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...
Suite No. 1 Guitare Guitare classique [Conducteur] - Avancé Productions OZ
Guitar solo - Advanced SKU: DZ.DZ-4308 Composed by Giorgio Mirto. Score. ...(+)
Guitar solo - Advanced
SKU: DZ.DZ-4308
Composed by Giorgio
Mirto. Score. Les
Productions d'OZ #DZ
4308. Published by Les
Productions d'OZ
(DZ.DZ-4308).
ISBN
9782898522253.
Foll
owing a recent experience
on the jury of a guitar
competition, I noted with
great pleasure that
Giorgio Mirto, with whom
I had shared the role of
juror, wanted to
celebrate the experience
of the competition -
during from which we
discovered that we had
had a great affinity of
thought - with something
which could endure over
time and not evaporate as
often happens in short
and occasional meetings
between musicians. He did
it as a true composer,
which he is, and
dedicated to me a very
beautifully crafted Suite
to which I allowed myself
to collaborate at least
formally, by suggesting
titles for the four
movements. This is how
Suite n.1 was born, a
piece that does not
strictly respect the
formal rules of the
Baroque era, but
reinterprets and reuses
them in a new key. The
work's obvious late
Baroque inspiration led
me to find titles that
invited the performer to
delve deeper into the
work's aesthetic
inspiration. So I
suggested to Giorgio that
he title the four
movements with something
that linked their content
to four greats of the
18th century. German
masters. The prelude has
thus become from Eisenach
because of its sometimes
improvised Bach-like
atmosphere, the second
movement, vaguely
toccata, speaks an organ
language in the manner of
Buxtehude (who lived in
Lübeck), the slow
movement has a Handelian
quality - and Handel was
born in Halle - and the
last movement, far from
being a true Chaconne,
undoubtedly has the
latter's taste for
variation and ostinato,
typical traits of
Telemann who lived in
Magdeburg. The cities
that appear in the titles
are therefore indelible
to the authors cited.
Furthermore, one should
not think that the style
of the work is in any way
German, given that
Giorgio Mirto expresses
himself in a very joyful
language that synthesizes
modality with minimalism,
all seasoned with a a nod
to Pink's progressive
rock Floyd. or a Mike
Oldfield... The result of
this mixture of ideas,
inspirations and styles
is a work that personally
I never tire of reading
and rereading, for the
freshness that emanates
from it and for the
climate expressive which
rises, nourishing itself
with full efficiency. We
ultimately cannot ignore
that the note B, the one
which marks in a minor
way some of the most
expressive works of the
guitar repertoire, from
the study of Sor which
made generations of
students fall in love
with the guitar, until to
that of Frank Martin's
Four Pieces via La
Catedral di Barrios, is
the modal fulcrum of the
entire Suite: it is true
that the Prelude begins
with a clear chord in E
minor and lingers on an
open ending in A minor ,
but it almost seems that
the initial E serves as a
launching pad for a
continuation of the work
in which the dominant,
that is to say the B, is
the true musical North,
the pole star which
guides us in the other
three movements until the
end of the Chaconne de
Magdebourg. I wish
Giorgio and our Suite
great longevity and a
favorable destiny in the
complex and complex world
of contemporary guitar
composition. And I thank
him again, flattered by
his very kind
dedication.
Performed by The Beatles. For voice(s), guitar(s), bass guitar, drum set and key...(+)
Performed by The Beatles.
For voice(s), guitar(s),
bass guitar, drum set and
keyboard. Format: full
score. With vocal melody,
lyrics, standard guitar
notation, guitar
tablature, standard bass
notation, bass tablature,
chord names and drum
notation. Classic rock,
pop rock and psychedelic
rock. Popular boxed gift
set. Includes complete
transcriptions of all
instrumental and vocal
parts. Series: Hal
Leonard Transcribed
Scores. 1136 pages.
7.25x10.88 inches.
Published by Hal Leonard.
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).
Guitar - Intermediate SKU: DY.DO-1522 Composed by Francis Bebey. Arranged...(+)
Guitar - Intermediate
SKU: DY.DO-1522
Composed by Francis
Bebey. Arranged by Ingrid
Riollot. Score. Les
Editions Doberman-Yppan
#DO 1522. Published by
Les Editions
Doberman-Yppan
(DY.DO-1522).
Francis
Bebey was born in Douala
in July 1929, into a
large family where his
father, a pastor,
struggled to feed his
children. But Francis had
the opportunity to go to
school. Admiring his
elder brother, Marcel
Eyidi Bebey, he educated
himself, distinguished
himself, and eventually
received a scholarship to
go and take his
baccalaureate in
France. We approached
the end of the 1950s when
he arrived in La
Rochelle. More than ever,
in this France where
Africans were looked at
with curiosity,
condescension, or
disdain, Francis relied
on his intellectual
resources. A diligent
worker, he obtained his
Baccalaureate, then moved
to Paris where he started
English studies at the
Sorbonne. One day, he
knew what truly attracted
him: he wanted to do
radio. Francis learned
his craft in France and
in the USA. After
working for a few years
as a reporter, he was
hired in 1961 as an
international civil
servant in the UNESCO
Information
Department. In
parallel, Francis had
always been drawn to
musical creation. His
very serious daytime
activity didnâ??t
prevent him from
frequenting jazz clubs in
the evenings. In Paris,
the Jazz, the trendy
music of that time, but
also rumba and salsa
attracted him. He
collected records and
attended numerous
concerts. With his
accomplice Manu Dibango,
Francis took the stage
and played
music. Francis liked
classical music since his
childhood. He grew up
listening to the cantatas
and oratorios of Bach or
Handel that his father
had sung in the temple.
He became passionate
about the guitar,
impressed by the Spanish
and South American
masters, and decided to
learn to strum the
instrument himself. He
started composing guitar
pieces, blending the
various influences that
flow through him with the
traditional African music
he had carried within
since childhood. His
approach captivated the
director of the American
Cultural Center (then
located in the
Saint-Germain
neighborhood of Paris),
who offered him the
opportunity to perform in
front of an audience.
Francis gave his first
guitar recital there
(1963) in front of a
mesmerized audience. His
first solo album was
released shortly
thereafter. Gradually,
Francis became recognized
as a musician and
composer. Several albums
of the African guitar
ambassador, as described
by the press, were
released. He also wrote
books, to the point that
his artistic career
became challenging to
reconcile with his career
as a civil servant. In
1974, even though he had
become the General
Manager in charge of
music at UNESCO, he took
the bold leap and
resigned from this
prestigious institution
to dedicated himself to
the three activities that
interested him: music,
literature, and
journalism. He
explored the traditional
musical heritage of the
African continent,
notably through the thumb
piano sanza, and the
polyphonic music of the
Central African pygmies,
or singing in his native
language and composing
humoristic songs in
French! Success
followed. Francis Bebey
traveled the world: from
France to Brazil,
Cameroon to Sweden,
Germany to the Carribean,
or Morocco to Japan...
the list of countries
where he was invited to
perform, gives lectures,
or meets readers is very
long. In addition to
public recognition, he
enjoyed the recognition
of his fellow musicians,
such as guitarist John
Williams or Venezuelan
Antonio Lauro, who
invited him to be a part
of the jury for a
classical guitar
competition in
Caracas. His life was
the journey of an African
pioneer, a man rooted in
his cultural heritage and
carrying a message of
sharing and hope for the
world. His originality
continues to vibrate
around the world since
his passing at the end of
May 2001.
Sona
ta No. 6 Kharkiv for
guitar solo was composed
in 2021, in the end of
the COVID-19 lockdown. At
that time my family and I
were staying in our home
city of Kharkiv (also
known as Kharkov),
Ukraine for almost two
years. We considered that
pandemic period as a
disaster, but later have
realized that it actually
was a rather happy time,
because a war came to our
homeland just a few
months later. Since 2022
a considerable fraction
of the 1.5 millions of
Kharkiv citizens have
left their homes, those
who stayed have been
living under ceaseless
missile attacks, and many
have been killed. I would
like to dedicate this
Sonata to the frontier
city of Kharkiv and, most
of all, to its citizens
suffering from the
war. Yet, the music of
the Sonata does not have
any specific program.
