Chamber Music Piano SKU: CF.PL1056 Composed by Clara Wieck-Schumann, Fran...(+)
Chamber Music Piano
SKU: CF.PL1056
Composed by Clara
Wieck-Schumann, Franz
Schubert, and Robert
Schumann. Edited by
Nicholas Hopkins.
Collection. With Standard
notation. 128 pages. Carl
Fischer Music #PL1056.
Published by Carl Fischer
Music (CF.PL1056).
ISBN 9781491153390.
UPC: 680160910892.
Transcribed by Franz
Liszt.
Introduction
It is true that Schubert
himself is somewhat to
blame for the very
unsatisfactory manner in
which his admirable piano
pieces are treated. He
was too immoderately
productive, wrote
incessantly, mixing
insignificant with
important things, grand
things with mediocre
work, paid no heed to
criticism, and always
soared on his wings. Like
a bird in the air, he
lived in music and sang
in angelic fashion.
--Franz Liszt, letter to
Dr. S. Lebert (1868) Of
those compositions that
greatly interest me,
there are only Chopin's
and yours. --Franz Liszt,
letter to Robert Schumann
(1838) She [Clara
Schumann] was astounded
at hearing me. Her
compositions are really
very remarkable,
especially for a woman.
There is a hundred times
more creativity and real
feeling in them than in
all the past and present
fantasias by Thalberg.
--Franz Liszt, letter to
Marie d'Agoult (1838)
Chretien Urhan
(1790-1845) was a
Belgian-born violinist,
organist and composer who
flourished in the musical
life of Paris in the
early nineteenth century.
According to various
accounts, he was deeply
religious, harshly
ascetic and wildly
eccentric, though revered
by many important and
influential members of
the Parisian musical
community. Regrettably,
history has forgotten
Urhan's many musical
achievements, the most
important of which was
arguably his pioneering
work in promoting the
music of Franz Schubert.
He devoted much of his
energies to championing
Schubert's music, which
at the time was unknown
outside of Vienna.
Undoubtedly, Urhan was
responsible for
stimulating this
enthusiasm in Franz
Liszt; Liszt regularly
heard Urhan's organ
playing in the
St.-Vincent-de-Paul
church in Paris, and the
two became personal
acquaintances. At
eighteen years of age,
Liszt was on the verge of
establishing himself as
the foremost pianist in
Europe, and this
awakening to Schubert's
music would prove to be a
profound experience.
Liszt's first travels
outside of his native
provincial Hungary were
to Vienna in 1821-1823,
where his father enrolled
him in studies with Carl
Czerny (piano) and
Antonio Salieri (music
theory). Both men had
important involvements
with Schubert; Czerny
(like Urhan) as performer
and advocate of
Schubert's music and
Salieri as his theory and
composition teacher from
1813-1817. Curiously,
Liszt and Schubert never
met personally, despite
their geographical
proximity in Vienna
during these years.
Inevitably, legends later
arose that the two had
been personal
acquaintances, although
Liszt would dismiss these
as fallacious: I never
knew Schubert personally,
he was once quoted as
saying. Liszt's initial
exposure to Schubert's
music was the Lieder,
what Urhan prized most of
all. He accompanied the
tenor Benedict
Randhartinger in numerous
performances of
Schubert's Lieder and
then, perhaps realizing
that he could benefit the
composer more on his own
terms, transcribed a
number of the Lieder for
piano solo. Many of these
transcriptions he would
perform himself on
concert tour during the
so-called Glanzzeit, or
time of splendor from
1839-1847. This publicity
did much to promote
reception of Schubert's
music throughout Europe.
Once Liszt retired from
the concert stage and
settled in Weimar as a
conductor in the 1840s,
he continued to perform
Schubert's orchestral
music, his Symphony No. 9
being a particular
favorite, and is credited
with giving the world
premiere performance of
Schubert's opera Alfonso
und Estrella in 1854. At
this time, he
contemplated writing a
biography of the
composer, which
regrettably remained
uncompleted. Liszt's
devotion to Schubert
would never waver.
Liszt's relationship with
Robert and Clara Schumann
was far different and far
more complicated; by
contrast, they were all
personal acquaintances.
What began as a
relationship of mutual
respect and admiration
soon deteriorated into
one of jealousy and
hostility, particularly
on the Schumann's part.
Liszt's initial contact
with Robert's music
happened long before they
had met personally, when
Liszt published an
analysis of Schumann's
piano music for the
Gazette musicale in 1837,
a gesture that earned
Robert's deep
appreciation. In the
following year Clara met
Liszt during a concert
tour in Vienna and
presented him with more
of Schumann's piano
music. Clara and her
father Friedrich Wieck,
who accompanied Clara on
her concert tours, were
quite taken by Liszt: We
have heard Liszt. He can
be compared to no other
player...he arouses
fright and astonishment.
His appearance at the
piano is indescribable.
He is an original...he is
absorbed by the piano.
Liszt, too, was impressed
with Clara--at first the
energy, intelligence and
accuracy of her piano
playing and later her
compositions--to the
extent that he dedicated
to her the 1838 version
of his Etudes d'execution
transcendante d'apres
Paganini. Liszt had a
closer personal
relationship with Clara
than with Robert until
the two men finally met
in 1840. Schumann was
astounded by Liszt's
piano playing. He wrote
to Clara that Liszt had
played like a god and had
inspired indescribable
furor of applause. His
review of Liszt even
included a heroic
personification with
Napoleon. In Leipzig,
Schumann was deeply
impressed with Liszt's
interpretations of his
Noveletten, Op. 21 and
Fantasy in C Major, Op.
17 (dedicated to Liszt),
enthusiastically
observing that, I feel as
if I had known you twenty
years. Yet a variety of
events followed that
diminished Liszt's glory
in the eyes of the
Schumanns. They became
critical of the cult-like
atmosphere that arose
around his recitals, or
Lisztomania as it came to
be called; conceivably,
this could be attributed
to professional jealousy.
Clara, in particular,
came to loathe Liszt,
noting in a letter to
Joseph Joachim, I despise
Liszt from the depths of
my soul. She recorded a
stunning diary entry a
day after Liszt's death,
in which she noted, He
was an eminent keyboard
virtuoso, but a dangerous
example for the
young...As a composer he
was terrible. By
contrast, Liszt did not
share in these negative
sentiments; no evidence
suggests that he had any
ill-regard for the
Schumanns. In Weimar, he
did much to promote
Schumann's music,
conducting performances
of his Scenes from Faust
and Manfred, during a
time in which few
orchestras expressed
interest, and premiered
his opera Genoveva. He
later arranged a benefit
concert for Clara
following Robert's death,
featuring Clara as
soloist in Robert's Piano
Concerto, an event that
must have been
exhilarating to witness.
Regardless, her opinion
of him would never
change, despite his
repeated gestures of
courtesy and respect.
Liszt's relationship with
Schubert was a spiritual
one, with music being the
one and only link between
the two men. That with
the Schumanns was
personal, with music
influenced by a hero
worship that would
aggravate the
relationship over time.
Nonetheless, Liszt would
remain devoted to and
enthusiastic for the
music and achievements of
these composers. He would
be a vital force in
disseminating their music
to a wider audience, as
he would be with many
other composers
throughout his career.
His primary means for
accomplishing this was
the piano transcription.
Liszt and the
Transcription
Transcription versus
Paraphrase Transcription
and paraphrase were
popular terms in
nineteenth-century music,
although certainly not
unique to this period.
Musicians understood that
there were clear
distinctions between
these two terms, but as
is often the case these
distinctions could be
blurred. Transcription,
literally writing over,
entails reworking or
adapting a piece of music
for a performance medium
different from that of
its original; arrangement
is a possible synonym.
Adapting is a key part of
this process, for the
success of a
transcription relies on
the transcriber's ability
to adapt the piece to the
different medium. As a
result, the pre-existing
material is generally
kept intact, recognizable
and intelligible; it is
strict, literal,
objective. Contextual
meaning is maintained in
the process, as are
elements of style and
form. Paraphrase, by
contrast, implies
restating something in a
different manner, as in a
rewording of a document
for reasons of clarity.
In nineteenth-century
music, paraphrasing
indicated elaborating a
piece for purposes of
expressive virtuosity,
often as a vehicle for
showmanship. Variation is
an important element, for
the source material may
be varied as much as the
paraphraser's imagination
will allow; its purpose
is metamorphosis.
Transcription is adapting
and arranging;
paraphrasing is
transforming and
reworking. Transcription
preserves the style of
the original; paraphrase
absorbs the original into
a different style.
Transcription highlights
the original composer;
paraphrase highlights the
paraphraser.
Approximately half of
Liszt's compositional
output falls under the
category of transcription
and paraphrase; it is
noteworthy that he never
used the term
arrangement. Much of his
early compositional
activities were
transcriptions and
paraphrases of works of
other composers, such as
the symphonies of
Beethoven and Berlioz,
vocal music by Schubert,
and operas by Donizetti
and Bellini. It is
conceivable that he
focused so intently on
work of this nature early
in his career as a means
to perfect his
compositional technique,
although transcription
and paraphrase continued
well after the technique
had been mastered; this
might explain why he
drastically revised and
rewrote many of his
original compositions
from the 1830s (such as
the Transcendental Etudes
and Paganini Etudes) in
the 1850s. Charles Rosen,
a sympathetic interpreter
of Liszt's piano works,
observes, The new
revisions of the
Transcendental Etudes are
not revisions but concert
paraphrases of the old,
and their art lies in the
technique of
transformation. The
Paganini etudes are piano
transcriptions of violin
etudes, and the
Transcendental Etudes are
piano transcriptions of
piano etudes. The
principles are the same.
He concludes by noting,
Paraphrase has shaded off
into
composition...Composition
and paraphrase were not
identical for him, but
they were so closely
interwoven that
separation is impossible.
The significance of
transcription and
paraphrase for Liszt the
composer cannot be
overstated, and the
mutual influence of each
needs to be better
understood. Undoubtedly,
Liszt the composer as we
know him today would be
far different had he not
devoted so much of his
career to transcribing
and paraphrasing the
music of others. He was
perhaps one of the first
composers to contend that
transcription and
paraphrase could be
genuine art forms on
equal par with original
pieces; he even claimed
to be the first to use
these two terms to
describe these classes of
arrangements. Despite the
success that Liszt
achieved with this type
of work, others viewed it
with circumspection and
criticism. Robert
Schumann, although deeply
impressed with Liszt's
keyboard virtuosity, was
harsh in his criticisms
of the transcriptions.
Schumann interpreted them
as indicators that
Liszt's virtuosity had
hindered his
compositional development
and suggested that Liszt
transcribed the music of
others to compensate for
his own compositional
deficiencies.
Nonetheless, Liszt's
piano transcriptions,
what he sometimes called
partitions de piano (or
piano scores), were
instrumental in promoting
composers whose music was
unknown at the time or
inaccessible in areas
outside of major European
capitals, areas that
Liszt willingly toured
during his Glanzzeit. To
this end, the
transcriptions had to be
literal arrangements for
the piano; a Beethoven
symphony could not be
introduced to an
unknowing audience if its
music had been subjected
to imaginative
elaborations and
variations. The same
would be true of the 1833
transcription of
Berlioz's Symphonie
fantastique (composed
only three years
earlier), the
astonishingly novel
content of which would
necessitate a literal and
intelligible rendering.
Opera, usually more
popular and accessible
for the general public,
was a different matter,
and in this realm Liszt
could paraphrase the
original and manipulate
it as his imagination
would allow without
jeopardizing its
reception; hence, the
paraphrases on the operas
of Bellini, Donizetti,
Mozart, Meyerbeer and
Verdi. Reminiscence was
another term coined by
Liszt for the opera
paraphrases, as if the
composer were reminiscing
at the keyboard following
a memorable evening at
the opera. Illustration
(reserved on two
occasions for Meyerbeer)
and fantasy were
additional terms. The
operas of Wagner were
exceptions. His music was
less suited to paraphrase
due to its general lack
of familiarity at the
time. Transcription of
Wagner's music was thus
obligatory, as it was of
Beethoven's and Berlioz's
music; perhaps the
composer himself insisted
on this approach. Liszt's
Lieder Transcriptions
Liszt's initial
encounters with
Schubert's music, as
mentioned previously,
were with the Lieder. His
first transcription of a
Schubert Lied was Die
Rose in 1833, followed by
Lob der Tranen in 1837.
