| Transcriptions of Lieder Piano seul Carl Fischer
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... $32.99 - Voir plus => AcheterDélais: 1 to 2 weeks | | |
| Prophesies [Conducteur et Parties séparées] Theodore Presser Co.
Chamber Music Cello, Viola, Violin 1, Violin 2 SKU: PR.114419030 Score...(+)
Chamber Music Cello,
Viola, Violin 1, Violin 2
SKU: PR.114419030
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. $45.00 - Voir plus => AcheterDélais: 1 to 2 weeks | | |
| Hope Remains Within [Conducteur] - Facile Carl Fischer
Band Bass Clarinet, Bass Drum, Bassoon, Bongos, Brake Drum, Chimes, Clarinet 1, ...(+)
Band Bass Clarinet, Bass
Drum, Bassoon, Bongos,
Brake Drum, Chimes,
Clarinet 1, Clarinet 2,
Euphonium, Euphonium
T.C., Flute 1, Flute 2,
Horn, Mallet Percussion
1, Mallet Percussion 2,
Oboe, Percussion 1,
Percussion 2, Percussion
3, Snare Drum and more. -
Grade 2.5 SKU:
CF.YPS217F 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.). $11.00 - Voir plus => AcheterDélais: 1 to 2 weeks | | |
| Hope Remains Within - Facile Carl Fischer
Band Bass Clarinet, Bass Drum, Bassoon, Bongos, Brake Drum, Chimes, Clarinet 1, ...(+)
Band Bass Clarinet, Bass
Drum, Bassoon, Bongos,
Brake Drum, Chimes,
Clarinet 1, Clarinet 2,
Euphonium, Euphonium
T.C., Flute 1, Flute 2,
Horn, Mallet Percussion
1, Mallet Percussion 2,
Oboe, Percussion 1,
Percussion 2, Percussion
3, Snare Drum and more. -
Grade 2.5 SKU:
CF.YPS217 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.). $75.00 - Voir plus => AcheterDélais: 24 hours - In Stock | | |
| Variations on "America" Piano seul Theodore Presser Co.
Chamber Music Piano SKU: PR.110418370 Composed by Charles Ives. Arranged ...(+)
Chamber Music Piano
SKU: PR.110418370
Composed by Charles Ives.
Arranged by Danny Holt.
Performance Score. 20
pages. Duration 8
minutes. Theodore Presser
Company #110-41837.
Published by Theodore
Presser Company
(PR.110418370). ISBN
9781491135075. UPC:
680160686247. Compo
sed as an organ solo by
the 17-year-old Ives for
his own performance
purposes, the beloved
Variations on America is
a treat for any occasion,
whether a holiday
concert, a serious
recital, or other special
event. Danny
Holt’s
transcription for Piano,
Four Hands adds a
dazzling new option to
play at home or on stage,
taking best advantage of
Ives’ tremendous
contrasts in color,
dynamics, and
texture. Composed when
Charles Ives was a
teenager, Variations on
“America†is
both a convenient
introduction to
Ives’ body of
work, and an early
example of his
iconoclastic musical
voice and creative
genius. Just a few years
after composing this
piece, Ives would leave
home to study music at
Yale. But until then he
had been taught by his
father, George (who had
been a bandmaster in the
Civil War). George
subjected the young Ives
to experiments such as
singing a song in one key
while being accompanied
in another, or arranging
for two marching bands to
converge on a town
center, with the
resulting cacophony that
ensued.The Variations
exemplifies an early
period of experimentation
in Ives’ work,
spurred on by the unusual
pedagogy of his father.
The piece is particularly
notable for its use of
bitonality in the two
interludes, subtly
foreshadowing more
well-known examples by
Stravinsky, Bartók,
and others by
approximately two
decades.The bitonal
interludes were so ahead
of their time, in fact,
they were omitted from
the first copy that was
submitted to a publisher
in 1892. (Alas, the piece
was rejected even despite
these
“shockingâ€
elements having been left
out, and it wasn’t
published until more than
five decades later.)
There is some ambiguity
about when exactly Ives
added the interludes into
his manuscript copy,
though ample evidence
suggests he had performed
the piece with the
interludes around the
time he notated the piece
in 1891-92. In any case,
in light of this piece
and his other polytonal
explorations from the
last decade of the 19th
century, it seems fair to
give Ives credit for
being a pioneer in this
area!This arrangement for
Piano, Four Hands,
closely follows
Ives’ original
version for organ,
setting aside William
Schuman’s popular
adaptation for symphony
orchestra and William
Rhoads’ band
transcription of the
Schuman orchestration.