Here I will give a brief
overview of its main
composition elements to
facilitate future
interpretations. The
first and fourth
movements of this Sonata
are based on the
interplay between the
twelve-tone principle and
the G-major tonal center,
natural for the guitar.
Namely, the first
movement is based on the
interaction of the
G-major triad Gâ??Bâ??D
of the open guitar
strings 2â??3â??4,
ascending motif 1
involving the notes
Eâ??F#â??Aâ??C#
(originally on the first
string), and descending
motif 2 using the notes
E-â??Câ??Bbâ??A-
(originally, on the bass
string 6). These elements
supplement each other to
almost make up twelve
tones (apart from the
missing F), and the
motifs alternate with
ostinato fragments where
each note in the G major
triad is step-by-step
moved by a semitone up or
down. The second
movement is a Scherzo
involving numerous
semitones in accented
chords and fast passages,
as well as chromatic
melodic motion in the
bass voice. It is almost
atonal in some fragments,
but has an overall tonal
center of A-minor. The
third movement is a
meditative Adagio based
on a theme composed
within hexatonic scale
Dâ??Eâ??Fâ??G#â??Aâ?
?B and ostinato chords
involving open bass
strings Eâ??Aâ??D and
semitone
Bâ??C. Finally, the
fourth movement is based
on the complete
twelve-tone theme
consisting of two phrases
including motifs 1 and 2
from the first movement:
Gâ??Fâ??Bbâ??Abâ??Câ
??Ebâ??D and
Eâ??Bâ??C#â??Aâ??F#.
This theme is presented
in its prime and
retrograde forms. There
are dialogues between the
first string, basses and
open middle strings,
similar to the first
movement. In the
culmination, the
twelve-tone theme is
performed using the
parallel motion of the
standard guitar G-major
chord with open middle
strings across twelve
positions. The Sonata
was premiered and
recorded (CD Naxos No.
8.574630) by the
prominent Ukrainian
guitarist Marko Topchii
who has also lived and
studied in Kharkiv. I am
extremely grateful to him
for the brilliant
performance of this
piece. I am greatly
indebted to Productions
dâ??Oz for keeping my
original notations in
places where these do not
conform to the
publisherâ??s style.
Violin, Guitar SKU: UT.CH-335 Composed by Nicolo Paganini. Edited by Ital...(+)
Violin, Guitar
SKU:
UT.CH-335
Composed by
Nicolo Paganini. Edited
by Italo Vescovo. Saddle
stitching. Classical.
Score and Parts. Ut
Orpheus #CH 335.
Published by Ut Orpheus
(UT.CH-335).
Jubilate Agno.
Composed by Z. Randall
Stroope. 16 pages.
Duration 0:03:05. Carl
Fischer Music #CM9735.
Published by Carl Fischer
Music (CF.CM9735).
ISBN 9781491161159.
UPC: 680160919741. Key: A
minor. Latin, English.
Christopher Smart and
ZRS.
Origins of the
Tarantella The tarantella
is a popular southern
Italian dance with
origins in the 11th
century. (There is even
some mention of the
tarantella in ancient
Greek mythology.) Of the
possible sources of the
dance, the most popular
comes from the villages
of Tanto and Tarentum
(little spider), Italy.
During harvest, workers
in the field were
sometimes bitten by the
tarantula spider. To
combat the poison, the
afflicted workers went
into a frenetic, almost
musical exorcism to sweat
the venom out of their
pores. In the millennium
since, the very energetic
nature of the dance has
remained, although the
curative focus of the
dance has given way to
more enjoyable endeavors,
even stately courtship.
Origins of the Text
Christopher Smart
(1722-1771), also known
as Kit Smart or Jack
Smart, was born in Kent,
England and suffered from
what is now believed to
be acute asthma and other
health issues as a child.
As such, he did not work
in the fields, but spent
much time reading and
writing, a passion that
he nurtured for a
lifetime. Well known in
London literary circles,
his career as a writer
floundered due to
mounting debts and his
falling out of favor with
the literary
establishment: Sadly, he
was forced to confinement
at St. Luke's Hospital
for Lunatics, though this
was based on his mounting
debt, and not on
insanity. (Confinement,
or debtor's prison, was
common during this period
if one's debts could not
be paid.) During his
confinement, he worked on
two of his most famous
works, Jubilate Agno and
A Song of David. (Part of
Jubilate Agno [Rejoice in
the Lamb] was set to
music by English
composer, Benjamin
Britten.) Smart's writing
style (which, at times,
bordered on the absurd),
along with his many
obsessions, lead to
frequent misperceptions
of his work and his
lucidity. In this present
work, portions of Smart's
Jubilate Agno were used
in mm. 24-31, 103-110 and
149-156. The remaining
text was gathered by the
composer, including the
rapid, almost
patter-like, delivery of
words from A-Z in the
alphabet. (Christopher
Smart had a preoccupation
with the alphabet.) These
words both rhyme and
accentuate the frenetic
nature of the spider
dance: theraphosa
[teh-rah-fo-sa] a genus
of tarantula spiders
bellicose
[beh-lee-ko-sah] hostile;
aggressive odiosa
[o-dee-o-sa] hateful;
vexation tenebrosa
[teh-neh-bro-sa]
creeping; dark nemorosa
[neh-mo-ro-sa] wooded;
shady lapidosa
[lah-pee-do-sa] stony
area; gritty The
convergence, then, of the
medieval tarantella
(spider dance), the
writings of a brilliant
poet who bordered on the
absurd, and the infusion
of strong, descriptive
and otherwise random,
rhyming words,
synthesizes to make
dramatic lyrics for this
work. About the Composer
Z. Randall Stroope is an
American composer and
conductor. He has served
as Professor of Music at
three universities (an
Endowed Professor at
two), conducted 47
all-state choirs, and
directed over 40 times at
Carnegie Hall, among
other American venues.
Randall guest conducts
full-time, and composes
from his home studios on
Merritt Island, Florida
and in Sandia Park, New
Mexico. Performance Notes
Text: In Latin, the r is
flipped; use s instead of
z on endings such as
phosa, cosa, and so on;
the Latin o is a cross
between oh and aw; in the
transliteration above, I
chose to simply use an o
for consistency. The
director will blend the
oh and aw in the
rehearsals to his/her own
preference. Lastly,
tarantula is pronounced
tah-rah-n-too-lah (avoid
teh-ran-choo-luh) within
the confines of this
text. Stomp: This can be
done by the entire
chorus, or just the first
row. It is as much visual
as it is auditory. The
string quartet is
preferred over piano when
that option affords
itself. I created a piano
score that is a viable
option and included it in
the piano/vocal score if
a performance uses
chorus/piano. The
tarantella is a popular
southern Italian dance
with origins in the 11th
century. (There is even
some mention of the
tarantella in ancient
Greek mythology.) Of the
possible sources of the
dance, the most popular
comes from the villages
of Tanto and Tarentum
(“little
spiderâ€), Italy.
During harvest, workers
in the field were
sometimes bitten by the
tarantula spider. To
combat the
“poison,†the
afflicted workers went
into a frenetic, almost
musical exorcism to sweat
the venom out of their
pores. In the millennium
since, the very energetic
nature of the dance has
remained, although the
curative focus of the
dance has given way to
more enjoyable endeavors,
even stately
courtship.Christopher
Smart (1722-1771), also
known as “Kit
Smart†or
“Jack Smart,â€
was born in Kent, England
and suffered from what is
now believed to be acute
asthma and other health
issues as a child. As
such, he did not work in
the fields, but spent
much time reading and
writing, a passion that
he nurtured for a
lifetime. Well known in
London literary circles,
his career as a writer
floundered due to
mounting debts and his
falling out of favor with
the literary
establishment: Sadly, he
was forced to confinement
at St. Luke’s
Hospital for Lunatics,
though this was based on
his mounting debt, and
not on insanity.