Thirty-nine additional
transcriptions appeared
at a rapid pace over the
following three years,
and in 1846, the Schubert
Lieder transcriptions
would conclude, by which
point he had completed
fifty-eight, the most of
any composer. Critical
response to these
transcriptions was highly
favorable--aside from the
view held by
Schumann--particularly
when Liszt himself played
these pieces in concert.
Some were published
immediately by Anton
Diabelli, famous for the
theme that inspired
Beethoven's variations.
Others were published by
the Viennese publisher
Tobias Haslinger (one of
Beethoven's and
Schubert's publishers in
the 1820s), who sold his
reserves so quickly that
he would repeatedly plead
for more. However,
Liszt's enthusiasm for
work of this nature soon
became exhausted, as he
noted in a letter of 1839
to the publisher
Breitkopf und Hartel:
That good Haslinger
overwhelms me with
Schubert. I have just
sent him twenty-four new
songs (Schwanengesang and
Winterreise), and for the
moment I am rather tired
of this work. Haslinger
was justified in his
demands, for the Schubert
transcriptions were
received with great
enthusiasm. One Gottfried
Wilhelm Fink, then editor
of the Allgemeine
musikalische Zeitung,
observed of these
transcriptions: Nothing
in recent memory has
caused such sensation and
enjoyment in both
pianists and audiences as
these arrangements...The
demand for them has in no
way been satisfied; and
it will not be until
these arrangements are
seen on pianos
everywhere. They have
indeed made quite a
splash. Eduard Hanslick,
never a sympathetic
critic of Liszt's music,
acknowledged thirty years
after the fact that,
Liszt's transcriptions of
Schubert Lieder were
epoch-making. There was
hardly a concert in which
Liszt did not have to
play one or two of
them--even when they were
not listed on the
program. These
transcriptions quickly
became some of his most
sough-after pieces,
despite their extreme
technical demands.
Leading pianists of the
day, such as Clara Wieck
and Sigismond Thalberg,
incorporated them into
their concert programs
immediately upon
publication. Moreover,
the transcriptions would
serve as inspirations for
other composers, such as
Stephen Heller, Cesar
Franck and later Leopold
Godowsky, all of whom
produced their own
transcriptions of
Schubert's Lieder. Liszt
would transcribe the
Lieder of other composers
as well, including those
by Mendelssohn, Chopin,
Anton Rubinstein and even
himself. Robert Schumann,
of course, would not be
ignored. The first
transcription of a
Schumann Lied was the
celebrated Widmung from
Myrten in 1848, the only
Schumann transcription
that Liszt completed
during the composer's
lifetime. (Regrettably,
there is no evidence of
Schumann's regard of this
transcription, or even if
he was aware of it.) From
the years 1848-1881,
Liszt transcribed twelve
of Robert Schumann's
Lieder (including one
orchestral Lied) and
three of Clara (one from
each of her three
published Lieder cycles);
he would transcribe no
other works of these two
composers. The Schumann
Lieder transcriptions,
contrary to those of
Schubert, are literal
arrangements, posing, in
general, far fewer
demands on the pianist's
technique. They are
comparatively less
imaginative in their
treatment of the original
material. Additionally,
they seem to have been
less valued in their day
than the Schubert
transcriptions, and it is
noteworthy that none of
the Schumann
transcriptions bear
dedications, as most of
the Schubert
transcriptions do. The
greatest challenge posed
by Lieder transcriptions,
regardless of the
composer or the nature of
the transcription, was to
combine the vocal and
piano parts of the
original such that the
character of each would
be preserved, a challenge
unique to this form of
transcription. Each part
had to be intact and
aurally recognizable, the
vocal line in particular.
Complications could be
manifold in a Lied that
featured dissimilar
parts, such as Schubert's
Auf dem Wasser zu singen,
whose piano accompaniment
depicts the rocking of
the boat on the
shimmering waves while
the vocal line reflects
on the passing of time.
Similar complications
would be encountered in
Gretchen am Spinnrade, in
which the ubiquitous
sixteenth-note pattern in
the piano's right hand
epitomizes the
ever-turning spinning
wheel over which the
soprano voice expresses
feelings of longing and
heartache. The resulting
transcriptions for solo
piano would place
exceptional demands on
the pianist. The
complications would be
far less imposing in
instances in which voice
and piano were less
differentiated, as in
many of Schumann's Lieder
that Liszt transcribed.
The piano parts in these
Lieder are true
accompaniments for the
voice, providing harmonic
foundation and rhythmic
support by doubling the
vocal line throughout.
The transcriptions, thus,
are strict and literal,
with far fewer demands on
both pianist and
transcriber. In all of
Liszt's Lieder
transcriptions,
regardless of the way in
which the two parts are
combined, the melody
(i.e. the vocal line) is
invariably the focal
point; the melody should
sing on the piano, as if
it were the voice. The
piano part, although
integral to contributing
to the character of the
music, is designed to
function as
accompaniment. A singing
melody was a crucial
objective in
nineteenth-century piano
performance, which in
part might explain the
zeal in transcribing and
paraphrasing vocal music
for the piano. Friedrich
Wieck, father and teacher
of Clara Schumann,
stressed this point
repeatedly in his 1853
treatise Clavier und
Gesang (Piano and Song):
When I speak in general
of singing, I refer to
that species of singing
which is a form of
beauty, and which is a
foundation for the most
refined and most perfect
interpretation of music;
and, above all things, I
consider the culture of
beautiful tones the basis
for the finest possible
touch on the piano. In
many respects, the piano
and singing should
explain and supplement
each other. They should
mutually assist in
expressing the sublime
and the noble, in forms
of unclouded beauty. Much
of Liszt's piano music
should be interpreted
with this concept in
mind, the Lieder
transcriptions and opera
paraphrases, in
particular. To this end,
Liszt provided numerous
written instructions to
the performer to
emphasize the vocal line
in performance, with
Italian directives such
as un poco marcato il
canto, accentuato assai
il canto and ben
pronunziato il canto.
Repeated indications of
cantando,singend and
espressivo il canto
stress the significance
of the singing tone. As
an additional means of
achieving this and
providing the performer
with access to the
poetry, Liszt insisted,
at what must have been a
publishing novelty at the
time, on printing the
words of the Lied in the
music itself. Haslinger,
seemingly oblivious to
Liszt's intent, initially
printed the poems of the
early Schubert
transcriptions separately
inside the front covers.
Liszt argued that the
transcriptions must be
reprinted with the words
underlying the notes,
exactly as Schubert had
done, a request that was
honored by printing the
words above the
right-hand staff. Liszt
also incorporated a
visual scheme for
distinguishing voice and
accompaniment, influenced
perhaps by Chopin, by
notating the
accompaniment in cue
size. His transcription
of Robert Schumann's
Fruhlings Ankunft
features the vocal line
in normal size, the piano
accompaniment in reduced
size, an unmistakable
guide in a busy texture
as to which part should
be emphasized: Example 1.
Schumann-Liszt Fruhlings
Ankunft, mm. 1-2. The
same practice may be
found in the
transcription of
Schumann's An die Turen
will ich schleichen. In
this piece, the performer
must read three staves,
in which the baritone
line in the central staff
is to be shared between
the two hands based on
the stem direction of the
notes: Example 2.
Schumann-Liszt An die
Turen will ich
schleichen, mm. 1-5. This
notational practice is
extremely beneficial in
this instance, given the
challenge of reading
three staves and the
manner in which the vocal
line is performed by the
two hands. Curiously,
Liszt did not use this
practice in other
transcriptions.
Approaches in Lieder
Transcription Liszt
adopted a variety of
approaches in his Lieder
transcriptions, based on
the nature of the source
material, the ways in
which the vocal and piano
parts could be combined
and the ways in which the
vocal part could sing.
One approach, common with
strophic Lieder, in which
the vocal line would be
identical in each verse,
was to vary the register
of the vocal part. The
transcription of Lob der
Tranen, for example,
incorporates three of the
four verses of the
original Lied, with the
register of the vocal
line ascending one octave
with each verse (from low
to high), as if three
different voices were
participating. By the
conclusion, the music
encompasses the entire
range of Liszt's keyboard
to produce a stunning
climactic effect, and the
variety of register of
the vocal line provides a
welcome textural variety
in the absence of the
words. The three verses
of the transcription of
Auf dem Wasser zu singen
follow the same approach,
in which the vocal line
ascends from the tenor,
to the alto and to the
soprano registers with
each verse.
Fruhlingsglaube adopts
the opposite approach, in
which the vocal line
descends from soprano in
verse 1 to tenor in verse
2, with the second part
of verse 2 again resuming
the soprano register;
this is also the case in
Das Wandern from
Mullerlieder. Gretchen am
Spinnrade posed a unique
problem. Since the poem's
narrator is female, and
the poem represents an
expression of her longing
for her lover Faust,
variation of the vocal
line's register, strictly
speaking, would have been
impractical. For this
reason, the vocal line
remains in its original
register throughout,
relentlessly colliding
with the sixteenth-note
pattern of the
accompaniment. One
exception may be found in
the fifth and final verse
in mm. 93-112, at which
point the vocal line is
notated in a higher
register and doubled in
octaves. This sudden
textural change, one that
is readily audible, was a
strategic means to
underscore Gretchen's
mounting anxiety (My
bosom urges itself toward
him. Ah, might I grasp
and hold him! And kiss
him as I would wish, at
his kisses I should
die!). The transcription,
thus, becomes a vehicle
for maximizing the
emotional content of the
poem, an exceptional
undertaking with the
general intent of a
transcription. Registral
variation of the vocal
part also plays a crucial
role in the transcription
of Erlkonig. Goethe's
poem depicts the death of
a child who is
apprehended by a
supernatural Erlking, and
Schubert, recognizing the
dramatic nature of the
poem, carefully depicted
the characters (father,
son and Erlking) through
unique vocal writing and
accompaniment patterns:
the Lied is a dramatic
entity. Liszt, in turn,
followed Schubert's
characterization in this
literal transcription,
yet took it an additional
step by placing the
register of the father's
vocal line in the
baritone range, that of
the son in the soprano
range and that of the
Erlking in the highest
register, options that
would not have been
available in the version
for voice and piano.
Additionally, Liszt
labeled each appearance
of each character in the
score, a means for
guiding the performer in
interpreting the dramatic
qualities of the Lied. As
a result, the drama and
energy of the poem are
enhanced in this
transcription; as with
Gretchen am Spinnrade,
the transcriber has
maximized the content of
the original. Elaboration
may be found in certain
Lieder transcriptions
that expand the
performance to a level of
virtuosity not found in
the original; in such
cases, the transcription
approximates the
paraphrase. Schubert's Du
bist die Ruh, a paradigm
of musical simplicity,
features an uncomplicated
piano accompaniment that
is virtually identical in
each verse. In Liszt's
transcription, the
material is subjected to
a highly virtuosic
treatment that far
exceeds the original,
including a demanding
passage for the left hand
alone in the opening
measures and unique
textural writing in each
verse. The piece is a
transcription in
virtuosity; its art, as
Rosen noted, lies in the
technique of
transformation.
Elaboration may entail an
expansion of the musical
form, as in the extensive
introduction to Die
Forelle and a virtuosic
middle section (mm.
