Week Three - Karlheinz Stockhausen: Stimmung, Part I

Okay, I might have bit off more than I can chew. I have a busy week and Stimmung is a long piece, an hour or more, and each performance is different. I have two recordings: the Songcircle version and the Paul Hillier & Theatre of Voices version. I will try to get to both and perhaps also the Collegium vocale Köln version on YouTube! But first, a short explanation of how this piece is put together.

Stimmung = 'tuning', 'being in tune with', 

1. Six amplified singers. (SSATTB)
2. Only 6 notes throughout (Bb, F, Bb, D, Ab, C). A Bb 9 chord.

3. The Score consists of four elements, a ‘formal plan’, six pages of syllabic models, six pages of magic names, and a page of poetry.
4. The ‘formal plan’ maps out 51 sections of unfixed duration that specify which harmonic of the low B flat is to be sung.
5. Each section had a lead singer which the other singers, if singing, slowly get in sync with, at which time the next section begins.
6. Singers highlight certain harmonics of their note by following the model chosen.
7. The models are rhythmic phonetic patterns, sometimes with words (see below).
8. In 29 sections 'magic names', gods and goddesses from around the world, are called out.
9. The erotic love poems, by Stockhausen, are spoken at various times.

Here's an example of one of the syllabic model pages:

In Part 2 of this blog I will listen and give my reaction to all of this!! Until then, wish me listening luck!

Week Two - Gerald Finzi: Dies Natalis

Dies Natalis is a challenge. Not because of the music which is quite good and inventive but because of the texts written by Thomas Treherne (1637? -1674). I feel that to really appreciate this piece one must live with the text for a while as one would with poetry. I have only read the text as I listened for the first time and feel that I need more time to linger over it, to absorb it senza the music and only then to listen again.

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Now I'm ready!


1. Intrada - This is without voice and seems to me to be a preparation for the first poem to come in the next movement.  It shifts back and forth between being pensively lyrical and peacefully lyrical with a small climax about 3/4ths the way in. It's interesting that Finzi feels a need for this purely instrumental movement before coming to the fascinating and not always understandable prose and poetry of Traherne. Perhaps he is trying to shift the listeners state of consciousness to be more receptive to what is to come. There is no break between movements.

2. Rhapsody - There are some really stunning moments here. The text is three paragraphs from Traherne's Centuries of Meditations. It's not easy to understand who is speaking here. It begins with the line "Will you see the infancy of this sublime and celestial greatness?". The title, Dies Natalis, is Latin for "Natal Day" or "Day of Birth" but certainly, while much of it seems to be the voice of an infant, this is not only or even mostly coming from the perspective of a human infant. Consider this line, opening the second paragraph, "The corn was orient and immortal wheat, which never should be reaped nor was ever sown." Surely we are being addressed by a consciousness that, while being new to the world, is also paradoxically deeply ensconced in eternity; the last line of paragraph three; "Everything was at rest, free and immortal." Finzi's word painting is wonderful, and his setting of the first two lines of the second paragraph is magical, using long sustained chords to evoke the sense of being outside of time; "I thought it stood from everlasting to everlasting."

3. The Rapture - Here's the poem:

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Sweet Infancy!
O heavenly fire! O sacred Light!
How fair and bright!
How great am I
Whom the whole world doth magnify!

O heavenly Joy!
O great and sacred blessedness
Which I possess!
So great a joy
Who did into my arms convey?

From God above
Being sent, the gift doth me enflame,
To praise His Name.
The stars do move,
The sun doth shine, to show His Love.

O how divine
Am I! To all this sacred wealth
This life and health,
Who rais'd? Who mine
Did make the same! What hand divine!

This is an intensely joyful rapture, beginning with violins trilling excitedly then playing an burst of notes which lead back to the trill. The tenor comes in and the first stanza rings out with the strings moving things along with bass pizzacato and moving notes in the upper strings. The third stanza starts more reflectively but soon returns to the music of the first two stanzas. The really stunning moment happens after the third stanza when the orchestra builds and then stops unresolved for a moment of silence ... then resolves to a single note melting into a minor chord and the singer declaims "O how divine I am!" The last two lines are unaccompanied except for an abrupt, dramatic chord and then while "divine" is being held the strings enter with the same trill passage that began the movement. It all ends with a blazing major chord; arpeggios, then tremelos, then stuck all at once. Rapture indeed!

4. Wonder is a gentle, for the most part rather quiet, movement with lush string writing and long melodic lines. The poem has three stanzas but the music is through composed. In the poem there is very much the idea that all things are Divine. "How bright are all things here!" in the first stanza, and ending the poem, "I nothing in the world did know/But 'twas Divine." The musical climax is at the word "Divine", Finzi pointing out here, as he does elsewhere, the importance of this idea. The music is always flowing, shifting with interlocking lines and modulations, until the very end, taking this  listener on a beautiful journey of wonder.

