|
Post by jk on Feb 28, 2022 4:31:08 GMT -5
Yesterday we heard a radio interview with a former Russian correspondent, a Dutchman who writes for our daily newspaper. His last choice of music in the programme was this highly charged and intensely moving work by the Ukrainian composer Maxim Shalygin. While Combing Your Hair for mixed choir is dedicated to the composer's friend, the Belarusian dissident Maria Kalesnikava, shamefully sentenced last year to 11 year's imprisonment. This would seem to be a recording of the world premiere given last October in Utrecht (NL) by the Netherlands Radio Choir conducted by Peter Dijkstra (the words and an enlightening description can be found here): wikitia.com/wiki/Maxim_Shalygin
|
|
|
Post by jk on Mar 10, 2022 5:39:00 GMT -5
These are the wonderfully named Roomful of Teeth singing the Alev Lenz song "Fall Into Me" (solo voice: Martha Cluver). I'm told they originally sang it in a disused forty-foot-tall water tower in the wilds of Colorado with a decay time of 45 seconds! Their sound engineer approximates the effect whenever they sing it live. Do not miss this ensemble if it comes your way: www.roomfulofteeth.org
|
|
|
Post by jk on May 5, 2022 3:49:55 GMT -5
Today is Liberation Day in NL, when the flags are fully hoisted after yesterday evening's Remembrance of the Dead. If the second movement of Henryk Górecki's heart-breaking Third Symphony is appropriate for May 4th, his Lobgesang (song of praise) is the perfect expression of restrained jubilation befitting today. "Lobgesang was composed [in 2000] to mark the 600th anniversary of the birth of Johannes Gutenberg, inventor of moveable type, the debut performance of which was presented [eight years later, as here] by the Master Chorale. The work is accompanied by glockenspiel, played by the redoubtable Theresa Dimond, which [from 6:14 onwards spells] out 'Gutenberg' in musical terms in three iterations over the German word 'ewig' (forever), sung in an almost inaudible pianississimo by the choir. One scarcely breathes in such magical moments." [ Source] This is for Silken , who must have begun to think I'd abandoned my "choral miscellany" topic. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henryk_Górecki
|
|
|
Post by jk on May 22, 2022 7:13:42 GMT -5
After attending a local church concert last night, among whose fare was Tavener's The Lord's Prayer, it occurred to me that The Beach Boys' 1964 setting of this text is their only work whose words have been set to music by at least two dozen composers in all musical walks of life before and since (see here). Composed in the year 2000, this is John Tavener's mystical setting of the prayer as sung by the Choir of St. John's College, Cambridge, conducted by Christopher Robinson: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Tavener
|
|
|
Post by jk on Jun 19, 2022 10:33:47 GMT -5
Last night, we attended a concert by a pretty good amateur choir. Indeed, I'd say the audience was a lot more amateur than the singers. There was one piece, A Boy And A Girl by Eric Whitacre, that the conductor explained had a lot of silences in it that increased in length towards the end. So the silences were important, not least the silence at the end. He needn't have bothered -- some idiots started clapping long before the conductor had turned to face them. He very graciously just made a gesture of helplessness to the choir and left it at that. But I digress... Another work they performed was this gem by the English composer William Walton (1902–1983). Set Me As A Seal Upon Thine Heart is "Dedicated to the Honourable Ivor Guest and the Lady Mabel Fox-Stangways on the occasion of their marriage, Nov. 22nd 1938." The text is from The Song of Solomon, Chapter 8, verses 6 and 7: "Set me as a seal upon thine heart, as a seal upon thine arm: for love is strong as death. Many waters cannot quench love, neither can the floods drown it: for love is strong as death." en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Walton
|
|
|
Post by jk on Jul 24, 2022 4:27:23 GMT -5
|
|
|
Post by jk on Aug 8, 2022 5:22:50 GMT -5
|
|
|
Post by jk on Aug 9, 2022 6:17:20 GMT -5
This is but a small step from the previous post. Written in 1972 by Veljo Tormis (and revised in 1991), Raua needmine (Curse Upon Iron) takes us back to prehistoric times, adding a shaman drum to the a cappella choir. It scared the life out of me when I heard it on the radio back in February 2018: Ohoi cursed, evil iron! Ohoi evil, cursed iron! Flesh consuming, bone devouring, Spilling blood, devouring virtue! Whither comes your cruel cunning, Haughtiness so overbearing? Fie upon you, evil iron! Your beginnings reek of malice. You have risen from villainy.
From above the earth appeared Fiery maidens in the heavens, Heavily with milk a-laden, Spilling milk upon the marshes. Black, the liquid from one maiden, Turning into ductile iron. White milk flowing from the other, Tempered steel from this arising. From the third a crimson liquid, Cursed, rusty ore created.
Ohoi cursed, evil iron! Ohoi evil, cursed iron! Then you were not high and mighty, Not so mighty, not so haughty, When you slumbered in the swampland When you suffered in the marshes. Fie upon you, evil iron! Your beginnings reek of malice. You have risen from villainy.