63-85), both of which are
not in the original. Also
unique to this
transcription are two
cadenzas that Liszt
composed in response to
the poetic content. The
first, in m. 93 on the
words und eh ich es
gedacht (and before I
could guess it), features
a twisted chromatic
passage that prolongs and
thereby heightens the
listener's suspense as to
the fate of the trout
(which is ultimately
caught). The second, in
m. 108 on the words
Betrogne an (and my blood
boiled as I saw the
betrayed one), features a
rush of
diminished-seventh
arpeggios in both hands,
epitomizing the poet's
rage at the fisherman for
catching the trout. Less
frequent are instances in
which the length of the
original Lied was
shortened in the
transcription, a tendency
that may be found with
certain strophic Lieder
(e.g., Der Leiermann,
Wasserflut and Das
Wandern). Another
transcription that
demonstrates Liszt's
readiness to modify the
original in the interests
of the poetic content is
Standchen, the seventh
transcription from
Schubert's
Schwanengesang. Adapted
from Act II of
Shakespeare's Cymbeline,
the poem represents the
repeated beckoning of a
man to his lover. Liszt
transformed the Lied into
a miniature drama by
transcribing the vocal
line of the first verse
in the soprano register,
that of the second verse
in the baritone register,
in effect, creating a
dialogue between the two
lovers. In mm. 71-102,
the dialogue becomes a
canon, with one voice
trailing the other like
an echo (as labeled in
the score) at the
distance of a beat. As in
other instances, the
transcription resembles
the paraphrase, and it is
perhaps for this reason
that Liszt provided an
ossia version that is
more in the nature of a
literal transcription.
The ossia version, six
measures shorter than
Schubert's original, is
less demanding
technically than the
original transcription,
thus representing an
ossia of transcription
and an ossia of piano
technique. The Schumann
Lieder transcriptions, in
general, display a less
imaginative treatment of
the source material.
Elaborations are less
frequently encountered,
and virtuosity is more
restricted, as if the
passage of time had
somewhat tamed the
composer's approach to
transcriptions;
alternatively, Liszt was
eager to distance himself
from the fierce
virtuosity of his early
years. In most instances,
these transcriptions are
literal arrangements of
the source material, with
the vocal line in its
original form combined
with the accompaniment,
which often doubles the
vocal line in the
original Lied. Widmung,
the first of the Schumann
transcriptions, is one
exception in the way it
recalls the virtuosity of
the Schubert
transcriptions of the
1830s. Particularly
striking is the closing
section (mm. 58-73), in
which material of the
opening verse (right
hand) is combined with
the triplet quarter notes
(left hand) from the
second section of the
Lied (mm. 32-43), as if
the transcriber were
attempting to reconcile
the different material of
these two sections.
Fruhlingsnacht resembles
a paraphrase by
presenting each of the
two verses in differing
registers (alto for verse
1, mm. 3-19, and soprano
for verse 2, mm. 20-31)
and by concluding with a
virtuosic section that
considerably extends the
length of the original
Lied. The original
tonalities of the Lieder
were generally retained
in the transcriptions,
showing that the tonality
was an important part of
the transcription
process. The infrequent
instances of
transposition were done
for specific reasons. In
1861, Liszt transcribed
two of Schumann's Lieder,
one from Op. 36 (An den
Sonnenschein), another
from Op. 27 (Dem roten
Roslein), and merged
these two pieces in the
collection 2 Lieder; they
share only the common
tonality of A major. His
choice for combining
these two Lieder remains
unknown, but he clearly
recognized that some
tonal variety would be
needed, for which reason
Dem roten Roslein was
transposed to C>= major.
The collection features
An den Sonnenschein in A
major (with a transition
to the new tonality),
followed by Dem roten
Roslein in C>= major
(without a change of key
signature), and
concluding with a reprise
of An den Sonnenschein in
A major. A three-part
form was thus established
with tonal variety
provided by keys in third
relations (A-C>=-A); in
effect, two of Schumann's
Lieder were transcribed
into an archetypal song
without words. In other
instances, Liszt treated
tonality and tonal
organization as important
structural ingredients,
particularly in the
transcriptions of
Schubert's Lieder cycles,
i.e. Schwanengesang,
Winterreise a...
Chamber Music English Horn, Oboe SKU: CF.WF229 15 Pieces for Oboe and ...(+)
Chamber Music English
Horn, Oboe
SKU:
CF.WF229
15 Pieces
for Oboe and English
Horn. Composed by
Gustave Vogt. Edited by
Kristin Jean Leitterman.
Collection - Performance.
32+8 pages. Carl Fischer
Music #WF229. Published
by Carl Fischer Music
(CF.WF229).
Piano and orchestra - difficult SKU: HL.49046544 For piano and orchest...(+)
Piano and orchestra -
difficult
SKU:
HL.49046544
For
piano and orchestra.
Composed by Gyorgy
Ligeti. This edition:
Saddle stitching. Sheet
music. Edition Schott.
Softcover. Composed
1985-1988. Duration 24'.
Schott Music #ED23178.
Published by Schott Music
(HL.49046544).
ISBN
9781705122655. UPC:
842819108726.
9.0x12.0x0.224
inches.
I composed
the Piano Concerto in two
stages: the first three
movements during the
years 1985-86, the next
two in 1987, the final
autograph of the last
movement was ready by
January, 1988. The
concerto is dedicated to
the American conductor
Mario di Bonaventura. The
markings of the movements
are the following: 1.
Vivace molto ritmico e
preciso 2. Lento e
deserto 3. Vivace
cantabile 4. Allegro
risoluto 5. Presto
luminoso.The first
performance of the
three-movement Concerto
was on October 23rd, 1986
in Graz. Mario di
Bonaventura conducted
while his brother,
Anthony di Bonaventura,
was the soloist. Two days
later the performance was
repeated in the Vienna
Konzerthaus. After
hearing the work twice, I
came to the conclusion
that the third movement
is not an adequate
finale; my feeling of
form demanded
continuation, a
supplement. That led to
the composing of the next
two movements. The
premiere of the whole
cycle took place on
February 29th, 1988, in
the Vienna Konzerthaus
with the same conductor
and the same pianist. The
orchestra consisted of
the following: flute,
oboe, clarinet, bassoon,
horn, trumpet, tenor
trombone, percussion and
strings. The flautist
also plays the piccoIo,
the clarinetist, the alto
ocarina. The percussion
is made up of diverse
instruments, which one
musician-virtuoso can
play. It is more
practical, however, if
two or three musicians
share the instruments.
Besides traditional
instruments the
percussion part calls
also for two simple wind
instruments: the swanee
whistle and the
harmonica. The string
instrument parts (two
violins, viola, cello and
doubles bass) can be
performed soloistic since
they do not contain
divisi. For balance,
however, the ensemble
playing is recommended,
for example 6-8 first
violins, 6-8 second, 4-6
violas, 4-6 cellos, 3-4
double basses. In the
Piano Concerto I realized
new concepts of harmony
and rhythm. The first
movement is entirely
written in bimetry:
simultaneously 12/8 and
4/4 (8/8). This relates
to the known triplet on a
doule relation and in
itself is nothing new.
Because, however, I
articulate 12 triola and
8 duola pulses, an
entangled, up till now
unheard kind of polymetry
is created. The rhythm is
additionally complicated
because of asymmetric
groupings inside two
speed layers, which means
accents are
asymmetrically
distributed. These
groups, as in the talea
technique, have a fixed,
continuously repeating
rhythmic structures of
varying lengths in speed
layers of 12/8 and 4/4.
This means that the
repeating pattern in the
12/8 level and the
pattern in the 4/4 level
do not coincide and
continuously give a
kaleidoscope of renewing
combinations. In our
perception we quickly
resign from following
particular rhythmical
successions and that what
is going on in time
appears for us as
something static,
resting. This music, if
it is played properly, in
the right tempo and with
the right accents inside
particular layers, after
a certain time 'rises, as
it were, as a plane after
taking off: the rhythmic
action, too complex to be
able to follow in detail,
begins flying. This
diffusion of individual
structures into a
different global
structure is one of my
basic compositional
concepts: from the end of
the fifties, from the
orchestral works
Apparitions and
Atmospheres I
continuously have been
looking for new ways of
resolving this basic
question. The harmony of
the first movement is
based on mixtures, hence
on the parallel leading
of voices. This technique
is used here in a rather
simple form; later in the
fourth movement it will
be considerably
developed. The second
movement (the only slow
one amongst five
movements) also has a
talea type of structure,
it is however much
simpler rhythmically,
because it contains only
one speed layer. The
melody is consisted in
the development of a
rigorous interval mode in
which two minor seconds
and one major second
alternate therefore nine
notes inside an octave.
This mode is transposed
into different degrees
and it also determines
the harmony of the
movement; however, in
closing episode in the
piano part there is a
combination of diatonics
(white keys) and
pentatonics (black keys)
led in brilliant,
sparkling quasimixtures,
while the orchestra
continues to play in the
nine tone mode. In this
movement I used isolated
sounds and extreme
registers (piccolo in a
very low register,
bassoon in a very high
register, canons played
by the swanee whistle,
the alto ocarina and
brass with a harmon-mute'
damper, cutting sound
combinations of the
piccolo, clarinet and
oboe in an extremely high
register, also
alternating of a
whistle-siren and
xylophone). The third
movement also has one
speed layer and because
of this it appears as
simpler than the first,
but actually the rhythm
is very complicated in a
different way here. Above
the uninterrupted, fast
and regular basic pulse,
thanks to the asymmetric
distribution of accents,
different types of
hemiolas and inherent
melodical patterns appear
(the term was coined by
Gerhard Kubik in relation
to central African
music). If this movement
is played with the
adequate speed and with
very clear accentuation,
illusory
rhythmic-melodical
figures appear. These
figures are not played
directly; they do not
appear in the score, but
exist only in our
perception as a result of
co-operation of different
voices. Already earlier I
had experimented with
illusory rhythmics,
namely in Poeme
symphonique for 100
metronomes (1962), in
Continuum for harpsichord
(1968), in Monument for
two pianos (1976), and
especially in the first
and sixth piano etude
Desordre and Automne a
Varsovie (1985). The
third movement of the
Piano Concerto is up to
now the clearest example
of illusory rhythmics and
illusory melody. In
intervallic and chordal
structure this movement
is based on alternation,
and also inter-relation
of various modal and
quasi-equidistant harmony
spaces. The tempered
twelve-part division of
the octave allows for
diatonical and other
modal interval
successions, which are
not equidistant, but are
based on the alternation
of major and minor
seconds in different
groups. The tempered
system also allows for
the use of the
anhemitonic pentatonic
scale (the black keys of
the piano). From
equidistant scales,
therefore interval
formations which are
based on the division of
an octave in equal
distances, the
twelve-tone tempered
system allows only
chromatics (only minor
seconds) and the six-tone
scale (the whole-tone:
only major seconds).
Moreover, the division of
the octave into four
parts only minor thirds)
and three parts (three
major thirds) is
possible. In several
music cultures different
equidistant divisions of
an octave are accepted,
for example, in the
Javanese slendro into
five parts, in Melanesia
into seven parts, popular
also in southeastern
Asia, and apart from
this, in southern Africa.
This does not mean an
exact equidistance: there
is a certain tolerance
for the inaccurateness of
the interval tuning.
These exotic for us,
Europeans, harmony and
melody have attracted me
for several years.
