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Showing posts from March, 2009

Litany for G20

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With the dawn of the seventies, John Cage was increasingly interested in - and vociferous about - social and environmental issues. He no longer confined his enthusiasm for technology to its practical application in music, but talked at length of his belief in the positive impact it could make on all areas of life. Cage spoke, too, of his engagement with political philosophy, particularly his own interpretation of anarchism ... By the mid-seventies the progessively more qualified way Cage thought about social issues turned towards ecological matters. He gathered information about wildlife refuges, subscribed to the East-West Journal , and contacted the Franco-American anti-whaling organization, Project Jonah , copying from them a lengthy list of environmental organizations. In interviews he expressed concern about toxins in vegetables, and presently began to distill water at home and add seawater essence to restore its mineral balance. On tour he anticipated with pleasure visits to cou

When styles collide

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Architectural style - the Zen-like discipline of Japanese design collides with the flamboyance of Art Nouveau in this magnificent organ screen by the Scottish architect and designer Charles Rennie Mackintosh . It was photographed by me in The Parish Church (formerly Holy Trinity) in Bridge of Allan, Scotland where we lived in the 1980s. The organ screen was designed by Mackintosh in 1904 to complement the 1884 instrument built by Lewis and Company, and the architect also created a matching pulpit, communion table and chair, and chancel rail . Charles Rennie Mackintosh was one of the key figures in early twentieth century architecture. His unique contribution was to seamlessly blend the decadence of European Jugendstil with the minimalism of the Oriental visual arts to produce a visual style that was enthusiastically embraced by his native Puritan Scotland. Period style - forty miles south of Bridge of Allan is Edinburgh. In September 2007 the Dunedin Consort and Players and a team

Maurice Jarre - part of my music education

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Composer Maurice Jarre has died in Los Angeles aged 84. His scores included Lawrence of Arabia , Passage to India and Doctor Zhivago . My parent's 1962 LP of the Oscar-winning soundtrack for Lawrence of Arabia was an integral part of my music education. The superbly crafted scores of Maurice Jarre, Malcolm Arnold and many others introduced classical music to generations of cinema goers. What is the 21st century version of this truly inclusive form of music education ? Any copyrighted material on these pages is included as "fair use", for the purpose of study, review or critical analysis only, and will be removed at the request of copyright owner(s). Report errors to - overgrownpath at hotmail dot co dot uk

I Ring composes opera of changes

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Email received - I thought this would amuse/horrify you. It did me. From the New York Post : 'The opera ain't over until the audience texts. In a move purists will pray never comes to the Met, producers of the updated version of Mozart's fiancée-swapping classic "Cosi fan Tutte," to be staged April 29-30 at the Leonard Nimoy Thalia at Symphony Space, will ask patrons to use their cellphones to vote on who marries whom in the climactic wedding scene. "The cast will implement the favored ending," said a show rep, adding, "It's a rare opera when you are actually asked to turn your cellphones on."' Keep up blogging the good blog. Kind regards, TMcC But it's not the first time the audience composes the music . Header image sampled from theichingguy.com Any copyrighted material on these pages is included as "fair use", for the purpose of study, review or critical analysis only, and will be removed at the request of copyright o

Poem reported missing in action 2009

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To mark Remembrance Sunday last year I published a post which juxtaposed Thomas Merton's poem For My Brother - Reported Missing In Action, 1943 with photographs taken by me of the USAAF 389th Bomb Group base at Hethel , one of which can be seen above. This article, which was linked to by several USAAF veteran's websites, has now been removed following receipt of an email, extract below, from the composer Francis Pott. ... I don't see any acknowledgment ... for the Thomas Merton poem. I have set other text by Merton in the past and went through an arduous process to clear permission and pay for the privilege. Can you assure me that you have done the same thing? If not, you will presumably be in breach of intellectual property law and Merton's executors should be aware. Regards, Francis Pott Yes Francis, technically I was wrong to use the text of the 1943 poem. But, in this instance, don't you think Thomas Merton himself might have granted forgiveness in lieu of pe

