SKU: CL.032-3894-01
A full-bore funk chart for better bands with a slight hip-hop swing-16th feel. Carefully notated rhythm section parts guarantee a great groove, and includes an active but playable electric bass part. Includes an open solo section and a true bass trombone part. An exceptional composition that your students can really relate to. Very highly recommended!
SKU: PR.114417700
ISBN 9781491108000. UPC: 680160636259. 9x12 inches.
To mark its 50th anniversary, the Flute Society of Washington commissioned Daniel Dorff to compose a celebratory work for large flute ensemble, to premiere en masse at its 2016 convention. Dorff responded with Fireworks, a 5-minute dazzler scored for 2 piccolos, 4 C flutes, 2 altos, 2 basses, and 1 contrabass. In describing performance of Fireworks, Dorff says: Real pyrotechnic fireworks typically shoot upward quickly and neatly, pop at the top, and then cascade downward slowly in a beautifully out-of-sync descent. Fireworks has many passages musically depicting this crisp upward whoosh exploding into downward sprinkles, often punctuated by a pop at the top.PERFORMANCE SUGGESTIONS1) FIREWORKS may be performed by any size ensemble ranging from 11 soloists up to a large festival choir. It may be preferable to keep the piccolos at one player per part even when the other parts have multiple players.2) Real pyrotechnic fireworks typically shoot upward quickly and neatly, pop at the top, and then cascade downward slowly in a beautifully out-of-sync descent. FIREWORKS has many passages musically depicting this crisp upward whoosh exploding into downward sprinkles, often punctuated by a pop at the top.3) All dynamics are relative to the whole blend, and some performance situations may require attention and adjustments to keep the balance as notated.4) The “puh†effect with x-shaped noteheads in the Bass and Contrabass parts is a beatbox technique sounding similar to pizzicato. There is naturally-produced flute pitch along with the percussive attack.5) “Like tolling bells†(bar 191 onward) indicates a rapid decay of each note, like church bells.This will help the antiphonal echo beginning in bar 195, and the seating placement may also enhance the antiphonal effect.
SKU: FG.55011-415-9
ISBN 9790550114159.
Born in 1963, Hannu Pohjannoro is widely acclaimed as a composer of quiet, restrained music. It has been said of his music that it seems to have been 'sketched with a sounding quill': Pohjannoro is a composer for whom the magic of different pianissimo shades is of the utmost importance. Though Pohjannoro's aesthetic is distinctly modernist, he nonetheless acknowledges the importance for the compositional process of knowing and understanding musicaltradition. A portrait of Beethoven hangs in his study to remind him that the combination of visceral musical expression and structural strength and clarity is still an ideal to which every composer should strive. Of this work, the composer says: images, hommages is a series of miniature tributes to a number of artists whose works have had a profound effect on me - though, naturally, many other artists could have been included too. I wanted to avoid any form of musical quotation, so from the outset I decided to exclude other composers from the list altogether. As the focus of these miniatures, I therefore selected exponents of abstract art and some of the greatest storytellers of the twentieth century - or, rather, examples of their works. images, hommages presents musical tributes to artists including Albers, Mondrian, Malevich, Kandinsky, Pollock, Kafka, Harms, Calvino and Borges. images, hommages was awareded with the second prize at the VIII International Henri Dutilleux Composition Contest in 2017. Each musician will need their own copy of the performances score.
SKU: HL.14040983
French.
The Modal Column is a cycle of paired pieces for piano, starting from the classical structure- prelude-fugue - used by Bach in Das wohltemperierte Klavier. The modes that are being used have a relatively simple octavizing structure, hence an almost infinite variety of combinations that can generate a large number of pieces, impossible to exhaust by a composer. Therein lies the idea of a column, in the sense given by Brancusi, i.e. an endless succession of modules.
In the vision of the author, the mechanism of the mode is a secondary (ancillary) aspect, the primary goal is deciphering the ethos incorporated in it.
