Cassatt. Composed
by Dan Welcher. Premiere:
Cassatt Quartet,
Northeastern Illinois
University, Chicago, IL.
Contemporary. Full score.
With Standard notation.
Composed 2007. WRT11142.
52 pages. Duration 24
minutes. Theodore Presser
Company #164-00272S.
Published by Theodore
Presser Company
(PR.16400272S).
UPC:
680160588442. 8.5 x 11
inches.
My third
quartet is laid out in a
three-movement structure,
with each movement based
on an early, middle, and
late work of the great
American impressionist
painter Mary Cassatt.
Although the movements
are separate, with
full-stop endings, the
music is connected by a
common scale-form,
derived from the name
MARY CASSATT, and by a
recurring theme that
introduces all three
movements. I see this
theme as Mary's Theme, a
personality that stays
intact while undergoing
gradual change. I
The Bacchante (1876)
[Pennsylvania Academy of
Fine Arts, Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania] The
painting shows a young
girl of Italian or
Spanish origin, playing a
small pair of cymbals.
Since Cassatt was trying
very hard to fit in at
the French Academy at the
time, she painted a lot
of these subjects, which
were considered typical
and universal. The style
of the painting doesn't
yet show Cassatt's
originality, except
perhaps for certain
details in the face.
Accordingly the music for
this movement is
Spanish/Italian, in a
similar period-style but
using the musical
signature described
above. The music begins
with Mary's Theme,
ruminative and slow, then
abruptly changes to an
alla Spagnola-type fast
3/4 - 6/8 meter. It
evokes the
Spanish-influenced music
of Ravel and Falla.
Midway through,
there's an accompanied
recitative for the viola,
which figures large in
this particular movement,
then back to a truncated
recapitulation of the
fast music. The overall
feeling is of a
well-made, rather
conventional movement in
a contemporary
Spanish/Italian style.
Cassatt's painting, too,
is rather conventional.
II At the Opera
(1880) [Museum of Fine
Arts, Boston,
Massachusetts]
This painting is one of
Cassatt's most well known
works, and it hangs in
the Museum of Fine Arts
in Boston. The painting
shows a woman alone in a
box at the opera house,
completely dressed
(including gloves) and
looking through opera
glasses at someone or
something that is NOT on
the stage. Across the
auditorium from her, but
exactly at eye level, is
a gentleman with opera
glasses intently watching
her - though it is not
him that she's looking
at. It's an intriguing
picture. This
movement is far less
conventional than the
first movement, as the
painting is far less
conventional. The music
begins with a rapid,
Shostakovich-type
mini-overture lasting
less than a minute, based
on Mary's Theme. My
conjecture is that the
woman in the painting has
arrived late to the
opera, busily stumbling
into her box. What
happens next is a kind of
collage, a kind of
surrealistic overlaying
of two different
elements: the foreground
music, at first is a
direct quotation of
Soldier's Chorus from
Gounod's FAUST (an opera
Cassatt would certainly
have heard in the
brand-new Paris Opera
House at that time),
played by Violin II,
Viola, and Cello. This
music is played sul
ponticello in the melody
and col legno in the
marching accompaniment.
On top of this, the first
violin hovers at first on
a high harmonic, then
descends into a slow
melody, completely
separate from the Gounod.
It's as if the woman in
the painting is hearing
the opera onstage but is
not really interested in
it. Then the cello joins
the first violin in a
kind of love-duet (just
the two of them, at
first). This music isn't
at all Gounod-derived;
it's entirely from the
same scale patterns as
the first movement and
derives from Mary's Theme
and its scale. The music
stays in a kind of
dichotomy feeling,
usually
three-against-one, until
the end of the movement,
when another Gounod
melody, Valentin's aria
Avant de quitter ce lieux
reappears in a kind of
coda for all four
players. It ends
atmospherically and
emotionally disconnected,
however. The overall
feeling is a kind of
schizophrenic,
opera-inspired dream.
III Young Woman in
Green, Outdoors in the
Sun (1909) [Worcester Art
Museum, Massachusetts]
The painting, one
of Cassatt's last, is
very simple: just a
figure, looking sideways
out of the picture. The
colors are pastel and yet
bold - and the woman is
likewise very
self-assured and not in
the least demure. It is
eight minutes long, and
is all about melody -
three melodies, to be
exact (Young Woman,
Green, and Sunlight). No
angst, no choppy rhythms,
just ever-unfolding
melody and lush
harmonies. I quote one
other French composer
here, too: Debussy's song
Green, from Ariettes
Oubliees. 1909 would have
been Debussy's heyday in
Paris, and it makes
perfect sense musically
as well as visually to do
this. Mary Cassatt
lived her last several
years in near-total
blindness, and as she
lost visual acuity, her
work became less sharply
defined - something akin
to late water lilies of
Monet, who suffered
similar vision loss. My
idea of making this
movement entirely melodic
was compounded by having
each of the three
melodies appear twice,
once in a pure form, and
the second time in a more
diffuse setting. This
makes an interesting two
ways form:
A-B-C-A1-B1-C1.