However I did not want to
re-tune the piano
(microtone deviations
appear in the concerto
only in a few places in
the horn and trombone
parts led in natural
tones). After the period
of experimenting, I got
to pseudo- or
quasiequidistant
intervals, which is
neither whole-tone nor
chromatic: in the
twelve-tone system, two
whole-tone scales are
possible, shifted a minor
second apart from each
other. Therefore, I
connect these two scales
(or sound resources), and
for example, places occur
where the melodies and
figurations in the piano
part are created from
both whole tone scales;
in one band one six-tone
sound resource is
utilized, and in the
other hand, the
complementary. In this
way whole-tonality and
chromaticism mutually
reduce themselves: a type
of deformed
equidistancism is formed,
strangely brilliant and
at the same time
slanting; illusory
harmony, indeed being
created inside the
tempered twelve-tone
system, but in sound
quality not belonging to
it anymore. The
appearance of such
slantedequidistant
harmony fields
alternating with modal
fields and based on
chords built on fifths
(mainly in the piano
part), complemented with
mixtures built on fifths
in the orchestra, gives
this movement an
individual, soft-metallic
colour (a metallic sound
resulting from
harmonics). The fourth
movement was meant to be
the central movement of
the Concerto. Its
melodc-rhythmic elements
(embryos or fragments of
motives) in themselves
are simple. The movement
also begins simply, with
a succession of
overlapping of these
elements in the mixture
type structures. Also
here a kaleidoscope is
created, due to a limited
number of these elements
- of these pebbles in the
kaleidoscope - which
continuously return in
augmentations and
diminutions. Step by
step, however, so that in
the beginning we cannot
hear it, a compiled
rhythmic organization of
the talea type gradually
comes into daylight,
based on the simultaneity
of two mutually shifted
to each other speed
layers (also triplet and
duoles, however, with
different asymmetric
structures than in the
first movement). While
longer rests are
gradually filled in with
motive fragments, we
slowly come to the
conclusion that we have
found ourselves inside a
rhythmic-melodical whirl:
without change in tempo,
only through increasing
the density of the
musical events, a
rotation is created in
the stream of successive
and compiled, augmented
and diminished motive
fragments, and increasing
the density suggests
acceleration. Thanks to
the periodical structure
of the composition,
always new but however of
the same (all the motivic
cells are similar to
earlier ones but none of
them are exactly
repeated; the general
structure is therefore
self-similar), an
impression is created of
a gigantic, indissoluble
network. Also, rhythmic
structures at first
hidden gradually begin to
emerge, two independent
speed layers with their
various internal
accentuations. This
great, self-similar whirl
in a very indirect way
relates to musical
associations, which came
to my mind while watching
the graphic projection of
the mathematical sets of
Julia and of Mandelbrot
made with the help of a
computer. I saw these
wonderful pictures of
fractal creations, made
by scientists from Brema,
Peitgen and Richter, for
the first time in 1984.
From that time they have
played a great role in my
musical concepts. This
does not mean, however,
that composing the fourth
movement I used
mathematical methods or
iterative calculus;
indeed, I did use
constructions which,
however, are not based on
mathematical thinking,
but are rather craftman's
constructions (in this
respect, my attitude
towards mathematics is
similar to that of the
graphic artist Maurits
Escher). I am concerned
rather with intuitional,
poetic, synesthetic
correspondence, not on
the scientific, but on
the poetic level of
thinking. The fifth, very
short Presto movement is
harmonically very simple,
but all the more
complicated in its
rhythmic structure: it is
based on the further
development of ''inherent
patterns of the third
movement. The
quasi-equidistance system
dominates harmonically
and melodically in this
movement, as in the
third, alternating with
harmonic fields, which
are based on the division
of the chromatic whole
into diatonics and
anhemitonic pentatonics.
Polyrhythms and harmonic
mixtures reach their
greatest density, and at
the same time this
movement is strikingly
light, enlightened with
very bright colours: at
first it seems chaotic,
but after listening to it
for a few times it is
easy to grasp its
content: many autonomous
but self-similar figures
which crossing
themselves. I present my
artistic credo in the
Piano Concerto: I
demonstrate my
independence from
criteria of the
traditional avantgarde,
as well as the
fashionable
postmodernism. Musical
illusions which I
consider to be also so
important are not a goal
in itself for me, but a
foundation for my
aesthetical attitude. I
prefer musical forms
which have a more
object-like than
processual character.
Music as frozen time, as
an object in imaginary
space evoked by music in
our imagination, as a
creation which really
develops in time, but in
imagination it exists
simultaneously in all its
moments. The spell of
time, the enduring its
passing by, closing it in
a moment of the present
is my main intention as a
composer. (Gyorgy
Ligeti).
Mvt. 2 from Symphony
No. 6 (Three Places in
the East). Composed
by Dan Welcher. Full
score. 52 pages. Theodore
Presser Company
#165-00102F. Published by
Theodore Presser Company
(PR.16500102F).
ISBN
9781491131749. UPC:
680160680276.
Ever
since the success of my
series of wind ensemble
works Places in the West,
I've been wanting to
write a companion piece
for national parks on the
other side of the north
American continent. The
earlier work, consisting
of GLACIER, THE
YELLOWSTONE FIRES,
ARCHES, and ZION, spanned
some twenty years of my
composing life, and since
the pieces called for
differing groups of
instruments, and were in
slightly different styles
from each other, I never
considered them to be
connected except in their
subject matter. In their
depiction of both the
scenery and the human
history within these
wondrous places, they had
a common goal: awaking
the listener to the
fragile beauty that is in
them; and calling
attention to the ever
more crucial need for
preservation and
protection of these wild
places, unique in all the
world. With this new
work, commissioned by a
consortium of college and
conservatory wind
ensembles led by the
University of Georgia, I
decided to build upon
that same model---but to
solidify the process. The
result, consisting of
three movements (each
named for a different
national park in the
eastern US), is a
bona-fide symphony. While
the three pieces could be
performed separately,
they share a musical
theme---and also a common
style and
instrumentation. It is a
true symphony, in that
the first movement is
long and expository, the
second is a rather
tightly structured
scherzo-with-trio, and
the finale is a true
culmination of the whole.
The first movement,
Everglades, was the
original inspiration for
the entire symphony.
Conceived over the course
of two trips to that
astonishing place (which
the native Americans
called River of Grass,
the subtitle of this
movement), this movement
not only conveys a sense
of the humid, lush, and
even frightening scenery
there---but also an
overview of the entire
settling-of- Florida
experience. It contains
not one, but two native
American chants, and also
presents a view of the
staggering influence of
modern man on this
fragile part of the
world. Beginning with a
slow unfolding marked
Heavy, humid, the music
soon presents a gentle,
lyrical theme in the solo
alto saxophone. This
theme, which goes through
three expansive phrases
with breaks in between,
will appear in all three
movements of the
symphony. After the mood
has been established, the
music opens up to a rich,
warm setting of a
Cherokee morning song,
with the simple happiness
that this part of Florida
must have had prior to
the nineteenth century.
This music, enveloping
and comforting, gradually
gives way to a more
frenetic, driven section
representative of the
intrusion of the white
man. Since Florida was
populated and developed
largely due to the
introduction of a train
system, there's a
suggestion of the
mechanized iron horse
driving straight into the
heartland. At that point,
the native Americans
become considerably less
gentle, and a second
chant seems to stand in
the way of the intruder;
a kind of warning song.
The second part of this
movement shows us the
great swampy center of
the peninsula, with its
wildlife both in and out
of the water. A new theme
appears, sad but noble,
suggesting that this land
is precious and must be
protected by all the
people who inhabit it. At
length, the morning song
reappears in all its
splendor, until the
sunset---with one last
iteration of the warning
song in the solo piccolo.
Functioning as a scherzo,
the second movement,
Great Smoky Mountains,
describes not just that
huge park itself, but one
brave soul's attempt to
climb a mountain there.
It begins with three
iterations of the
UR-theme (which began the
first movement as well),
but this time as up-tempo
brass fanfares in
octaves. Each time it
begins again, the theme
is a little slower and
less confident than the
previous time---almost as
though the hiker were
becoming aware of the
daunting mountain before
him. But then, a steady,
quick-pulsed ostinato
appears, in a constantly
shifting meter system of
2/4- 3/4 in alteration,
and the hike has begun.
Over this, a slower new
melody appears, as the
trek up the mountain
progresses. It's a big
mountain, and the ascent
seems to take quite
awhile, with little
breaks in the hiker's
stride, until at length
he simply must stop and
rest. An oboe solo, over
several free cadenza-like
measures, allows us (and
our friend the hiker) to
catch our breath, and
also to view in the
distance the rocky peak
before us. The goal is
somehow even more
daunting than at first,
being closer and thus
more frighteningly steep.
When we do push off
again, it's at a slower
pace, and with more
careful attention to our
footholds as we trek over
broken rocks. Tantalizing
little views of the
valley at every
switchback make our
determination even
stronger. Finally, we
burst through a stand of
pines and----we're at the
summit! The immensity of
the view is overwhelming,
and ultimately humbling.
A brief coda, while we
sit dazed on the rocks,
ends the movement in a
feeling of triumph. The
final movement, Acadia,
is also about a trip. In
the summer of 2014, I
took a sailing trip with
a dear friend from North
Haven, Maine, to the
southern coast of Mt.
Desert Island in Acadia
National Park. The
experience left me both
exuberant and exhausted,
with an appreciation for
the ocean that I hadn't
had previously. The
approach to Acadia
National Park by water,
too, was thrilling: like
the difference between
climbing a mountain on
foot with riding up on a
ski-lift, I felt I'd
earned the right to be
there. The music for this
movement is entirely
based on the opening
UR-theme. There's a sense
of the water and the
mysterious, quiet deep
from the very beginning,
with seagulls and bell
buoys setting the scene.
As we leave the harbor,
the theme (in a canon
between solo euphonium
and tuba) almost seems as
if large subaquatic
animals are observing our
departure. There are
three themes (call them
A, B and C) in this
seafaring journey---but
they are all based on the
UR theme, in its original
form with octaves
displaced, in an
upside-down form, and in
a backwards version as
well. (The ocean, while
appearing to be
unchanging, is always
changing.) We move out
into the main channel
(A), passing several
islands (B), until we
reach the long draw that
parallels the coastline
called Eggemoggin Reach,
and a sudden burst of new
speed (C). Things
suddenly stop, as if the
wind had died, and we
have a vision: is that
really Mt. Desert Island
we can see off the port
bow, vaguely in the
distance? A chorale of
saxophones seems to
suggest that. We push off
anew as the chorale ends,
and go through all three
themes again---but in
different
instrumentations, and
different keys. At the
final tack-turn, there it
is, for real: Mt. Desert
Island, big as life.
We've made it. As we pull
into the harbor, where
we'll secure the boat for
the night, there's a
feeling of achievement.
Our whale and dolphin
friends return, and we
end our journey with
gratitude and
celebration. I am
profoundly grateful to
Jaclyn Hartenberger,
Professor of Conducting
at the University of
Georgia, for leading the
consortium which provided
the commissioning of this
work.
Choral SA choir, piano SKU: CF.CM9576 1. Who Robbed the Woods 2. Cool ...(+)
Choral SA choir, piano
SKU: CF.CM9576
1. Who Robbed the
Woods 2. Cool is the
Valley Now. Composed
by Paul David Thomas.
Sws. Performance Score.
16 pages. Carl Fischer
Music #CM9576. Published
by Carl Fischer Music
(CF.CM9576).
ISBN
9781491153987. UPC:
680160912483. 6.875 x
10.5 inches. Key: G
minor. English. Emily
Dickinson (1830-1886) ,
Walt Whitman
(1819-1892).
The
two pieces, Who Robbed
the Woods? and O Cool is
the Valley Now, combine
to create a set that both
explores the subtle
beauty, serenity,
fragility, and resiliency
of nature and examines
our relationship to the
natural world around us.
The first song combines a
short poem by Emily
Dickinson with a journal
entry excerpt by Walt
Whitman entitled The
Lesson of the Tree.
Only two stanzas in
length, Dickinsons poem
considers the ways in
which people use and
exploit trees for their
own purposes and asks, on
the trees behalf, who
would do such a thing?
Whitman ponders a trees
silent majesty and power
and its ability to be yet
say nothing at all. The
musical setting begins
and ends in the mode of
G-Dorian while moving
briefly in the middle
section to Bb major. The
Dorian mode, similar to
the natural minor but
with a raised sixth scale
degree, possesses a
mysterious and whimsical
sound, fitting for a poem
that considers the
possibility of talking
trees. The accents and
syncopation of the piano
accompaniment should be
carefully observed, with
particular attention paid
to the syncopation found
in gestures occurring in
mm. 712. The beginning
a cappella
section should be hushed
yet intense; a richer,
fuller sound may be
brought out in the middle
section where the key
shifts to Bb major and
the choir sings of the
many noble qualities of
trees (mm. 3953). O Cool
is the Valley Now also
makes use of a modal
scale. Set primarily in D
Mixolydian, similar to D
major but with a lowered
seventh scale degree,
this modes lack of a
leading tone gives the
melody a folk-tune
quality. The piano should
at all times remain
legato and flowing, its
ascending and descending
gestures, found in mm.