The prelude-fugue structure hypostatizesthe musical discourse at the two possible extremes. free-constructed. While Romanian music rules in free areas, like any old music with an (especially oral) tradition, the constructed pieces start from Dutch (Flemish) or Venetian polyphony, which precedes the idea of fugue, understood as a technology of the movement (dynamics) of sound, after the models of Giovanni Gabrieli or Ockeghem.
The Modal Column is first of all the presentation of a melodic world but, as the subtitle indicates, also an investigation into the ethos of Romanian music. The forms in which the pieces are thought are simple, non-ostentatious, the whole cycle being in fact a musical workshop, whose better parts may be worth including in ampler works. Before the succinct description of the six couples in Books I and II, a few observations, necessary from a musicological point of view:
SKU: BT.CMP-0226-98-010
Wagner on Stage uses extracts from four best-loved of Wagnerâ??s operas: Tannhäuser, Götterdämmerung, Lohengrin and Die Meistersinger von Nu?rnberg. Richard Wagner certainly wrote the most dramatic operas of his time. His works are full of passion, dynamic, but also sentimentality. James L. Hosayâ??s arrangement offers therefore a great insight into the creative world of Wagner, whose 200th birthday is celebrated in 2013. In Wagner on Stage komen fragmenten van de vier mooiste operaâ??s van Wagner aan bod: Tannhäuser, Die Götterdämmerung, Lohengrin en Die Meistersinger. Richard Wagner staat bekend om de meest theatrale operaâ??s van zijn tijd. Zijn partituren zitten vol hartstocht, dynamiek en sentiment. Het arrangement van James L. Hosays geeft een prachtige indruk van de muzikale prestaties van Wagner. Bovendien staat het jaar 2013 in het teken van de tweehonderdste geboortejaar van deze bekende Duitse componist. Een mooi gegeven om bij stil te staan met uw orkest!Wagner on Stage verwendet Auszu?ge aus den vier schönsten Wagner-Opern: Tannhäuser, Götterdämmerung, Lohengrin und Die Meistersinger von Nu?rnberg. Richard Wagner schrieb wohl die dramaturgischsten Opern seiner Zeit. Seine Partituren sind voller Leidenschaft, Dynamik, aber auch Sentimentalität. James L. Hosays Arrangement bietet somit einen schönen Einblick in die musikalische Schaffenskraft Wagners, dessen 200. Geburtstag wir im Jahr 2013 feiern.Wagner on Stage met en scène des extraits de quatre opéras de Wagner : Tannhäuser, Le crépuscule des dieux, Lohengrin et Les maîtres chanteurs de Nurenberg. Richard Wagner a probablement écrit les opéras les plus dramatiques de son temps. Ses compositions, pleines de passion, de dynamisme, mais également de sentimentalité, ont inspiré James L. Hosay. Wagner on Stage est un arrangement fidèle donnant un large aperçu de la grande créativité de Richard Wagner, dont le 200e anniversaire sera célébré en 2013.Wagner on Stage mette in scena estratti di quattro opere di Wagner: Tannhäuser, Il Crepuscolo degli Dei, Lohengrin e I maestri cantori di Norimberga. Richard Wagner ha probabilmente composto queste opere in momenti drammatici del suo tempo. Le sue composizioni piene di passione, di dinamismo ma anche di sentimentalismo, hanno inspirato James J. Hosay. Wagner on Stage è un arrangiamento fedele che illustra la grande creativit di Richard Wagner il cui 200° anniversario dalla nascita sar celebrato nel 2013.
SKU: HL.200476
ISBN 9780965125079. UPC: 888680650773. 8.5x11.0x0.616 inches. Stephen Marcone with David Philp.
