The Universe Within You

This secular text written by Edgar Allen Poe is fanciful calling into question whether reality is a dream or even a dream within a dream. The music is lush and has a subtle hint of popular harmonies alongside well-written choral lines and an accessible piano part. This would be perfect material for a good secondary school choir.

Kammeroper Nr. 2. Par RIHM WOLFGANG. Chamber opera does not mean “little opera.” On the same scale as chamber music is to the symphony, it is rather the other way of talking onstage. The movable apparatus permits sophisticated voice-leading. A large ensemble demands simple conception to achieve the complexity it perhaps intends; this can be formulated more sharply and nuanced in a chamber ensemble. Therefore it is the subject which this type of presentation must sustain – or, better, provoke. Büchner’s Lenz is a description of the conditions within a process of collapse, moments of destruction already occurred but not yet accepted, evident in the points of contact with the environment. And it was those points of contact which Michael Fröhling attempted to reconstruct onstage. Lenz’s distraught state is always the same; only the proximity of the environment to that distraught state grows and ebbs. The musical consequence An hour of extreme chamber music results from this description: always bound for the main character – actually, not a commentary, but the main character himself as a multilayered level of action. Although Lenz acts on many levels – or tries to or believes he is – he has no room to manoeuvre. That is why he is also tightly interwoven in his sonic surroundings; the voices which only he hears are just as much himself as the two men with whom he foregathers (the liberal pragmatist Oberlin and the alert merchant who always “does the right thing” in every situation) – they evoke responses which he deeply desires. Omnipresent Friederike is just as much his inner world as Nature is – Nature, which he can no longer perceive unless it is personified, enlivened or dead. Therefore, the music’s task is both to motivate the “situation” (atmospherically) and to be the psychological constant (via a network of entangled references per se) in an action as it is played out. The compositional process December 1977 to June 1978 – a period identical to the stepwise understanding of an existence as that of Jakob Lenz. Yet the more the historical figure became precisely attendant in my intellect in terms of data and atmosphere, the more it retreated in favour of a cipher of disturbance as I began to understand Lenz. Thence the explanation for the failure of the attempts to approach him – including my attempt to interpret him via musical representation – because, essentially, Lenz himself is the failure. Only the naked stages of that failure remain portrayable, i.e. including the failure of those who wish to “help” Lenz, for example, while Lenz himself is already trapped inextricably in a state of complete destruction. I tried to compose my way into that situation as far as possible; the insistence of several rhythmic and harmonic configurations is the palpable expression of the main character’s ever-recurring rigidity. One sound pervades the entire work. The musical stage For me, this is a place where very magical and very human things take place. In Jakob Lenz, the human aspects often switch to magical ones, since the realism of a self-suasive, unhinged soul takes on surreal traits – or we simply cannot understand that otherwise except as not being real. A character like Jakob Lenz on the stage is complex due to the fact alone that it harbours many stages within itself, and music must represent those constantly present stages. I have tried to do so in the most direct way – by not cleanly separating the musical layers, but keeping them constantly in evidence until they must break forth, each in accord with its own dramaturgy. In an overview, the large form takes on aspects of a rondo, performed in overlapping layers – a type of rondo relief, since perspectives of psychological proximity and distance are indeed formulated musically as atmospheric relations. Above all: the thread on which Jakob Lenz hangs is the current onto the listeners’ hearts. Wolfgang Rihm (January 1979)/ Répertoire / Chant et Piano

Par WEILL KURT. Kurt Weill developed his creative energies mainly within the world of musical theater, where he proved to be an immensely productive and imaginative innovator, but he also left behind a small body of work for the concert hall. The Concerto for Violin and Wind Orchestra op. 12 dates from the spring of 1924. Scored for two flutes, clarinets, bassoons, horns, one oboe and trumpet, percussion and four contrabasses, the concerto comprises three movements. While composing the work, Weill informed his publisher: 'I am working on a concerto for violin and wind orchestra that I hope to finish within two or three weeks. The work is inspired by the idea - one never carried out before - of juxtaposing a single violin with a chorus of winds.' The specific character of Weill's concerto as music written for chamber orchestra (with an often soloistic treatment of instruments) leads to a transparency that requires utmost precision in the ensemble playing. In the quest for an overall sonic balance, the coarser-sounding wind instruments need to explore all dynamic nuances. The solo part is challenging not only from a technical standpoint but also from an acoustic one (it is crucial to make the violin 'sound'). In spite of these challenges - or precisely because of them - critics in the 1920s called the solo part highly idiomatic and extremely rewarding. Since then the concerto has become a 'modern classic' in concert halls around the world. (Elmar Juchem, August 2010)/ Répertoire / Violon et Orchestre d'Instruments à Vent

