SKU: PE.EP72822
ISBN 9790577011769. 232 x 303mm inches. English.
I have only visited Damascus once, twenty years ago, on the way to Palmyra. I had a purpose (I was writing music for a play about Palmyra’s Queen Zenobia) but essentially I was a tourist. Like any visitor, I was thrilled to step out of the noisy modern city into the magical ancient world of the walled Old City, its vibrant souk leading to the magnificent mosque, and a labyrinth of winding, narrow streets filled with the smell of unleavened bread.
In Palmyra, I was met with extraordinary kindness everywhere. On one occasion, a little Bedouin boy noticed that I was risking sunstroke wandering bare-headed among the spectacular ruins: he showed me how to tie a turban, then took me to have tea with his family in their tent.
Since then, I have watched helplessly as these places of wonder have been devastated and their inhabitants scattered and killed. When the Sacconi Quartet suggested that I might choose a Syrian poet for our collaboration, I welcomed the idea.
I searched for a long time to find a contemporary poet whose work might gain from any music I could imagine. I felt it was important to find first-hand accounts of the Syrian experience – but, of course, I was always reading them in translation. In an anthology called Syria Speaks, I was astonished to read something that looked like prose, but was full of poetry. It was Anne-Marie McManus’s fine translation of Ali Safar’s A Black Cloud in a Leaden White Sky – an eloquent, thoughtful, contained yet vivid account of life in a war-torn country, all the more moving for its restraint.
In setting these words, I have not attempted to imitate Syrian music. However, there is what might be called a linguistic accommodation in my choice of scale, or mode. Several movements are in a mode that I first discovered while writing a cantata commemorating the First World War: it has a tuning that I associate with war, its violence and desolation. This eight-note mode is similar to scales found in Syrian music. I did not choose it in the abstract: it emerged from the harmonies I was exploring in the earlier work, and emerged again as I was looking for the right musical colours to set Ali Safar’s words. In this work, its Arabic aspect is more prominent. - Jonathan Dove
SKU: BT.DHP-1033337-015
9x12 inches.
Missa Brevis, written for choir and wind band, was commissioned by the Conseil Départemental pour la Musique et la Culture de Haute-Alsace (Dir.: Philippe Pfisterer) in Guebwiller (France), in celebration of the millennium of Pope Leon IX’sbirth in Éguisheim (France). The composer conducted the first performance on June 23, 2002. It was performed live for the French television channel France 2. The mass movements Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus, Benedictus, and Agnus Deiare very suitable for the Catholic as well as the Protestant liturgy. For this mass, various ways for performing in diverse variable strengths are possible. An instrumental performance is possible if the brass represents the choir parts. In thisoption, it is desirable for the brass to be positioned separately from the rest of the band (on a gallery, for example), so that the idea of two choirs is approached. In a performance with a large choir, the brass can work very well as a support. Inthat case, the dynamics of the brass should be adapted somewhat, since these are actually intended for an instrumental performance. You can also leave out the brass entirely for the benefit of the choir. For the accompaniment of smaller choirs, youcan opt for a small ensemble from the band. This can also be a quartet, put together as desired. For the performance of this mass, the obvious choice is one of the above options. However, as an alternative, a performance with a combination of theseoptions (vocally/instrumentally) is also possible not just from an artistic point of view (variation), but also from a practical starting point for example in the case that the choir has rehearsed only two movements. With a full strength, theconductor can vary the instrumentation to his or her liking. Then the brass can also play a role in the accompaniment (instead of supporting the choir). The following combinations are possible:1. clarinet choir (from Eb Clarinet to BassClarinet)2. clarinet choir + saxophones3. brass (flugelhorns, horns, euphoniums, bass