British Summer Time

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I'm gonna take my problem to the United Nations Well I called my congressman and he said Quote: "I'd like to help you son but you're too young to vote" Sometimes I wonder what I'm a gonna do But there ain't no cure for the summertime blues British Summer Time started today, the G20 Summit starts in London on Thursday. Photo was taken in our garden at 10.00am this morning. Spring Symphony here . Lyrics by Eddie Cochran and Jerry Capehart from Summertime Blues . Photo (c) On An Overgrown Path 2009. Any other copyrighted material on these pages is included as "fair use", for the purpose of study, review or critical analysis only, and will be removed at the request of copyright owner(s). Report errors to - overgrownpath at hotmail dot co dot uk

Little boxes

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And the people in the houses all go to the university And they all get put in boxes, little boxes all the same And there's doctors and there's lawyers And business executives And they're all made out of ticky tacky and they all look just the same More Pete Seeger here . Extract from lyrics of Little Boxes by Malvina Reynolds . Photo of Paris Plage, Le Tourquet, France (c) On An Overgrown Path 2009. Report errors to - overgrownpath at hotmail dot co dot uk

After common sense has been removed

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An artist is a person who lives in the triangle which remains after the angle which we may call common sense has been removed from this four-cornered world. Natsume Sōseki explains, or perhaps doesn't explain, the title of his novel The Three Cornered World . Header image is a detail of Edo to Mejii , silkscreen on ceramic tile, by Tadanori Yokoo . I will be back soon . Any copyrighted material on these pages is included as "fair use", for the purpose of study, review or critical analysis only, and will be removed at the request of copyright owner(s). Report errors to - overgrownpath at hotmail dot co dot uk

Naxos rattles Berlin Philharmonic

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I wonder if John Adams reads the Guardian ? In today's edition Andrew Clements reviews two new recordings of Ravel's sublime L'Enfant et les sortilèges. One is from the Berlin Philharmonic under Simon Rattle on EMI , the other from the Nashville Symphony under Alastair Willis on Naxos . The preferred version is the one from Naxos. How frustrating . Header image is sampled from the Previn/LSO L'Enfant et les sortilèges , on Deutsche Grammophon, which is also very good. Any copyrighted material on these pages is included as "fair use", for the purpose of study, review or critical analysis only, and will be removed at the request of copyright owner(s). Report errors to - overgrownpath at hotmail dot co dot uk

A classical modernist

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My recent post On the road with Lutoslawski prompted me to listen again to the EMI double CD of the Polish composer's music, and it really is a gem. All the orchestral works were recorded with Lutoslawski himself conducting the Polish Chamber and Radio National Symphony Orchestras in 1976 and 1977 by a team from EMI's International Classical Division . The venue for these sessions was the Polish Radio studio in Kraków, and the analogue sound captured by EMI producer David Mottley and balance engineer Neville Boyling is extraordinarily vivid. The outstanding work on the discs is the abrasive 1970 Cello Concerto. It was written for Rostropovich , who recorded it, but is given a superb performance on this double CD by Roman Jablonski . Lutoslawski's two movement String Quartet, which is played by the Alban Berg Quartet , was recorded digitally in 1995 in Evalelische Kirche , Honrath by a team from EMI Electrola . Again a superb performance coupled with demonstration quality

Nice Berg

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'I am absolutely delighted that HRH The Prince of Wales has agreed to become our Patron. He has been the most tremendous supporter of us all and it is wonderful that he has agreed to deepen his relationship with us even further' ~ chief executive of the Royal Opera House Tony Hall announcing HRH's appointment as Patron . 'I have always found the Prince's lack of interest in anything to do with the arts in our time depressing, since all his opinions get so widely reported. It seems to me that he has had unrivalled opportunities to get to understand the twentieth century, but he has rejected it without hesitation. Both Denys Lasdun and Colin St John Wilson of the British Library , found work hard to get in the UK in the aftermath of the Prince's criticisms'~ former BBC controller of music and Proms & Edinburgh Festival director John Drummond . I await the next Covent Garden Lulu with interest . Any copyrighted material on these pages is included as &quo