String Quartet No.3
(Cassatt) is dedicated,
with great affection and
respect, to the Cassatt
String Quartet, whose
members have dedicated
themselves in large
measure to the furthering
of the contemporary
repertoire for
quartet.
Chamber Music String Quartet SKU: PR.164002720 Cassatt. Composed b...(+)
Chamber Music String
Quartet
SKU:
PR.164002720
Cassatt. Composed
by Dan Welcher. Spiral
and Saddle. Premiere:
Cassatt Quartet,
Northeastern Illinois
University, Chicago, IL.
Contemporary. Set of
Score and Parts. With
Standard notation.
Composed 2007. WRT11142.
52+16+16+16+16 pages.
Duration 24 minutes.
Theodore Presser Company
#164-00272. Published by
Theodore Presser Company
(PR.164002720).
UPC:
680160573042. 8.5 x 11
inches.
My third
quartet is laid out in a
three-movement structure,
with each movement based
on an early, middle, and
late work of the great
American impressionist
painter Mary Cassatt.
Although the movements
are separate, with
full-stop endings, the
music is connected by a
common scale-form,
derived from the name
MARY CASSATT, and by a
recurring theme that
introduces all three
movements. I see this
theme as Mary's Theme, a
personality that stays
intact while undergoing
gradual change. I
The Bacchante (1876)
[Pennsylvania Academy of
Fine Arts, Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania] The
painting shows a young
girl of Italian or
Spanish origin, playing a
small pair of cymbals.
Since Cassatt was trying
very hard to fit in at
the French Academy at the
time, she painted a lot
of these subjects, which
were considered typical
and universal. The style
of the painting doesn't
yet show Cassatt's
originality, except
perhaps for certain
details in the face.
Accordingly the music for
this movement is
Spanish/Italian, in a
similar period-style but
using the musical
signature described
above. The music begins
with Mary's Theme,
ruminative and slow, then
abruptly changes to an
alla Spagnola-type fast
3/4 - 6/8 meter. It
evokes the
Spanish-influenced music
of Ravel and Falla.
Midway through,
there's an accompanied
recitative for the viola,
which figures large in
this particular movement,
then back to a truncated
recapitulation of the
fast music. The overall
feeling is of a
well-made, rather
conventional movement in
a contemporary
Spanish/Italian style.
Cassatt's painting, too,
is rather conventional.
II At the Opera
(1880) [Museum of Fine
Arts, Boston,
Massachusetts]
This painting is one of
Cassatt's most well known
works, and it hangs in
the Museum of Fine Arts
in Boston. The painting
shows a woman alone in a
box at the opera house,
completely dressed
(including gloves) and
looking through opera
glasses at someone or
something that is NOT on
the stage. Across the
auditorium from her, but
exactly at eye level, is
a gentleman with opera
glasses intently watching
her - though it is not
him that she's looking
at. It's an intriguing
picture. This
movement is far less
conventional than the
first movement, as the
painting is far less
conventional. The music
begins with a rapid,
Shostakovich-type
mini-overture lasting
less than a minute, based
on Mary's Theme. My
conjecture is that the
woman in the painting has
arrived late to the
opera, busily stumbling
into her box. What
happens next is a kind of
collage, a kind of
surrealistic overlaying
of two different
elements: the foreground
music, at first is a
direct quotation of
Soldier's Chorus from
Gounod's FAUST (an opera
Cassatt would certainly
have heard in the
brand-new Paris Opera
House at that time),
played by Violin II,
Viola, and Cello. This
music is played sul
ponticello in the melody
and col legno in the
marching accompaniment.
On top of this, the first
violin hovers at first on
a high harmonic, then
descends into a slow
melody, completely
separate from the Gounod.
It's as if the woman in
the painting is hearing
the opera onstage but is
not really interested in
it. Then the cello joins
the first violin in a
kind of love-duet (just
the two of them, at
first). This music isn't
at all Gounod-derived;
it's entirely from the
same scale patterns as
the first movement and
derives from Mary's Theme
and its scale. The music
stays in a kind of
dichotomy feeling,
usually
three-against-one, until
the end of the movement,
when another Gounod
melody, Valentin's aria
Avant de quitter ce lieux
reappears in a kind of
coda for all four
players. It ends
atmospherically and
emotionally disconnected,
however. The overall
feeling is a kind of
schizophrenic,
opera-inspired dream.
