Another soundscape, Spencer Topel’s Incendio is an image of fire. It is in three main segments, the inner representing embers against the flames of the outer two. Each segment has a series of sections that go by quickly, flaring and dying with shifting colors. You can listen to it for the rest of the week here.
Ignited by a sizzle cymbal solo, the first section introduces the dominant feature of the music, that of oscillating orchestral colors. The vibraphone stands out, but only as a first among equals; the texture is paramount. The trombones burst out and are punctuated with a bass drum thump. Then the trumpets and horns catch fire, with two short explosions from the orchestra, and the flame dies down a bit.
The second section features first the violins then cellos against a sparser accompaniment. It ends with the opening of the first section and the short explosions moved from the trombones to the tympani, and a longer flare from the sizzle cymbal (the cough is not in the score :-).
The oboes kindle the third section which is dominated by the horns, building to a passage featuring the English horn and clarinet. That clarinet imitates the opening sizzle cymbal solo to reprise the first section. A coda ends the first segment with the clarinet fading to nothing.
The embers segment is at a slower tempo. Pops of color with occasional little flare-ups lead to a brief re-ignition of flames in the middle that dies down to coals again. The sparkle of the tuned percussion send glowing embers dancing into the air. A deep bass pedal foreshadows the end of the segment where the entire orchestra bursts anew into flame with the gong playing the role of the sizzle cymbal.
The concluding segment is an abbreviated recapitulation, starting with the first section. The oboes and horns bring back the third section, with the English horn and clarinet passage leading to a coda where the fire fades and dies.
Wednesday, December 02, 2009
Tuesday, December 01, 2009
The Hat, the Elephant, and the Snake
Kathryn Selfelder’s Dessin No. 1 takes its title from a drawing of an elephant inside a snake in the Little Prince, “which is the incarnation of the quote ‘One only sees well with the heart. The essential is invisible to the eyes’” [program note]. For the rest of this week, you can hear the Minnesota Orchestra’s performance at ClassicalMPR.
The work is dominated by the opening violin melody that is broken up and re-mixed in various forms and instrumentations, the entire work is derived from the opening melody. The first section has slowly oscillating tetrachords over which the melody is introduced by a solo violin and gradually transformed, first by the oboe and bassoon, then the violas and cellos. The transformation of the melody is continuous throughout the piece, using fragments of the melody in various permutations.
The second section is accompanied by lightly arpeggiated chords in the violins. The melodic metamorphosis is mostly augmentation of fragments, with a two note fragment (short-long) stepwise either ascending or descending, not unlike the grace note that the solo violin played at the beginning or the extension of the melody by the oboe in the first section, permeating the whole orchestra to a climax that ends with a octave string passage with brass accents.
The third section is quietly introduced by a descending fragment in the winds, then taken over by the strings with a violin solo singing the melody augmented. That descending wind fragment then reappears and is echoed by the brass. The descending fragment is inverted in the strings and winds until, in its descending form, it is blown clearly by the horns at the second climax. Over that horn call, the violins play the melody in a very augmented form, under which the violas and cellos bring back the arpeggios, reinforced by the winds.
The final section uses a seemingly new melody in the flute and clarinet that, to me, sounds like it is derived from the opening melody yet transformed like a caterpillar becomes a butterfly, or a hat becomes an elephant in a snake. The oscillating tetrachords reappear as the accompaniment to balance the piece.
The work is dominated by the opening violin melody that is broken up and re-mixed in various forms and instrumentations, the entire work is derived from the opening melody. The first section has slowly oscillating tetrachords over which the melody is introduced by a solo violin and gradually transformed, first by the oboe and bassoon, then the violas and cellos. The transformation of the melody is continuous throughout the piece, using fragments of the melody in various permutations.
The second section is accompanied by lightly arpeggiated chords in the violins. The melodic metamorphosis is mostly augmentation of fragments, with a two note fragment (short-long) stepwise either ascending or descending, not unlike the grace note that the solo violin played at the beginning or the extension of the melody by the oboe in the first section, permeating the whole orchestra to a climax that ends with a octave string passage with brass accents.
The third section is quietly introduced by a descending fragment in the winds, then taken over by the strings with a violin solo singing the melody augmented. That descending wind fragment then reappears and is echoed by the brass. The descending fragment is inverted in the strings and winds until, in its descending form, it is blown clearly by the horns at the second climax. Over that horn call, the violins play the melody in a very augmented form, under which the violas and cellos bring back the arpeggios, reinforced by the winds.