Making it in music has never been easy, but today it's harder than ever before. The digital age has dawned and, with it, the music biz has wholly merged with the entertainment industry. Up-and-comers are immediately faced with a dire choice: alter your art to appease the powers that be or learn to navigate the notoriously grimy underside of the most glamorous profession in the world. Whether you're a self-reliant DIY musician or an aspiring personal manager, Stephen Marcone and David Philp's Managing Your Band -Artist Management: The Ultimate Responsibility can help you keep your shirt and maybe - just maybe - make a buck, all for less than the price of a decent dinner. Now in its sixth edition, Managing Your Band has long since been the standard bearer for aspirants and hardened vets alike. From dive bars to festivals, from branding and merchandising to marketing and publicity, from publishing and licensing to rights and contracts, Marcone and Philp leave no stone unturned in this comprehensive guide to artist management. A lofty claim, eh? No need to take our word for it - luminaries in every corner of the industry are willing to testify. To put it mildly, the book has a reputation with record labels. John Butler, Vice President of Promotion at Curb, believes that Marcone and Philp take on our ever-changing business with a fresh and complete approach. The breadth of information here is as important to veterans as it is to the new entrepreneurs that will power the current and next versions of the music industry. Paul Sinclair, the EVP of Digital Strategy & Innovation at Atlantic, attests that the 6th edition of Managing Your Band provides an excellent blueprint to follow paths of flexibility and specificity toward a successful career in music. In this book, you find the framework. Implement it well and you have a better shot of finding success with your musical art. Joe Riccitelli, the EVP/GM of RCA, considers the book a must for new and established managers who may need a brush-up on topics they have forgotten, as Stephen's & David's vast experience pays off in the 6th edition. Hell, this is the only book music mogul Harvey Leeds took to Israel to teach the Israelis about the international music and entertainment business! In the end, we think Doc McGhee, the man who whisked Bon Jovi and Motley Crue to superstardom, says it best: I wish I had something like this when I was starting out! What more can we say? Pick up the latest edition of Managing Your Band and chase that wild dream!
SKU: BO.B.3106
ISBN 9788480201940.
English comments: With reference to the melody used to write the Fanstasia-Concerto, the composer Jordi Cervello says: A few years ago, a friend of mine, Jorge Wagensberg sang me a beautiful old Jewish melody inspired by the hymn Leja Dodi (Come, my beloved) by the Sefardie cabbalist Solomon Alkabez (1505-1576), who is buried in Israel. I was immediately entranced by its two extensive thematic ideas which complement each other perfectly. Its melodic and folk qualities seemed to me to make it an ideal theme for a work for guitar and orchestra. The orchestration is a fine thread of metallic timbres, which are present both in the very delicate subtleties of the pianissimi passages and the brilliant tutti. Moreover, the cler tonal definition of the melody contrasts with audacious harmonic contrapunctual textures, characteristic of the most advanced musical styles of our times. The solo guitar part is a model piece of compositon for the guitar, both for its melody and harmony. It puts forward extremely original formulas which are very effective from an instrumental point of view. Its abundant use of arpeggios, chords, harmonic pedals and other instrumental resources ensure that the dialogue with the orchestra is based completely on guitar-playing techniques, putting the guitarist's expressive skill and mastery to the test. This work was first performed on December 3 1997 in Sabadell's La Farandula Theatre performed by the Valles Symphonic Orchestra conducted by its permanent conductor Salvador Brotons. The guitar solo part was played by Jaume Torrent, to whom the work is dedicated.Comentarios del Espanol:En relacion al origen de la melodia utilizada en este Concierto-Fantasia, el compositor Jordi Cervello comenta: Hace ya algunos anos, mi amigo Jorge Wagensberg me canto una antigua y deliciosa melodia judia compuesta sobre el himno Leja Dodi (Ven mi bien amada) del cabalista sefardi Solomon Alkabez (1505-1576), cuya tumba se encuentra en Israel. En seguida me cautivo por las dos amplias ideas tematicas que contiene, las cuales se complementan muy armoniosamente. Por sus caracteristicas melodicas y por su caracter popular me parecio un tema ideal para una obra de guitarra y orquesta. La orquestacion de este concierto es una filigrana de sugerencias timbricas, presentes tanto en las mas delicadas sutilezas de los pianissimi como en los efusivos tutti. Asimismo, la clara definicion tonal de la melodia contrasta con audaces texturas armonicas y contrapuntisticas propias de la estetica musical de nuestros dias. La parte del instrumento solista en un modelo de escritura guitarristica, tanto desde el punto de vista melodico como del armonico y propone formulas que resultan de una gran originalidad y eficacia instrumental. La prodigalidad de arpegios, acordes, pedales armonicos y otros recursos instrumentales, garantizan un dialogo con la orquesta desde un lenguaje plenamente guitarristico, a traves del cual, el interprete pone a prueba tanto su capacidad expresiva como la vituosistica. El estreno de esta obra tuvo lugar el dia 3 de octubre de 1997 en el Teatro La Farandula de Sabadell, interpretada por la Orquesta Sinfonica del Valles bajo la direccion de su director titular Salvador Brotons, y actuando como solista el guitarrista Jaume Torrent a quien esta dedicada la obra.
