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: AP.37840S
UPC: 038081433332. English.
William Kamkwamba was raised in Malawi, an African country where magical thoughts prevailed but modern technology was a mystery. From books he read, young William imagined building a windmill that might, one day, bring electricity and water to his village and drastically change the lives of his neighbors. Hoping to someday study science, his country was debilitated by famine that forced William to drop out of school and forage for food as thousands throughout the country died of starvation. However, William's passion remained indefatigable and, using scrap metal, tractor parts, and bicycle halves, he ingeniously built a crude yet operable windmill that powered four lights and his radio. News of William's achievement soon spread beyond his country's borders, and the young boy who was once thought of as crazy became a hero to many around the world.
SKU: ST.B934
ISBN 9780852499344.
This , the ninth of a series of books begun in 1983, contains Brian Wren's 36 most recent hymns (2009 to 2012). It is nicely presented and laid out in a user-friendly way. The hymns are divided into five thematic sections: Jesus from Cradle to Cross; Easter Hymns; Church and Mission; Praise; and Metrical Psalms. This last section, rooted in (though not bound by) the Old Testament, is often influenced by Isaac Watts and will be of more use to some than others; it concludes with a tremendous rendering of Psalm 8; a paean of praise which all will love, set to a stirring tune. Each section is prefaced with a single page introduction listing the contents and, in some instances, giving an interesting insight into Brian Wren's theology and thinking which provides food for contemplation. Each hymn is printed in words format with all the necessary information for inclusion in an order of worship. Every hymn is also printed with full score music for accompaniment interlined with the words. The book is slightly larger than A5, and there are various useful indexes. The tunes range from ancient to modern, some very familiar, including Candler (better known as Ye Banks and Braes). A number are of a metre where alternative tunes are available. Those tunes which are new vary in ease of use; some will be readily picked up, others would prove challenging for occasional use in a small congregation but could be used as music group items. These are hymns which need to be read as a whole and require thought. The words are chosen with care and notable as much for those not used as those included e.g.: 'Christ, untameably alive,/ breathe your life upon us - / Compass, Governor and Guide, / with us and beyond us,/ Sky and Sunlight, / spreading Vine./ Spring of Living Water,/ Truth and Wisdom, Way and Word,/ here, and then hereafter.' These hymns will be useful in worship as either sung or read pieces, and will also prove an invaluable resource for private devotion.
Robert Canham, Reform
SKU: HP.C6043C
UPC: 763628960438. Wes Cameron. I John 1:5, I John 1:6, I John 1:7, Isaiah 2:5, James 1:17, Matthew 25:35, Matthew 25:36, Matthew 25:37, Matthew 25:38, Matthew 25:39, Matthew 25:40, Matthew 25:41, Matthew 25:42, Matthew 25:43, Matthew 25:44, Matthew 25:45.
Original Anthem This thought-provoking anthem stems from the verse every generous act of giving. . . is from above, and poses the question will you give help to the needy. . . will you clothe and give the food? Beginning with two vocal parts and concluding with SATB texture the writing is very accessible and the message is ideal for mission and stewardship Sundays.
SKU: M7.PPV-227563
ISBN 9783932275630. English.
In 'Microphone Practice', Norbert Pawera, a qualified sound engineer and microphone specialist, explains in clear and simple language the difference between the various types of microphone, filling in the scientific background and examining the interaction between instruments, room acoustics and microphones. The emphasis of the book is upon the choice and positioning of microphones in the studio and on stage, whether for classical music, jazz or rock. The author offers practical solutions to a whole range of commonly encountered problems - from the miking of lead vocals to the recording of whole choirs, from the spot-miking of individual instruments to stereo recording techniques for the entire orchestra - as well as reaching deep into his bag of tricks for ideas that should give even the experienced recording engineer food for thought. At the back, there's an overview of today's microphone market, designed to guide the consumer through the myriad of available solutions. 'Microphone Practice' spares performers and sound engineers alike the time-consuming and costly hazards of trial-and-error. With its practical approach and clear layout, 'Microphone Practice' is designed not just as a textbook but also as a quick source of reference for the sound check or the studio.
SKU: GI.G-9234
ISBN 9781622772117. English.
I don’t claim to know how to teach anybody anything, let alone something so individual and subjective as writing songs. The truth is, dear readers, you already know how to write songs. You’ve been, in a sense, studying them your whole life. My goal as a teacher, and the goal of this book, is ‘unlocking the great songs inside you.’ They’re in there. I have witnessed the births of hundreds of songs in class, some so beautiful that the class is wiping back tears by the end. These songs were written by people exactly like you: lovers of music, strummers of guitars, banjos, mandolins, people who’ve dreamed of writing songs like the ones they love. So, welcome and good luck. — Steve Dawson, from the Introduction T_x001F_ake It to the Bridge combines a_x001E_ lively, instructive dia_x001E_logue, helpful chord, key _x001E_and song-form cha_x001E_rts, _x001E_and crea_x001E_tive songwriting assignments designed to inspire _x001E_anyone who ever h_x001E_as thought of _x001E_adding songs to the world. Steve Dawson is a singer/songwriter/musicia n who leads the rock/folk band Dolly Varden and has taught songwriting and guitar at Chicago’s Old Town School of Folk Music for more than a decade. Mark Caro is author of the award-winning non_x001D_iction book The Foie Gras Wars and has written about music, f_x001D_ilm, food and culture for the Chicago Tribune, The New York Times, and other publications. http://www.tothebridgeson gwriting.com/.
SKU: HL.44011055
UPC: 884088640002. 9x12 inches. English-German-French-Dut ch.