section)4. brass (2 trumpets / 2 trombones)5. double reeds (optional + flute, optional + string bass)6. tutti7. all winds8. allbrassIn a performance by brass band and choir, it is usually advisable to leave out option 1 (choir + brass + band). The choir sings self-reliantly, accompanied by a full brass band. In an instrumental performance, you can consider a combinedquartet (two cornets and two trombones) + brass band.Choral parts available separately.Mis sa Brevis, geschreven voor koor en blaasorkest, werd gecomponeerd in opdracht van de Conseil Départemental pour la Musique et la Culture de Haute-Alsace (dir. Philippe Pfisterer) in Guebwiller (Frankrijk), ter gelegenheid van het duizendstegeboortejaar van paus Leo IX. In zijn geboorteplaats, Éguisheim (Elzas, Frankrijk), vond op 23 juni 2002 de première van deze mis plaats onder leiding van de componist. Het betrof een live-registratie voor de Franse televisiezender France 2. Demisdelen Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus, Benedictus en Agnus Dei lenen zich uitstekend voor zowel de katholieke als de protestantse liturgie. Er zijn voor deze mis diverse uitvoeringsmogelijkheden mogelijk, aangezien er sprake is van eenvariabele bezetting. Een instrumentale uitvoering behoort uitdrukkelijk tot de mogelijkheden, indien het scherp koper de koorpartijen vertegenwoordigt. In deze optie is het wenselijk dat het scherp koper zich separaat opstelt van de rest van hetorkest (bijvoorbeeld op een galerij), zodat het idee van dubbelkorigheid wordt benaderd. Bij een uitvoering voor groot koor werkt het scherp koper zeer goed als ondersteuning. In dat geval kan de dynamiek van het koper iets worden aangepast,aangezien deze in eerste instantie bedoeld is voor een instrumentale versie. Ook kan men ervoor kiezen het scherp koper helemaal weg te laten ten gunste van het koor. Bij begeleiding van kleinere koren kan men kiezen voor een klein ensemble uit hetorkest. Dit kan ook een naar wens samengesteld kwartet zijn. Voor de uitvoering van deze mis ligt het voor de hand een van deze opties te kiezen. Als alternatief is echter ook een uitvoering mogelijk met een combinatie van deze opties (vocaal/instrumentaal) niet slechts vanuit een artistiek motief (afwisseling), maar ook vanuit een praktisch motief, voor het geval dat het koor bijvoorbeeld slechts twee delen heeft ingestudeerd. Bij een volledige bezetting kan de dirigent deinstrumentatie naar believen afwisselen. Hierbij kan ook het scherp koper in de begeleiding een rol krijgen (in plaats van ondersteuning van het koor). Zo zijn de volgende combinaties mogelijk:
1. clarinet choir (van Es-klarinet tot basklarinet)
2. clarinet choir + saxofoons
3. zacht koper (bugels, hoorns, euphoniums, bassen)
4. scherp koper (2 trompetten / 2 trombones)
5. dubbelrieten (eventueel + fluit, eventueel + contrabas)
6. tutti
7. alle hout
8. alle koper
In een uitvoering voor brassband en koor is het in de meeste gevallen aan te bevelen de optie voor scherp koper weg te laten. Het koor zingt zelfstandig, begeleid door een volledige brassband. In een instrumentale uitvoering kunt u denken aan eencombinatiekwartet (twee cornetten en twee trombones) + brassband.Koorpartijen apart verkrijgbaar.M issa Brevis, geschrieben für Chor und Blasorchester entstand im Auftrag des Conseil Départemental pour la Musique et la Culture de Haute-Alsace (Dir.: Philippe Pfisterer) in Guebwiller (Frankreich), anlässlich des tausendjährigen Jubiläumsder Geburt von Papst Leo IX in Éguisheim. Der Komponist dirigierte die Uraufführung am 23. Juni 2002. Sie wurde live vom französischen Fernsehen France 2 übertragen. Die Messesätze Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus, Benedictus und Agnus Deieignen sich ausgezeichnet sowohl für die katholische als auch die protestantische Liturgie. Diese Messe kann in diversen variablen Spielstärken aufgeführt werden. Eine Instrumentalaufführung ist möglich, wenn das Blech die Chorstimme übernimmt.Um der Idee von zwei Chören in dieser Variante möglichst gerecht zu werden, empfiehlt es sich, das Blechregister getrennt vom Rest des Blasorchesters aufzustellen (beispielsweise auf einer Galerie). In einer Aufführung mit einem großen Chor kann dasBlechregister sehr gut als Unterstützung dienen. In diesem Fall sollten die Dynamikangaben der Blechbläser etwas angepasst werden, da sie ja eigentlich