SKU: BO.B.3105
ISBN 9788480202350.
SKU: BO.B.3472
ISBN 9788480208130.
English comments: The Requiem in memory of Salvador Espriu by Xavier Benguerel was commissioned by the Torroella de Montgri International Music Festival for a double commemoration: on the one hand, to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the Festival, and on the other, in remembrance of Catalan poet Salvador Espriu in the fifth year after his death. This concert, which was held on 5 October, was a brilliant closing gala performance and it was repeated twice on 6 and 7 October at the Palau de la Musica Catalana in Barcelona. It was performed by the Orchestra and Choir of the Gran Teatro del Liceo, with soloists Enriqueta Tarres, soprano; Nelibel Martinez, mezzo soprano; Eduard Gimenez, tenor; and Carlos Chausson, baritone, with the additional collaboration of baritone Lluis Llach, conducted by Romano Gandolfi.
In my opinion, this work by Benguerel is a piece that was written with passion and sincerity, with great strength and depth, and it contains some very beautiful passages. It is written in a language through which, without abandoning his current musical thoughts, Benguerel manages to communicate with the audience in a dense work that lasts for an hour and a half. It is interspersed with seven poems by Espriu on the subject of death, some sung and others recited, which gives the Requiem great contrasts from a musical and linguistic point of view -in comparison with the Latin texts normally used in a requiem mass-, but within a successful and coherent unity. The performers certainly proved their worth, but much of the hard work that went into preparing the piece can be attributed not only to the performers, the composer and the poet in tribute to whom the work was written, but also to the conductor Romano Gandolfi, who is largely responsible for the success of the three performances of this Requiem. Benguerel himself says of the work: This Requiem is linked to my previous work, the Llibre Vermell, and it has been written without making any concessions, but with a true wish to communicate with the audience. I've got past the stage of musical experiments and I'm now working on bridging the gap between composer and audience, which I'm sure will be good for both.--Comments written by Jordi Codina in the December 1990 issue of Nexus magazine
Comentarios del Espanol: El Requiem a la memoria de Salvador Espriu de Xavier Benguerel ha sido compuesto por encargo del Festival Internacional de Musica de Torroella de Montgri para una doble conmemoracion: por una parte, el decimo aniversario del Festival; por otra, el recuerdo de la figura del poeta catalan Salvador Espriu en el quinto ano de su fallecimiento. Este concierto, celebrado el dia 5 de octubre, constituyo una sesion de gala y de clausura brillante y tuvo una doble repeticion los dias 6 y 7en el Palau de la Musica Catalana de Barcelona. Fueron sus interpretes la Orquesta y el Coro del Gran Teatro del Liceo, con los solistas vocales Enriqueta Tarres, soprano; Nelibel Martinez, mezzo; Eduard Gimenez, tenor; y Carlos Chausson, baritono, con la colaboracion del tambien baritono Lluis Llach. Todos bajo la direccion de Romano Gandolfi.