Ministry of Winds provides some interesting food for thought that Jacob de Haan translates into music. What if there was a Ministry of Winds? It would be in charge of the advancement and dissemination of music throughout the nation, as well as strengthening the state through music and providing its citizens with entertainment, support, comfort and joy. All these aspects are mirrored in Jacob de Haan's composition, culminating in all the joy and happiness the creation of this ministry has provided to the people.Ministr y of Winds is een interessant hersenspinsel van Jacob de Haan dat hij omzette in muziek: hoe zou het zijn, als we een ministerie van blaasmuziek hadden? Met als taak de promotie en de verspreiding van muziek in het land?Zo'n ministerie zou het land een echt groepsgevoel kunnen geven en de burgers amusement, kracht, trots en geluk brengen. Al deze aspecten komen terug in deze compositie van Jacob de Haan. Een compositie waarin het volk jubeltover het geluk dat hen ten deel is gevallen door de inspanningen van het ministerie!Minist ry of Winds ist ein interessantes Gedankenspiel, das Jacob de Haan in Musik umsetzte: Was ware, wenn es ein Ministerium für Blasmusik gabe? Dessen Aufgabe ware die Forderung und Verbreitung der Musik im Staat, aber auch durch die Musik den Staat zu festigen und den Bürgern Unterhaltung, Kraft, Trost und Glück zu bringen. All diese Aspekte spiegeln sich in Jacob de Haans Komposition wider, an deren Ende das Volk über das Glück, das ihnen durch das Schaff en des Ministeriums zuteil geworden ist, jubelt!The Ministry of Winds est une œuvre puissante et solidement charpentee. Elle alterne des passages intenses et lyriques, et un charmant theme baroque qui se glisse avec legerete a travers la texture musicale. L'œuvre contient plusieurs motifs recurrents. Peu a peu, la trame prend la forme d'une melodie pentatonique partiellement celtique. Le tableau final est eclatant. Ministry of Winds e un brano potente che alterna passaggi intensi e lirici a un piacevole tema barocco che scivola con leggerezza attraverso la tessitura musicale. Il brano contiene alcuni motivi ricorrenti. Procedendo nell'esecuzione, la trama assume la forma di una melodia pentatonica dagli accenti celtici, fino al sorprendente finale.
SKU: MH.1-59913-072-6
ISBN 9781599130729.
Prog ram Notes: It was a happy coincidence that the commission for SINFONIA XVI: TRANSCENDENTAL VIENNA came from the Henry David Thoreau School located in Vienna, Virginia. Thoreau is one of the magic names in American culture: Henry David Thoreau, one of the leading figures of the Transcendentalist movement, centered in 19th-century New England, left us a body of unique philosophical and poetical writings. To utter the words, Walden Pond, is to invoke an America long past in physical actuality, but still present in the minds and hearts of many American citizens. The name, Vienna, of course, summons thoughts of the Old World: culture, fine food, wine, civilized cities. While contemplating the form that SINFONIA XVI should take, I found myself thinking of two pillars of Viennese culture: expressionism and the waltz. Musically speaking, expressionism reached a zenith in the works of Arnold Schoenberg and Alban Berg. It was Berg, in particular, that I wanted to invoke in the outer movements of my composition. I knew I would also have to include a waltz, and an invocation of the mysterious forces that are contained in both expressionism and transcendentalism. Thus was the structure of the work generated. The outer movements with their vision of the night sky and the stars, Aldebaran and Sirius, frame the central movements, which are essentially two versions of the same material, and are quieter and less dramatic. The outer movements are symmetrical, and share both pitch and rhythmic materials. Accordingly, I see the work as a ternary form, with the central movements forming a unit within the outer frame: A (Movement 1) B (Movements 2 & 3) A' (Movement 4). Harmonically, the work can be summarized by the two pitch-series which occur in the opening bars of Movement 1: the initial 12-note row, with a tonal center on F-sharp (measures 1-6), and the subsequent D-minor Dorian 7-note row (beginning in measure 14). Aspects of these materials occur in all four movements, but they are most strongly present in Movements 1 and 4. Note that the 12-note row is not subjected to the usual serial procedures, but instead is treated as a signifier and is left unchanged. Since the fourth movement takes up where the first movement leaves off, I can conceive of one interpretation of SINFONIA XVI as an evocation of Thoreau himself contemplating two of the brightest stars on a clear, cold night. Aldebaran is an orange, first-magnitude star, located in the constellation Taurus; Sirius, the Dog Star, is the brightest star in the sky, and is located in the constellation Canis Major. Thoreau interrupts his star-gazing to entertain some inward thoughts, waking dreams, as it were, then returns his gaze to the splendid night sky and all its treasures. Although many other interpretations of the material are possible, it is important to remember that the abstract materials of the piece -- pitch, rhythm, structure -- are what count the most. Ensemble instrumentation: 1 Piccolo, 4 Flute 1, 4 Flute 2, 3 Oboe, 1 Eb Clarinet (opt.), 4 Bb Clarinet 1, 4 Bb Clarinet 2, 4 Bb Clarinet 3, 3 Bass Clarinet, 3 Bassoon, 3 Eb Alto Saxophone 1, 3 Eb Alto Saxophone 2, 2 Bb Tenor Saxophone, 2 Eb Baritone Saxophone, 3 Bb Trumpet 1, 3 Bb Trumpet 2, 3 Bb Trumpet 3, 2 Horn 1, 2 Horn 2, 3 Trombone 1, 3 Trombone 2, 3 Euphonium B.C., 2 Euphonium T.C., 5 Tuba, 2 Timpani, 3 Percussion 1, 3 Percussion 2, 3 Percussion 3, 3 Percussion 4.