für eine Instrumentalaufführung gedacht sind. Man kann zugunsten des Chors auch völlig auf dasBlech verzichten. Zur Begleitung kleinerer Chöre können Sie ein kleines Ensemble aus dem Blasorchester wählen. Dies könnte auch ein Quartett in beliebiger Zusammensetzung sein. Für die Aufführung dieser Messe bietet sich eine der oben genanntenVarianten an. Eine Kombination dieser Wahlmöglichkeiten (vokal/instrumental) ist jedoch auch möglich und das nicht nur vom künstlerischen Standpunkt aus betrachtet (zur Abwechslung), sondern auch aus praktischen Erwägungen beispielsweise, wennder Chor nur zwei Sätze einstudiert hat. In voller Besetzung kann der Dirigent die Instrumentierung nach Belieben variieren. Dann können die Blechbläser auch eine Rolle in der Begleitung übernehmen (anstatt den Chor zu unterstützen). Die folgendenKombinationen sind möglich:
1. Klarinettenchor (von Klarinette in Es bis Bassklarinette)
2. Klarinettenchor + Saxophone
3. Blech (Flügelhorn, Horn, Euphonium, Bassregister)
4. Blech (2 Trompeten / 2 Posaunen)
5. Doppelrohrblattinstrument e (wahlweise + Flöte, wahlweise + Kontrabass)
6. Tutti
7. Alle Holzbläser
8. Alle Blechbläser
In einer Aufführung mit Brass Band und Chor ist es gewöhnlich ratsam, nicht die erste Option (Chor + Blech + Blasorchester) zu wählen. Der Chor singt unabhängig, begleitet von einer vollständigen Brass Band. In einer Instrumentalaufführung könnenSie sich für ein kombiniertes Quartett (zwei Kornette und zwei Posaunen) + Brass Band entscheiden. Chorstimmen separat erhältlich. Missa Brevis est une messe pour Orchestre d’Harmonie et Choeur composée la demande du Conseil Départemental pour la Musique et la Culture de Haute-Alsace (Dir. : Philippe Pfisterer) de Guebwiller en France, l’occasion des célébrations dumillénaire de la naissance du Pape Léon IX Éguisheim. La création mondiale a eu lieu le 23 juin 2002 sous la direction du compositeur, et a été diffusée en direct sur la chaîne de télévision nationale France 2. Les différentes parties de cettemesse (Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus, Benedictus et Agnus Dei) conviennent autant la liturgie catholique qu’ la liturgie protestante. Missa Brevis peut être interprétée dans différentes combinaisons instrumentales. Ellepeut être jouée dans une version purement instrumentale, où les cuivres prennent en charge la partie vocale. En tel cas, il est conseillé de placer les cuivres l’écart de la formation (sur une estrade, par exemple) de façon reproduire l’idée dedeux groupes indépendants. Dans le cadre d’une interprétation avec un grand Choeur, les cuivres jouent un rôle de soutien. Leurs nuances doivent alors être adaptées dans la mesure où elles ont été écrites, l’origine, pour une version instrumentale.Il est également possible de ne pas faire intervenir les cuivres et de privilégier le Choeur. Pour accompagner de petits ensembles vocaux, il faut opter pour une formation instrumentale réduite voire même un Quatuor (instrumentation au choix). Pourl’interprét ation de cette messe l’un des choix proposés ci-dessus s’impose. Il existe néanmoins une alternative qui consiste interpréter cette oeuvre en combinant ces options (vocales / instrumentales). Cela peut être bénéfique tant d’un point devue artistique (variante) que pratique dans le cas où le Choeur n’a travaillé que deux mouvements de la messe. Si le chef dispose de deux formations complètes (Choeur et Orchestre d’Harmonie), il peut varier l’instrumentation selon ses préférences. ce moment-l , il peut confier un rôle d’accompagnement et non de soutien aux cuivres de sa formation. Les combinaisons suivantes peuvent être formées :
1. Choeur de Clarinettes (de la Clarinette Mib la Clarinette Basse)
2. Choeur de Clarinettes + Saxophones
3. Cuivres (Bugles, Cors, Barytons / Euphoniums, Basses)
4. Cuivres (2 Trompettes / 2 Trombones)
5. Instruments anches doubles (Fl te et Contrebasse cordes optionnelles)
7. Tous les Bois
8. Tous les Cuivres
Dans le cadre d’une interprétation par un Brass Band accompagné d’un Choeur, il est préférable de supprimer l’option 1 (Choeur + Cuivres + Orchestre d’Harmonie) car le Choeur étant autonome. Dans une version instrumentale pour Cuivres, il estpossible de former la combinaison suivante : Quatuor (2 Cornets / 2 Trombones) et Brass Band.Partitions pour chœur disponibles séparément. Parti per coro disponibili a parte.