III Young Woman in
Green, Outdoors in the
Sun (1909) [Worcester Art
Museum, Massachusetts]
The painting, one
of Cassatt's last, is
very simple: just a
figure, looking sideways
out of the picture. The
colors are pastel and yet
bold - and the woman is
likewise very
self-assured and not in
the least demure. It is
eight minutes long, and
is all about melody -
three melodies, to be
exact (Young Woman,
Green, and Sunlight). No
angst, no choppy rhythms,
just ever-unfolding
melody and lush
harmonies. I quote one
other French composer
here, too: Debussy's song
Green, from Ariettes
Oubliees. 1909 would have
been Debussy's heyday in
Paris, and it makes
perfect sense musically
as well as visually to do
this. Mary Cassatt
lived her last several
years in near-total
blindness, and as she
lost visual acuity, her
work became less sharply
defined - something akin
to late water lilies of
Monet, who suffered
similar vision loss. My
idea of making this
movement entirely melodic
was compounded by having
each of the three
melodies appear twice,
once in a pure form, and
the second time in a more
diffuse setting. This
makes an interesting two
ways form:
A-B-C-A1-B1-C1.
String Quartet No.3
(Cassatt) is dedicated,
with great affection and
respect, to the Cassatt
String Quartet, whose
members have dedicated
themselves in large
measure to the furthering
of the contemporary
repertoire for
quartet.
Dan Welcher’s most enduringly and frequently played orchestral work, Prai...(+)
Dan Welcher’s most
enduringly and frequently
played orchestral work,
Prairie Light is a
fascinating musical
companion to three of
Georgia
O’Keeffe’s
most unusual paintings,
Light Coming on the
Plains, Canyon with
Crows, and Starlight
Night. This work is ideal
for performances using
visual projections of the
paintings, and is
frequently programmed for
subscription concerts as
well as those for
educational settings.
Duration: 14’
Parts available on
rental. This work for
full orchestra was
inspired by three
paintings of the noted
Americanartist Georgia
O’Keeffe. These
three watercolors were
done in 1917 while the
artist was living in
Canyon, Texas (near
Amarillo), and deal
primarily with color and
shape. Consequently, the
music is primarily
concerned with broad
lines and shapes rather
than rhythms, with subtle
washes of color rather
than constant harmonic
movement, and with
arching melody instead of
linear counterpoint.The
first movement, Light
Coming on the Plains, is
an elliptical-shaped
painting, deep blue to
indigo with a
“horizon†at
the bottom that seems
flat and unchanging. The
sun hasn’t risen
yet, although it does in
the course of this
movement, but it seems
instead to be providing
light from behind the
canvas. The music is
unmoving in terms of
rhythm or harmony
(although there is a
modulation midway
through), a color-infused
mantra of sound that is
almost Eastern.At the
height of the sun, we
proceed to the second
movement, entitled Canyon
with Crows. The canyon is
red-orange, with black
crows circling above
friendly unfolding hills.
The music is gentle but
lively and more rhythmic,
with the birds
represented by solo oboe,
clarinet, and sometimes
flute. Halfway through,
the brass have a chorale
version of the opening
motive, played very
slowly, over the unending
triplets of woodwinds and
strings. At the end of
the movement, the
birds return for a
duo-cadenza, accompanied
by the dying rays of the
sun in muted strings and
the ongoing triplets of
the solo quartet.The
stage is set for the
final movement, Starlight
Night. In
O’Keeffe’s
painting, the stars are
represented by
regularly-spaced
rectangles of bright pale
yellow on a blue-black
sky, with the same shape
to the field of vision
and the horizon that is
found in Light Coming on
the Plains. The stars
become audible: harp,
celesta, glockenspiel,
and string pizzicati all
lend a sparkle while a
solo flute introduces a
slowly unfolding theme.
After this theme has been
heard twice and the sky
has begun to really
brighten, there is a
sudden interruption: a
xylophone and a piano
begin another
“mantra†in
brittle staccato chords.
This is the same
mechanical eternity as
O’Keeffe’s
regularly-spaced square
stars, and it continues
on its own as the night
progresses. The music
builds and grows as the
moon rises and arcs, then
falls as the pre-dawn
light that opened the
work returns to bring it
to a close. Acycle of
light, changing with the
movements of sun, moon,
and stars, appearing
differently from various
points of view
(Words and Chords to Nearly 1200 Songs 9x12 Spiral Bound). Edited by Annie Patte...(+)
(Words and Chords to
Nearly 1200 Songs 9x12
Spiral Bound). Edited by
Annie Patterson and Peter
Blood. For Vocal. Vocal.
Softcover. 304 pages.
Published by Hal Leonard
(Words and Chords to Nearly 1200 Songs Spiral-Bound). Edited by Annie Patterson ...(+)
(Words and Chords to
Nearly 1200 Songs
Spiral-Bound). Edited by
Annie Patterson and Peter
Blood. For Vocal. Vocal.
Softcover. 304 pages.
Published by Hal Leonard
For voice and C instrument. Format: fakebook. With vocal melody, lyrics and chor...(+)
For voice and C
instrument. Format:
fakebook. With vocal
melody, lyrics and chord
names. Folk. Series: Hal
Leonard Fake Books. 536
pages. 9.6x12 inches.
Published by Hal Leonard.
For voice and C instrument. Format: fakebook. With vocal melody, lyrics and chor...(+)
For voice and C
instrument. Format:
fakebook. With vocal
melody, lyrics and chord
names. Traditional pop
and vocal standards.