(Confinement, or
debtor’s prison,
was common during this
period if one’s
debts could not be paid.)
During his confinement,
he worked on two of his
most famous works,
Jubilate Agno and A Song
of David. (Part of
Jubilate Agno
[“Rejoice in the
Lambâ€] was set to
music by English
composer, Benjamin
Britten.) Smart’s
writing style (which, at
times, bordered on the
absurd), along with his
many obsessions, lead to
frequent misperceptions
of his work and his
lucidity. In this present
work, portions of
Smart’s Jubilate
Agno were used in mm.
24-31, 103-110 and
149-156. The remaining
text was gathered by the
composer, including the
rapid, almost
patter-like, delivery of
words from A-Z in the
alphabet. (Christopher
Smart had a preoccupation
with the alphabet.) These
words both rhyme and
accentuate the frenetic
nature of the spider
dance:The convergence,
then, of the medieval
tarantella (spider
dance), the writings of a
brilliant poet who
bordered on the absurd,
and the infusion of
strong, descriptive and
otherwise random, rhyming
words, synthesizes to
make dramatic lyrics for
this work.Z. Randall
Stroope is an American
composer and conductor.
He has served as
Professor of Music at
three universities (an
Endowed Professor at
two), conducted 47
all-state choirs, and
directed over 40 times at
Carnegie Hall, among
other American venues.
Randall guest conducts
full-time, and composes
from his home studios on
Merritt Island, Florida
and in Sandia Park, New
Mexico. In Latin, the
“r†is
flipped; use
“s†instead
of “z†on
endings such as
“phosa,â€
“cosa,†and
so on; the Latin
“o†is a
cross between
“oh†and
“awâ€; in the
transliteration above, I
chose to simply use an
“o†for
consistency. The director
will blend the
“oh†and
“aw†in the
rehearsals to his/her own
preference. Lastly,
“tarantulaâ€
is pronounced
“tah-rah-n-too-lah
€ (avoid
“teh-ran-choo-luhâ
€) within the
confines of this
text.Stomp: This can be
done by the entire
chorus, or just the first
row. It is as much visual
as it is auditory. The
string quartet is
preferred over piano when
that option affords
itself. I created a piano
score that is a viable
option and included it in
the piano/vocal score if
a performance uses
chorus/piano. The
tarantella is a popular
southern Italian dance
with origins in the 11th
century. (There is even
some mention of the
tarantella in ancient
Greek mythology.) Of the
possible sources of the
dance, the most popular
comes from the villages
of Tanto and Tarentum
(“little
spiderâ€), Italy.
During harvest, workers
in the field were
sometimes bitten by the
tarantula spider. To
combat the
“poison,†the
afflicted workers went
into a frenetic, almost
musical exorcism to sweat
the venom out of their
pores. In the millennium
since, the very energetic
nature of the dance has
remained, although the
curative focus of the
dance has given way to
more enjoyable endeavors,
even stately
courtship.Christopher
Smart (1722-1771), also
known as “Kit
Smart†or
“Jack Smart,â€
was born in Kent, England
and suffered from what is
now believed to be acute
asthma and other health
issues as a child. As
such, he did not work in
the fields, but spent
much time reading and
writing, a passion that
he nurtured for a
lifetime. Well known in
London literary circles,
his career as a writer
floundered due to
mounting debts and his
falling out of favor with
the literary
establishment: Sadly, he
was forced to confinement
at St. Luke’s
Hospital for Lunatics,
though this was based on
his mounting debt, and
not on insanity.
(Confinement, or
debtor’s prison,
was common during this
period if one’s
debts could not be paid.)
During his confinement,
he worked on two of his
most famous works,
Jubilate Agno and A Song
of David. (Part of
Jubilate Agno
[“Rejoice in the
Lambâ€] was set to
music by English
composer, Benjamin
Britten.) Smart’s
writing style (which, at
times, bordered on the
absurd), along with his
many obsessions, lead to
frequent misperceptions
of his work and his
lucidity. In this present
work, portions of
Smart’s Jubilate
Agno were used in mm.
24-31, 103-110 and
149-156. The remaining
text was gathered by the
composer, including the
rapid, almost
patter-like, delivery of
words from A-Z in the
alphabet. (Christopher
Smart had a preoccupation
with the alphabet.) These
words both rhyme and
accentuate the frenetic
nature of the spider
dance:The convergence,
then, of the medieval
tarantella (spider
dance), the writings of a
brilliant poet who
bordered on the absurd,
and the infusion of
strong, descriptive and
otherwise random, rhyming
words, synthesizes to
make dramatic lyrics for
this work.Z. Randall
Stroope is an American
composer and conductor.
He has served as
Professor of Music at
three universities (an
Endowed Professor at
two), conducted 47
all-state choirs, and
directed over 40 times at
Carnegie Hall, among
other American venues.
Randall guest conducts
full-time, and composes
from his home studios on
Merritt Island, Florida
and in Sandia Park, New
Mexico.In Latin, the
“r†is
flipped; use
“s†instead
of “z†on
endings such as
“phosa,â€
“cosa,†and
so on; the Latin
“o†is a
cross between
“oh†and
“awâ€; in the
transliteration above, I
chose to simply use an
“o†for
consistency. The director
will blend the
“oh†and
“aw†in the
rehearsals to his/her own
preference. Lastly,
“tarantulaâ€
is pronounced
“tah-rah-n-too-lah
€ (avoid
“teh-ran-choo-luhâ
€) within the
confines of this
text.Stomp: This can be
done by the entire
chorus, or just the first
row. It is as much visual
as it is auditory. The
string quartet is
preferred over piano when
that option affords
itself. I created a piano
score that is a viable
option and included it in
the piano/vocal score if
a performance uses
chorus/piano.
Organ solo SKU: CA.1805220 Composed by Various. Edited by Helmut Volkl. T...(+)
Organ solo
SKU:
CA.1805220
Composed
by Various. Edited by
Helmut Volkl. This
edition: Paperbound.
Hymns by Martin Luther:
Ausgaben mit mehreren
Luther-Liedern. German
title: Vorspiele
+Begleitsatze. Organ
music based on hymns,
Advent, End of the church
year, Epiphany, Lent and
Passiontide, Ascension,
Easter and Eastertide,
Whitsun, Trinity,
Christmas, Eucharist,
Communion, Wedding,
Confirmation, Morning,
midday, evening.
Collection. 160 pages.
Carus Verlag #CV
18.052/20. Published by
Carus Verlag
(CA.1805220).
ISBN
9790007100223.
Scor
e available separately -
see item CA.1805200.
String Quartet No.
3. Composed by
Shulamit Ran. Sws.
Contemporary. Full score.
With Standard notation.
Composed March 9 2013. 32
pages. Duration 23
minutes. Theodore Presser
Company #114-41690S.
Published by Theodore
Presser Company
(PR.11441690S).
UPC:
680160626021. 9 x 12
inches.
Ran's third
string quartet was
written for the Pacifica
Quartet, who are
featuring it in numerous
performances from May
2014 through February
2016, across the country
and abroad. Their blog
page dedicated to the
work also features the
composer's notes, for
more indepth insight.
...impassioned solos
emerge from ominous
quiet, and high arpeggios
in the violins quiver
alongside the earthy
cello. Ms. Ran skillfully
deploys these extremes of
color, volume and pitch,
yet the overall somewhat
chilly impression is one
of poise. -- Zachary
Woolfe, The New York
Times. My third string
quartet was composed at
the invitation of the
Pacifica
Quartet, whose
music-making I have come
to know closely and
admire hugely as resident
artists at the University
of Chicago. Already
in our early
conversations Pacifica
proposed that this
quartet might, in some
manner, refer to the
visual arts as a point of
germination. Probing
further, I found out that
the quartet members had
special interest in art
created during the
earlier part of the 20th
century, perhaps between
the two world wars.Â
It was my good fortune to
have met, a short while
later, while in residence
at the American Academy
in Rome in the fall of
2011, art conservationist
Albert Albano who steered
me to the work of Felix
Nussbaum (1904-1944), a
German-Jewish painter
who, like so many others,
perished in the Holocaust
at a young age, and who
left some powerful,
deeply moving art that
spoke to the life that
was unraveling around
him. The title of my
string quartet takes its
inspiration from a major
exhibit devoted to art by
German artists of the
period of the Weimar
Republic (1919-1933)
titled “Glitter and
Doom: German Portraits
from the 1920sâ€,
first shown at New
York’s
Metropolitan Museum of
Art in 2006-07.Â
Nussbaum would have been
a bit too young to be
included in this
exhibit. His most
noteworthy art was
created in the last very
few years of his short
life. The
exhibit’s
evocative title, however,
suggested to me the idea
of “Glitter, Doom,
Shards, Memory†as
a way of framing a
possible musical
composition that would be
an homage to his life and
art, and to that of so
many others like him
during that era.