910, imitating the
rolling hills and valleys
evoked in the text. The
phrases of the vocal
lines should also be
flowing and carefully
shaped. Additional rubato
and dynamic subtleties
may be added to
accentuate any number of
the suspensions and
dissonances that occur,
especially on p.
14. The two pieces,
aWho Robbed the Woods?a
and aO Cool is the Valley
Now,a combine to create a
set that both explores
the subtle beauty,
serenity, fragility, and
resiliency of nature and
examines our relationship
to the natural world
around us. The first song
combines a short poem by
Emily Dickinson with a
journal entry excerpt by
Walt Whitman entitled
The Lesson of the
Tree. Only two
stanzas in length,
Dickinsonas poem
considers the ways in
which people use and
exploit trees for their
own purposes and asks, on
the treesa behalf, who
would do such a thing?
Whitman ponders a treeas
silent majesty and power
and its ability to be
ayet say nothing at all.a
The musical setting
begins and ends in the
mode of G-Dorian while
moving briefly in the
middle section to Bb
major. The Dorian mode,
similar to the natural
minor but with a raised
sixth scale degree,
possesses a mysterious
and whimsical sound,
fitting for a poem that
considers the possibility
of talking trees. The
accents and syncopation
of the piano
accompaniment should be
carefully observed, with
particular attention paid
to the syncopation found
in gestures occurring in
mm. 7a12. The beginning
a cappella
section should be hushed
yet intense; a richer,
fuller sound may be
brought out in the middle
section where the key
shifts to Bb major and
the choir sings of the
many noble qualities of
trees (mm. 39a53). O Cool
is the Valley NowA also
makes use of a modal
scale. Set primarily in D
Mixolydian, similar to D
major but with a lowered
seventh scale degree,
this modeas lack of a
leading tone gives the
melody a folk-tune
quality. The piano should
at all times remain
legato and flowing, its
ascending and descending
gestures, found in mm.
9a10, imitating the
rolling hills and valleys
evoked in the text. The
phrases of the vocal
lines should also be
flowing and carefully
shaped. Additional rubato
and dynamic subtleties
may be added to
accentuate any number of
the suspensions and
dissonances that occur,
especially on p.
14. The two pieces,
aWho Robbed the Woods?a
and aO Cool is the Valley
Now,a combine to create a
set that both explores
the subtle beauty,
serenity, fragility, and
resiliency of nature and
examines our relationship
to the natural world
around us. The first song
combines a short poem by
Emily Dickinson with a
journal entry excerpt by
Walt Whitman entitled
The Lesson of the
Tree. Only two
stanzas in length,
Dickinsonas poem
considers the ways in
which people use and
exploit trees for their
own purposes and asks, on
the treesa behalf, who
would do such a thing?
Whitman ponders a treeas
silent majesty and power
and its ability to be
ayet say nothing at all.a
The musical setting
begins and ends in the
mode of G-Dorian while
moving briefly in the
middle section to Bb
major. The Dorian mode,
similar to the natural
minor but with a raised
sixth scale degree,
possesses a mysterious
and whimsical sound,
fitting for a poem that
considers the possibility
of talking trees. The
accents and syncopation
of the piano
accompaniment should be
carefully observed, with
particular attention paid
to the syncopation found
in gestures occurring in
mm. 7a12. The beginning
a cappella
section should be hushed
yet intense; a richer,
fuller sound may be
brought out in the middle
section where the key
shifts to Bb major and
the choir sings of the
many noble qualities of
trees (mm. 39a53). O Cool
is the Valley NowA also
makes use of a modal
scale. Set primarily in D
Mixolydian, similar to D
major but with a lowered
seventh scale degree,
this modeas lack of a
leading tone gives the
melody a folk-tune
quality. The piano should
at all times remain
legato and flowing, its
ascending and descending
gestures, found in mm.
9a10, imitating the
rolling hills and valleys
evoked in the text. The
phrases of the vocal
lines should also be
flowing and carefully
shaped. Additional rubato
and dynamic subtleties
may be added to
accentuate any number of
the suspensions and
dissonances that occur,
especially on p.
14. The two pieces,
Who Robbed the Woods? and
O Cool is the Valley Now,
combine to create a set
that both explores the
subtle beauty, serenity,
fragility, and resiliency
of nature and examines
our relationship to the
natural world around us.
The first song combines a
short poem by Emily
Dickinson with a journal
entry excerpt by Walt
Whitman entitled The
Lesson of the Tree.
Only two stanzas in
length, Dickinson's poem
considers the ways in
which people use and
exploit trees for their
own purposes and asks, on
the trees' behalf, who
would do such a thing?
Whitman ponders a tree's
silent majesty and power
and its ability to be yet
say nothing at all. The
musical setting begins
and ends in the mode of
G-Dorian while moving
briefly in the middle
section to Bb major. The
Dorian mode, similar to
the natural minor but
with a raised sixth scale
degree, possesses a
mysterious and whimsical
sound, fitting for a poem
that considers the
possibility of talking
trees. The accents and
syncopation of the piano
accompaniment should be
carefully observed, with
particular attention paid
to the syncopation found
in gestures occurring in
mm. 7-12. The beginning
a cappella
section should be hushed
yet intense; a richer,
fuller sound may be
brought out in the middle
section where the key
shifts to Bb major and
the choir sings of the
many noble qualities of
trees (mm. 39-53). O Cool
is the Valley Now also
makes use of a modal
scale. Set primarily in D
Mixolydian, similar to D
major but with a lowered
seventh scale degree,
this mode's lack of a
leading tone gives the
melody a folk-tune
quality. The piano should
at all times remain
legato and flowing, its
ascending and descending
gestures, found in mm.
9-10, imitating the
rolling hills and valleys
evoked in the text. The
phrases of the vocal
lines should also be
flowing and carefully
shaped. Additional rubato
and dynamic subtleties
may be added to
accentuate any number of
the suspensions and
dissonances that occur,
especially on p.
14. The two pieces,
Who Robbed the Woods? and
O Cool is the Valley Now,
combine to create a set
that both explores the
subtle beauty, serenity,
fragility, and resiliency
of nature and examines
our relationship to the
natural world around us.
The first song combines a
short poem by Emily
Dickinson with a journal
entry excerpt by Walt
Whitman entitled The
Lesson of the Tree. Only
two stanzas in length,
Dickinson's poem
considers the ways in
which people use and
exploit trees for their
own purposes and asks, on
the trees' behalf, who
would do such a thing?
Whitman ponders a tree's
silent majesty and power
and its ability to be yet
say nothing at all. The
musical setting begins
and ends in the mode of
G-Dorian while moving
briefly in the middle
section to Bb major. The
Dorian mode, similar to
the natural minor but
with a raised sixth scale
degree, possesses a
mysterious and whimsical
sound, fitting for a poem
that considers the
possibility of talking
trees. The accents and
syncopation of the piano
accompaniment should be
carefully observed, with
particular attention paid
to the syncopation found
in gestures occurring in
mm. 7-12. The beginning a
cappella section should
be hushed yet intense; a
richer, fuller sound may
be brought out in the
middle section where the
key shifts to Bb major
and the choir sings of
the many noble qualities
of trees (mm. 39-53). O
Cool is the Valley Now
also makes use of a modal
scale. Set primarily in D
Mixolydian, similar to D
major but with a lowered
seventh scale degree,
this mode's lack of a
leading tone gives the
melody a folk-tune
quality. The piano should
at all times remain
legato and flowing, its
ascending and descending
gestures, found in mm.
9-10, imitating the
rolling hills and valleys
evoked in the text. The
phrases of the vocal
lines should also be
flowing and carefully
shaped. Additional rubato
and dynamic subtleties
may be added to
accentuate any number of
the suspensions and
dissonances that occur,
especially on p.
14. The two pieces,
“Who Robbed the
Woods?†and
“O Cool is the
Valley Now,â€
combine to create a set
that both explores the
subtle beauty, serenity,
fragility, and resiliency
of nature and examines
our relationship to the
natural world around
us.The first song
combines a short poem by
Emily Dickinson with a
journal entry excerpt by
Walt Whitman entitled The
Lesson of the Tree. Only
two stanzas in length,
Dickinson’s poem
considers the ways in
which people use and
exploit trees for their
own purposes and asks, on
the trees’ behalf,
who would do such a
thing? Whitman ponders a
tree’s silent
majesty and power and its
ability to be “yet
say nothing at
all.â€The musical
setting begins and ends
in the mode of G-Dorian
while moving briefly in
the middle section to Bb
major. The Dorian mode,
similar to the natural
minor but with a raised
sixth scale degree,
possesses a mysterious
and whimsical sound,
fitting for a poem that
considers the possibility
of talking trees. The
accents and syncopation
of the piano
accompaniment should be
carefully observed, with
particular attention paid
to the syncopation found
in gestures occurring in
mm. 7–12. The
beginning a cappella
section should be hushed
yet intense; a richer,
fuller sound may be
brought out in the middle
section where the key
shifts to Bb major and
the choir sings of the
many noble qualities of
trees (mm.
39–53).O Cool is
the Valley Now also
makes use of a modal
scale. Set primarily in D
Mixolydian, similar to D
major but with a lowered
seventh scale degree,
this mode’s lack
of a leading tone gives
the melody a folk-tune
quality. The piano should
at all times remain
legato and flowing, its
ascending and descending
gestures, found in mm.
9–10, imitating
the rolling hills and
valleys evoked in the
text. The phrases of the
vocal lines should also
be flowing and carefully
shaped. Additional rubato
and dynamic subtleties
may be added to
accentuate any number of
the suspensions and
dissonances that occur,
especially on p. 14.
Fanfare Band - Grade 6 SKU: BT.DHP-1115084-020 Composed by Jan Van der Ro...(+)
Fanfare Band - Grade 6
SKU:
BT.DHP-1115084-020
Composed by Jan Van der
Roost. Concert and
Contest Collection CBHA.
Set (Score & Parts). De
Haske Publications #DHP
1115084-020. Published by
De Haske Publications
(BT.DHP-1115084-020).
9x12 inches.
English-German-French-Dut
ch.
It may be
surprising to see a
fanfare piece
commissioned by a
Japanese ensemble, since
fanfare orchestras are
typically found in
Belgium, Holland and
Luxembourg, and also
France and Switzerland.
Senzoku Gakuen is one of
the largest and
mostprestigious music
universities in Japan,
and home to a wide
variety of ensembles and
orchestras. Since 2006
they have had a fanfare
orchestra, which was
started by Sotaru
Fukaishi, a euphonium
teacher who felt further
performance opportunity
wasneeded for saxhorn
instruments. Fukaishi had
loved the sound of
fanfare orchestras ever
since visiting the World
Music Contest in Kerkrade
(Holland) several years
earlier. Jan Van der
Roost was involved with
this new initiative from
the beginning,and they
were also joined by Manu
Mellaerts for certain
projects. The Dean of the
music department,
Professor Kazuo Tomioka,
fully supports the
ensemble and commissioned
Ostinati. The
première took place on
June 11th at Maeda Hall
inMizonokuchi (Kawasaki)
where Senzoku Gakuen is
based. The piece opens
with an impressive
timpani solo, followed by
brass and saxophone. The
rhythmical pulse remains
constant and the music is
fiery and assertive in
character. A pentatonic
melodygradually emerges
and the music loses its
vehemency and softens.
The initial percussion
ostinati subsequently
recurs and the first
section of the piece
concludes in a similar
mood to the opening. The
second movement is sweet
and melodic, opening
witha long passage for
the saxophone family in a
minor key. The same theme
then appears in the major
and is developed upon;
the music builds to a
majestic orchestral
forte, reminiscent of a
pipe organ in its
sonority. The theme
returns in the
originalminor key with a
change in instrumentation
leading the movement to a
quiet and peaceful end on
a soft E minor chord. The
finale starts with
percussion: a four-bar
pattern is repeated
several times over which
the movement’s
melodic themes
areintroduced. These
melodic elements are
varied and used in
different versions and
the ostinato idea, which
characterizes the entire
piece, is highlighted.