Then a wolf came running hither, Bear a-rambling over younder. Footprints stirring in the swampland, Traces from the swamp arising Giving rise to iron seedlings, In the shadows of the wolf prints In the traces of the bear tracks.
Ohoi wretched child of bogland, Born of rust and milk of maidens! Tell me who made you so angry! Who set you to evil doings?The text from the Kalevala was adapted and augmented by August Annist, Paul-Eerik Rummo and Jaan Kaplinski. Source: www.chandos.net/chanimages/Booklets/BI1993.pdfen.wikipedia.org/wiki/Veljo_Tormis
|
|
|
Post by jk on Aug 15, 2022 5:06:21 GMT -5
I have always been fascinated by architect J.M. Luthmann's concrete "cathedral" at the centre of Radio Kootwijk transmitter park (NL, see separate image). On May Day 2019 I heard an extraordinary choral work dedicated to the radio-telephonic transmission established between Radio Kootwijk and the Dutch East Indies in 1928. Called Mass Transmission, it was written by the polarizing American composer Mason Bates. It was the swooping electronics imitating the fine-tuning of radio signals that first caught my ear. After that I was riveted. (The full text is reproduced here.) en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radio_Kootwijk
|
|
|
Post by jk on Sept 30, 2022 14:08:36 GMT -5
I find it hard to believe that this breathtaking chromatic motet, Heu me, Domine, which I heard on Dutch radio today, was written in 1551: At that time its composer, Vicente Lusitano (c. 1520–c. 1561), was caught up in a debate on music theory with the more radical Nicola Vicentino, inventor of the Archicembalo, a microtonal keyboard -- in 1555! If you thought Lusitano was advanced for his day, check this out! Needless to say, the instrument being played here is a reconstruction: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vicente_Lusitano en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicola_Vicentino
|
|
|
Post by jk on Oct 16, 2022 5:19:48 GMT -5
Yesterday evening, we heard an amateur choir (which included our soprano friend, whom I help with her parts) valiantly attempt a "fiendishly difficult work to sing", namely Arnold Schoenberg's Friede auf Erden, and doing pretty well, if my ears are to be trusted. "Schoenberg wrote Friede auf Erden in 1907, at a moment in his life when his highly stylized late-Romanticism was agitating toward transformation into a more rigidly structured, atonal Expressionism. The piece did not receive its premiere until 1911 and though he had indicated in the earliest sketches that the music was meant to be performed a capella, Schoenberg was obliged to create an orchestral accompaniment for the concert to support the incredibly challenging vocal writing. The text for Peace on Earth was taken from an 1886 poem by the Swiss writer Conrad Ferdinand Meyer. The first verse is a depiction of the Nativity while the second tells of bloodshed and imploring angels. The third and fourth verses gradually deliver the peace of the title but the comfort supplied by this beautiful conclusion in the music has an air of caution to it. Schoenberg eventually became disillusioned on the concept of universal harmony among men and his choral evocation, one of the last pieces of his early ‘tonal' period, would later elicit a somber remembrance from the composer. He wrote in 1923 that Friede auf Erden was merely an ‘illusion,' one created when he still believed such a unity was possible. With one World War just ended and another little more than a decade away, it is no surprise that he lost the faith of that more innocent time. He was surely not alone." [From the YouTube blurb] It is performed here by the Rundfunkchor Berlin conducted by Kent Nagano: classicalexburns.com/2020/09/02/arnold-schoenberg-friede-auf-erden-peace-on-earth/
|
|
|
Post by jk on Oct 19, 2022 9:29:08 GMT -5
The concert mentioned in the previous post ended with a performance of Mozart's Requiem, with the amateur choir accompanied by an equally fine amateur orchestra. Even in a lesser (in the best sense of the word) rendition, it's clear just what a timeless masterpiece this work is. Every movement a gem -- and this when Mozart had left the work unfinished and fellow composer and conductor Süssmayr completed it from sketches. The Wiki page linked below gives an idea of who wrote what but the full story is lost in the mists of time. Take the "Lacrimosa". Where does Mozart end and Süssmayr begin? Does it matter? It's sublime: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Requiem_(Mozart)
|
|
|
Post by jk on Jan 14, 2023 10:14:04 GMT -5
I'm so tied up these days with the "Two-Way Musical Excursion" that I'm neglecting other threads, such as this one (sorry, Silken). Today I heard this beautiful piece on the radio and couldn't just pass it by. "Close Your Eyes" is part one of Llum (Light, 2013–16) by the Barcelona-born composer Ramón Humet. "The texts which accompany each of the seven stages of the work were written by Vicenç Santamaria i Ollé, visual artist and monk at the monastery of Montserrat (Catalonia) [and a friend of the composer. They] evoke different states of the soul which Humet explores musically through recollection and introspection." It is performed here by the Latvian Radio Choir conducted by Sigvards Kļava (for the entire album, click here): www.auditori.cat/en/event-2/concert-sampler-series-humet-llum/
|
|
|
Post by jk on Aug 27, 2023 5:10:19 GMT -5
This is for Silken on her birthday, hoping she is well and still singing!