 Knowing that their
days were numbered, yet
intent on leaving a mark,
a legacy, a memory, their
art is triumph of the
human spirit over
annihilation. Parallel
to my wish to compose a
string quartet that,
typically for this genre,
would exist as
“pure musicâ€,
independent of a
narrative, was my desire
to effect an awareness in
my listener of matters
which are, to me, of
great human concern.
 To my mind there is
no contradiction between
the two goals. Â As in
several other works
composed since 1969, this
is my way of saying
‘do not
forget’, something
that, I believe, can be
done through music with
special power and
poignancy. Â Â The
individual titles of the
quartet’s four
movements give an
indication of some of the
emotional strands this
work explores. 1)
“That which
happened†(das was
geschah) – is how
the poet Paul Celan
referred to the Shoah
– the Holocaust.
 These simple words
served for me, in the
first movement, as a
metaphor for the way in
which an
“ordinaryâ€
life, with its daily flow
and its sense of sweet
normalcy, was shockingly,
inhumanely, inexplicably
shattered. 2)
“Menace†is a
shorter movement,
mimicking a Scherzo.
 It is also
machine-like, incessant,
with an occasional,
recurring, waltz-like
little tune –
perhaps the chilling
grimace we recognize from
the executioner’s
guillotine mask. Â Like
the death machine it
alludes to, it gathers
momentum as it goes, and
is
unstoppable. 3) â
If I must perish - do
not let my paintings
dieâ€; these words
are by Felix Nussbaum
who, knowing what was
ahead, nonetheless
continued painting till
his death in Auschwitz in
1944. Â If the heart of
the first movement is the
shuddering interruption
of life as we know it,
the third movement tries
to capture something of
what I can only imagine
to be the conflicting
states of mind that would
have made it possible,
and essential, to
continue to live and
practice one’s art
– bearing witness
to the events.
 Creating must have
been, for Nussbaum and
for so many others, a way
of maintaining sanity,
both a struggle and a
catharsis – an act
of defiance and salvation
all at the same
time. 4)
“Shards,
Memory†is a direct
reference to my
quartet’s title.
 Only shards are left.
 And memory.  The
memory is of things large
and small, of unspeakable
tragedy, but also of the
song and the dance, the
smile, the hopes. All
things human. Â As we
remember, in the face of
death’s silence,
we restore dignity to
those who are
gone.—Shulamit
Ran .
Score and Parts.
Composed by Mohammed
Fairouz. Sws. Score and
parts. With Standard
notation. 68 pages.
Duration 25 minutes.
Theodore Presser Company
#114-41903. Published by
Theodore Presser Company
(PR.114419030).
ISBN
9781491114124. UPC:
680160669851. 9 x 12
inches.
A
fascination with
polycultural synergy
between diverse literary
textsdrives the
inspiration for much of
Mohammed Fairouz’s
prodigiouscreative
output, including
instrumental music as
well as vocal. Inhis
profound and extensive
essay preceding the
score, Fairouz shedslight
on how Edgar Allen
Poe’s “Israfel”
relates to the
prophetsand prophesies of
the Quran, Old Testament,
and New Testament.The
eight-movement quartet
may be heard as a
dramatic galleryof
portraits and of
story-telling,
flourishing in a
post-traditionallanguage
that is at once
vernacular and spiritual,
Middle Easternand
Western. The complete set
of score and parts is
included in
thispublication. (See
pages 2-3 of score for
clear distinction of
paragraphs,
etc.)Prophesies, by
Mohammed FairouzEdgar
Allen Poe’s rendition
of Israfel was the point
of departure for the
final movement of my
previous stringquartet
which is titled The Named
Angels. At the opening of
his poem, Poe evokes the
Quran:“And the angel
Israfel, whose
heartstrings are a lute,
and who has the sweetest
voice of all God’s
creatures.”This informs
the first lines of the
poem that, in turn, gave
me the title for the
final movement of The
Named
Angels,“Israfel’s
Spell”:In Heaven a
spirit doth dwell“Whose
heartstrings are a
lute”None sing so
wildly wellAs the angel
Israfel,And the giddy
stars (so legends
tell),Ceasing their
hymns, attend the spellOf
his voice, all mute.It is
the end of that poem,
however, that is the
starting point for the
current quartet,
Prophesies, which
concernsitself with
mortal prophets rather
than eternal Angelic
spirits.If I could
dwellWhere IsrafelHath
dwelt, and he where I,He
might not sing so wildly
wellA mortal melody,While
a bolder note than this
might swellFrom my lyre
within the sky.Islamic
thought has asked us to
look at the example of
the prophets. That’s
significant because of
the fact thatJoseph and
all the prophets were
human beings with the
flaws of human beings. No
prophet was perfect,
andIslamic tradition has
never asked its followers
to aspire to the example
of the Angels, the
perfected ones. Instead
weare given the gift of
our prophets. While The
Named Angels drew on the
motion and energy of
everlasting
spirits,Prophesies is a
depiction of the
movements within our own
mortal coil.This quartet
is a continuation of a
long tradition of Muslim
artists telling their
stories and singing their
songs.Many of these
renditions are, in fact,
figurative and (contrary
to popular belief) the
Quran contains no
“Islamicedict”
prohibiting figurative
renditions of the figures
described in the Old
Testament, New Testament,
or Quran.The majority of
artists, however, have
preferred eternal and
abstract forms such as
words and their
calligraphicrepresentatio
ns, poems (Yusuf and
Zuleikha or the
Conference of Birds come
immediately to mind),
architecture,and many
other non-figurative art
forms to the
representation of man.
These cold, ancient, and
everlasting shapesof
unending time flourished,
and the divine infinity
of representing geometric
forms gained favor over
the placementof the
explicit representation
of mankind and our own
likeness at the center of
the universes.Adding the
string quartet to these
forms which express the
recursive spheres of
heavens and earth
abstractly shouldexplain
why I have chosen to
render higher things
through the use of music
without the addition of
words or anyother
art-form. It is the
abstract art of pure
form, in which all is
form and all is content,
which compels me.
Thisquartet should be
seen as no more
programmatic than the
arches of the Great
Mosque at Cordoba.The
first movement, Yāqub
(Jacob), is slow, quiet
and prayerful. It evokes
the patient sorrow of a
slow choraledeveloping
over time as it coaxes
our pulse out of the
ticking of a clock-like
meter that defines our
day-to-day livesand into
a divine eternity.The
second, Saleh, imagines
the spirit of that
desert-prophet through
the use of a Liwa; the
dance-sequence that
hasbeen such a prevalent
form of expression in the
Arabian Peninsula for
much of our recorded
history.The third
movement is titled
Dawoōd, and it is
emblematic of the beloved
Prophet, King, and
Psalmist, David.Though it
has no lyrics, the
movement functions as a
dabkeh (an ancient dance
native to the Levant) and
also “sets”the
opening of Psalm 100
(Make a joyful noise unto
the Lord, all ye lands).