A mi entender, la obra de Benguerel es una partitura escrita con pasion y sinceridad, posee una gran solidez, es profunda y contiene pasajes de una gran belleza. Esta escrita en un lenguaje con el que Benguerel, sin renunciar a su actual pensamiento musical, alcanza la comunicacion con el publico en una obra densa que dura una hora y media. La intercalacion de siete poemas de Espriu relacionados con el tema de la muerte, en una interpretacion cantada o recitada, segun los casos, otorga al Requiem grandes contrastes desde un punto de vista musical y lingŸistico à en contraposicion con los textos latinos propios de una misa de requiem Ã, pero dentro de una unidad conseguida y coherente. La labor de los interpretes demostro su categoria y el trabajo exhaustivo en la preparacion de la obra, que, ademas de los interpretes, el compositor y el poeta homenajeado, tuvo otro gran protagonista en la persona del director Romano Gandolfi, a quien se debe una gran parte del exito obtenido en las tres audiciones de este Requiem. El propio Benguerel ha dicho de la obra: Este Requiem entronca con mi obra anterior, el Llibre Vermell, y ha sido escrito sin concesiones, pero con una voluntad real de comunicacion con el publico. La epoca de los experimentos musicales ya se me paso y he entrado en una nueva etapa de acercamiento entre el compositor y el publico que, estoy convencido, beneficiara a ambos.--Comentario escrito por Jordi Codina en la revista Nexus en diciembre de 1990
SKU: PR.114423570
ISBN 9781491136386. UPC: 680160688920.
One of the bravest and most potent calls to social action by one individual was the famous 1955 refusal by Rosa Parks to give up her bus seat, laying the groundwork for the ensuing civil rights movement. Hailstork’s title says it all, and his dramatically expressive work for solo viola declaims it all. Using a musical language that evokes action, blues, and power, along with a considerable infusion of contemplation and determination, ROSA PARKS SAID “NO†is a 9-minute instrumental monodrama perfect for any concert recital as well as special programming needs.The Montgomery bus boycott was a political and social protest campaign against the policy of racial segregation on the public transit system of Montgomery, Alabama. It was a foundational event in the civil rights movement in the United States. The campaign lasted from December 5, 1955 — the Monday after Rosa Parks, an African American woman, was arrested for her refusal to surrender her seat to a white person — to December 20, 1956, when the federal ruling Browder v. Gayle took effect, leading to a U.S. Supreme Court decision that declared the Alabama and Montgomery laws that segregated buses were unconstitutional.THE FIGHTIn addition to using private motor vehicles, some people used non-motorized means to get around, such as cycling, walking, or even riding mules or driving horse-drawn buggies. Some people also hitchhiked. During rush hours, sidewalks were often crowded. As the buses received few, if any, passengers, their officials asked the City Commission to allow stopping the service to black communities. Across the nation, black churches raised money to support the boycott and collected new and slightly used shoes to replace the tattered footwear of Montgomery’s black citizens, many of whom walked everywhere rather than ride the buses and submit to Jim Crow laws.THE TRIUMPHThe Montgomery bus boycott resounded far beyond the desegregation of public buses. It stimulated activism and participation from the South in the national Civil Rights Movement.
SKU: BO.B.3473
ISBN 9788480208147.
SKU: M7.AHW-1101
English.
I simply can't say it better than the Doc himself. Read what he says about the Pivot System, then grab some samples, then a physical book shipped right to your home above. From the Forward During the initial or formative years of a player's career, he acquires the mechanical habits which determine the extent of his development invariably by pure chance. If he happens to be numbered among the few fortunate ones who unconsciously utilize their physical factors to advantage, eventually someone will mistakenly refer to him as being a 'natural' or 'born with it.' If, as is more likely the case, he happens to be one whose physical factors clash or function incorrectly, he inadvertently seals his own fate. Either he can give up shortly after high school as most do, or he can continue down the blind alley of his own circumscribed potential. Most of these unfortunates merely resign themselves to a career of mediocrity ('I never had the chops'), shying away (rom the 'lead book' in favor of second, third or fourth parts. A few (even worse) go on mouthpiece jags or scavenger hunts for no pressure systems, etc. , always seeking, but never finding the 'gimmick' which will 'straighten out my chops.' Some, however, after a thorough analysis, adopt the scientific principles which utilize every one of their playing factors with maximum efficiency. These principles are what is called the PIVOT SYSTEM. - Doc Reinhardt.