Haydn seek

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My life has been enhanced considerably over the last few months by working my way through recordings of the complete Haydn Symphonies. What energy, what inventiveness, what humanity, and what sheer joy. And what a laudable absence of the histrionics that were soon to become an integral part of symphonic writing. I have been listening to Adam Fischer and the Austro-Hungarian Haydn Orchestra's cycle of the symphonies originally recorded for Nimbus and now relicensed to Brilliant Classics . My 33 CD set cost £66 delivered in the UK . The Austro-Hungarian Orchestra's performances are really quite excellent, and so is the sound. But the gold standard is Antal Dorati's cycle recorded with the Philharmonia Hungarica for Decca in the 1970s. When I was in Cambridge last week to see The Class I noticed the Dorati set (also 33 CDs) selling in Heffer's for £60. This is a limited period offer. The amazon.co.uk price is £66.98 , and some Amazon resellers are down below £60 . It i

Beneath the Matala moon

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My recent post about Leonard Cohen vacationing in Greece under the fascist Colonels in the years 1967 to 1974 attracted a large readership. So it is worth recalling that Cohen was not the only musician to visit Greece under military rule. In 1970 Joni Mitchell took a career break and spent time in Greece, Spain (which was still under Franco ) and France. Many of the songs on her, arguably, greatest album Blue were written on this trip. The lyrics of the track Carey contain specific references, including the one used in my headline, to the Cretan seaside village of Matala where Joni lived in an alternative community in caves in the summer of 1970. The Greek military regime was notoriously intolerant of alternative lifestyles ; but the settlement on Crete's inaccessible southern coast semed to be a case of 'out of sight, out of mind'. By coincidence I visited Matala a few years later in 1975. It was my first visit to Greece, and the country had just returned to being a d

What an artist - what a human being

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radiomovies has left a new comment on your post " Jordi Savall and the just-in-time interview ": What an artist, what a human being. His recordings of Tobias Hume pieces (say it quietly) make the Bach solo Suites sound pale. Any composer who can write a piece called 'Whoopee do me no Harme' , at the beginning of the 17th century, has to be a good thing... best PDS Philip , thanks for giving me the opportunity to feature Jordi Savall's CD of the overlooked and underrated Tobias Hume (1569?-1645). It also allows me to showcase another disc that has been giving me a lot of pleasure, this time by the Italian viola da gamba player Paolo Pandolfo , who was an early member of Jordi Savall's Hesperion XX. Carl Friedrich Abel's music is even more neglected than that of Tobias Hume. Which is quite surprising as Abel (1723-1787) was a close associate of J.S. Bach and composed a symphony in E flat (Op. 7 No. 6) which was erroneously attributed to Mozart (KV 18). C

On the road with Lutoslawski

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When I was writing about Jordi Savall's epic new project Jerusalem I quoted Timothy Leary's observation that 'thinking is the best way to travel' . Over the past four years I have wandered as far as Asia and Africa as well as across a lot of Europe. But, increasingly, my travels have shifted from macro to micro. Travelling short distances on the ground, but great distances in the head, is also the theme of an extraordinary work of literature that has recently become available in English translation. Julio Cortázar's Argentian father managed family business interests in Belgium, and the author was born in Brussels a few days after the German invasion of the country in 1914. As the conflict spread the Cortázar family moved first to Switzerland and then to Spain, before returning to Argentina. Despite not completing his degree in philosophy and languages at the University of Buenos Aires, Cortázar became professor of French literature at the Univeristy of Cuyo in A

A Theodorakis revival?

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Email received - A quick follow-up to your post on Mikis Theodorakis (seen above). The fairly adventurous Swiss Romande Orchestra is playing next week Theorodakis’s oratorio Axion Esti . The composer was due to conduct but seems cannot because of his health, his replacement is the Greek chief conductor of the contemporary music at the Greek Radio, Andreas Pylarinos . I am quite looking forwards to it. This comes after a concert where Silvestre Revueltas’s Night of the Mayas was conducted by a Peruvian conductor . I have personally expressed concerns on the Victoria Hall where the orchestra plays but have to say that the originality of the programs is quite outstanding and overrides all what the World believes on old-fashioned stodgy Switzerland. Best, Antoine Leboyer Mikis Theodorakis' Requiem should also be in the repertoire . Any copyrighted material on these pages is included as "fair use", for the purpose of study, review or critical analysis only, and will b