Pianists will find that
the piece translates well
to the instrument.
Ideally, the choreography
and logistics of
elbow-to-elbow four-hands
playing approximates the
wild joy one gets from
watching an organist play
the piece (e.g., the
elaborate pedal part in
the final variation).In
preparing this
publication, attention
was paid to details in
the dual Critical
Editions (Presser
443-41003) of both
Ives’ manuscript
edition and the 1949
publication edited by
organist E. Power Biggs
(who is credited with
discovering what had been
a long-lost, forgotten
work.) But as with much
of Ives’ output,
attempting to create a
true
‘urtext’
score is a futile
endeavor, and especially
with a piece such as this
one – in which
Ives incorporated
improvisation in live
performance –
seems unnecessary anyhow.
True die-hards are of
course encouraged to
consult the critical
editions and even find
inspiration in the
orchestrated version.
Generally, performers are
advised to be wild, have
fun, and not to be too
rigid in their
interpretive
choices.Dynamics in this
arrangement mostly follow
the organ score closely.
Pianists will use good
judgment about pedaling
throughout, which should
be straightforward and
intuitive. Courtesy
accidentals have been
provided frequently
– without
parentheses –
balancing the need for
extra clarity in the
context of Ives’
murky musical language,
and a desire to avoid
unnecessary clutter.A few
notes that might inform
interpretive
decisions:mm. 15-16:
There are inconsistencies
here between Ives’
original manuscript and
the 1949 Biggs edition,
regarding the top voice
in m. 15, beat 3 (C# vs.
Cn) and m. 16 (D Major
vs. D Minor).mm. 76-84 &
143-146: In both
Interludes, Ives
emphatically notates
extreme dynamic contrast,
in order to highlight the
bitonality. Although it
may seem counterintuitive
(or even a misprint, as
has apparently been
misconstrued by some),
performers are urged to
follow the
composer’s
marking!m. 109: Two-note
slurs have been added
here for clarity and
consistency with other
similar passages, though
they do not appear in
either the original
manuscript or Biggs.m.
112: The last two eighth
notes of Primo appear as
16ths in the original
manuscript.mm. 183-186:
The original manuscript
has a slightly different
bass line.mm. 184 & 186:
Primo gestures have been
re-written to be slightly
more idiomatic for Piano,
Four Hands.m. 186: The
breath mark at the end of
this bar does not appear
in either the manuscript
or Biggs, but is an
editorial suggestion
– aside from being
appropriately dramatic,
it will indeed be
necessary in a
reverberant hall!I would
like to thank Steven
Vanhauwaert, the other
half of my piano duo,
4handsLA, for his input
on early drafts of this
arrangement.—
Danny Holt, April
2022. $24.99 - Voir plus => AcheterDélais: 1 to 2 weeks | | |
| Glitter, Doom, Shards, Memory [Conducteur] Theodore Presser Co.
Chamber Music Viola 1, Viola 2, Violin 1, Violin 2, Violoncello SKU: PR.11441...(+)
Chamber Music Viola 1,
Viola 2, Violin 1, Violin
2, Violoncello SKU:
PR.11441690S
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 . $29.99 - Voir plus => AcheterDélais: 2 to 3 weeks | | |
| By the rivers of Babylon Chorale SATB [Conducteur] Barenreiter
Alto, Mixed choir (SATB), Piano SKU: BA.BA11309 Composed by Camille Saint...(+)
Alto, Mixed choir (SATB),
Piano SKU:
BA.BA11309 Composed
by Camille Saint-Saens.
Edited by Christina M.
Stahl. This edition:
urtext edition.
Paperback. Score.
Baerenreiter Verlag
#BA11309. Published by
Baerenreiter Verlag
(BA.BA11309). ISBN
9790006577705. 27 x 19 cm
inches. Text Language:
English. It is a
small music history
sensation: Thanks to Yves
Grard an unknown and
unpublished manuscript
penned by Camille
Saint-Saëns has been
unearthed in the
Mdiathèque Jean Renoir
in Dieppe in
France.
It is the
top four instrumental
parts which make this
manuscript something of a
sensation. Placed under
each other are
â??Saxophone Soprano en
Si bâ?, â??Saxophone
Alto en Mi bâ?,
â??Saxophone Tnor en Si
bâ? and â??Saxophone
Baryton en Mi bâ?,
strings, soprano solo
with chorus and organ.