Cet ouvrage cherche à continuer un travail de mémoire et de constitution d'un patrimoine écrit de la musique improvisée. Il s'attache aussi à lancer des passerelles entre les genres, offrant à deux univers assez étanches (la musique classique écrite et la musique jazz improvisée) un même support de travail.- Aux musiciens de jazz, ces transcriptions permettront de pénétrer dans l'univers d'un des pianistes de jazz les plus marquants de son époque à travers son premier album solo?:- grilles originales manuscrites de Brad Mehldau?-- mise en page facilitant l'analyse musicale, par un respect permanent des structures?-- pistes de travail ébauchées par des commentaires préliminaires à chaque morceau.- Aux musiciens de formation classique, ces transcriptions permettront de découvrir la musique improvisée de l'intérieur?:- album très écrit, permettant une entrée en douceur dans le monde de la musique improvisée?-- relevé intégral, note pour note, chorus compris, de l'ensemble de l'album?-- pièces de différents formats et de difficulté variable.- Pour tous enfin, et pour mieux entrer dans l'univers de ce musicien d'exception, ces transcriptions sont enrichies de textes offrant quelques clés de compréhension de tout ce qui fait la beauté et l'achèvement de cet album ' Elegiac Cycle '?:- entretien de Ludovic Florin avec Brad Mehldau, 10 ans plus tard, où le musicien revient sur cette aventure, s'ouvre sur sa démarche, et nous offre sa vision d'artiste?-- commentaires globaux lançant quelques pistes de réflexion sur les sources d'inspiration de l'artiste dans cet album, littéraires (poésie romantique allemande du XIXe siècle, mythologie grecque ou littérature Beatnik américaine) et musicales (de l'explosion contrapunctique de Bach au lyrisme exacerbé de Beethoven, Schubert ou Brahms)?-- édition bilingue, car la musique ne connaît pas de frontières.This work seeks above all to continue the work of memory that constitutes the written heritage of improvised music in general, and jazz in particular. It also tries to build bridges between genres, offering to two rather different universes (written classical music and improvised jazz music) the same foundation on which to work.- These transcriptions will allow jazz musicians to penetrate the heart of the work of one of the most remarkable jazz pianists of this epoch, through his first solo album.- These transcriptions will allow formally trained classical musicians to discover improvised music from within.- And finally, so that everyone can better enter into the universe of this musician, these transcriptions are complemented by an inter with the composer and texts proposing some keys to understanding everything that makes 'Elegiac Cycle? a beautiful achievement of this album 'Elegiac Cycle?. / Livre

William Mathias' Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam for SATB and organ is a glorious fanfare crackling with life and vitality. Dancing syncopated rhythms and bare harmony give the fanfare real momentum and bite. This approachable work is well within the grasp of most choirs.

Malcolm Archer's A Hymn For St Cecilia for SATB choir (with divisions) and Organ. Set to Ursula Vaughan Williams' celebrated paean to the patron saint of music this work is by turns joyous and reflective. Rich harmonies shifting tonalities and expressive melodies combine to evoke the changing moods explored within the text. The poignant Andante section midway through the piece sung by a solo Soprano is a pivotal moment; it gives way to increasingly jubilant and powerful writing that brings the work to an ecstatic conclusion.

A tender deeply touching extended song which is within the scope of students. A Girl's Song to her Mother is a companion piece to Wings of the Grasses. Each piece recalls the open high moorland of South Wales. In A Girl's Song to her Mother the voice is a younger person comforting an older one. In Wings of the Grasses the voice changes from that of a child to that of a reflective adult.

O beata Trinitas. for SSAA double choir unaccompanied. In this compelling motet for the Feast of the Holy Trinity, Handl artfully embodies symbolism of the Trinity within the motet's structure.