SKU: CF.H84
ISBN 9781491165539. UPC: 680160924530.
Marce l Tournier (1879–1951) was one of the most important harpist/composers in the history of the harp. Over his long career, he added a significant catalogue of very beautiful works to the harp repertoire. Many of his solo works, almost one hundred, have been consistently in print since they were first published. But in recent years harpist Carl Swanson has discovered a treasure trove of pieces by Tournier heretofore unknown and unpublished. These include the Déchiffrages in this edition, as well as songs set for voice, harp, and string quartet, and ensemble arrangements of some of his most beloved works.All of the works that Carl Swanson found were in manuscript only. With the help of the great harpist Catherine Michel, he has put these pieces into playable form, and they are being published for the very first time. He and Catherine often had to re-notate passages to show clearly how they could be played, adding fingerings and musical nuances, tempos, pedals, and pedal diagrams.Tournier wrote these pieces when he was in his 20s, and before he became the impressionistic composer those familiar with his work know so well. They are written in the late nineteenth-century romantic style that was being taught at that time at the Paris Conservatory. They are beautiful short, intermediate level pieces by a first rate composer, and add much needed repertoire to that level of playing.Marcel Tournier (1879–1951) was one of the most important harpist/composers in the history of the harp. He graduated from the Paris Conservatory with a first prize in harp in 1899. He also studied composition there and won a second prize in the prestigious Prix de Rome competition, as well as a first prize in the Rossini competition, another major composition competition of the day. From 1912 to 1948 he taught the harp class at the Paris Conservatory. But composition, and almost entirely, composition for the harp, was the main focus of his life. His published works, including many works for solo harp, a few for harp and other instruments, and several songs, number around one hundred pieces.In 2019, while researching Tournier for my edition MARCEL TOURNIER: 10 Pieces for Solo Harp, I discovered that there was a significant list of pieces by this composer that had never been published and were not included on any inventory of his music. Principal on this list were his déchiffrages (pronounced day-she-frahge, like the second syllable in the word garage).The word déchiffrage means sight-reading exercise, and that was their original purpose. Tournier numbered and dated these pieces, with dates ranging from 1900 to 1910, indicating that they were in all likelihood written for Alphonse Hasselmans’ class at the Paris Conservatory. Tournier was probably told how long to make each one, and how difficult. They range in length from two to four pages, with only one in the whole series extending to five, and from thirty to fifty-five measures, with only one extending to eight-five. The level of difficulty for the whole series is intermediate, with some at the easier end, and others at the middle or upper end.We don’t know if they were intended to test students trying to enter the harp class, or if they were used to test students in the class as they played their exams. The fact that they were never published means that students had to not only sight read them, but sight read them in manuscript form!I worked from digital images of the original manuscripts, which are in the private music library of a harpist in France. She had twenty-seven of these pieces, and this edition is the second in a series of three that will publish, for the first time, all of the ones that I have found thus far. The manuscripts themselves consist of little more than notes on the page: no pedals written in, no fingerings, few if any