This line is never set to
music or sung inthe
quartet but is evoked
through the rhythmic
shape of the violin part
which imitates the
phonology and rhythmof my
speaking the opening line
in the Hebrew and
develops the contours of
that line incessantly
throughout
themovement.3The fourth
movement is an ode to
Yousef (Joseph) and
relates to the first
movement in tempo and
tone just as
Josephrelates to Jacob,
his father. Together, the
first and fourth
movements provide a sort
of Lamentation and
relief.Joseph had the
appearance of a noble
angel, but he was very
much a human being. And
the story of this
particularprophet had
tragic beginnings many
years before he found
himself in a position of
power in Egypt. Back in
his youth,still among the
Israelites, Joseph
experienced a series of
revelations through his
dreams that spoke of his
impendingcareer in
prophecy. He confided his
dreams to his father, the
Prophet Jacob, who told
his son of the greatness
thatawaited him in his
future only to have his
brothers throw him into a
well and leave him for
dead. Joseph
eventuallyfound his way
from Israel to Egypt and
rose out of slavery into
a position of power.
Meanwhile, famine engulfs
Israel.Forty years pass,
and back in the land of
Jacob and Rachel, of
Joseph’s brothers and
Abraham’s tribe, Israel
wasnot spared the effects
of the famine. They
sorely lacked Joseph’s
prophecy and his vision.
The Qur’an then tells
usthat Jacob, sensing
Joseph, sends the other
brothers to Egypt
instructing them to come
back with food and
grain.Arriving in Egypt,
they unwittingly appear
before Joseph. They
don’t recognize their
little brother who has
risen toa position of
might, dressed in his
Egyptian regalia. They
ask for the food and the
grain.After some
conversation, Joseph is
no longer able to contain
his emotion. Overcome, he
reveals himself to his
nowterrified brothers. He
embraces them. He asks
them eagerly, “How is
our father?” Joseph
gives them the gift of
thefood and the grain
that they came in search
of. He relieves them from
hunger and alleviates
their fear. He sendsthem
back with proof that he
is alive, and it is this
joyful proof from the
miraculous hands of a
prophet that bringsback
the ancient Jacob’s
vision after 40 years of
blindness.In this story,
I am struck by the fact
that Joseph may not have
made the decision to
forgive his brothers on
thespot, but that
something inside the
prophet’s soul found
forgiveness and peace for
the brothers who had so
gravelywronged him at
some point along his
journey. I would suspect
this point to have been
present at Joseph’s
inception,even before he
had ever been
wronged.This is proof, if
we needed it, that
Joseph’s angel-like
beauty was not only
physical and external,
but also internalas well:
Joseph possessed a
profound loveliness of
spirit that bound his
appearance and his soul.
In Joseph, formand soul
are one.Time is to
musicians what light is
to a painter. In this
way, the story of Joseph
also shows us that time
can affectour perception
of even the most tragic
wounds. In fact, the most
common Arabic word for
“human being” is
insaan,which shares its
roots with the word
insaa, “to forget.”
While our ability to
remember is essential to
how we learnabout
ourselves, our capacity
to “forgive and
forget” may also be one
of our great gifts as
human beings.The fifth
movement follows my ode
to Joseph with a
structural memory of
Mūsa (Moses). The
movement consistsentirely
of descending motifs
which I constructed as an
indication of Moses’
descending movement as he
emergedto his people from
the heights of Mt. Sinai.
The music is constructed
in five phrases which
function as a
formalreference to the
five books of Moses, the
Pentateuch. The movement
is placed as the fifth of
the quartet for the
samereason.While Joseph
is always evoked as
supremely beautiful in
the Books of Judaism,
Christianity, and Islam,
Suleiman(Solomon) is
described as surpassing
in his quicksilver
intelligence. This
movement is composed of a
seven-partriddle which
passes by in an instant
but can be caught by the
attentive listener. From
Solomon, we work our
wayback to Yishak (Isaac)
in a seventh movement
that evokes Isaac’s
literal meaning in Arabic
and Hebrew: laughter.The
eighth and final movement
of this quartet is named
for the Patriarch of the
entire Book: Ibrahim
(Abraham). Itrelates to
Isaac just as Joseph
relates to Jacob; they
are father and son. The
lines are prayerful and
contemplative;the form of
the music evolves from a
fugue joining together
many different forms of
prayer into a single
tapestry ofcounterpoint,
to the cyclical form of
this entire quartet which
is rendered through the
motion of pilgrims
circling theKaaba (cube)
in Mecca — a structure
which was built by
Abraham for Hagaar and
their son Ismail.These
are just some of the
figures that are
cherished by all three of
the Middle Eastern
monotheisms
(Judaism,Christianity,
and Islam) that the
Qur’an refers to
collectively as Ahl
Al-Kitab. This Arabic
phrase is most
commonlytranslated as
“The People of the
Book,” but here the
most common translation
is a flawed one: the
Arabic word“ahl”
means “family” and
not just “people.” A
better translation would
be “Family of the
Book.” Each of the
eightmovements of
Prophesies grows from a
single musical cell.This
quartet is a family
album.—Mohammed Fairouz
(2018.
Composed
by Zachary Cairns. Sws.
Yps. Full score. 24
pages. Duration 4
minutes, 48 seconds. Carl
Fischer Music #YPS217F.
Published by Carl Fischer
Music (CF.YPS217F).
ISBN 9781491156551.
UPC: 680160915095. 9 x 12
inches.
Hope
Remains Within was
commissioned by and
composed for the Mount
Nittany Middle School 7th
and 8th Grade Concert
Bands. Having heard the
students of Mount Nittany
perform another work of
mine, I was very excited
when their director,
Johanna Steinbacher,
approached me about
writing a piece
specifically for them. I
knew right away that I
wanted to write something
that would tie in with
their non-music
curriculum in some way,
but I wasn't exactly sure
how, or what. Johanna
talked to some of her
students and learned
that, in 7th grade, the
students spend a good
deal of time studying
mythology in their
English class. In
particular, two clarinet
students mentioned how
much they enjoyed the
story of Pandora. As
such, I decided to use
that story as the basis
of this composition. Hope
Remains Within doesn't
attempt to re-tell the
story, event by event, in
musical terms. Instead,
my goal was to address
what seems to be one of
the central issues of the
Pandora myth. Though
there are some
variations, we probably
all know the basics as
told by the ancient Greek
poet Hesiod. Zeus decides
to punish Prometheus for
stealing fire from heaven
and giving it to humans.
He and the other gods
create Pandora, a
beautiful and deceitful
woman, and they give her
to Prometheus's brother
Epimetheus as a bride.
Pandora is herself given
a jar (according to many
sources, jar seems to be
a more accurate
translation for what we
commonly call Pandora's
box) which contained
numerous evils, diseases,
and other pains. Out of
curiosity, Pandora opens
the jar and releases all
of these evils into the
world. But one thing
remains in the jar: hope.
The issue of hope seems
to be one of the big
interpretive questions of
the Pandora myth. Why
does hope remain within
the jar? Why doesn't it
come out of the jar to
help humanity? Is hope
being held on a pedestal
of some sort? Is hope
deliberately withheld
from humanity? Why was
hope in the jar with all
those evils in the first
place? I'm not enough of
a mythological scholar to
claim to have definitive
answers to those
questions, but these are
the questions that I've
tried to engage from a
musical perspective in
Hope Remains Within. I
encourage the students
and listeners to consider
their own ideas of what
hope is, and where you
can find your own hope
when needed. Musically,
Hope Remains Within draws
one of its main themes
from the Prometheus
Symphony by Alexander
Skryabin (Scriabin). The
note sequence F-D-Gb -F,
heard near Hope's
beginning played by alto
saxophones and chimes,
comes from the opening
measures of Skyrabin's
work. Given the important
role that Prometheus
plays in the Pandora
myth, this seemed like an
appropriate musical
gesture to quote. This
Prometheus motive is
varied throughout the
course of the piece, and
even provides closure at
the end, recast in a
major key. Additionally,
I have tried to involve a
manageable amount of
chromaticism in this
piece. I have worked from
the key of Bb major, no
doubt familiar to every
student who has ever
played an instrument in a
band. But I have added
three extra notes: Db,
Gb, and Ab, which are
drawn from the key of Bb
minor. During the piece's
slow opening, I have
allowed these minor key
pitches to mingle freely
within the Bb major
tonality, adding extra
color and (I hope!)
