatamidaira ligt tussen schitterende bergen die behoren tot de noordelijke Japanse Alpen. Toen de componist in de zomer deze plaats bezocht,werd hij ge nspireerd tot het schrijven van Alpine Flowers’ Party! Het muzikale festijn begint met opgewekte klanken, waarna meer vrolijke scènes elkaar opvolgen. Een xylofoonsolo, een wals en een adagio met wisselende solo’svoor altsaxofoon, euphonium en trompet leiden naar een briljante finale met veel maatwisselingen, waarin het koper en het slagwerk de leiding nemen op weg naar een spetterend slot.

Als Itaru Sakai im Sommer 2001 die reizvolle Region um den Berg Tatamidaira in Japan besuchte, wurde er von einem Meer von Blumen empfangen. Sie sahen aus, als würden sie in festlichem Aufzug eine unterhaltsame Party feiern und den kurzen Sommer genießen. Diese Szenerie inspirierte den Komponisten zu Alpine Flowers’ Party! Die musikalische Party beginnt mit einer herzlichen Begrüßung, dann folgt ein fröhlicher Programmpunkt dem anderen. Ein spritziges Xylophonsolo, ein Walzer und ein Adagio mit abwechselnden Soli für Altsaxophon, Euphonium und Trompete führen zu einem brillanten Finale, in dem Blechbläser und Schlagzeug im Vordergrund stehen. Feiern Sie mit!

Séjournant au coeur des Alpes japonaises, Itaru Sakai est surpris par le doux parfum et les couleurs des fleurs. Il se laisse inspirer par la beauté harmonieuse qui se révèle devant ses yeux. Débute alors le délicieux festival des fleurs alpines. La conversation est animée. Un solo de xylophone apporte une touche de légèreté, une valse fait virevolter le développement, puis vient un adagio qui égrène les solos et mène vers un finale brillant.

Soggiornando nel cuore della splendida catena montuosa delle Alpi giapponesi, Itaru Sakai è sorpreso del dolce profumo e dai colori dei fiori. Si lascia ispirare dalla bellezza armoniosa che si rivela ai suoi occhi. Ha inizio il delizioso festival dei fiori alpini. La conversazione è animata. Un assolo di xilofono apporta un tocco di leggerezza, un valzer fa piroettare lo sviluppo del tema, ed in seguito un adagio snoda i soli e accompagna il brano verso un finale brillante.

SKU: BT.DHP-1063946-010

9x12 inches. English-German-French-Dutch.

The Hida High School is in a highland city called Takayama in Gifu Prefecture. Takayama City has some of the highest mountains in Japan, atmospheric rows of houses and streets, and a beautiful landscape. The magnificent views from these mountains can be described as a paradise above the clouds. When the composer visited there in the summer of 2001, the lovely flowers spreading through the valley and the refreshing air welcomed him. The flowers looked as if they were fashionably dressed and fully enjoying conversation and a short summer at a reunion party. The composer was inspired by this scenery to compose this piece. The musical party opens with happy greetings of a reunion andjoyful themes follow one after another. A light xylophone solo, a waltz and an adagio featuring alternate solos by alto saxophone, euphonium and trumpet lead to a brilliant finale featuring brass and percussion played in irregular time. A beautiful musical picture that your band will enjoy performing for many years.

Takayama is een hooggelegen stad in de Gifu-prefectuur (Japan). Het oostelijke stadsdeel Tatamidaira ligt tussen schitterende bergen die behoren tot de noordelijke Japanse Alpen. Toen de componist in de zomer deze plaats bezocht,werd hij ge nspireerd tot het schrijven van Alpine Flowers’ Party! Het muzikale festijn begint met opgewekte klanken, waarna meer vrolijke scènes elkaar opvolgen. Een xylofoonsolo, een wals en een adagio met wisselende solo’svoor altsaxofoon, euphonium en trompet leiden naar een briljante finale met veel maatwisselingen, waarin het koper en het slagwerk de leiding nemen op weg naar een spetterend slot.

Als Itaru Sakai im Sommer 2001 die reizvolle Region um den Berg Tatamidaira in Japan besuchte, wurde er von einem Meer von Blumen empfangen. Sie sahen aus, als würden sie in festlichem Aufzug eine unterhaltsame Party feiern und den kurzen Sommer genießen. Diese Szenerie inspirierte den Komponisten zu Alpine Flowers’ Party! Die musikalische Party beginnt mit einer herzlichen Begrüßung, dann folgt ein fröhlicher Programmpunkt dem anderen. Ein spritziges Xylophonsolo, ein Walzer und ein Adagio mit abwechselnden Soli für Altsaxophon, Euphonium und Trompete führen zu einem brillanten Finale, in dem Blechbläser und Schlagzeug im Vordergrund stehen. Feiern Sie mit!

Séjournant au coeur des Alpes japonaises, Itaru Sakai est surpris par le doux parfum et les couleurs des fleurs. Il se laisse inspirer par la beauté harmonieuse qui se révèle devant ses yeux. Débute alors le délicieux festival des fleurs alpines. La conversation est animée. Un solo de xylophone apporte une touche de légèreté, une valse fait virevolter le développement, puis vient un adagio qui égrène les solos et mène vers un finale brillant.

Soggiornando nel cuore della splendida catena montuosa delle Alpi giapponesi, Itaru Sakai è sorpreso del dolce profumo e dai colori dei fiori. Si lascia ispirare dalla bellezza armoniosa che si rivela ai suoi occhi. Ha inizio il delizioso festival dei fiori alpini. La conversazione è animata. Un assolo di xilofono apporta un tocco di leggerezza, un valzer fa piroettare lo sviluppo del tema, ed in seguito un adagio snoda i soli e accompagna il brano verso un finale brillante.