The final section uses a seemingly new melody in the flute and clarinet that, to me, sounds like it is derived from the opening melody yet transformed like a caterpillar becomes a butterfly, or a hat becomes an elephant in a snake. The oscillating tetrachords reappear as the accompaniment to balance the piece.
A Cinematic Soundscape of the Seasons
Two weeks ago, I had the privilege of attending, as an auditing backbencher, the Minnesota Orchestra Composer Institute, during which I had an opportunity to read through the scores of the seven composers, attend the rehearsals and the concert on Saturday night. That concert was recorded by Minnesota Public Radio and can be heard this week only on their website.
Angel Lam’s In Search of Seasons opened the concert. The piece is in four sections (one for each season) with a short narrative prologue. Deep chords by the piano and harp with low string pedal tones introduce winter, a timeless and contemplative season. Tuned gongs sound a chilled four-note motive. A single cello sings a mournful melody ornamented with glissandi and grace notes. A single violin answers sympathetically with a long, lyric line that, after one last echo of the tuned gong motive, is smoothly transformed into spring by a leaping solo cello.
A pizzicato violin gets time ticking. Bird-like twitters in the celesta, harp, and winds flutter over the solo cello and viola just before dawn. The sun bursts over the horizon on a sweeping violin line. All manner of swoopings up and down in the winds and strings bring spring to blossom then a quick close with a string glissandi and straight into summer.
A gentle gust of wind in the harp, oboe, and clarinet precedes summer’s motive: four notes outlining a minor third which is tossed among the percussion, harp, piano, and strings throughout the summer. The driving ticking of time reappears in the lower strings. Glittering figures in the marimba and vibraphone and short glissandi propel the season forward. Time accelerates with the bass and snare drum, and the high hat. Over this is a lyric yet energetic violin line, full of life, joy, and surprise, interspersed with the four-note summer motive. A small storm swirls up and dissipates. The heavy tread of time in the lower strings underlies an urban collision of rhythms as the long summer spins off into the distance.
Autumn arrives with sparkling, calming figures in the piano and harp and a solo violin melody reminiscent of the one in winter. This is quickly followed by the rustling and falling leaves propelled by gusts from the winds and harp, vibraphone and marimba. Over all is an almost wild lament by the violins, which calms to a single note in the flute and clarinet. The violin sings a tender farewell as the glitter of piano, harp, and vibraphone fades.
Angel Lam’s In Search of Seasons opened the concert. The piece is in four sections (one for each season) with a short narrative prologue. Deep chords by the piano and harp with low string pedal tones introduce winter, a timeless and contemplative season. Tuned gongs sound a chilled four-note motive. A single cello sings a mournful melody ornamented with glissandi and grace notes. A single violin answers sympathetically with a long, lyric line that, after one last echo of the tuned gong motive, is smoothly transformed into spring by a leaping solo cello.
A pizzicato violin gets time ticking. Bird-like twitters in the celesta, harp, and winds flutter over the solo cello and viola just before dawn. The sun bursts over the horizon on a sweeping violin line. All manner of swoopings up and down in the winds and strings bring spring to blossom then a quick close with a string glissandi and straight into summer.
A gentle gust of wind in the harp, oboe, and clarinet precedes summer’s motive: four notes outlining a minor third which is tossed among the percussion, harp, piano, and strings throughout the summer. The driving ticking of time reappears in the lower strings. Glittering figures in the marimba and vibraphone and short glissandi propel the season forward. Time accelerates with the bass and snare drum, and the high hat. Over this is a lyric yet energetic violin line, full of life, joy, and surprise, interspersed with the four-note summer motive. A small storm swirls up and dissipates. The heavy tread of time in the lower strings underlies an urban collision of rhythms as the long summer spins off into the distance.
Autumn arrives with sparkling, calming figures in the piano and harp and a solo violin melody reminiscent of the one in winter. This is quickly followed by the rustling and falling leaves propelled by gusts from the winds and harp, vibraphone and marimba. Over all is an almost wild lament by the violins, which calms to a single note in the flute and clarinet. The violin sings a tender farewell as the glitter of piano, harp, and vibraphone fades.
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