beauty. As the piece
progresses, though, the
tempo increases, and we
lose sense of the Bb
major key entirely, and
these extra notes play a
more important role. But
finally, Bb major returns
triumphantly and all the
extra notes are gone,
except for a brief memory
near the very end. (Ok,
there are a couple of
E-naturals that sneak in
there along the way. I
couldn't
resist.). Hope Remains
Within was commissioned
by and composed for the
Mount Nittany Middle
School 7th and 8th Grade
Concert Bands. Having
heard the students of
Mount Nittany perform
another work of mine, I
was very excited when
their director, Johanna
Steinbacher, approached
me about writing a piece
specifically for them. I
knew right away that I
wanted to write something
that would tie in with
their non-music
curriculum in some way,
but I wasn’t
exactly sure how, or
what. Johanna talked to
some of her students and
learned that, in 7th
grade, the students spend
a good deal of time
studying mythology in
their English class. In
particular, two clarinet
students mentioned how
much they enjoyed the
story of Pandora.As such,
I decided to use that
story as the basis of
this composition. Hope
Remains Within
doesn’t attempt to
re-tell the story, event
by event, in musical
terms. Instead, my goal
was to address what seems
to be one of the central
issues of the Pandora
myth. Though there are
some variations, we
probably all know the
basics as told by the
ancient Greek poet
Hesiod. Zeus decides to
punish Prometheus for
stealing fire from heaven
and giving it to humans.
He and the other gods
create Pandora, a
beautiful and deceitful
woman, and they give her
to Prometheus’s
brother Epimetheus as a
bride. Pandora is herself
given a jar (according to
many sources,
“jar†seems
to be a more accurate
translation for what we
commonly call
“Pandora’s
boxâ€) which
contained numerous evils,
diseases, and other
pains. Out of curiosity,
Pandora opens the jar and
releases all of these
evils into the world. But
one thing remains in the
jar: hope.The issue of
hope seems to be one of
the big interpretive
questions of the Pandora
myth. Why does hope
remain within the jar?
Why doesn’t it
come out of the jar to
help humanity? Is hope
being held on a pedestal
of some sort? Is hope
deliberately withheld
from humanity? Why was
hope in the jar with all
those evils in the first
place?I’m not
enough of a mythological
scholar to claim to have
definitive answers to
those questions, but
these are the questions
that I’ve tried to
engage from a musical
perspective in Hope
Remains Within. I
encourage the students
and listeners to consider
their own ideas of what
hope is, and where you
can find your own hope
when needed.Musically,
Hope Remains Within draws
one of its main themes
from the Prometheus
Symphony by Alexander
Skryabin (Scriabin). The
note sequence F-D-Gb -F,
heard near Hope’s
beginning played by alto
saxophones and chimes,
comes from the opening
measures of
Skyrabin’s work.
Given the important role
that Prometheus plays in
the Pandora myth, this
seemed like an
appropriate musical
gesture to quote. This
Prometheus motive is
varied throughout the
course of the piece, and
even provides closure at
the end, recast in a
major key.Additionally, I
have tried to involve a
manageable amount of
chromaticism in this
piece. I have worked from
the key of Bb major, no
doubt familiar to every
student who has ever
played an instrument in a
band. But I have added
three extra notes: Db,
Gb, and Ab, which are
drawn from the key of Bb
minor. During the
piece’s slow
opening, I have allowed
these minor key pitches
to mingle freely within
the Bb major tonality,
adding extra color and (I
hope!) beauty. As the
piece progresses, though,
the tempo increases, and
we lose sense of the Bb
major key entirely, and
these extra notes play a
more important role. But
finally, Bb major returns
triumphantly and all the
extra notes are gone,
except for a brief memory
near the very end. (Ok,
there are a couple of
E-naturals that sneak in
there along the way. I
couldn’t
resist.).
Composed by
Zachary Cairns. Folio.
Yps. Set of Score and
Parts.
8+8+4+8+8+4+2+6+4+4+4+8+8
+8+8+6+6+6+4+6+4+2+2+4+6+
10+24 pages. Duration 4
minutes, 48 seconds. Carl
Fischer Music #YPS217.
Published by Carl Fischer
Music (CF.YPS217).
ISBN 9781491156544.
UPC: 680160915088. 9 x 12
inches.
Hope
Remains Within was
commissioned by and
composed for the Mount
Nittany Middle School 7th
and 8th Grade Concert
Bands. Having heard the
students of Mount Nittany
perform another work of
mine, I was very excited
when their director,
Johanna Steinbacher,
approached me about
writing a piece
specifically for them. I
knew right away that I
wanted to write something
that would tie in with
their non-music
curriculum in some way,
but I wasn't exactly sure
how, or what. Johanna
talked to some of her
students and learned
that, in 7th grade, the
students spend a good
deal of time studying
mythology in their
English class. In
particular, two clarinet
students mentioned how
much they enjoyed the
story of Pandora. As
such, I decided to use
that story as the basis
of this composition. Hope
Remains Within doesn't
attempt to re-tell the
story, event by event, in
musical terms. Instead,
my goal was to address
what seems to be one of
the central issues of the
Pandora myth. Though
there are some
variations, we probably
all know the basics as
told by the ancient Greek
poet Hesiod. Zeus decides
to punish Prometheus for
stealing fire from heaven
and giving it to humans.
He and the other gods
create Pandora, a
beautiful and deceitful
woman, and they give her
to Prometheus's brother
Epimetheus as a bride.
Pandora is herself given
a jar (according to many
sources, jar seems to be
a more accurate
translation for what we
commonly call Pandora's
box) which contained
numerous evils, diseases,
and other pains. Out of
curiosity, Pandora opens
the jar and releases all
of these evils into the
world. But one thing
remains in the jar: hope.
The issue of hope seems
to be one of the big
interpretive questions of
the Pandora myth. Why
does hope remain within
the jar? Why doesn't it
come out of the jar to
help humanity? Is hope
being held on a pedestal
of some sort? Is hope
deliberately withheld
from humanity? Why was
hope in the jar with all
those evils in the first
place? I'm not enough of
a mythological scholar to
claim to have definitive
answers to those
questions, but these are
the questions that I've
tried to engage from a
musical perspective in
Hope Remains Within. I
encourage the students
and listeners to consider
their own ideas of what
hope is, and where you
can find your own hope
when needed. Musically,
Hope Remains Within draws
one of its main themes
from the Prometheus
Symphony by Alexander
Skryabin (Scriabin). The
note sequence F-D-Gb -F,
heard near Hope's
beginning played by alto
saxophones and chimes,
comes from the opening
measures of Skyrabin's
work. Given the important
role that Prometheus
plays in the Pandora
myth, this seemed like an
appropriate musical
gesture to quote. This
Prometheus motive is
varied throughout the
course of the piece, and
even provides closure at
the end, recast in a
major key. Additionally,
I have tried to involve a
manageable amount of
chromaticism in this
piece. I have worked from
the key of Bb major, no
doubt familiar to every
student who has ever
played an instrument in a
band. But I have added
three extra notes: Db,
Gb, and Ab, which are
drawn from the key of Bb
minor. During the piece's
slow opening, I have
allowed these minor key
pitches to mingle freely
within the Bb major
tonality, adding extra
color and (I hope!)
beauty. As the piece
progresses, though, the
tempo increases, and we
lose sense of the Bb
major key entirely, and
these extra notes play a
more important role. But
finally, Bb major returns
triumphantly and all the
extra notes are gone,
except for a brief memory
near the very end. (Ok,
there are a couple of
E-naturals that sneak in
there along the way. I
couldn't
resist.). Hope Remains
Within was commissioned
by and composed for the
Mount Nittany Middle
School 7th and 8th Grade
Concert Bands. Having
heard the students of
Mount Nittany perform
another work of mine, I
was very excited when
their director, Johanna
Steinbacher, approached
me about writing a piece
specifically for them. I
knew right away that I
wanted to write something
that would tie in with
their non-music
curriculum in some way,
but I wasn’t
exactly sure how, or
what. Johanna talked to
some of her students and
learned that, in 7th
grade, the students spend
a good deal of time
studying mythology in
their English class. In
particular, two clarinet
students mentioned how
much they enjoyed the
story of Pandora.As such,
I decided to use that
story as the basis of
this composition. Hope
Remains Within
doesn’t attempt to
re-tell the story, event
by event, in musical
terms. Instead, my goal
was to address what seems
to be one of the central
issues of the Pandora
myth. Though there are
some variations, we
probably all know the
basics as told by the
ancient Greek poet
Hesiod. Zeus decides to
punish Prometheus for
stealing fire from heaven
and giving it to humans.
