Classical

[Joie de la Blumpy]

Toying with the idea of splitting spectral music off from the Contemporary Classical thread, but I’d wonder if it were necessary even if there were (no doubt limited) interest. I know when I suggested the discussion topic on another board, exactly one person (Mr Tourette) expressed interest but I never followed up…mostly because I wasn’t sure I had much to say. I’m still not sure I have much to say but anyhow.

Wanted to mention Morton Feldman in the context of spectral music. Feldman is certainly one of the big dogs as far as contemporary classical, and everything he’s ever touched is gold as far as I’m concerned, but my point of departure is going to start with a slim academic volume written by pianist Marilyn Nonken.

In "The Spectral Piano" (2014), Nonken traces work from Liszt (1826) through Debussy, Scrabian, Cowell, Varèse, Messiaen, Ives, Babbit, Cage, Stockhausen, Scelsi, Xenakis, Ligeti, Murail, Harvey, Feldman, Tenney, Crumb, Grisey, Nono, Lucier, Lindberg, Campion, Fineberg, Saariaho...leaving out a bunch, well over 100 specifically-enumerated pieces...to Dufourt (2012).

[Every name, above, is absolutely worth following up imo btw.]

While Nonken takes pains to emphasize that Feldman would be little concerned with the psychoacoustic tenets of spectral music, she devotes a few innerestin paragraphs to his work, noting how aspects of spectralism could overlap with Feldman's preoccupation with resonance- the mysterious effect whereby each sound almost erases in one's memory what happened before.

In my own music, I am so involved with the decay of each sound and try to make its attack sourceless. The attack of a sound is not its character...Decay, however, this departing landscape, this expresses where the sound exists in our hearing – leaving us rather than coming toward us (Feldman, 1973 ).

For wankers like yours blumpily, spectral concerns could map onto an item of Fake Noise Analysis (™) termed harmonicaness, massed clusters of harmonic ambiguity, I drone on. Forget about that memory stuff. Just forget it. Memory? No idea wutchyertalkinbout. But whether you are Mr Ultimate Ambience (MSBR) or The Rita, arguments could probably be made that would push the preeminence of sound/tone color. Not that I'd be the one to make these arguments, but I think they could be made. That there is part my in for ye olde spectral music.

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Meant to drop this innerestin little article here

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Worth making it to the end of the above article for the comments, which also touch briefly on spectralism.

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“Hey Bunita, hear that? ‘Pay more attention to tone color.'”

[Scream & Writhe]

Toying with the idea of splitting spectral music off from the Contemporary Classical thread

Thread title modified for to serve as a greater catch-all.

Wanted to mention Morton Feldman in the context of spectral music. Feldman is certainly one of the big dogs as far as contemporary classical, and everything he’s ever touched is gold as far as I’m concerned

Was recently turned on to Rothko Chapel and was immediately down. Maybe I'll put it on now.

On another pianic note: I recently (okay, almost a couple years ago now) picked up the LITA 5LP box set, The Music of Gurdjieff / de Hartmann. I could listen to it on repeat for eternity (samples here). More or less home recordings from the 40s by the boys themselves*: Gurdjieff the philosopher, the mystic, the composer; de Hartmann the student. It's like they're just hanging out in the next room, mystically keying away. I wish I hadn't passed on the 80s CD collection shortly before hand as the vinyl pressing leaves a bit to be desired, sonically, but happy to have the material nonetheless.

*I always like hearing composers playing their own works in the (relatively) early era of recorded music. Another fine example (though not his own work) is Rachmaninoff doing Chopin's Funeral March (among others) circa 1920-1930. The noisy fidelity (taken from old 78s) offers an appropriate air for that material especially.

[noisehangover]

I probably won't be original, but I like Rhys Chatham, Terry Riley and Steve Reich.

[Ineffable Slime]

I have like, 10 classical mixtapes via http://www.nathanielmatthews.com/ (they're under the Crown Royal Chess Club Classical Compilations) - great stuff! His Til Helvete remix tape is great too but far far from classical.

Also a big opera fan, my friend Raven won rave reviews for this piece of which he was a co-composer: https://theindustryla.org/sweet-land-opera/
Functionally a noise opera - massive in scope and spectacle! "like watching an opera tear it's own skin off."
Raven and Cannuspa did a fantastic noise/dance performance at the Museum here last week too. Something like indigenous butoh soundtracked to drone and harsh noise... hoping the recording is made available.

Being in NM I have access to the Santa Fe Opera and attended A Midsummer's Night's Dream last year (stunning production that was timed with a full moon rise, though the music isn't particularly memorable) very excited for Tristan und Isolde in July this year.

[murmur]

Dufourt...specially fucking Dufourt. Dude kills.