Series: Hal Leonard Fake
Books. 424 pages. 9x12
inches. Published by Hal
Leonard.
String Quartet SKU: HL.14030964 Composed by Bent Sorensen. Music Sales Am...(+)
String Quartet
SKU:
HL.14030964
Composed
by Bent Sorensen. Music
Sales America. Classical.
Score. 10 pages. Music
Sales #KP00510. Published
by Music Sales
(HL.14030964).
ISBN
9788759861455.
English.
The
Composer writes: 'In
February 1987 I saw in
the Tate Gallery in
London a painting by the
Victorian English painter
John William Waterhouse.
The painting kept
haunting my memory, and
as I at the same time
planned to write a piece
for solo Viola, my ideas
for the music and the
memory of the painting
fused more and more. I
decided, then, to let my
piece borrow the title of
Waterhouse's painting:
The Lady Of Shalott. The
picture of a mad-like,
pale, and perhaps singing
woman alone in a boat
without sculls, which
calmly slips out from the
rush growth of the river
is an illustration for
the ending of Alfred
Tennyson's poem by the
same title, which again
plaits into the old
English legends about
King Arthur. My piece
tries to meander - like
the river at Camelot -
among these sources.' As
suggested above the piece
was originally written
for Viola solo. This
version for String
Quartet is from 1993.
(After The Painting By
Gustav Klimt) for
Orchestra. Composed
by Daniel Dorff. Sws or
watkiss. Program notes
provided on pg. 3.
Contemporary. Full score.
With Standard notation.
Composed 1-Aug. 80 pages.
Duration 14 minutes.
Theodore Presser Company
#416-41329. Published by
Theodore Presser Company
(PR.416413290).
ISBN
9781598064674. UPC:
680160612086. 9x12
inches.
Inspired by
the passion and dazzle of
Gustav Klimt’s
celebrated painting
“The Kiss,â€
Daniel Dorff has created
a dramatic and sensual
tone poem capturing the
growing thrill of the
painting’s young
lovers. Dorff’s
14-minute work is
suitable for
choreography, and a
favorite for
Valentine’s Day
programming. The
composer's website
(www.danieldorff.com/pn-t
hekiss.htm) offers full
program notes and more.
Duration: 14'.
Choral SSA choir SKU: CF.CM9580 Composed by Richard Rasch. Arranged by Ri...(+)
Choral SSA choir
SKU:
CF.CM9580
Composed by
Richard Rasch. Arranged
by Richard Rasch. Fold.
Performance Score. 4
pages. Duration 2
minutes, 42 seconds. Carl
Fischer Music #CM9580.
Published by Carl Fischer
Music (CF.CM9580).
ISBN 9781491154021.
UPC: 680160912520. 6.875
x 10.5 inches. Key: D
mixolydian. English,
Latin. 15th Century
Medieval Carol.
The
text of this poem is from
the Trinity Carol Roll,
an English manuscript
housed at the Wren
Library of Trinity
College, Cambridge. It is
originally in the Norfolk
dialect of Middle English
but has been modernized
for use in this setting.
Also, it's macaronic,
meaning it combines words
from two languages, the
other being Latin which
was in use by the church
when this carol was
written. The Latin
phrases come from
different parts of the
Advent/Christmas
liturgies; a sequence
called
Laetabundus, the
title of an Introit
antiphon called
Gaudeamus, and
the shepherds response in
the gospel of Luke 2:15,
Transeamus.
Latin phrase translation
source Alleluia Alleluia
Laetabundus Res miranda A
thing to be wondered at
Laetabundus Pari forma of
equal form Laetabundus
Gaudeamus Let us rejoice!
Gaudeamus Transeamus Let
us go Luke 2:15 The poet
compares the Virgin Mary
to a rose. She has a
special place among all
women in being chosen as
the mother of Jesus, and
likewise the rose has a
special place among all
flowers surpassing them
in complexity and beauty.
The music in this setting
mimics the petals of a
rose as it blooms.
Imagine the petals
unfurling over time as
does the music which
starts in unison for each
verse and expands outward
into two and three vocal
lines with increasingly
complex harmonic twists.
Word painting is employed
in several places but
none are as important as
the dramatic climax in
the fourth verse where
the shepherds along with
all the angels in heaven
proclaim Gloria in
excelsis Deo (Glory to
God on high). What a
sound that must be! On
these words the music
reaches it loudest point
as the sopranos rise to
their highest note and
the compassthe distance
between the highest and
lowest noteis at its
widest. The setting is
brought to a close as the
five Latin phrases that
finished each verse are
repeated as a coda and
musically summarize the
five verses of the
carol. The text of
this poem is from the
Trinity Carol Roll, an
English manuscript housed
at the Wren Library of
Trinity College,
Cambridge. It is
originally in the Norfolk
dialect of Middle English
but has been modernized
for use in this setting.