5.  The Salutation

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These little limbs, these eyes and hands which here I find,

This panting heart wherewith my life begins;

Where have ye been? Behind what curtain were ye from me hid so long?

Where was, in what abyss, my new-made tongue?

When silent I, so many thousand, thousand years

Beneath the dust did in a chaos lie, how could I smiles, or tears,

Or lips, or hands, or eyes, or ears perceive?

Welcome, ye treasures which I now receive.

From dust I rise and out of nothing now awake,

These brighter regions which salute my eyes,

A gift from God I take, the earth, the seas, the light, the lofty skies,

The sun and stars are mine: if these I prize.

A stranger here, strange things doth meet, strange glory see,

Strange treasures lodged in this fair world appear,

Strange, all, and new to me: But that they mine should be who nothing was,

That strangest is of all; yet brought to pass.

There is a saying, I know not where it comes from, that God made the universe and especially humankind so that He/She could know himself/herself. This poem can be seen as fitting in with that idea. Who's talking in this poem? "When silent I, so many thousand, thousand years/Beneath the dust did in chaos lie," Who is this silent I that now is awakened in "These little limbs"? "From dust I rise and out of nothing now awake,". The poem gives no answer except to say that what is happening is Strange; strange that this 'silent I' should now perceive smiles, tears, lips, hands, or ears. We moderns all know that the stuff of our bodies were created in the stars. Could it be that Traherne intuited this in his own way; that the dust of stars becomes us? Really fascinating!
As for the music, it's wonderful. What more can I say? It's a beautiful, stately movement with a walking pizzicato bass throughout much of it. It is full of grace and ends simply and softly which seems to me to be the perfect ending to this marvelous work.

I listened to two recordings: James Gilchrist with the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, David Hill conductor: and Wilfred Brown with the English Chamber Orchestra, Christopher Finzi conductor. Both very fine.

Here's a couple of interesting links about the meaning of  Dies Natalis and of Treherne's writings in general.
http://www.operatoday.com/content/2012/11/finzi_dies_nata.php
http://www.mum.edu/msvs/trahernepart1.html

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Week Two - Gerald Finzi: Now Let Us Garlands Bring

Gerald Finzi (1901 - 1956) is a composer I'm only marginally familiar with, having played a few of his chamber works and songs, so I'm really looking forward to getting to know more of his work.
First off, Let Us Garlands Bring: Five Shakespeare Songs Op. 18, for baritone and piano or baritone and strings. The two recordings I'm listening to is Stephen Varcoe and the City of London Sinfonia conducted by Richard Hickox and Roderick Williams partnered with pianist Iain Burnside.

1. Come Away, Death. A terribly beautiful setting; stately with muted melancholy. Both performances are very well done but what a difference tempo makes! Varcoe takes this faster, at 2:59, whereas Williams is at 3:30. The slower performance with piano seems to me to be much more effective in expressing the sadness and resignation of the text, plus there is a sense of intimacy that the string version misses. I do not have the score and would be very interested to know what Finzi marks for the tempo.

2. Who is Silvia? is a total change of character from the proceeding song; joyful and in love! Both performances convey the happiness and celebratory meaning of the text. Finzi's setting is imaginative, using syncopation and modulation to great effect. I especially enjoy that the piano/strings are full partners in expressing the text, no mere accompaniments here!

3. Fear No More the Heat o' the Sun is a profound setting of a profound text.

Fear no more the heat o' the sun,

        Nor the furious winter's rages;

Thou thy worldly task hast done,

        Home art done, and ta'en thy wages:

Golden lads and girls all must,

As chimney-sweepers, come to dust.

Fear no more the frown o' the great;

        Thou art past the tyrant's stroke;

Care no more to clothe and eat;

        To thee the reed is as the oak:

The Sceptre, Learning, Physic, must

All follow this, and come to dust.

Fear no more the lightning-flash,

Nor the'all-dreaded thunder-stone;

Fear not slander, censure rash;

Thou hast finished joy and moan:

All lovers young, all lovers must

Consign to thee, and come to dust.

No exorciser harm thee!

Nor no witchcraft charm thee!

Ghost unlaid forbear thee!

Nothing ill come near thee!

Quiet consummation have,

And renownèd by thy grave!

I have listened to this song now three times and have been brought to tears twice. Why just twice? Once again the choice of tempo is so important regarding the effect on the listener! Varcoe takes 4:19 while Williams takes 5:43! That's a huge difference! This time the Varcoe is the performance that I prefer. The music moves along in a slow triple meter but never loses it's forward momentum while the Williams plods along and is in danger of falling apart. It could be also that the strings, with their ability to sustain notes, serve to hold things together better than the decaying notes of the piano, but the choice of tempo here is the main factor. Regardless of all that, this is a great song which I find profoundly moving.