musical nuances and tempo markings, and no clear indication as to which hand plays which notes. These would have been difficult to sight read indeed! My collaborator Catherine Michel and I added musical nuances, fingerings, pedals and pedal diagrams, and tempo indications to put them into their current condition.At the time these were written, Tournier would have been in his twenties, having just graduated from the harp class himself (1899), and might still have been in the composition class. These are the earliest known pieces that he wrote, and they were written at the very beginning of a cultural revolution and upheaval in Paris that was to completely and profoundly alter musical composition. Tournier himself would eventually be caught up in this new way of composing. But not yet.All of the déchiffrages are written in the late romantic style that was being taught at that time at the Paris Conservatory. Each one is built on a clear musical idea, and the variety over the whole series makes them wonderful to listen to as well as to learn. They are also great technical lessons for intermediate level players.The obvious question is: Why didn’t Tournier publish these pieces, and why didn’t he list them on his own inventory of his music? Actually, four of them were published, with small changes, as his collection Four Preludes, Op. 16. These came from the ones that will be in volume three of this series from Carl Fischer. His first large piece, Theme and Variations, was published in 1908, and his two best known and frequently played pieces, Féerie and Au Matin, followed in 1912 and 1913 respectively. We can only speculate because there is so much still unknown about Tournier and about these unpublished pieces. He may have looked at them, fresh out of school as he was, as simply a way to make some quick money. The first several pieces that he did publish are much longer than any of the déchiffrages. So it could be that, because of their shorter length, as well as the earlier musical style that he was moving away from, he chose not to publish any more of them. We may never know the full story. But all these years later, more than a century after they were composed, we can listen to them for their own merits, and not measured against whatever else was going on at the time. The numbers on these pieces are the ones that Tournier assigned to them, and the gaps between some of the numbers suggest that there are perhaps thirty or more of these pieces still to be found, if they still exist. They will, in all likelihood, be found, as these were, in private collections of harp music, not in institutional libraries. We can only hope that more of them will be located in years to come.—Carl SwansonGlossary of French Musical TermsTournier was very precise about how he wanted his pieces played, and carefully communicated this with many musical indications. He used standard Italian words, but also used French words and phrases, and occasionally mixed both together. It is extremely important to observe and understand everything that he put on the page.Here is a list of the French words and phrases found in the pieces in this edition, with their translation.bien chanté well sung, melodiousdécidé firm, resolutediminu peu à peu becoming softer little by littleen diminuant becoming softeren riten. slowing downen se perdant dying awayGaiement gayly, lightlygracieusement gracefully, elegantlyLéger light, quickLent slowmarquez le chant emphasize the melodyModéré at a moderate tempopeu à peu animé more lively, little by littleplus lent slowerRetenu held backsans lenteur without slownesssans retinir without slowing downsec drily, abruptlysoutenu sustained, heldtrès arpegé very arpeggiatedTrès Modéré Very moderate tempoTrès peu retenu slightly held backTrès soutenu very sustainedun peu retenu slightly held back.
SKU: ST.C422
ISBN 9790570814220.