Also, it's macaronic,
meaning it combines words
from two languages, the
other being Latin which
was in use by the church
when this carol was
written. The Latin
phrases come from
different parts of the
Advent/Christmas
liturgies; a sequence
called
Laetabundus, the
title of an Introit
antiphon called
Gaudeamus, and
the shepherdas response
in the gospel of Luke
2:15,
Transeamus.
Latin phraseA translation
source Alleluia Alleluia
Laetabundus Res miranda A
thing to be wondered at
Laetabundus Pari forma of
equal form Laetabundus
Gaudeamus Let us rejoice!
Gaudeamus Transeamus Let
us go Luke 2:15 The poet
compares the Virgin Mary
to a rose. She has a
special place among all
women in being chosen as
the mother of Jesus, and
likewise the rose has a
special place among all
flowers surpassing them
in complexity and beauty.
The music in this setting
mimics the petals of a
rose as it blooms.
Imagine the petals
unfurling over time as
does the music which
starts in unison for each
verse and expands outward
into two and three vocal
lines with increasingly
complex harmonic twists.
Word painting is employed
in several places but
none are as important as
the dramatic climax in
the fourth verse where
the shepherds along with
all the angels in heaven
proclaim Gloria in
excelsis Deo (Glory to
God on high). What a
sound that must be! On
these words the music
reaches it loudest point
as the sopranos rise to
their highest note and
the compassathe distance
between the highest and
lowest noteais at its
widest. The setting is
brought to a close as the
five Latin phrases that
finished each verse are
repeated as a coda and
musically summarize the
five verses of the
carol. The text of
this poem is from the
Trinity Carol Roll, an
English manuscript housed
at the Wren Library of
Trinity College,
Cambridge. It is
originally in the Norfolk
dialect of Middle English
but has been modernized
for use in this setting.
Also, it's macaronic,
meaning it combines words
from two languages, the
other being Latin which
was in use by the church
when this carol was
written. The Latin
phrases come from
different parts of the
Advent/Christmas
liturgies; a sequence
called
Laetabundus, the
title of an Introit
antiphon called
Gaudeamus, and
the shepherd's response
in the gospel of Luke
2:15,
Transeamus.
Latin phrase translation
source Alleluia Alleluia
Laetabundus Res miranda A
thing to be wondered at
Laetabundus Pari forma of
equal form Laetabundus
Gaudeamus Let us rejoice!
Gaudeamus Transeamus Let
us go Luke 2:15 The poet
compares the Virgin Mary
to a rose. She has a
special place among all
women in being chosen as
the mother of Jesus, and
likewise the rose has a
special place among all
flowers surpassing them
in complexity and beauty.
The music in this setting
mimics the petals of a
rose as it blooms.
Imagine the petals
unfurling over time as
does the music which
starts in unison for each
verse and expands outward
into two and three vocal
lines with increasingly
complex harmonic twists.
Word painting is employed
in several places but
none are as important as
the dramatic climax in
the fourth verse where
the shepherds along with
all the angels in heaven
proclaim Gloria in
excelsis Deo (Glory to
God on high). What a
sound that must be! On
these words the music
reaches it loudest point
as the sopranos rise to
their highest note and
the compass--the distance
between the highest and
lowest note--is at its
widest. The setting is
brought to a close as the
five Latin phrases that
finished each verse are
repeated as a coda and
musically summarize the
five verses of the
carol. The text of
this poem is from the
Trinity Carol Roll, an
English manuscript housed
at the Wren Library of
Trinity College,
Cambridge. It is
originally in the Norfolk
dialect of Middle English
but has been modernized
for use in this setting.
Also, it's macaronic,
meaning it combines words
from two languages, the
other being Latin which
was in use by the church
when this carol was
written. The Latin
phrases come from
different parts of the
Advent/Christmas
liturgies; a sequence
called Laetabundus, the
title of an Introit
antiphon called
Gaudeamus, and the
shepherd's response in
the gospel of Luke 2:15,
Transeamus. Latin phrase
translation source
Alleluia Alleluia
Laetabundus Res miranda A
thing to be wondered at
Laetabundus Pares forma
of equal form Laetabundus
Gaudeamus Let us rejoice!
Gaudeamus Transeamus Let
us go Luke 2:15 The poet
compares the Virgin Mary
to a rose. She has a
special place among all
women in being chosen as
the mother of Jesus, and
likewise the rose has a
special place among all
flowers surpassing them
in complexity and beauty.
The music in this setting
mimics the petals of a
rose as it blooms.
Imagine the petals
unfurling over time as
does the music which
starts in unison for each
verse and expands outward
into two and three vocal
lines with increasingly
complex harmonic twists.
Word painting is employed
in several places but
none are as important as
the dramatic climax in
the fourth verse where
the shepherds along with
all the angels in heaven
proclaim Gloria in
excelsis Deo (Glory to
God on high). What a
sound that must be! On
these words the music
reaches it loudest point
as the sopranos rise to
their highest note and
the compass--the distance
between the highest and
lowest note--is at its
widest. The setting is
brought to a close as the
five Latin phrases that
finished each verse are
repeated as a coda and
musically summarize the
five verses of the
carol. The text of
this poem is from the
Trinity Carol Roll, an
English manuscript housed
at the Wren Library of
Trinity College,
Cambridge. It is
originally in the Norfolk
dialect of Middle English
but has been modernized
for use in this setting.