4. O Mistress Mine is fabulously set by Finzi. Starting off all merry and carefree, using detached notes for 'Trip no further pretty sweeting', but then listen to what he does for 'Journeys end in lovers' meeting/Every wise man's son doth know', slowing down, going to a minor V chord (usually would be major) on 'lovers' meeting' and then suspending the rhythmic flow for 'Every wise man's son doth know', in essence questioning musically the assumption of those two lines of text, like when a person says something but you know they mean something else. Then it's back to carefree for a few lines until 'What's to come is still unsure:' where some slightly menacing dissonances make an appearance. Finzi sets the last two lines 'Then come kiss me, sweet and twenty/Youth's a stuff will not endure' with the same music as the first verse, giving them an extra poignancy. In sum: A happy song with a twist or two of wistfullness. Both versions are beautifully done.

5. It was a Lover and His Lass is another wonderful setting. More keys changes than in the previous songs and, just as in O Mistress Mine, highlighting the importance of a line by slowing way down and setting it off from the others; 'How that life was but a flower'. Also you can hear 'When birds do sing, hey ding a ding a ding' in the strings/piano. 

So to sum up, though these songs were originally composed separately and were only later put together as a group to celebrate Vaughan Williams 70th birthday, I think they work wonderfully well together, juxtaposing as they do Death, Love and the fleetingness of Youth. I'm really looking forward to listening to more of Finzi's music. I only have today and tomorrow before week three starts (been busy!) but because of a major snowstorm outside I should have some time to listen to more! Now, you go listen too!!

Week One - Steve Reich: Various Works part I

Today's my last day for listening and commenting on works by Steve Reich. Fortunately I have the day off and am hoping to listen to 3 or 4 more pieces. I do feel a real sense of discovery; Reich's music is something I will return to again and again. Music for Mallets Instruments, Voices and Organ and Music for 18 Musicians are my favorites so far this week.

Today's Music.

1. Come Out - This is a seminal work of Reich's from 1966; a tape piece that uses the voice of Daniel Hamm, a participate in the Harlem Riot of 1964. Hamm says, "I had to, like, open the bruise up, and let some of the bruise blood come out to show them". Reich starts with the whole sentence then immediately shortens it to just "come out to show them". This is then manipulated, using two tracks, one track slightly faster than the other, to create a phasing effect. Reich later goes to 4 tracks and then 8 tracks by which time the original words are indistinguishable. There is a pitch and rhythm to the words that when repeated and manipulated do create a musical effect. Having said that, this isn't a work I'll be returning to except as an example to others of Reich's formative ideas.

2. Different Trains - Wow! I was not expecting this. What a great piece! Written in 1988 for string quartet and tape. The origin for the piece lay in Reich's observation that, though he spent the first years of World War II riding a train between divorced parents in New York and Los Angeles, if he had been in Europe, he would, as a Jew, have been riding a train to a concentration camp. It's in three sections:

• America-Before the War
• Europe-During the War
• After the War

What really surprised me was the rate of change for the pulse and the tonality. Everything I've listened to previously of Reich's would have a very slow rate of change tonally and sometimes the pulse wouldn't change at all or just once or twice. But in Different Trains there are multiple changes in each movement. Reich uses, just as he does in WTC 9/11, interviews with people, then uses a part of a spoken phrase to create a melodic fragment. This may have something to do with the high (for Reich!) rate of change. Reich also uses the sound of train whistles throughout; they are tuned to whatever tonality is present at the moment. The second movement uses air raid sirens to chilling effect, rising and falling against the spoken words and ever present syncopations of the string quartet.
I will definitely be returning to Different Trains and sharing this great work with friends and students.

Look for part II of today's blog later!

Week One - Steve Reich: Music for Mallet Instruments, Voices and Electronic Organ

I listened to Music for Mallet Instruments, Voices, and Organ (1973) yesterday and now as I write.

What am I hearing and how does it effect me?

Isn't that why anybody listens to music, because of the effect it has on them, whether emotionally, physically and intellectually? And isn't separating emotions, physicality and intellect a artificial division? What am I hearing? I'm hearing the mallets establish either a duple or triple meter, I'm hearing the sustained notes of the voices and organ slowly going back and forth between two sets of pitches but changing how long they sustain these notes after a few repetitions, I'm hearing a shift in the tonal center at about halfway through, I'm hearing the accents and syncopation of the mallet instruments, and I'm hearing either a major, minor, or modal tonality. I'm hearing a four part structure but not while I'm listening; realization of structure happens through remembering what I've heard. Okay, but SO WHAT!! Does the above description of this music make you want to listen to it? It may - you may after reading the above wonder, "Yeah, but what does it sound like?" But wasn't my description good enough!? Of course not. So let me try a different way to describe this piece:

When the music starts I feel a relaxing of my body and a focusing of my mind. I feel the syncopations in my body as little jolts of energy, my head starts boobing slightly, at the same time I am intrigued by the the long slowly changing line of the organ and voices. When the tonality rises I actually feel a lifting in my body. It's not too strong to say that I start to feel a sort of bliss while listening that is akin to the feeling that arises during meditation. This music does not have large ups and downs; there is no big climax, there is just a steady, calm, flow which I find extremely appealing.