The theme travels through
the orchestra, appearing
on various instruments
and in variousregisters.
It captures the
listener’s
attention and displays
the full range of sound
and colour within the
fanfare
orchestra.
Het is
misschien verrassend dat
dit fanfarewerk is
geschreven in opdracht
van een Japans ensemble,
aangezien fanfareorkesten
vooral te vinden zijn in
België, Nederland en
Luxemburg, en ook wel in
Frankrijk en Zwitserland.
SenzokuGakuen is een van
de grootste en meest
prestigieuze
muziekopleidingen van
Japan, en de thuisbasis
van een grote
verscheidenheid van
ensembles en orkesten. In
2006 is er een
fanfareorkest opgericht,
en wel door Sotaru
Fukaishi,
eeneuphoniumdocent die
vond dat er meer
mogelijkheden moesten
komen voor optredens met
saxhoorninstrumenten.
Fukaishi had enkele jaren
daarvoor genoten van de
fanfareklank toen hij het
Wereld Muziek Concours in
Kerkrade bezocht.
DeBelgische componist Jan
Van der Roost was van het
begin af aan betrokken
bij dit nieuwe
initiatief, en ook Manu
Mellaerts werd voor een
aantal projecten
aangetrokken. Het hoofd
van de muziekfaculteit,
professor Kazuo Tomioka,
staatgeheel achter het
ensemble en gaf de
opdracht tot het
schrijven van
Ostinati. De
première vond plaats
op 11 juni in de Maeda
Hall in Mizonokuchi
(Kawasaki), waar Senzoku
Gakuen is gevestigd. Het
werk begint met een
indrukwekkendepaukensolo,
gevolgd door koper en
saxofoon. De ritmische
puls blijft constant, en
de aard van de muziek is
vurig en krachtig.
Geleidelijk komt er een
pentatonische melodie
naar voren en wordt de
muziek minder heftig, ze
wordtzachter van
karakter. De
aanvankelijke ostinati in
het slagwerk verschijnen
dan opnieuw, waarna het
eerste deel van het werk
eindigt in dezelfde sfeer
als waarmee het begon.
Het tweede deel is
lieflijk en melodisch.
Het opentmet een lange
passage voor de saxofoons
in een mineurtoonsoort.
Dan klinkt hetzelfde
thema in majeur en daar
wordt op voortgeborduurd:
de muziek ontwikkelt zich
tot een majestueus
orkestraal forte, dat qua
sonoriteit doet
denken
Es mag
überraschen, dass
dieses
Fanfareorchesterwerk
ausgerechnet von einem
japanischen Ensemble in
Auftrag gegeben wurde, da
Fanfareorchester doch
eher in Belgien, den
Niederlanden oder
Luxemburg oder auch in
Frankreich oder Schweiz
zu finden sind. Senzoku
Gakuen ist eine der
größten und
renommiertesten
Musikschulen Japans und
Heimstätte einer
Vielfalt an Ensembles und
Orchestern. Im Jahr 2006
wurde ein
Fanfareorchester
gegründet. Den
Anstoß gab Sotaru
Fukaishi, ein
Euphoniumlehrer, der den
Instrumenten der
Saxhorn-Familie mehr
Spielmöglichkeiten
bieten wollte. Fukaishi
hatte sich einige Jahre
zuvor bei der
Weltmeisterschaft in
Kerkrade (Holland) in den
Klang
vonFanfareorchestern
verliebt. Jan Van der
Roost war von Beginn an
in die Entwicklung dieser
Idee involviert und,
einige Projekte
betreffend, ebenso Manu
Mellaerts. Der Dekan des
Musik-Colleges, Professor
Kazuo Tomioka, steht voll
und ganz hinter dem
Ensemble und gab
Ostinati in
Auftrag. Die Premiere
fand am 11. Juni 2011 in
der Maeda Hall in
Mizonokuchi statt, dem
Heimatort der Schule
Senzoku Gakuen. Das
Stück beginnt mit
einem eindrucksvollen
Paukensolo, bevor
Blechbläser und
Saxophon einsetzen. Der
rhythmische Puls bleibt
konstant unter einer
feurigen,
nachdrücklichen Musik.
Eine pentatonische
Melodie bildet sich nach
und nach heraus,
während die Musik an
Heftigkeit verliert und
sanfter wird. Die
anfänglichen Ostinati
im Schlagwerk kehren
zurück und so endet
der erste Satz des Werkes
in einer der Eröffnung
ähnlichen Stimmung.
Der zweite Satz ist
lieblich und melodiös.
Er beginnt mit einem
langen Abschnitt für
die Saxophone in Moll.
Dann erscheint das
gleiche Thema in Dur und
durchläuft eine
Entwicklung; die Musik
baut sich zu einem
majestätischen
orchestralen Forte auf,
das in seiner
Klangfülle an eine
Orgel erinnert. Dann
kehrt das Thema in seiner
ursprünglichen
Moll-Tonart und in
veränderter
Instrumentierung
zurück, um den Satz
ruhig und friedvoll in
einem e-Moll-Akkord enden
zu lassen.
Fanfare Band - Grade 6 SKU: BT.DHP-1115084-120 Composed by Jan Van der Ro...(+)
Fanfare Band - Grade 6
SKU:
BT.DHP-1115084-120
Composed by Jan Van der
Roost. Concert and
Contest Collection CBHA.
Score Only. Composed
2012. 99 pages. De Haske
Publications #DHP
1115084-120. Published by
De Haske Publications
(BT.DHP-1115084-120).
9x12 inches.
English-German-French-Dut
ch.
It may be
surprising to see a
fanfare piece
commissioned by a
Japanese ensemble, since
fanfare orchestras are
typically found in
Belgium, Holland and
Luxembourg, and also
France and Switzerland.
Senzoku Gakuen is one of
the largest and
mostprestigious music
universities in Japan,
and home to a wide
variety of ensembles and
orchestras. Since 2006
they have had a fanfare
orchestra, which was
started by Sotaru
Fukaishi, a euphonium
teacher who felt further
performance opportunity
wasneeded for saxhorn
instruments. Fukaishi had
loved the sound of
fanfare orchestras ever
since visiting the World
Music Contest in Kerkrade
(Holland) several years
earlier. Jan Van der
Roost was involved with
this new initiative from
the beginning,and they
were also joined by Manu
Mellaerts for certain
projects. The Dean of the
music department,
Professor Kazuo Tomioka,
fully supports the
ensemble and commissioned
Ostinati. The
première took place on
June 11th at Maeda Hall
inMizonokuchi (Kawasaki)
where Senzoku Gakuen is
based. The piece opens
with an impressive
timpani solo, followed by
brass and saxophone. The
rhythmical pulse remains
constant and the music is
fiery and assertive in
character. A pentatonic
melodygradually emerges
and the music loses its
vehemency and softens.
The initial percussion
ostinati subsequently
recurs and the first
section of the piece
concludes in a similar
mood to the opening. The
second movement is sweet
and melodic, opening
witha long passage for
the saxophone family in a
minor key. The same theme
then appears in the major
and is developed upon;
the music builds to a
majestic orchestral
forte, reminiscent of a
pipe organ in its
sonority. The theme
returns in the
originalminor key with a
change in instrumentation
leading the movement to a
quiet and peaceful end on
a soft E minor chord. The
finale starts with
percussion: a four-bar
pattern is repeated
several times over which
the movement’s
melodic themes
areintroduced. These
melodic elements are
varied and used in
different versions and
the ostinato idea, which
characterizes the entire
piece, is highlighted.
The theme travels through
the orchestra, appearing
on various instruments
and in variousregisters.
It captures the
listener’s
attention and displays
the full range of sound
and colour within the
fanfare
orchestra.
Het is
misschien verrassend dat
dit fanfarewerk is
geschreven in opdracht
van een Japans ensemble,
aangezien fanfareorkesten
vooral te vinden zijn in
België, Nederland en
Luxemburg, en ook wel in
Frankrijk en Zwitserland.
SenzokuGakuen is een van
de grootste en meest
prestigieuze
muziekopleidingen van
Japan, en de thuisbasis
van een grote
verscheidenheid van
ensembles en orkesten. In
2006 is er een
fanfareorkest opgericht,
en wel door Sotaru
Fukaishi,
eeneuphoniumdocent die
vond dat er meer
mogelijkheden moesten
komen voor optredens met
saxhoorninstrumenten.
Fukaishi had enkele jaren
daarvoor genoten van de
fanfareklank toen hij het
Wereld Muziek Concours in
Kerkrade bezocht.
DeBelgische componist Jan
Van der Roost was van het
begin af aan betrokken
bij dit nieuwe
initiatief, en ook Manu
Mellaerts werd voor een
aantal projecten
aangetrokken. Het hoofd
van de muziekfaculteit,
professor Kazuo Tomioka,
staatgeheel achter het
ensemble en gaf de
opdracht tot het
schrijven van
Ostinati. De
première vond plaats
op 11 juni in de Maeda
Hall in Mizonokuchi
(Kawasaki), waar Senzoku
Gakuen is gevestigd. Het
werk begint met een
indrukwekkendepaukensolo,
gevolgd door koper en
saxofoon. De ritmische
puls blijft constant, en
de aard van de muziek is
vurig en krachtig.
Geleidelijk komt er een
pentatonische melodie
naar voren en wordt de
muziek minder heftig, ze
wordtzachter van
karakter. De
aanvankelijke ostinati in
het slagwerk verschijnen
dan opnieuw, waarna het
eerste deel van het werk
eindigt in dezelfde sfeer
als waarmee het begon.
Het tweede deel is
lieflijk en melodisch.
Het opentmet een lange
passage voor de saxofoons
in een mineurtoonsoort.
Dan klinkt hetzelfde
thema in majeur en daar
wordt op voortgeborduurd:
de muziek ontwikkelt zich
tot een majestueus
orkestraal forte, dat qua
sonoriteit doet
denken
Es mag
überraschen, dass
dieses
Fanfareorchesterwerk
ausgerechnet von einem
japanischen Ensemble in
Auftrag gegeben wurde, da
Fanfareorchester doch
eher in Belgien, den
Niederlanden oder
Luxemburg oder auch in
Frankreich oder Schweiz
zu finden sind. Senzoku
Gakuen ist eine der
größten und
renommiertesten
Musikschulen Japans und
Heimstätte einer
Vielfalt an Ensembles und
Orchestern. Im Jahr 2006
wurde ein
Fanfareorchester
gegründet. Den
Anstoß gab Sotaru
Fukaishi, ein
Euphoniumlehrer, der den
Instrumenten der
Saxhorn-Familie mehr
Spielmöglichkeiten
bieten wollte. Fukaishi
hatte sich einige Jahre
zuvor bei der
Weltmeisterschaft in
Kerkrade (Holland) in den
Klang
vonFanfareorchestern
verliebt. Jan Van der
Roost war von Beginn an
in die Entwicklung dieser
Idee involviert und,
einige Projekte
betreffend, ebenso Manu
Mellaerts. Der Dekan des
Musik-Colleges, Professor
Kazuo Tomioka, steht voll
und ganz hinter dem
Ensemble und gab
Ostinati in
Auftrag. Die Premiere
fand am 11. Juni 2011 in
der Maeda Hall in
Mizonokuchi statt, dem
Heimatort der Schule
Senzoku Gakuen. Das
Stück beginnt mit
einem eindrucksvollen
Paukensolo, bevor
Blechbläser und
Saxophon einsetzen. Der
rhythmische Puls bleibt
konstant unter einer
feurigen,
nachdrücklichen Musik.
Eine pentatonische
Melodie bildet sich nach
und nach heraus,
während die Musik an
Heftigkeit verliert und
sanfter wird. Die
anfänglichen Ostinati
im Schlagwerk kehren
zurück und so endet
der erste Satz des Werkes
in einer der Eröffnung
ähnlichen Stimmung.