Also, it's macaronic,
meaning it combines words
from two languages, the
other being Latin which
was in use by the church
when this carol was
written.The Latin phrases
come from different parts
of the Advent/Christmas
liturgies; a sequence
called Laetabundus, the
title of an Introit
antiphon called
Gaudeamus, and the
shepherd’s
response in the gospel of
Luke 2:15,
Transeamus.Latin
phrase translation
sourceAlleluia Alleluia
LaetabundusRes miranda A
thing to be wondered at
LaetabundusPares forma of
equal form
LaetabundusGaudeamus Let
us rejoice!
GaudeamusTranseamus Let
us go Luke 2:15The poet
compares the Virgin Mary
to a rose. She has a
special place among all
women in being chosen as
the mother of Jesus, and
likewise the rose has a
special place among all
flowers surpassing them
in complexity and
beauty.The music in this
setting mimics the petals
of a rose as it blooms.
Imagine the petals
unfurling over time as
does the music which
starts in unison for each
verse and expands outward
into two and three vocal
lines with increasingly
complex harmonic
twists.Word painting is
employed in several
places but none are as
important as the dramatic
climax in the fourth
verse where the shepherds
along with all the angels
in heaven proclaim Gloria
in excelsis Deo (Glory to
God on high). What a
sound that must be! On
these words the music
reaches it loudest point
as the sopranos rise to
their highest note and
the compass—the
distance between the
highest and lowest
note—is at its
widest.The setting is
brought to a close as the
five Latin phrases that
finished each verse are
repeated as a coda and
musically summarize the
five verses of the
carol.
For
Chamber Orchestra.
Composed by James
Matheson. This edition:
Version 6/10/10. Sws.
Contemporary. Full score.
With Standard notation.
Composed February 13
2003. 84 pages. Duration
18 minutes. Theodore
Presser Company
#416-41423. Published by
Theodore Presser Company
(PR.416414230).
ISBN
9781598066630. UPC:
680160602087. 9x12
inches.
Colonnade
is James
Matheson’s
intriguing response to
the Albany
Symphony’s
commission to create a
work inspired by the NY
State Board of Education
Building, designed by the
renowned architect Rafael
Guastavino. Matheson
explains that “A
colonnade acts as a
metaphor for the tension
between knowledge and
perception. The columns
are the same height and
equidistant from each
other; while the mind
understands this fully,
there exists no place
from which one can
perceive this –
the columns always appear
to be of uneven height
and spacing. If one then
adds motion to
perspective, identical
columns acquire
elasticity, and begin to
change kaleidoscopically
– they shrink,
grow, become closer, and
then further
apart.†This
structural paradox is
given musical life in the
outer sections of
Colonnade, while the
long, arching middle
section is inspired by
the vaulted ceiling of
one of the
building’s largest
rooms, enhancing the
structure’s
spacious openness and
lightness. Colonnade
is inspired by
Albany’s majestic
New York State Board of
Education Building, and
written on a commission
from the Albany Symphony
Orchestra. It was an
intriguing task, in part
because in order to
accept the commission I
had to agree to write a
work “inspired
by†a building I
had not yet seen.
Thisproblem was
compounded by the fact
that, for me, the very
notion of extra-musical
inspiration is a complex
one, particularly with
respect to literary or
visual sources. I
generally find ideas and
abstracted notions more
generative of musical
ideas than specific ones
(a poem, an experience, a
painting). So when I went
to seeand tour the
building, I sought to
identify fundamental
formal aspects of the
building which I could
process into musical
ideas, and would then be
linked to the building
through a sense of formal
relationship. In theend,
two characteristics of
the building stood out as
noteworthy and
undiminished by time
(compared with, for
instance, the
building’s
rotunda, which contains a
series of quaintly
outdated allegorical
paintings): theexterior
colonnade and a beautiful
interior vaulted ceiling,
designed by Rafael
Guastavino.For me, a
colonnade acts as a
metaphor for the tension
between knowledge and
perception. We all know,
for instance, that the
columns are of the same
height and are
equidistant from each
other. Nevertheless,
while the mind
understands this fully,
it is also the case that
there exists no place
– no standpoint or
viewpoint –
anywhere in the universe
– from which one
can perceive this; the
columns always appear to
be of uneven height and
spacing. If one then adds
motion to perspective
– a walk along the
colonnade, for instance
– the fixed, even,
rigidly identical columns
acquire elasticity, and
begin to change
kaleidoscopically
– they shrink,
grow, become closer, and
then further apart.
Further, the detail of
the building’s
façade behind the
colonnadeshifts into and
out of visibility, with
different portions
obscured by the columns
from each vantage point.