|
|
|
Post by Silken on Oct 21, 2023 21:30:01 GMT -5
This is for Silken on her birthday, hoping she is well and still singing! John!!Thank you! Sorry I didn´t see this before! I'm well and still singing (in fact, we have one of Ola Gjeilo's compositions in our current repertoire). I'll be posting something soon. I hope you're doing great!
|
|
|
Post by jk on Oct 24, 2023 4:26:48 GMT -5
This is for Silken on her birthday, hoping she is well and still singing! John!!Thank you! Sorry I didn´t see this before! I'm well and still singing (in fact, we have one of Ola Gjeilo's compositions in our current repertoire). I'll be posting something soon. I hope you're doing great! Hi Silken, Good to hear things are going well at your end and the choir is still in your life. I'm doing well too, thanks. Looking forward to that post. Actually, your response prompted me to go back through this thread and revisit many of the linked pieces, some of which are quite extraordinary: endlessharmony.boards.net/post/34795/threadendlessharmony.boards.net/post/57920/thread
|
|
|
Post by jk on Nov 2, 2023 6:13:38 GMT -5
|
|
|
Post by jk on Nov 4, 2023 5:12:02 GMT -5
I heard this vocal arrangement for VOCES8 by tenor Blake Morgan (the man with the beard) of the big tune from Sibelius's tone poem Finlandia yesterday on Dutch radio. Normally, I'm no fan of such things but this is done so well. And the lyrics, taken from a poem by Lloyd Stone with a third verse added by BM, are as relevant as ever ("This is our song, a hymn we raise together / A dream of peace, uniting humankind"): en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Finlandia
|
|
|
Post by jk on Nov 5, 2023 5:44:33 GMT -5
This extraordinary vocal work dating from the late 14th century (!) was described on Dutch classical radio as an extreme example of the then current complex strand of composition or ars subtilior. Indeed, it would still be remarkable had it been written 700 years later. Its composer was the mysterious Solage and the piece in question was Fumeux fume par fumée, a "rondeau" for three voices. This passage from the composer's wiki gives a good account of his music in general and this work in particular. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solage
|
|
|
Post by jk on Nov 28, 2023 13:51:30 GMT -5
I'd never heard of Francis Pott before today but looking at his wiki, and taking note of the epic nature of much of his work, he seems like a composer worth investigating in greater depth. His affecting Balulalow for unaccompanied mixed choir with soprano solo is a "gentle and expressive carol [that] provides a wonderful alternative to more familiar settings of this well-loved text. The music is harmonically rich, and the floating soprano line adds another dimension to the texture. Suitable for a wide range of choirs at Christmas" ( source): en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_Pott_(composer)
|
|
|
Post by jk on Jan 27, 2024 11:31:06 GMT -5
Richard Harvey's A Prayer, which I heard on Dutch classical radio this morning, has an Anna Lapwood connection: Harvey conducted the OST of Interstellar, one of whose pieces found its way onto Anna's organ album Luna, while two others feature in her "Midnight Sessions" project. This is for Silken, who probably thinks I've abandoned this corner of the non-BB section (I admit it's been a while)… Heli Jürgenson conducts the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Harvey_(composer)
|
|
|
Post by Silken on Jan 30, 2024 22:02:57 GMT -5
*I* am the one who has abandoned this and the other corners of this forum. Thank you for always thinking of me. I'm not worthy.
|
|
|
Post by jk on Jan 31, 2024 5:40:54 GMT -5
This is for Silken , who probably thinks I've abandoned this corner of the non-BB section (I admit it's been a while)… *I* am the one who has abandoned this and the other corners of this forum. Thank you for always thinking of me. I'm not worthy.Nonsense, S. We all have our lives "on the ground" and that often means making choices. I now restrict my forum activity to this one and Beach Boys Today (with the occasional look-in at my old "hobby" forum). Anyway, it's good to see you around! I hope life is treating you well.
|
|
|
Post by jk on Feb 4, 2024 14:16:54 GMT -5
A couple of hours ago I heard, on my (until now) least favourite Dutch classical radio show, the utterly magical Ashita no uta, which I'm told is Japanese for "Song for Tomorrow", composed by Makiko Kinoshita (born 1956) and sung here by The King's Singers: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Makiko_Kinoshita
|
|
|
Post by jk on Feb 10, 2024 4:36:06 GMT -5
This morning on the classical religious programme they played two stunning choral works by composers from Ukraine. To quote YouTube: "World premiere of Agnus Dei [in memory of those killed during the Russian invasion] by Ukrainian composer Anna Kuzina-Rozhdestvenska on 30 September 2022 at Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford. Performed by Apollo5 (Penelope Appleyard, Clare Stewart, Oscar Golden-Lee, Oli Martin-Smith and Augustus Perkins Ray) with Teena Lyle (tubular bells)." This is the studio version I heard this morning, very likely but not necessarily with the same lineup: en.everybodywiki.com/Anna_Kuzina-RozhdestvenskaThe other work was by the Lviv-born Dutch composer Alfred Momotenko. "Our Father" (Otche nash) is the third of his Three Sacred Hymns, sung here by the Latvian Radio Choir under Sigvards Klava: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_Momotenko_Levitsky
|
|