Via Della Fortuna by Sadie Harrison. Written in 2013 especially for the St. Christopher Chamber Orchestra and Donatus Katkus.6; for String OrchestraWorld premiere: 25th April 2013 St. Katharine'sChurch Vilnius St. Christopher Chamber Orchestra conducted by Donatus Katkus.UK premiere: 10th May 2013 Cardiff Millennium Centre Vale of Glamorgan Festival.I - Casa di Caccia Antica (The House of the AncientHunt)II - Casa degli Amorini Dorati (The House of the Golden Cupids)III - Casa del poeta tragico (The House of the tragic poet)IV - Return to the Casa di Caccia Antica and northwards to Lithuania and the Amber Road(Gintaro Kelias)The piece is in four short movements each taking its title from one of the houses that line the main streets in Pompeii. Borrowing Mussorgsky's 'Promenade' from Pictures at an Exhibition the piece has twowalkers (violas) who take the listener with them onto the Via Della Fortuna then lead them from house to house. Several amber objects were found within the houses linking Pompeii with Lithuania. The lastmovement returns to the House of the Ancient Hunt then heads northwards along the Gintaro Kelias. The jubilant closing music refers to an earlier work (Geda's Weavings) based on Lithuanian folksongs.

Additional books to complement the tutor for adults and young people Play the Piano! Levels 1 & 2 are now available providing specially arranged favourite pieces in keeping with the technical level attained by the end of each course book. Whilst still under Mike's guiding hand here is the chance for players to explore and enjoy more beautiful music in a variety of styles confident that the technical levels are within their capabilities. Includes popular classics by Purcell Handel Bach Mozart Grieg Humperdinck Schumann Chopin Rimsky-Korsakov Brahms Elgar and more. Also included are traditional folksong favourites along with selections of Jazzy Latin and Ragtimepieces by Scott Joplin Mike Cornick and Duke Ellington.

Additional books to complement the tutor for adults and young people Play the Piano! Levels 1 & 2 are now available providing specially arranged favourite pieces in keeping with the technical level attained by the end of each course book. Whilst still under Mike's guiding hand here is the chance for players to explore and enjoy more beautiful music in a variety of styles confident that the technical levels are within their capabilities. Includes popular classics by Purcell Handel Bach Mozart Grieg Humperdinck Schumann Chopin Rimsky-Korsakov Brahms Elgar and more. Also included are traditional folksong favourites along with selections of Jazzy Latin and Ragtimepieces by Scott Joplin Mike Cornick and Duke Ellington.

for SATB and organ A richly harmonized setting of the poem by George Herbert which is easily within the range of most parish choirs.

Commissioned for the 2015 National Conference of the American Choral Directors Association Wide Open Spaces reflects on the journeys and adventures to be found in the wide open spaces within ourselves and in the world around us. The uplifting melody is passed from the upper voices to the lower voices before the piece opens out into an expansive texture with rich harmonies. Quartel introduces a playful episode of scat singing before a resolute final chorus brings this evocative piece to a peaceful and serene close.

Dast Be Dast ('Hand to hand in friendship') was commissioned by Cuatro Puntos a pioneering ensemble of chamber musicians dedicated to global cooperation and peace through the writing and performance of new music worldwide.The piece was written specifically for their violist Kevin Bishop and for Rubab player Samim Zafar a student of the extraordinary Afghanistan National Institute for Music (ANIM) in Kabul. Kevin suggested that the piece should represent the two distinct but equal musical cultures of the performers and as such both players are required to adopt characteristics of each other's traditions both techniques andlanguages.Dast Be Dast illuminates various aspects of Afghan and Western music-making with both instruments exploring improvisation alongside notation controlled imitation with spontaneous elaboration and Western tonality within Afghan scales. The piece is based on three Afghan songs each heard clearly in the three movements which are played without a break:I Anar Anar (Pomegranates): a fast song where the two instruments imitate each other gradually becoming more and more elaborate.II Allah Hu (This is God): a meditative movement for solo viola based on a specific interpretation of Allah Hu sung as a lullaby by Veronica Doubleday in 2004.III Watan Jan (Dear Homeland): based on a whirling atan dance in 7/8. Gradually getting faster and faster the players have to keep up with each other's virtuosity.The work was premiered by Samim and Kevin on 23 June 2014 at ANIM Kabul Afghanistan.The work is dedicated to them both with admiration.

Jonathan Willcocks' Lux Perpetua - Peace And Unity for SATB voices and Orchestra.This six-movement work celebrates the themes of peace and unity to produce music of beauty power compassion and great poignancy. The choral writing contains semi-chorus and solo voices from within the choir but no separate soloists are needed. Orchestral material is available on hire.