SKU: GI.G-5632
ISBN 9781579991579. English. Text source: Various authors. Text by Various.
Martin E. Marty, Emeritus Professor at the University of Chicago, says it best in the forward of this new hymn tune collection, “Teach Our Hearts is full of music that will indeed belong in cathedrals and inspire their choirs. But I am here called upon to witness to the fact that everything in this book is singable among smaller worshipping communities, where volunteer choirs help lead ordinary congregations-if there are such-in singing.†54 new hymns, songs and carols are presented here texts by a plethora of well-known writers. CONTENTS: BEFORE THE FRUIT IS RIPENED BY THE SUN • YOU, LORD, ARE BOTH LAMB AND SHEPHERD • YOU ARE SALT, WHICH, SHAKEN OUT • THE HILLS ARE STILL • GO TO THE WORLD • FAR FROM HOME • TO BETHLEHEM TWO STRANGERS • O RISEN CHRIST • LORD, HELP US WALK • A WOUNDED MAN • BESIDE THE ALIEN RIVER • FOR THE MUSIC • MEET THE WOMAN WHO ANOINTED • O GOD, WHOSE HEALING POWER • YOU ARE CALLED • FAR MORE THAN PASSION • ONE WITH GOD • GLORY GILDS THE EASTERN • CREATING GOD • LOVING SPIRIT • O GOD, YOU KNOW US • WHEN JESUS CAME • ALL PRAISE BE TO GOD • REMEMBER AND REJOICE • A CHRISTMAS PRAYER • ALL PEOPLE JOIN • BECAUSE CHRIST LIVES • CRASHING WATERS • MOTHERING GOD • HOW SHOCKING • IT STARTED WITH • O GOD WHO MADE • THEY CAME, A MILLING CROWD • THOUGH WE MAY SPEAK HYMN • WE PRAISE YOU, GOD! • WEEP FOR EVE • MARTHA MARY • MAY GOD’S LOVE BE FIXED • THE TEMPLE RANG • TELL ME AGAIN • AS WE GATHER AT YOUR TABLE • COME, JOIN IN CANA’S FEAST • IN ALL OUR GRIEF • HOLY GOD • BLEST BE THE GOD • NOW, O LORD, DISMISS YOUR SERVANTS • SHADOWS FROM THE CROSS • STAY WITH US, LORD • REST, O CHRIST • THESE THINGS DID THOMAS • COME TO TEND GOD’S GARDEN • AND DID YOU RISK YOURSELF, O CHRIST • BLESS THE LORD IN PSALM AND CHORUS • CHRIST, YOU FORMED THE CHURCH.
SKU: HL.49018099
ISBN 9790001158428. UPC: 884088567347. 8.25x11.75x0.457 inches. Latin - German.
On letting go(Concerning the selection of the texts) In the selection of the texts, I have allowed myself to be motivated and inspired by the concept of 'letting go'. This appears to me to be one of the essential aspects of dying, but also of life itself. We humans cling far too strongly to successful achievements, whether they have to do with material or ideal values, or relationships of all kinds. We cannot and do not want to let go, almost as if our life depended on it. As we will have to practise the art of letting go at the latest during our hour of death, perhaps we could already make a start on this while we are still alive. Tagore describes this farewell with very simple but strikingly vivid imagery: 'I will return the key of my door'. I have set this text for tenor solo. Here I imagine, and have correspondingly noted in a certain passage of the score, that the protagonist finds himself as though 'in an ocean' of voices in which he is however not drowning, but immersing himself in complete relaxation. The phenomenon of letting go is described even more simply and tersely in Psalm 90, verse 12: 'So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom'. This cannot be expressed more plainly.I have begun the requiem with a solo boy's voice singing the beginning of this psalm on a single note, the note A. This in effect says it all. The work comes full circle at the culmination with a repeat of the psalm which subsequently leads into a resplendent 'lux aeterna'. The intermediate texts of the Requiem which highlight the phenomenon of letting go in the widest spectrum of colours originate on the one hand from the Latin liturgy of the Messa da Requiem (In Paradisum, Libera me, Requiem aeternam, Mors stupebit) and on the other hand from poems by Joseph von Eichendorff, Hermann Hesse, Rabindranath Tagore and Rainer Maria Rilke.All texts have a distinctive positive element in common and view death as being an organic process within the great system of the universe, for example when Hermann Hesse writes: 'Entreiss dich, Seele, nun der Zeit, entreiss dich deinen Sorgen und mache dich zum Flug bereit in den ersehnten Morgen' ['Tear yourself way , o soul, from time, tear yourself away from your sorrows and prepare