What a great album, thanks for linking

[Tarkamt]

I'm completely obsessed with Stravinsky's music, and lately have been revisiting his Orpheus ballet. Some truly astounding ambient moments. Lots of tension/release and evocative melodrama on this one.

[Joie de la Blumpy]

Dufourt...specially fucking Dufourt. Dude kills.

What a great album, thanks for linking

My pleasure, I think the name and the work slips through a lot of cracks but it's been right up my crack since day one. The relative obscurity could partly be on account of Dufourt's MO. From I've gathered he's possibly more noted as a writer or theorist (he coined the term "spectral music" or "spectralism"), but shiz like Saturne is primo example of putting your money where your mouth is...only one remove from Uranus.

[shishido]

I'm completely obsessed with Stravinsky's music, and lately have been revisiting his Orpheus ballet. Some truly astounding ambient moments. Lots of tension/release and evocative melodrama on this one.

Do you have any recommendations besides the Rites of Spring? I've always wanted to dig deeper into Stravinsky's music, ever since I discovered that one of my favorite records, Magma's Mekanïk Destruktïw Kommandöh, was heavily influenced by Stravinsky's Les Noces.

[Brian O'Blivion]

Though I'm late, I'd also like to chime in with the others in saying Sarah Davachi, Kali Malone and Ellen Arkbro are all fantastic. In the last year or so, I've been listening to these albums pretty consistently:

Pierre Henry ‎– Maléfices (Phillips, 1962) - Father of musique concrète. Cacophonic/Finders Keepers did a great reissue of this about 8 years ago.
Iannis Xenakis - Persepolis (Phillips, 1972) - Commissioned by the Iranian Shah. I bet he wasn't ready for what Xenakis delivered because it's rather nightmarish at points.
Meredith Monk - Do You Be (ECM, 1986) - Vocal improv legend. I don't love all of her material, but this one is especially good.
Ákos Rózmann - 12 Stationer VI (Ideologic Organ, 2012) - This composition took 23 years to complete and is one of my favourite records of all time.
Sean McCann - Puck (Recital, 2019) - Experimental ambient with nods to neoclassical/modern composition.

[holy ghost]

Do you have any recommendations besides the Rites of Spring? I've always wanted to dig deeper into Stravinsky's music, ever since I discovered that one of my favorite records, Magma's Mekanïk Destruktïw Kommandöh, was heavily influenced by Stravinsky's Les Noces.

I was not aware of this connection. That Magma LP is one of my favourite records also, now combing discogs for a reasonably priced recording of this Stravinsky piece….

[Scream & Writhe]

Sarah Davachi, Kali Malone

They're performing in Montreal on April 2nd. Tickets just went on sale: https://verdun.tuxedobillet.com/Quai%20 ... avril-2022

[Brian O'Blivion]

They're performing in Montreal on April 2nd. Tickets just went on sale: https://verdun.tuxedobillet.com/Quai%20 ... avril-2022

Thank you! Grabbed mine. Been waiting a long time to see them.

[Scream & Writhe]

Kali Malone was no less than incredible last night.

[Pigswill]

More people need to hear Aldo Lopez-Gavilan. I heard his song Emporium when driving home from work one day and it was captivating. I had to look at the radio's show schedule as soon as I got home to find out what it was

[chryptusrecords]

Arseny Avraamov

"During the 1920s Avraamov experimented with ‘prepared’ pianos, harmoniums and various noise sources as well as a symphony orchestra to develop new approaches to organizing sound that are very similar to recent techniques of electroacoustic and spectral music. He explored new genres of music devised for urban contexts and presented them around the built environment, including the acclaimed Symphony of Sirens, performed in Baku in 1922."

Here is a performance of Avraamov's most well-known piece, Simfonia gudkov, "reconstructed" at Laboratorio de Creationes Intermedia, Dpt. of Sculpture-Faculty de Fine Arts of Valencia, Spain:

Avraamov refused to fight in WW1, went to Germany to work in the circus, and after the October Revolution was a respected academic musical theoretician who invented new microtonal systems and techniques for 'drawing' music directly onto optical film.

"As part of his desire to remind the proletariat of their true role - their power to decide their own history - Avraamov conceived a monumental proletarian musical work for the creation of which he would use only sounds taken directly from factories and machines. To this end, he organised several monumental concerts, which he called Symphony of Sirens [Simfoniya gudkov, Гудковая симфония]..."

"Avraamov worked with choirs thousands strong, foghorns from the entire Caspian flotilla, two artillery batteries, several full infantry regiments, hydroplanes, twenty-five steam locomotives and whistles and all the factory sirens in the city. He also invented a number of portable devices, which he called Steam Whistle Machines for this event, consisting of an ensemble of 20 to 25 sirens tuned to the notes of The Internationale. He conducted the symphony himself from a specially built tower, using signalling flags directed simultaneously toward the oil flotilla, the trains at the station, the shipyards, the transport vehicles and the workers' choirs . Avraamov did not want spectators, but intended the active participation of everybody in the development of the work through their exclamations and singing, all united with the same revolutionary will."

https://monoskop.org/Arseny_Avraamov

By Stalin years Avraamov was working quietly in the Caucasus mountains studying various folk music traditions, as articles denouncing composers like Shostakovich were appearing in Pravda. He died destitute in a single-room flat in Moscow in 1944.