These considerations
underlie the outer
sections of Colonnade, in
which a continuously
repeated, continuously
varied rising figure
– suggestive of a
column –
dominates. The iterations
of this elastic,
evolvingfigure are
interspersed with other
music – suggestive
of the building’s
façade. The second
feature of the building
that caught my attention
was the vaulted ceiling,
designed by Guastavino,of
one of the
building’s largest
rooms. The ceiling
enhances the spaciousness
of the room, giving it an
openness and lightness
that is quite
captivating. The middle
section of Colonnade has
this openness at its
core, and is dominated by
long, arching lines that,
to me, suggest the
refined beauty of this
ceiling.World premiere
March 8, 2003; Albany
Symphony Orchestra
conducted by David Alan
Miller.
After
The Painting By Gustav
Klimt. Composed by
Daniel Dorff. With
Standard notation. 80
pages. Duration 14
minutes. Theodore Presser
Company #416-41329L.
Published by Theodore
Presser Company
(PR.41641329L).
Composed by Ruth Morris
Gray. Shawnee Press.
Concert. Octavo. 12
pages. Duration 180
seconds. Published by
Shawnee Press
(HL.1312734).
ISBN
9798350109511. UPC:
196288177654.
6.75x10.5x0.029
inches.
“The
Starry Night†by
Vincent Van Gogh is the
composer's inspiration
for this choral, which is
filled imagery from the
painting. The text is
created from a quote by
Van Gogh, “For my
part, I know nothing with
any certainly, but the
sight of the stars makes
me dream.†The
composer has included
discussion points about
the painting and choral
that can be used in
rehearsal or classroom.
Incredible teaching
opportunities abound!
Composed by Ruth Morris
Gray. Shawnee Press.
Concert. Octavo. 12
pages. Duration 180
seconds. Published by
Shawnee Press
(HL.1312733).
ISBN
9798350109504. UPC:
196288177647.
6.75x10.5x0.029
inches.
“The
Starry Night†by
Vincent Van Gogh is the
composer's inspiration
for this choral, which is
filled imagery from the
painting. The text is
created from a quote by
Van Gogh, “For my
part, I know nothing with
any certainly, but the
sight of the stars makes
me dream.†The
composer has included
discussion points about
the painting and choral
that can be used in
rehearsal or classroom.
Incredible teaching
opportunities abound!
Composed
by Ruth Morris Gray.
Shawnee Press. Concert.
Octavo. 12 pages.
Duration 180 seconds.
Published by Shawnee
Press (HL.1312732).
ISBN 9798350109498.
UPC: 196288177630.
6.75x10.5x0.036
inches.
“The
Starry Night†by
Vincent Van Gogh is the
composer's inspiration
for this choral, which is
filled imagery from the
painting. The text is
created from a quote by
Van Gogh, “For my
part, I know nothing with
any certainly, but the
sight of the stars makes
me dream.†The
composer has included
discussion points about
the painting and choral
that can be used in
rehearsal or classroom.
Incredible teaching
opportunities abound!
Quicksilver Saxophone Alto et Piano Theodore Presser Co.
Chamber Music Piano, alto Saxophone SKU: PR.114419850 Composed by Stacy G...(+)
Chamber Music Piano, alto
Saxophone
SKU:
PR.114419850
Composed
by Stacy Garrop. Sws. See
lengthy program note on
prefatory page. Set of
Score and Parts. 44+24
pages. Duration 23
minutes. Theodore Presser
Company #114-41985.
Published by Theodore
Presser Company
(PR.114419850).
ISBN
9781491135808. UPC:
680160681044. 9 x 12
inches.
Both a
spectacular concerto for
saxophone, and a dramatic
tone poem on Roman
mythology, QUICKSILVER is
a 23-minute concerto for
Alto Saxophone and Wind
Ensemble by one of the
sax literature’s
most commissioned and
admired composers.Through
worded captions as well
as gorgeously expressive
tone painting, Movement 1
depicts the birth and
childhood pranks of
Mercury, Movement 2 shows
him escorting souls to
the gates of the
Underworld, and Movement
3 is a phantasmagoric
finale portraying Mercury
as messenger amid the
conflicts of other
mythological figures.
There are many YouTube
performances available,
both in the original
version with Wind
Ensemble, and with
Piano. In addition to
being another name for
the element mercury,
“quicksilverâ€
is used to describe
something that changes
quickly or is difficult
to contain. My concerto
of the same name was
inspired by the Roman god
Mercury, as well as the
mercurial nature of the
saxophone: unpredictable,
very lively, and
volatile. Mercury (known
as Hermes in Greek
mythology) is best known
for his winged shoes,
which allowed him to fly
swiftly as the messenger
of his fellow Olympians.