He and the other gods
create Pandora, a
beautiful and deceitful
woman, and they give her
to Prometheus’s
brother Epimetheus as a
bride. Pandora is herself
given a jar (according to
many sources,
“jar†seems
to be a more accurate
translation for what we
commonly call
“Pandora’s
boxâ€) which
contained numerous evils,
diseases, and other
pains. Out of curiosity,
Pandora opens the jar and
releases all of these
evils into the world. But
one thing remains in the
jar: hope.The issue of
hope seems to be one of
the big interpretive
questions of the Pandora
myth. Why does hope
remain within the jar?
Why doesn’t it
come out of the jar to
help humanity? Is hope
being held on a pedestal
of some sort? Is hope
deliberately withheld
from humanity? Why was
hope in the jar with all
those evils in the first
place?I’m not
enough of a mythological
scholar to claim to have
definitive answers to
those questions, but
these are the questions
that I’ve tried to
engage from a musical
perspective in Hope
Remains Within. I
encourage the students
and listeners to consider
their own ideas of what
hope is, and where you
can find your own hope
when needed.Musically,
Hope Remains Within draws
one of its main themes
from the Prometheus
Symphony by Alexander
Skryabin (Scriabin). The
note sequence F-D-Gb -F,
heard near Hope’s
beginning played by alto
saxophones and chimes,
comes from the opening
measures of
Skyrabin’s work.
Given the important role
that Prometheus plays in
the Pandora myth, this
seemed like an
appropriate musical
gesture to quote. This
Prometheus motive is
varied throughout the
course of the piece, and
even provides closure at
the end, recast in a
major key.Additionally, I
have tried to involve a
manageable amount of
chromaticism in this
piece. I have worked from
the key of Bb major, no
doubt familiar to every
student who has ever
played an instrument in a
band. But I have added
three extra notes: Db,
Gb, and Ab, which are
drawn from the key of Bb
minor. During the
piece’s slow
opening, I have allowed
these minor key pitches
to mingle freely within
the Bb major tonality,
adding extra color and (I
hope!) beauty. As the
piece progresses, though,
the tempo increases, and
we lose sense of the Bb
major key entirely, and
these extra notes play a
more important role. But
finally, Bb major returns
triumphantly and all the
extra notes are gone,
except for a brief memory
near the very end. (Ok,
there are a couple of
E-naturals that sneak in
there along the way. I
couldn’t
resist.).
A Collection for Group Singing for All Occasions. By Mitch Miller. P/V/C Mixed F...(+)
A Collection for Group
Singing for All
Occasions. By Mitch
Miller. P/V/C Mixed
Folio. Traditional Pop.
Vocal score book. With
vocal score notation and
chord names. 128 pages.
Alfred Music #00-CN0027.
Published by Alfred Music
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'.
Guitar - Advanced SKU: DY.DO-1555 Composed by Stephen Goss. Score. Les Ed...(+)
Guitar - Advanced
SKU:
DY.DO-1555
Composed
by Stephen Goss. Score.
Les Editions
Doberman-Yppan #DO 1555.
Published by Les Editions
Doberman-Yppan
(DY.DO-1555).
ISBN
9782897963354.
Pier
rot, or Harlequin? (2023)
is based on stock
characters from the
Italian commedia
dellâarte tradition.
Columbina has a choice of
partner â Pierrot,
or Harlequin? Or maybe
she will select neither
of them. In this set of
triple variations,
Pierrot and Harlequin
compete for Columbina's
attention and favour.
Pierrot is deep, quiet,
thoughtful, and loving,
but sometimes
melancholic. Harlequin is
light-hearted, extrovert,
and fun to be with, but
somewhat shallow and
brash. Columbina herself
is coquettish, impulsive,
and unpredictable. How
will the story end
between these imperfect
characters? The performer
gets to select one of
three possible endings as
the piece nears its
conclusion. Pierrot,
or Harlequin? was
commissioned by the
International Guitar
Festival Homenaje 2023.
The premiere was given by
Giacomo Susani at Barco
Teatro, Padova, Italy, on
10th November
2023.
Chamber Music Saxophone Quartet SKU: PR.114417130 & Happy Birthday to ...(+)
Chamber Music Saxophone
Quartet
SKU:
PR.114417130
&
Happy Birthday to
Prism. Composed by
Chen Yi. Sws each.
Contemporary. Set of
Score and Parts. With
Standard notation.
Composed 2014.
24+12+12+12+8 pages.
Duration 14 minutes.
Theodore Presser Company
#114-41713. Published by
Theodore Presser Company
(PR.114417130).
ISBN
9781491110409. UPC:
680160626687. 9x12
inches.
A recipient
of the New Music USA 2013
Live Music For Dance
Award commissioning
grant, Not Alone is
inspired by the ancient
Chinese poet Li Bai's
poem Drinking Alone under
the Moon with the Shadow.
The premiere was given on
April 26, 2014 by the
PRISM Quartet with the
Nai-Ni Chen Dance
Company, which
commissioned the work to
celebrate its 25th
Anniversary NYC Season.
From the Program Note by
Matthew Levy (The PRISM
Quartet), Not Alone
(2014) is an
interdisciplinary
work...but it stands
alone in a chamber music
setting. The work spans a
stunning range of
textures, from
introspective solos for
each of the four
saxophones to majestic
hyper-active gestures.
The PRISM Quartet
recorded Not Alone for a
2017 release on XAS
Records titled Paradigm
Lost. But we're excited
for a wider community of
saxophonists to embrace
the work, and share it
with their own audiences.
Not Alone is published
together with Happy
Birthday to PRISM, a
brief miniature that Chen
Yi wrote for the
quartet's 20th
anniversary celebration
in 2004. For advanced
performers.______________
___________Text from the
scanned back cover:NOT
ALONE for Saxophone
QuartetHAPPY BIRTHDAY TO
PRISM for Saxophone
QuartetNot Alone is a
14-minute saxophone
quartet and dance score
inspired by the ancient
Chinese poet Li
Bai’s
“Drinking Alone
under the Moon with the
Shadow.†The
expansively-textured sax
quartet matches the
exploratory and dramatic
movements and gestures in
the dance. NOT ALONE was
commissioned by the
Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company
which premiered the work
in collaboration with the
PRISM Quartet. Also
included in this
publication is Chen
Yi’s fascinating
take on “Happy
Birthday to You,â€
composed in celebration
of Prism’s 25th
anniversary season. A
recipient of the New
Music USA 2013 Live Music
For Dance Award
commissioning grant, Not
Alone is inspiredby the
ancient Chinese poet Li
Bai’s poem
“Drinking Alone
under the Moon with the
Shadow.†The
premierewas given on
April 26, 2014 by the
PRISM Quartet with the
Nai-Ni Chen Dance
Company, which
commissioned thework to
celebrate its 25th
Anniversary NYC
Season. Program Note
by composer Chen YiThe
original inspiration for
this work for both the
choreographer and the
composer came from the
Tang Dynasty poem - Alone
Under the Moon by Li Bai.
The poem describes the
poet being alone in a
garden. The moon and his
shadow became his
companions that night.
The choreographer brings
this idea to modern life
in an urban setting. She
created a series of
“mindscapesâ€
which are the result of
the exploration of the
different mental and
physical states of being
alone.Through
self-examination, the
choreographer raises the
question: are we ever
really alone? Our
physical being may be
standing by itself, but
what about our
introspective self? When
we are still, we let our
thoughts pass by like
flowing water. If we
could engage with our
shadows, what would it be
like?Program Note by
Matthew Levy, The PRISM
QuartetThe PRISM Quartet
has commissioned a great
many composers since our
founding days in 1984.