[drift]

prefer schoenberg to all the other atonal composers. the rest of contemporary classical, I might take reading over listening.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fQxVSh2pOoc

this is my most enjoyed performer of his. close to Schoenberg, that's all I know. maybe a bit didactic.

[holy ghost]

prefer schoenberg to all the other atonal composers. the rest of contemporary classical, I might take reading over listening.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fQxVSh2pOoc

this is my most enjoyed performer of his. close to Schoenberg, that's all I know. maybe a bit didactic.

Same for me. Moses & (Und?) Aaron is one of the weirdest things I have ever heard. I love Berg & Webern as well. I don’t understand the nuts and bolts of 20th century composition but I know I love that stuff. I have a particular penchant for Berg’s operas along with Lyric Suite. I really love Lulu. I hope to see it performed live one day. My mother in law is a huge opera buff and we went to see “The Nose” by Shostakovich together a few years ago which was a fuckin’ TRIP. We saw one of the Wagner Ring cycles together and that was…. a challenge!

One of my favourite books is The Rest is Noise. I’ve read it cover to cover 3 times and constantly reference it. If we are IRL friends and you haven’t read it I will most likely pick up a used copy and just buy it for you. I don’t care for the Wagner book he wrote (holy shit, I read 100 pages last year and gave up - I’m not much of a Wagner-ite) but The Rest is Noise is INCREDIBLE.

[drift]

One of my favourite books is The Rest is Noise. I’ve read it cover to cover 3 times and constantly reference it.

not read. it still amazes how different performances can make a composition sound so completely different. how's it meant to sound? are you meant to feel afraid, anguish, relieved, idk.
my comment about enjoying reading about classical music is a little vague. I believe a fair number of composers were significantly talented writers, not just cage, and I don't consciously understand, rather than enjoy, their music. I even had a book by Schoenberg on how to compose. read that a long time ago. it's about aesthetics (having a complete idea in your head) rather than music theory (IIRC)

[John Eden]

I’d recommend UK people check out performances by Apartment House if they can.

I’ve seen them do avant classical pieces by Julian Eastman, Herman Nitsch and Jim O’Rourke and they have all been amazing.

[John Eden]

I also have an increasing obsession with Messiaen. Lots of mad themes about the abyss, a symphony composed when he was captive in a concentration camp etc. A lot of great music. The church organ stuff is mental.

[Brian O'Blivion]

I attended a Xenakis concert last night. A classical ensemble here in Montreal performed a Polytope piece on a massive audio-visual harp they built based on Xenakis' visit to Montreal during Expo '67. His original installation resembled a spider web with multiple cables suspended in mid-air, but had luminescent points that appeared and disappeared in tandem with a sound file that accompanies the performers. The audio-visual harp the ensemble performed on basically did the same thing, and it was very impressive. They announced they are currently trying to figure out how to make a more portable version of the harp so they can tour because, at present, it's too large and complicated to constantly disassemble and move. Afterwards, they performed four Pléiades written between 1978-79.

I need to start paying more attention to the classical scene here because hearing those Xenakis pieces on record is one thing, but to hear it in an auditorium with proper acoustical design was profoundly different and powerful.

[Scream & Writhe]

Damn, where was that at? I had no idea it was happening.

[Brian O'Blivion]

Damn, where was that at? I had no idea it was happening.

Université de Montréal campus. I'll tell you all about it when I pick up those tapes.

[Bubble-Congeries]

Back in the 90's, Cartoon Network would air an anthology series around midnight called O'Canada. It consisted of animated NFB shorts, several of which featured music composed by Patrick Godfrey.

So I'm a fan. I really like his record, Ancient Ships.

[holy ghost]

I need to start paying more attention to the classical scene here because hearing those Xenakis pieces on record is one thing, but to hear it in an auditorium with proper acoustical design was profoundly different and powerful.

That sounds really cool - I am no expert and have only been to a few performances but the sound in a well designed theatre is really incredible. My mother in law is a real opera nut and I’ve gone with her a few times to see performances beamed in from The Met in NY. I really like “the idea” of bombastic Wagner (musically) but I saw one of the ring cycles and it put me to sleep.

I saw Shostakovich’s The Nose and that was a fucking riot. Really fun.

I had booked tickets to see Berg’s Lulu in 2020 but the pandemic wrecked that one…..

You ever listen to Shoenbergs Moses Und Aaron? Man that’s one of the most fucked up things I’ve ever heard….