Mercury had other duties
too, including serving as
the god of merchants,
travelers, and
tricksters; he also
ushered souls of the
departed to the
Underworld.Quicksilver
tells three tales of the
Roman god. The first
movement (Antics of a
Newborn God) opens with
the birth of Mercury;
after he takes his first
steps, he toddles around,
gleefully looking for
mischief. He stumbles
across a herd of cows
that belong to his
brother Apollo; Mercury
slyly lets the cows out
of their pen before
toddling onward with his
mischief-making.In the
second movement (Guiding
Souls to the Underworld),
Pluto, god of the
Underworld, bids Mercury
to bring him fresh souls.
The movement begins with
death-knells tolling for
humans who are about to
die; Mercury picks up
these souls and leads
them down to the gates of
the Underworld.The third
and final movement
(Messenger of Olympus)
depicts Mercury as he is
busily running errands
for various gods and
goddesses. We first
encounter him mid-flight
as he dashes to earth to
find Aeneas, a Trojan
lieutenant who had been
run out of Troy by the
invading Greeks. Aeneas
is on a quest to find
land on which to
establish a new city that
would eventually become
Rome. While traveling, he
is distracted from his
quest when he meets the
beautiful queen Dido.
They live together for
many years before Mercury
intervenes; he chastises
Aeneas for giving up on
his quest and persuades
him to pick it up again.
As Aeneas mournfully
resumes his journey, we
hear Dido perish of a
broken heart. Mercury
then takes to the skies
to seek out Perseus, who
is preparing to kill
Medusa, the hideous
gorgon who has snakes for
hair and a gaze that
turns those who catch her
glance into stone.
Mercury advises Perseus
on how to slay Medusa and
lends Perseus his sword
to do the deed. We hear
Perseus victorious in the
beheading of Medusa,
after which Mercury takes
to the skies once more to
fly home to Olympus.
For Chamber
Orchestra. Composed
by James Matheson. This
edition: Version 6/10/10.
Contemporary. Large
Score. With Standard
notation. Composed
February 13 2003. 84
pages. Duration 18
minutes. Theodore Presser
Company #416-41423L.
Published by Theodore
Presser Company
(PR.41641423L).
UPC:
680160602094. 11 x 14
inches.
Colonnade
is inspired by Albanys
majestic New York State
Board of Education
Building, and written on
a commission from the
Albany Symphony
Orchestra. It was an
intriguing task, in part
because in order to
accept the commission I
had to agree to write a
work inspired by a
building I had not yet
seen. This problem was
compounded by the fact
that, for me, the very
notion of extra-musical
inspiration is a complex
one, particularly with
respect to literary or
visual sources. I
generally find ideas and
abstracted notions more
generative of musical
ideas than specific ones
(a poem, an experience, a
painting). So when I went
to see and tour the
building, I sought to
identify fundamental
formal aspects of the
building which I could
process into musical
ideas, and would then be
linked to the building
through a sense of formal
relationship. In the end,
two characteristics of
the building stood out as
noteworthy and
undiminished by time
(compared with, for
instance, the buildings
rotunda, which contains a
series of quaintly
outdated allegorical
paintings): the exterior
colonnade and a beautiful
interior vaulted ceiling,
designed by Rafael
Guastavino. For me, a
colonnade acts as a
metaphor for the tension
between knowledge and
perception. We all know,
for instance, that the
columns are of the same
height and are
equidistant from each
other. Nevertheless,
while the mind
understands this fully,
it is also the case that
there exists no place no
standpoint or viewpoint
anywhere in the universe
from which one can
perceive this; the
columns always appear to
be of uneven height and
spacing. If one then adds
motion to perspective a
walk along the colonnade,
for instance the fixed,
even, rigidly identical
columns acquire
elasticity, and begin to
change kaleidoscopically
they shrink, grow, become
closer, and then further
apart. Further, the
detail of the buildings
facade behind the
colonnade shifts into and
out of visibility, with
different portions
obscured by the columns
from each vantage point.
These considerations
underlie the outer
sections of Colonnade, in
which a continuously
repeated, continuously
varied rising figure
suggestive of a column
dominates. The iterations
of this elastic, evolving
figure are interspersed
with other music
suggestive of the
buildings facade. The
second feature of the
building that caught my
attention was the vaulted
ceiling, designed by
Guastavino, of one of the
buildings largest rooms.
The ceiling enhances the
spaciousness of the room,
giving it an openness and
lightness that is quite
captivating. The middle
section of Colonnade has
this openness at its
core, and is dominated by
long, arching lines that,
to me, suggest the
refined beauty of this
ceiling. World premiere
March 8, 2003; Albany
Symphony Orchestra
conducted by David Alan
Miller.
Seven Songs About Poets and Poetry for Mezzo-Soprano (or Soprano) and Piano. By ...(+)
Seven Songs About Poets
and Poetry for
Mezzo-Soprano (or
Soprano) and Piano. By
Leo Smit. Text: Emily
Dickinson. For
Mezzo-Soprano, Soprano,
Piano. The Ecstatic
Pilgrimage: Cycle VI.
Classical. Piano/Vocal
Score. Composed 1989. 12
pages. Duration 9:30.
Published by Theodore
Presser Company.