Chen Yi is among ahandful
of our very favorites,
and one to whom
we’ve returned
time and time again. Her
music is powerful,
expansive,intimate, and
draws connections between
Eastern and Western,
ancient and modern
traditions in a voice all
her own.Chen Yi has
written or adapted four
works for the PRISM
Quartet. She penned a
wonderful miniature
called HappyBirth day to
PRISM to celebrate the
ensemble’s 20th
anniversary back in 2004
(Dedication, Innova
Recordings).We
subsequently commissioned
her to compose Septet
(2008) for Erhu, Pipa,
Percussion, and Saxophone
Quartet(2008), premiered
and recorded with the New
York ensemble Music From
China (Antiphony, Innova
Recordings 2010).In 2015,
the PRISM Quartet
performed and recorded
(XAS Records) a new
version of her saxophone
quartet concerto,BA YIN,
with the University of
Missouri-Kansas City Wind
Ensemble under the baton
of Steven Davis
(originally writtenfor
the Rascher Quartet and
scored for saxophones and
string
orchestra.).Finally, Not
Alone (2014) is an
interdisciplinary work
written for the Nai-Ni
Chen Dance Company with
the PRISMQuartet, but it
stands alone in a chamber
music setting. The work
spans a stunning range of
textures, from
introspectivesolos for
each of the four
saxophones to majestic
hyper-active gestures.
The PRISM Quartet
recorded Not Alonefor a
2017 release on XAS
Records titled Paradigm
Lost. But we’re
excited for a wider
community of saxophonists
toembrace the work, and
share it with their own
audiences.In his liner
notes for the recording,
WNYC’s John
Schaefer writes:
“As with much of
her music, Chen employs
percussiveeffects and
glissandi; in Chinese
music these are not
considered
“extended
techniques†or
special effects, but
animportant part of the
performer’s
arsenal. Here, they help
create the twilit mood of
the opening moments. The
piecesoon becomes more
dramatic, suggesting the
arrival of the
drinker’s
companions (real or
imagined) and his or
herincreasingly garrulous
outbursts. Passages of
consonance and discord
can easily be heard as
companionable singingand
bouts of drunken
argument. The piece
bustles along on a kind
of restless energy,
until, finally, that
restlessnesssubsides,
giving way to a gently
humorous ending where a
short falling phrase
signals the drinker
falling
asleep.â€.
Royal Coronation Dances Orchestre d'harmonie [Conducteur et Parties séparées] - Facile Manhattan Beach Music
Concert band - Grade 3 SKU: MH.1-59913-054-8 Composed by Bob Margolis. Su...(+)
Concert band - Grade 3
SKU:
MH.1-59913-054-8
Composed by Bob Margolis.
Suitable for advanced
middle school, high
school, community and
college bands. Conductor
score and set of parts.
Duration 4:45. Published
by Manhattan Beach Music
(MH.1-59913-054-8).
ISBN
9781599130545.
Roya
l Coronation Dances is
the first sequel to the
Fanfare Ode & Festival,
both being settings of
dance music originally
arranged by Gervaise in
the mid 16th-century (the
next sequel is The
Renaissance Fair, which
uses music of Susato and
Praetorius). Fanfare Ode
& Festival has been
performed by many tens of
thousands of students,
both in high school and
junior high school. I
have heard that some of
them are amazed that the
music they are playing
was first played and
danced to over 400 years
ago. Some students tend
to think that music
started with Handel and
his Messiah to be
followed by Beethoven and
his Fifth Symphony, with
naught in between or
before of consequence.
Although Royal Coronation
Dances is derived from
the same source as
Fanfare Ode & Festival,
they are treated in
different ways. I
envisioned this new suite
programmatically -- hence
the descriptive movement
titles, which I imagined
to be various dances
actually used at some
long-ago coronation. The
first movement depicts
the guests, both noble
and common, flanked by
flag and banner bearers,
arriving at the palace to
view the majestic event.
They are festive, their
flags swirling the air,
their cloaks brightly
colored. In the second
movement, the queen in
stately measure moves to
take her place on the
throne as leader and
protector of the realm.
In the third movement,
the jesters of the court
entertain the guests with
wild games of sport.
Musically, there are
interesting sonorities to
recreate. Very special
attention should be given
to the tambourine/tenor
drum part in the first
movement. Their lively
rhythms give the movement
its power. Therefore they
should be played as
distinctly and
brilliantly as possible.
The xylophone and
glockenspiel add clarity,
but must not be allowed
to dominate. Observe
especially the differing
dynamics; the intent is
to allow much buzzing
bass to penetrate. The
small drum (starting at
meas. 29) should be
played expressively, with
attention to the notated
articulations, with the
brass light and detached,
especially in a lively
auditorium. It is of some
further interest that the
first dance is extremely
modal. The original is
clearly in G mixolydian
mode (scale:
G-A-B-C-D-E-F-G).
However, other editors
might put in F-sharps in
many places (changing the
piece almost to G major),
in the belief that such
ficta would have been
automatically put in by
the 16th-century
performers as they
played. I doubt it. I
have not only eschewed
these within the work,
but even at the cadences.
So this arrangement is
most distinctly modal
(listen to the F-naturals
in meas. 22 and 23, for
instance), with all the
part-writing as Gervaise
wrote it. In the second
movement, be careful that
things do not become too
glued together. In the
16th century this music
might have been played by
a consort of recorders,
instruments very light of
touch and sensitive to
articulation. Concert
band can easily sound
heavy, and although this
movement has been scored
for tutti band, it must
not sound it. It is
essential, therefore,
that you hear all the
instruments, with none
predominating. Only when
each timbre can be heard
separately and
simultaneously will the
best blend occur, and
consequently the greatest
transparency. So aim for
a transparent, spacious
tutti sound in this
movement. Especially have
the flutes, who do this
so well, articulate
rather sharply, so as to
produce a chiffing sound,
and do not allow the
quarter-notes to become
too tied together in the
entire band. The entrance
of the drums (first
tenor, then bass) are
events and as such should
be audible. Incidentally,
this movement begins in F
Major and ends in D
Minor: They really didn't
care so much about those
things then. The third
movement (one friend has
remarked that it is the
most Margolisian of the
bunch, but actually I am
just getting subtler, I
hope) again relies upon
the percussion (and the
scoring) to make its
points. Xylophone in this
movement is meant to be
distinctly audible.
Therefore, be especially
sure that the xylophone
player is secure in the
part, and also that the
tambourine and toms sound
good. This movement must
fly or it will sink, so
rev up the band and
conduct it in 1 for this
mixolydian jesting. I
suppose the wildly
unrelated keys (clarinets
and then brass at the
end) would be a good
16th-century joke, but to
us, our
put-up-the-chorus-a-half-
step ears readily accept
such shenanigans.
Ensemble instrumentation:
1 Full Score, 1 Piccolo,
4 Flute 1, 4 Flute 2 & 3,
2 Oboe 1 & 2, 2 Bassoon 1
& 2, 1 Eb Clarinet, 4 Bb
Clarinet 1, 4 Bb Clarinet
2, 4 Bb Clarinet 3, 2 Eb
Alto Clarinet, 1 Eb
Contra Alto Clarinet, 3
Bb Bass & Bb Contrabass
Clarinet, 2 Eb Alto
Saxophone 1, 2 Eb Alto
Saxophone 2, 2 Bb Tenor
Saxophone, 2 Eb Baritone
Saxophone, 3 Bb Trumpet
1, 3 Bb Trumpet 2, 3 Bb
Trumpet 3, 4 Horn in F 1
& 2, 2 Trombone 1, 4
Trombone 2 & 3, 3
Euphonium (B.C.), 2
Euphonium (T.C.), 4 Tuba,
1 String Bass, 1 Timpani
(optional), 2 Xylophone &
Glockenspiel, 5
Percussion.