Der zweite Satz ist
lieblich und melodiös.
Er beginnt mit einem
langen Abschnitt für
die Saxophone in Moll.
Dann erscheint das
gleiche Thema in Dur und
durchläuft eine
Entwicklung; die Musik
baut sich zu einem
majestätischen
orchestralen Forte auf,
das in seiner
Klangfülle an eine
Orgel erinnert. Dann
kehrt das Thema in seiner
ursprünglichen
Moll-Tonart und in
veränderter
Instrumentierung
zurück, um den Satz
ruhig und friedvoll in
einem e-Moll-Akkord enden
zu lassen.
Harbor Music Quatuor à cordes: 2 violons, alto, violoncelle Theodore Presser Co.
String Quartet SKU: PR.16400222S Composed by Dan Welcher. Full score (stu...(+)
String Quartet
SKU:
PR.16400222S
Composed
by Dan Welcher. Full
score (study). With
Standard notation.
Duration 11 minutes.
Theodore Presser Company
#164-00222S. Published by
Theodore Presser Company
(PR.16400222S).
UPC:
680160037841.
This
work follows my Quartet
No. 1 by five years. In
terms of style and
aesthetic aim, however,
it seems light years
away. Where the first
work, a 28-minute,
four-movement piece, took
aim at cosmic conflicts
and heroic resolutions,
the present work is
intended as a kind of
divertissment. Harbor
Music lasts a mere eleven
minutes, is cast in a
single movement with six
sections, and should
leave both performers and
listeners with a feeling
of good humor and
affection. The
title comes from my
experience as a guest in
the magnificent city of
Sydney, Australia. One of
its most attractive
features is its unique
system of ferry boats:
the city is laid out
around a large,
multi-channeled harbor,
with destinations more
easily approached by
water than by land.
Consequently, inhabitants
of Sydney get around on
small, people-friendly
boats that come and go
from the central docks at
Circular Quay. During a
week's visit in 1991, I
must have boarded these
boats at least a dozen
times, always bound for a
new location - the resort
town of Manley, or the
Zoo at Taronga Park, or
the shopping district at
Darling Harbour.
In casting about for a
form for my second string
quartet, a kind of loose
rondo came to mind. Each
new destination would be
approached from the same
starting-out point
(although there are
subtle variations in the
repeating theme; it's
always in a new key, and
the texture is never the
same). The result, I
hope, is a sense of
constant new information
presented with
introductory frames of a
more familiar nature.
The embarkation
theme, which begins the
piece, is a sort of
bi-tonal fanfare in which
the violins are in G
major and the viola and
cello are in B-flat
major. It is bold, eager,
and forward-looking. The
first voyage maintains
this bi-tonality,
beginning as a 9/8 due
for second violin and
viola in a kind of
rocking motion -much as a
boat produces when
reaching the deeper water
in the harbor. A sweet,
nostalgic theme emerges
over this rocking
accompaniment. This music
is developed somewhat,
then transforms quickly
into a much faster and
lighter episode, filled
with rising and falling
scales (again, in
differing keys). A
scherzando interlude in
short notes and changing
meters provides contrast,
and the episode ends with
a reprise of the scales.
The second
embarkation follows, this
time in A major/C major.
It leads quickly into a
very warm and slow theme,
in wide-leaping intervals
for the viola. This
section is interrupted
twice by solo cadenzas
for the cello, suggesting
distant boat-horns in
major thirds. The end of
the episode becomes a
transition, with
boat-horns leading into
the final appearance of
the embarkation music,
this time in trills and
tremolos instead of
sharply accented chords.
The nostalgic theme of
the first episode makes a
final appearance, serving
now as a coda. The
rocking motion continues,
in a lullaby fashion,
leaving us drowsy and
satisfied on our homeward
journey. Harbor
Music was written for the
Cavani Quartet, and is
dedicated to Richard J.
Bogomolny. Commissioned
by his employees at First
National Supermarkets as
a gift, it represents a
thank you from many of
the people (including
this composer) who have
benefitted from his
vision and generosity. An
ardent advocate of
chamber music (and a
cellist himself), Mr.
Bogomolny has for many
years been Chairman of
the Board of Chamber
Music America. -- Dan
Welcher.
Chorus (with soloists) and piano (solos: SMezMez(A)ATTBarBBB - choir: SSAATTBB -...(+)
Chorus (with soloists)
and piano (solos:
SMezMez(A)ATTBarBBB -
choir: SSAATTBB -
picc.2.2.2.2. - 4.2.3.0.
- timp - hp - str)
SKU: BR.DV-6081
Lyrical Opera in 3
Acts. Composed by
Pjotr Iljitsch
Tschaikowsky. Edited by
Manfred Koerth / Wo
Ebermann. Arranged by M.
Koerth and W. Ebermann.
Choir; Softbound.
Deutscher Verlag. Opera;
Music theatre; Romantic.
Piano/Vocal Score. 300
pages. Deutscher Verlag
fur Musik #DV 6081.
Published by Deutscher
Verlag fur Musik
(BR.DV-6081).
ISBN
9790200460032. 9.5 x 12
inches.
Duration:
full evening Translation
: German (W. Ebermann/M.
Koerth), Engl. (D.
Llyod-Jones), French (M.
Delines) Place and
time: Partly on the
estate, partly in
Petersburg, in 20ies of
the 19th
Century
Characters
: Larina, Owner of the
Estate (mezzo-soprano) -
Tatiana (soprano) and
Olga (alto), her
Daughters - Filipjewna,
Wet Nurse
(mezzo-soprano/alto) -
Eugen Onegin (baritone) -
Lenskij (tenor) - Prince
Gremin (bass) - A
Commander (bass) -
Saretzkij (bass) -
Triquet, a French Man
(tenor) - Guillot, a
Valet (silent part) -
Country Folk, Ball
Guests, Squire, Officers
(chorus) - Waltz,
mazurka, polonaise and
Russian dance (Ballet
)
There is an
interesting parallel
between the subject of
the opera and
Tchaikovsky's life during
the year he wrote the
work (1877): in each
case, a letter provokes
fateful developments in
the lives of the
protagonists. In the
opera, Tatyana's love
letter to Eugene sets off
the tragedy, whereas in
real life, the love
letter of a pupil led the
composer into a marriage,
which lasted all of ...
three months. Tchaikovsky
took this doomed decision
without love, solely
because the circumstances
want it and because I
cannot act differently.
Certain allusions made,
for example, in a letter
of January 1878 to
Taneyev suggest that the
composer's personal
situation also flowed
into the work: I did not
want anything to do with
the so-called 'grand
opera.' I am looking for
an intimate but powerful
drama which is built on
the conflict of
circumstances which I
myself have seen and
experienced, a conflict
which truly moves me.
Partly for this reason
the composer decided to
call the work not an
opera but lyrical
scenes.Eugene Onegin,
conceived by Tchaikovsky
for limited resources and
a small stage, is the
most frequently performed
Russian opera today along
with Mussorgsky's Boris
Godunov, which represents
a completely contrary
aesthetic stance.
Tschaikowskys
letzte Oper - auf ein
Libretto seines Bruders
Modest nach der
Dramenvorlage des
danischen Schriftstellers
Henrik Hertz - lebt von
den poetischen Momenten
und den symbolbeladenen
Charakterportrats der
Hauptfiguren: Die junge
blinde Jolanthe wird von
ihrem Vater aus Sorge um
ihren Makel und zum
Schutz ihrer
Jungfraulichkeit und vor
den Widrigkeiten der Welt
in einen paradiesischen
Garten gesperrt. Er
befielt zu ihrem Schutz
sie um ihre Blindheit
unwissend zu lassen. Ein
Arzt warnt sehen werde
sie nur konnen wenn sie
es selbst wolle gleich
welche Angste aus der
vollstandigen Erkenntnis
der Welt erwachsen. Als
der junge Vaudemont in
ihre Abgeschiedenheit
einbricht und sich beide
ineinander verlieben
befreit er sie von ihrer
Unwissenheit erklart was
Farbe und Licht bedeuten.
Erst die Liebe zu ihm
macht sie sehend.
Die dunkle Welt
der Jolanthe zeichnet
Tschaikowsky zu Beginn
musikalisch durch eine
Introduktion
ausschliesslich fur
Blaser. Erst mit dem
Eintritt in die
unbekannte Welt der Liebe
und des Sehens verwendet
Tschaikowsky einen warmen
Streicherklang. Gerade
dadurch stiess die Oper
wohl bei Zeitgenossen auf
Verstorung. Tschaikowskys
,,Jolanthe nimmt in
seinem Opernschaffen eine
Sonderstellung ein: neben
dem glucklichen Ende
einer Apotheose des
Lichts und der Liebe mit
einem religios gepragten
Schlusschoral ist es
eines der wenigen
Buhnenwerke Tschaikowskys
ohne Bezug zur russischen
Geschichte. Der
ausgepragte Lyrismus des
Werks verweist
stattdessen auf
Tschaikowskys Nahe zur
franzosischen Kultur die
im 19. Jahrhundert einen
starken Einfluss auf
Russland hatte. Die Oper
wurde 1892 am
Mariinsky-Theater in
Sankt Petersburg als
Auftragswerk zusammen mit
seinem Ballett ,,Der
Nussknacker
uraufgefuhrt.
Nebe
n der Produktion des
Munchner
Rundfunkorchesters wurde
,,Jolanthe szenisch
erfolgreich bei den
Festspielen Baden-Baden
mit Anna Netrebko und
Piotr Beczala als
Liebespaar rehabilitiert.
Ausserhalb Deutschlands
lief die Opernraritat in
Toulouse Tokyo San
Sebastian und Monte
Carlo. Zuletzt erneut die
,,Suddeutsche Zeitung:
,,Jolanthe ist eine
Opernausgrabung die
,,wirklich zu Unrecht
vergessen ist.
Tchaikovsky's last opera
- on a libretto by the
composer's brother Modest
based on the drama by the
Danish author Henrik
Hertz - derives its
life-blood from its
poetic moments and the
symbol-laden portraits of
the leading characters:
the blind young Yolanta
is kept prisoner in a
paradisiacal garden by
her father who fears for
her purity and her
virginity and seeks to
protect her from the
adversities of the world.
To do so he orders
everyone to keep her
ignorant of the fact that
she is blind. A doctor
warns that she will only
be able to see when she
is ready to do so herself
no matter what fears
might result from a
complete experience of
the world. When the young
Vaudemont breaks into her
secluded world and the
two fall in love he frees
her from her ignorance
and explains the
significance of color and
light. It is through her
love for him that she is
finally able to see. At
the beginning of the work
Tchaikovsky depicts
Yolanta's dark world with
an introduction scored
exclusively for winds. It
is not until her
discovery of the unknown
world of love and sight
that Tchaikovsky uses a
warm string sound. This
is what many of the
composer's contemporaries
found disturbing about
the
opera.
Tchaikovsky
's Yolanta occupies a
special place in the
composer's operatic
oeuvre: for one it has a
happy ending an
apotheosis of light and
love with a religiously
stamped closing chorale;
for another it is one of
Tchaikovsky's few stage
works without any
reference to Russian
history. Instead the
work's pronounced
lyricism points to the
composer's closeness to
French culture. which
exerted a strong
influence on Russia in
the 19th
century.
The opera
was given its world
premiere at the Mariinsky
Theater in St. Petersburg
in 1892. It had been
commissioned along with
the ballet The
Nutcracker. Next to the
production by the
Munchner
Rundfunkorchester Yolanta
was also successfully
rehabilitated in a recent
staged production at the
Baden-Baden Festival with
Anna Netrebko and Piotr
Beczala as the lovers.
Outside of Germany the
operatic rarity was
performed in Toulouse
Tokyo San Sebastian and
Monte Carlo.
In
closing another quote
from the Suddeutsche
Zeitung: 'Yolanta' is an
operatic rediscovery of a
work that was truly
'wrongly forgotten'.