yourself to fly away into the long-awaited morning'] and later: 'Und die Seele unbewacht will in freien Flugen schweben, um im Zauberkreis der Nacht tief und tausendfach zu leben' ['And the unfettered soul strives to soar in free flight to live in the magic sphere of the night, deep and thousandfold']. Or Joseph von Eichendorff whose text evokes a distant song in his lines: 'Und meine Seele spannte weit ihre Flugel aus. Flog durch die stillen Lande, als floge sie nach Haus' ['And my soul spread its wings wide. Flew through the still country as if homeward bound.']Here a strong romantically tinged occidental resonance can be detected which is however also accompanied by a universal spirit going far beyond all cultures and religions. In the beginning was the sound Long before any sort of word or meaningful phrase was uttered by vocal chords, sounds, vibrations and tones already existed. This brings us back to the music. Both during my years of study and at subsequent periods, I had been an active participant in the world of contemporary music, both as percussionist and also as conductor and composer. My early scores had a somewhat adventurous appearance, filled with an abundance of small black dots: no rhythm could be too complicated, no register too extreme and no harmony too dissonant. I devoted myself intensely to the handling of different parameters which in serial music coexist in total equality: I also studied aleatory principles and so-called minimal music.I subsequently emigrated and took up residence in Spain from where I embarked on numerous travels over the years to India, Africa and South America. I spent repeated periods during this time as a resident in non-European countries. This meant that the currents of contemporary music swept past me vaguely and at a great distance. What I instead absorbed during this period were other completely new cultures in which I attempted to immerse myself as intensively as possible.I learned foreign languages and came into contact with musicians of all classes and styles who had a different cultural heritage than my own: I was intoxicated with the diversity of artistic potential.Nevertheless, the further I distanced myself from my own Western musical heritage, the more this returned insistently in my consciousness.The scene can be imagined of sitting somewhere in the middle of the Brazilian jungle surrounded by the wailing of Indians and out of the blue being provided with the opportunity to hear Beethoven's late string quartets: this can be a heart-wrenching experience, akin to an identity crisis. This type of experience can also be described as cathartic. Whatever the circumstances, my 'renewed' occupation with the 'old' country would not permit me to return to the point at which I as an audacious young student had maltreated the musical parameters of so-called contemporary music. A completely different approach would be necessary: an extremely careful approach, inching my way gradually back into the Western world: an approach which would welcome tradition back into the fold, attempt to unfurl the petals and gently infuse this tradition with a breath of contemporary life.Although I am aware that I will not unleash a revolution or scandal with this approach, I am nevertheless confident as, with the musical vocabulary of this Requiem, I am travelling in an orbit in which no ballast or complex structures will be transported or intimated: on the contrary, I have attempted to form the message of the texts in music with the naivety of a 'homecomer'. Harald WeissColonia de San PedroMarch 2009.
SKU: HL.48025290
UPC: 196288172147. 9.0x12.0x0.074 inches.
'While composing Joy in a Minor Key I attempted to achieve a fleeting, light, poetic, almost never “touching the ground†quality. The piece is written in my favourite form of rondo waltz with a coda,' says Elena Kats-Chernin. The composition was commissioned by an Australian patroness for the 50th birthday of her husband, who had recently recovered from serious illness. On first hearing the atmospherically ambivalent sounds, she then felt more reminded of her mother, a great lover of music, to whose memory Joy in a MinorKey was finally dedicated.