So, which description above has more chance of moving you to listen? The first is intellectual, the second focuses more on my physical and emotional response while listening. Both descriptions are woefully inadequate. They are just words about. They are maps but not the territory. ..... Only by listening will this wonderful work make itself known to you. So go now and discover the real territory of Music for Mallet Instruments, Voices and Electronic Organ.

Week One - Steve Reich: WTC 9/11

I'm not sure about this work. I felt resistance as I listened to it. It's for string quartet and tape, composed in 2009 - 2010, and in three sections. He uses a technique that takes recorded voices, in this case peoples reactions to 9/11, and pitches an instrument to play along with the spoken text. Composer Jacob Ter Veldhuis (Jacob TV) uses this to great comedic affect in pieces like Body of Your Dreams but obviously there's nothing funny about WTC 9/11. The problem, for me, is that the event itself was so powerful and the spoken words in WTC 9/11 are so powerful that the music becomes rather incidental. Also, the piece, which lasts about 15 minutes seemed short to me. The only time I started to feel really drawn in was in the third section when a woman talks about staying up all night and singing, as a way of dealing with the situation I presume. Right after those words a female voice can be heard vocalizing and after that a man singing something in Hebrew. I felt that somehow this was musically a more interesting and effecting choice that what had come before. Of course, any new work needs to be listened to more than once so I will be returning to WTC 9/11. If you know the work I'd love to hear your take on it. 
Here's a Wikipedia article about it. I was interested that Reich wanted to make it a longer work but that "the piece wanted to be terse."

Week One: Steve Reich - Vermont Counterpoint

Vermont Counterpoint, written in 1982, is scored for 3 piccolos, 3 flutes and 3 alto flutes and is about 9 minutes. It can also be performed by one amplified player (playing all three instruments) with accompanying tape. The recording I listened to features Ransom Wilsom playing all parts! It's in four sections; (1)fast, (2) fast, (3) not as fast and (4) returning to the original tempo. Each section has it's own tonal center. What really struck me was the abrupt tempo change in section three. It's not jarring but rather like opening a door to a room and thinking you know what you're going to see but finding something different. That brings up the subject of the unexpected in music. I usually find that I like to be surprised when listening, I don't want to be able to predict what's going to happen next. Late Beethoven is a model for this kind of "Oh My God, I can't believe the music just went there!" kind of composing. So coming back to Reich, having only listened to two works, I ask myself if this is surprising music and I'm puzzled because harmonically it's not surprising at all, nor is the very regular background rhythm surprising, nor are the syncopated lines weaving in and out of each other surprising. So why am I captivated by this music? Why am I enjoying it so much? I think the answer might have something to do with an aspect I wrote about yesterday: this music is fast and slow at the same time! So the slow moving harmonies, the regular pulse amidst syncopated layered lines does create something unexpected; simultaneous slow/fast musical energy! And man, does it groove! I am very curious to see if Reich's style changes much. Music for 18 Musicians is a 70's creation while Vermont Counterpoint is from 1982. I look forward to listening to a more recent composition. Any suggestions?

Week One - Steve Reich: Music for 18 Musicians

Today I listened for the first time to Steve Reich's Music for 18 Musicians. This was a performance by The Grand Valley State University New Music Ensemble. This is such a fascinating work! The old western music notion of tension and release, dissonance into consonance, is totally absent. What there is is a driving, hypnotic, pulsing music that lasts one hour, and it is exhilarating! The sensation of flying kept coming into my consciousness as I listened. Gliding might be a better word because even though it's fast rhythmically, with syncopated lines weaving around the steady pulse, the harmonic motion and dynamic motion is very slow and thus it's like one is effortlessly gliding supported by the wind (fast pulse). It's fast and slow at the same time! The image of an albatross flying for hours at a time also came to mind. Of course, the music itself is not about anything and that's one of the wonderful aspects about music, it's meaning will change from listener to listener. The ensemble was not always precise but having played music like this myself I know how taxing it can be and overall I found it to be very good. I look forward to hearing other recordings of this highly energetic, ecstatic, meditative and even blissful work. High praise? Well, go listen for yourself!