Composed by Camille Saint- Saens (1835-1921). Edited by Fabien Guilloux and Fra...(+)
Composed by Camille
Saint-
Saens (1835-1921). Edited
by
Fabien Guilloux and
François
de Médicis. This
edition:
Edition of selected
works,
Urtext edition. Linen.
Saint-
Saens, Camille. OEuvres
instrumentales completes
III/4. Edition of
selected
works, Performance score,
anthology. Baerenreiter
Verlag
#BA10304-01. Published by
Baerenreiter Verlag
Tenor & String Quartet SKU: PE.EP72822 Composed by Jonathan Dove. Voice(s...(+)
Tenor & String Quartet
SKU: PE.EP72822
Composed by Jonathan
Dove. Voice(s) & Various
Instruments. Edition
Peters. Living Composer.
Score and Part(s). 164
pages. Duration 00:30:00.
Edition Peters
#98-EP72822. Published by
Edition Peters
(PE.EP72822).
ISBN
9790577011769. 232 x
303mm inches.
English.
I have
only visited Damascus
once, twenty years ago,
on the way to
Palmyra. I had a
purpose (I was writing
music for a play about
Palmyra’s Queen
Zenobia) but essentially
I was a tourist.
Like any visitor, I was
thrilled to step out of
the noisy modern city
into the magical ancient
world of the walled Old
City, its vibrant souk
leading to the
magnificent mosque, and a
labyrinth of winding,
narrow streets filled
with the smell of
unleavened
bread.
In Palmyra,
I was met with
extraordinary kindness
everywhere. On one
occasion, a little
Bedouin boy noticed that
I was risking sunstroke
wandering bare-headed
among the spectacular
ruins: he showed me how
to tie a turban, then
took me to have tea with
his family in their
tent.
Since then, I
have watched helplessly
as these places of wonder
have been devastated and
their inhabitants
scattered and
killed. When the
Sacconi Quartet suggested
that I might choose a
Syrian poet for our
collaboration, I welcomed
the idea.
I
searched for a long time
to find a contemporary
poet whose work might
gain from any music I
could imagine. I
felt it was important to
find first-hand accounts
of the Syrian experience
– but, of course, I
was always reading them
in translation. In
an anthology
called Syria
Speaks, I was
astonished to read
something that looked
like prose, but was full
of poetry. It was
Anne-Marie
McManus’s fine
translation of Ali
Safar’s A
Black Cloud in a Leaden
White Sky
– an
eloquent, thoughtful,
contained yet vivid
account of life in a
war-torn country, all the
more moving for its
restraint.
In
setting these words, I
have not attempted to
imitate Syrian
music. However,
there is what might be
called a linguistic
accommodation in my
choice of scale, or
mode. Several
movements are in a mode
that I first discovered
while writing a cantata
commemorating the First
World War: it has a
tuning that I associate
with war, its violence
and desolation.
This eight-note
mode is similar to scales
found in Syrian
music. I did not
choose it in the
abstract: it emerged from
the harmonies I was
exploring in the earlier
work, and emerged again
as I was looking for the
right musical colours to
set Ali Safar’s
words. In this
work, its Arabic aspect
is more prominent. -
Jonathan
Dove
This
product is Printed on
Demand and may take
several weeks to fulfill.
Please order from your
favorite retailer.
Orchestra SKU: PR.11641867S Composed by William Kraft. Full score. Durati...(+)
Orchestra
SKU:
PR.11641867S
Composed
by William Kraft. Full
score. Duration 16
minutes, 25 seconds.
Theodore Presser Company
#116-41867S. Published by
Theodore Presser Company
(PR.11641867S).
UPC:
680160683208.
Conte
xtures: Riots -Decade '60
was commissioned by Zubin
Mehta and the Southern
California Symphony
Association after the
successful premiere of
the Concerto for Four
Percussion Soloists and
Orchestra. It was written
during the spring and
summer months of 1967.
Riots stemming from
resentment against the
racial situation in the
United States and the war
in Vietnam were occurring
throughout the country
and inevitably invaded
the composer's creative
subconscious.
Contextures, as the title
implies, was intended to
exploit various and
varying textures. As the
work progressed the
correspondence between
the fabric of music and
the fabric of society
became apparent and the
allegory grew in
significance. So I found
myself translating social
aspects into musical
techniques. Social
stratification became a
polymetric situation
where disparate groups
function together. The
conflict between the
forces of expansion and
the forces of containment
is expressed through and
opposition of tonal
fluidity vs. rigidity.
This is epitomized in the
fourth movement, where
the brass is divided into
two groups - a muted
group, encircled by the
unmuted one, which does
its utmost to keep the
first group within a
restricted pitch area.
The playful jazzy bits
(one between the first
and second movements and
one at the end of the
piece) are simply saying
that somehow in this age
of turmoil and anxiety
ways of having fun are
found even though that
fun may seem
inappropriate. The piece
is in five movements,
with an interlude between
the first and second
movements. It is scored
for a large orchestra,
supplemented by six
groups of percussion,
including newly created
roto-toms (small tunable
drums) and some original
devices, such as muted
gongs and muted
vibraphone. There is also
an offstage jazz quartet:
bass, drums, soprano
saxophone and trumpet.
The first movement begins
with a solo by the first
clarinetist which is
interrupted by
intermittent heckling
from his colleagues
leading to a
configuration of large
disparate elements. The
interlude of solo violin
and snare-drum follows
without pause. The second
movement, Prestissimo, is
a display piece of
virtuosity for the entire
orchestra. The third
movement marks a period
of repose and reflection
and calls for some
expressive solos,
particularly by the horn
and alto saxophone. The
fourth movement opens
with a rather lengthy
oboe solo, which is
threatened by large
blocks of sound from the
orchestra, against an
underlying current of
agitated energy in the
piano and percussion.
This leads to a section
in which large orchestral
forces oppose one
another, ultimately
bringing the work to a
climax, if not to a
denouement. Various
thematic elements are
strewn all over the
orchestra, resulting in
the formation of a
general haze of sound. A
transition leads to the
fifth movement without
pause. The musical haze
is pierced gently by the
offstage jazz group as if
they were attempting to
ignore and even dispel
the gloom, but a legato
bell sound enters and
hovers over both the jazz
group and the orchestra,
the latter making
statements of disquieting
finality. Two films were
conceived to accompany
portions of Contextures.
The first done by Herbert
Kosowar, was a
chemography film
(painting directly into
the film using dyes and
various implements) with
fast clips of riot
photographs. The second
was a film collage made
by photographically
abstracting details from
paintings of Reginald
Pollack. The purpose was
to invoke a non-specific
response - as in music -
but at the same time to
define the subject matter
of the piece. The films
were constructed to
correspond with certain
developments in the piece
and in no way affect the
independence and musical
flow of the piece, having
been made after the piece
was completed.
Contextures: Riots -
Decade '60 is dedicated
to Mehta, the Southern
California Symphony
Association and the Los
Angeles Philharmonic
Orchestra. The news of
the assassination of Dr.
Martin Luther King came
the afternoon of the
premiere, April 4, 1968.
That evening's
performances, and also
the succeeding ones, were
dedicated to him and a
special dedication to Dr.
King has been inserted
into he score. All the
music that follows the
jazz group - beginning
with the legato bell
sound playing the first 2
notes to We shall
overcome constitutes a
new ending to commemorate
Dr. King's death.
Trombone SKU: GF.JPTB Composed by Greg Fishman. Play-Along (Book+CD). Pub...(+)
Trombone
SKU:
GF.JPTB
Composed by
Greg Fishman. Play-Along
(Book+CD). Published by
Greg Fishman Jazz Studios
(GF.JPTB).
Milwaukee
Avenue
Ogden
Avenue
Narragans
ett
Avenue
Belden
Avenue
Chicago
Avenue
Quincy
Street
Rockwell
Street
Dearborn
Street
Franklin
Street
Pearson
Street
Jazz Phrasing
for Trombone features ten
melodic pieces which are
easy to play, yet convey
the essence of mainstream
(Swing/Bebop/Bossa) jazz
vocabulary. The pieces
are catchy and melodic,
demonstrating the use of
sequence and
voice-leading to make a
musical statement.
This book
includes a play-along CD
featuring trombonist Russ
Phillips playing each
song with a world-class
rhythm section. The CD
also includes tracks
featuring Greg Fishman
demonstrating each song
on alto saxophone, giving
trombone players the
option of playing along
with Russ Phillips on
trombone or with Greg
Fishman on alto
saxophone.
In
addition, there are
play-along tracks
featuring just the rhythm
section. These tracks are
great for practicing the
songs, chords, scales,
voice-leading lines and
soloing over the chords
progressions.
Jazz Phrasing for
Trombone will provide
valuable insights into a
melodic approach to jazz
improvisation. This book
is recommended for
trombone players of all
levels who wish to
improve their tone,
articulation, phrasing,
and understanding of
thematic development.
Special Features
of Jazz Phrasing for
Trombone:
o
Suggested Use Section -
Provides detailed
instructions on a variety
of ways to work with the
book. Style & Analysis
Section - Provides clear,
concise explanations of
sequence, variation and
voice-leading
Thematic Index - Lets you
compare the opening
themes of all ten songs
in convenient two page
at-a-glance format. Also
includes detailed
information on the
opening interval of each
song, as well as harmonic
context of the opening
interval.
Endorsements for Jazz
Phrasing for
Trombone: Greg has
done it again. Great
melodies, interesting
rhythms and beautiful
chord progressions. This
is the perfect foundation
for learning jazz. -
Jamey Aebersold This
book is a monument to
Greg Fishman's superb
teaching skills, as well
as his clear
understanding of the jazz
student's early needs. He
has purposefully selected
accessible tempos,
significant melodic
rhythms (with their
appropriate phrasing) and
sensitive note choices,
utilizing commonplace
chord progressions within
the jazz repertory, all
impeccably demonstrated
on the accompanying
compact disc. This book
is a must for the early
conditioning of jazz
students! - Jerry
Coker Greg Fishman has
created a book of fun,
well-written, catchy
tunes in a variety of
styles for developing
jazz players---highly
recommended. - Dr.
Gregory W. Yasinitsky,
Regents Professor of
Music & Coordinator of
Jazz Studies, Washington
State University
Songs included in
Jazz Phrasing for
Trombone - Volume 1: o
Milwaukee Avenue Ogden
Avenue Narragansett
Avenue Belden
Avenue Chicago
Avenue Quincy
Street Rockwell
Street Dearborn
Street Franklin
Street Pearson
Street
A few words
from the preface of the
book:
Applying
good phrasing to music is
like using good
punctuation in written or
spoken language. It
involves the grouping of
ideas to make the meaning
of the words clear to the
listener. The words are
grouped into sentences,
and the sentences are
then grouped into
paragraphs. The same is
true when interpreting a
piece of music.
Good phrasing
requires a musician to
interpret the notes he
plays, and determine
which notes need to be
grouped together to form
a complete musical idea.
Each song in Jazz
Phrasing for Trombone is
designed to train your
ear to hear the logical
grouping of phrases
through the use of
sequence and thematic
development.
While the art of
good phrasing involves
the interpretation of
note groupings and their
relationships, it also
involves deciding where
you're going to take a
breath.
Read the
following sentences aloud
to compare examples of
good and bad phrasing.
Good phrasing,
spoken in one continuous
breath:
Ladies
and gentlemen, it gives
me great pleasure to
introduce the senior
class president.
Bad phrasing,
spoken with extra
breaths, disrupting the
flow and grouping of the
words:
Ladies and
gentlemen, it gives
(breath) me great
pleasure to introduce the
senior class (breath)
president. The
difference between these
two sentences is very
similar to the difference
between a professional
musician's phrasing and a
student's phrasing. Both
may be playing the
correct notes with the
correct rhythm, but the
professional musician
knows how to group the
notes in a smooth,
flowing fashion, while
the student takes breaths
at random, not even aware
that he's disrupting the
phrasing.
Jazz
Phrasing for Trombone has
been carefully designed
to help you learn to
phrase like a
professional player.
These are pieces
that will be fun for all
musicians who love
melodic writing with good
thematic
development..