A delightful single movement work lasting about 4 minutes. Dedicated to the clarinettist Erich Fackert.[bg_colla pse view=link color=#4a4949 icon=arrow expand_text=Show More collapse_text=Show Less ]Laurie Holloway has enjoyed an extraordinary successful life as a composer, musician and musical director. His music has always been strongly jazz orientated, and he has played with many of the legendary greats including Gerry Mulligan, Clark Terry and trombonist Bob Brookmeyer. He composed the television themes for: Russell Harty, Pam Ayres, Freddie Starr, Russ Abbott, Punchlines, Game for a Laugh, Blind Date, Child’s Play and Beadle’s About Music Match.Laurie has appeared on television regularly including This is your Life (as a surprise guest for Parkinson, Wogan, Tarbuck, Ernie Wise, Rolf Harris, and Benny Green as well as being a proud owner of the Big Red Book himself). He has been musical director for Engelbert Humperdinck, Judy Garland, Dame Edna Everage, Stéphane Grappelli, The Wogan Show, Marion Montgomery, Gilbert O’Sullivan, Dame Cleo Laine, Elaine Stritch, Sacha Distel, Frankie Howerd, Sammy Cahn, George Hamilton IV, Barry Took, Sir David Frost, Mel Torme, Nana Mouskouri, Clive James, Val Doonican, Kiri Te Kanawa, Ronnie Corbett, Ronnie Barker, Sir Les Patterson, Elaine Paige, Michael Parkinson, Jack Allen, Bob Monkhouse, Judy Garland, Liza Minnelli and Jack Jones.He has been a featured soloist with, and guest conductor of, the LSO and the BBC Concert Orchestra, played on the Last Night of the Proms in Hyde Park, often conducted the BBC radio orchestra, performed on BBC radio 2’s At the Piano, and is currently arranging and conducting for various artists such as Elaine Paige, Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, and Gilbert O’Sullivan. He was the musical director of the hit BBC television series Strictly Come Dancing for many years.His teaching work includes workshops and masterclasses at Canberra School of Music and Melbourne’s Victoria Arts Centre, Australia, the Birmingham Conservatoire, and Wavendon Allmusic Plan. He has composed and arranged several saxophone quartets, clarinet quartets, instrumental works for flute and piano and clarinet and piano, and his two volumes of Pop Preludes (piano tutors) are published by Novello. The Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music selected his composition Walking Fingers as an examination piece.He has presented matinee concerts at the Barbican where he introduced young musical talent. He and Marion Montgomery have formed the Montgomery Holloway Music Trust a charity, which aims to afford young musical talent (jazz, classical and inspirational) the opportunity to study and perform. The Trust also has a yearly seminar in which Laurie instructs in the Art of Accompaniment. The British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors (BASCA) awarded Laurie the Gold Badge of Merit in 1993 for his services to the music industry.[/bg_collapse]Former Spartan Press Cat. No.: SP870.
SKU: 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.
SKU: ST.C353
ISBN 9790570813537.
Attractive and very playable concerto for bassoon with either piano or strings.The five concertos of Henry Hargrave were published in 1760 or 1765 and were available to customers in London, Grantham and Cambridge, as well as from Henry Hargrave’s home in Nottingham. He has an impressive list of subscribers backing the publication, suggesting that he was a respected musician and a shrewd businessman. They are probably the earliest concerti to be published in parts in Britain. Concertos I, II and IV are scored for bassoon and strings, whereas Nos. II and V are for oboe, bassoon and strings. In Concerto IV, there is a figured bass provided for use by a keyboard player. A string quartet will provide a very successful accompaniment to the concerto, with or without keyboard. The bassoon concerto has been recorded by Daniel Smith with the English Chamber Orchestra, conducted by Philip Ledger.This edition and the full score and parts were prepared by C.M.M. Nex, F.H. Nex and K.R. Malloch from the copy held in the British Library (shelf mark g.32. and h.210.j.(1.). Originally published by Phylloscopus Publications.Grad es 6–8Former Spartan Press Cat. No.: PP26AFull score and parts available here.
SKU: ST.C354
ISBN 9790570813544.
Attractive and very playable concerto for bassoon with either piano or strings.The five concertos of Henry Hargrave were published in 1760 or 1765 and were available to customers in London, Grantham and Cambridge, as well as from Henry Hargrave’s home in Nottingham. He has an impressive list of subscribers backing the publication, suggesting that he was a respected musician and a shrewd businessman. They are probably the earliest concerti to be published in parts in Britain. Concertos I, II and IV are scored for bassoon and strings, whereas Nos. II and V are for oboe, bassoon and strings. In Concerto IV, there is a figured bass provided for use by a keyboard player. A string quartet will provide a very successful accompaniment to the concerto, with or without keyboard. The bassoon concerto has been recorded by Daniel Smith with the English Chamber Orchestra, conducted by Philip Ledger.This edition and the piano reduction were prepared by C.M.M. Nex, F.H. Nex and K.R. Malloch from the copy held in the British Library (shelf mark g.32. and h.210.j.(1.). Originally published by Phylloscopus Publications.Grad es 6–8Former Spartan Press Cat. No.: PP26Piano reduction version available here.