Musical history has
hitherto credited
Jean-Baptiste Singele
(1812â??1875) with
having written the first
saxophone quartet, his
opus 53, which he
completed in 1857. Now
this historiography
clearly has to be
revised. The date 1854
has been found under the
first page of the
treasure from Dieppe,
which is pasted over and
also sewn, meaning that
Saint-Saënsâ?? work
was written three years
earlier than that of
Singele.
In
contrast to Singele,
Saint-Saëns does not
have the wind instruments
taking solo parts but
rather uses their tonal
colour to depict textual
moods and nuances. On the
one hand the saxophones
accompany the choral
parts (certainly singable
by amateurs) and support
the human voices in fugal
passages. On the other
hand, they take the
melody in the purely
orchestral
passages.
Saint-Sa
ëns wrote the motet in
the period when he had
taken up his first
permanent appointment as
organist at the Church of
Saint-Merri in Paris. He
revised the work several
times over the decades,
changing the motifs at
the beginning, correcting
obvious mistakes,
reworking the ending,
eventually changing the
instrumentation several
times and even â??
probably in the final
stage â?? replacing the
Latin text with an
English one. Today,
three-and-a-half versions
have been handed down,
one of them stopping
after just a few pages.
The compositional steps
have been successfully
reconstructed by means of
detailed detective work.
Furthermore, the first
saxophone version (BA
11305) and the last
English piano version (BA
11309) have been edited
to produce a
scholarly-critical
edition.
The
present edition of the
English version for
soprano solo, choir and
piano (BA 11309) serves
both as a full score and
as a vocal score due to
the
instrumentation.
About
Barenreiter
Urtext
What can I
expect from a Barenreiter
Urtext
edition?<
/p> MUSICOLOGICA
LLY SOUND - A
reliable musical text
based on all available
sources - A
description of the
sources -
Information on the
genesis and history of
the work - Valuable
notes on performance
practice - Includes
an introduction with
critical commentary
explaining source
discrepancies and
editorial decisions
... AND
PRACTICAL -
Page-turns, fold-out
pages, and cues where you
need them - A
well-presented layout and
a user-friendly
format - Excellent
print quality -
Superior paper and
binding
$13.95 - Voir plus => AcheterDélais: 1 to 2 weeks | | |
| Fanfare Theodore Presser Co.
Chamber Music soprano 1, soprano 2, soprano 3, soprano 4, soprano 5 SKU: PR.1...(+)
Chamber Music soprano 1,
soprano 2, soprano 3,
soprano 4, soprano 5
SKU: PR.111401770
For Five Sopranos.
Composed by Shulamit Ran.
Contemporary. Set of
performance scores. With
Standard notation.
Composed 1981. 16 pages.
Duration 4 minutes.
Theodore Presser Company
#111-40177. Published by
Theodore Presser Company
(PR.111401770). UPC:
680160003372. This
text of this piece use
four languages - English,
Hebrew, Italian, and
French - to express joy
and give thanks. Except
for the word 'joy' which
is presented
simultaneously in all
four languages at the
outset of the work, the
rest of the composition
was composed initially
without words. In
1981, WFMT Radio in
Chicago commissioned
twelve composers to write
short fanfares in
celebration of the
station’s
thirtieth
anniversary. For one
month at a time, each
composer’s Fanfare
was heard every day at a
previously unannounced
time slot. Because of
my special fondness for
the human voice as an
instrument, I decided to
make my Fanfare a vocal
one. “Myâ€
month in this series
being the month of
November, the idea of
giving thanks naturally
suggested itself.Â
Though the work can be
performed live by a
minimum of five female
voices, I really wanted
to limit timbre
differentiation to a
minimum — hence
the idea of pre-recording
two singers and
multi-tracking them.Â
And, in any event, it
seemed especially
appropriate to compose a
work of this nature for
the radio, a medium that
is certainly quite
distinct from the
concert-hall. For a
text, I put together a
series of words in
English, Hebrew, Italian
and French, all concerned
with joy and giving
thanks. Except for
the word joy which is
presented simultaneously
in all four languages at
the outset of the work,
the rest of the
composition was composed
initially without
words. In a process
akin, perhaps, to the
orchestrating of music
already composed, the
words were then strung
together by me to fit the
sounds and the rhythms (a
reversal, at least for
me, of the usual process
of combining text and
music). $120.00 - Voir plus => AcheterDélais: 2 to 3 weeks | | |
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