Newspapers continue to set the standard

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The paper's chief arts writer Charlotte Higgins gave us the inside track on the arts world in recession in Saturday's Guardian . The double-page spread tells us it is not all bad news and reveals: Exporters are luckier - such as Aldeburgh festival, whose production of Britten's Rape of Lucretia has just visited Prague. Even if we overlook the incorrect lower case for 'festival' and the missing definite article in the title of Britten's opera, there is still a problem. The Aldeburgh Festival's 2001 production of The Rape of Lucretia hasn't just visited Prague. But their 2007 production of Death in Venice has, to considerable acclaim . As Norman Lebrecht declared : Until bloggers deliver hard facts … paid for newspapers will continue to set the standard as the only show in town. Any copyrighted material on these pages is included as "fair use", for the purpose of study, review or critical analysis only, and will be removed at the request of co

It changed my world

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She gave us all permission. Until Joni, I felt like all these feelings and all of that artsitic expression and working out your sexual selves and your emotional selves in a public and creative forum - I thought that was all the province of men until Joni did it. And then I saw how possible it was for a woman to explore [that] in a public arena. And it was completely inspiring. It changed my world. Rosanne Cash on Joni Mitchell in Listen to This by Alan Reder and John Baxter. Can classical music help change the world ? Sleeve scan is Joni's 1969 album Clouds . Any copyrighted material on these pages is included as "fair use", for the purpose of study, review or critical analysis only, and will be removed at the request of copyright owner(s). Report errors to - overgrownpath at hotmail dot co dot uk

Who needs music?

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Laurent Cantet's film The Class ( French title Entre les murs ) won the 2008 Cannes Palme d'Or and was a 2009 Oscar nominee, so it doesn't need me to tell you how good it is . But when we saw The Class at the Cambridge Arts Cinema last Wednesday I noticed one interesting point that seems to have passed the critics by. Throughout 128 minutes of spell-binding cinema Laurent Cantet's film does not use one single note of soundtrack music. But that is not a (silent) record. Another highly acclaimed European film ran for 169 minutes with using any music . This is the trailer (with added background music) for Entre les Murs , in French with no sub-titles. But you don't need to speak French to appreciate the masterful performance of François Bégaudeau as the teacher. Not only is François Bégaudeau centre screen for the entire film, he also wrote the book on which the film is based , and was a member of the 1990s punk rock group Zabriskie Point . From where it is a shor

Just give me the facts

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Treat with scepticism anything you read in the music press . And treat with scepticism anything you find on Amazon. Scatter Cushions followed my Noddy and Berg's ears path and found the result above by searching against the terms 'war peace enid blyton' . Searching On An Overgrown Path for 'Tolstoy' returns this much more interesting result . Any copyrighted material on these pages is included as "fair use", for the purpose of study, review or critical analysis only, and will be removed at the request of copyright owner(s). Report errors to - overgrownpath at hotmail dot co dot uk

Cornlelius Cardew - a life unfinished

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The London Review of Books has an excellent review of John Tilbury's life of Cornelius Cardew, who is seen above. Back in October 2008 I wrote that 'perfection is out, participation is in', as pioneered by Cornlius Cardew's famous Scratch Orchestra ; while John Tilbury featured in Brand new music for harpsichord . With thanks to Daithi Mac Sithigh at UEA for sharing the link with us. Any copyrighted material on these pages is included as "fair use", for the purpose of study, review or critical analysis only, and will be removed at the request of copyright owner(s). Report errors to - overgrownpath at hotmail dot co dot uk

Blue electricity in my stomach

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'I was recently running a jazz workshop in a primary school in London. I asked the children how jazz music made them feel and one of them said, 'it feels like I've got blue electricity in my tummy' . Jazz pianist and composer Pete Letanka writes in the sleeve notes of his first CD Afrostocracy . Pete Letanka is one hell of a jazz pianist, and Afrostocracy has spent a fair amount of time in my CD player since it arrived in the post a few days ago. Two Letanka compositions are coupled with ten standards in straight but tight treatments. Letanka's hero is Oscar Peterson and it shows, but Bill Evans fans will find a lot to savour here as well. He may work at Aldeburgh and Glyndebourne , but Pete Letanka can also make Paul McCartney and Brian Wilson swing. The final cut of the Letanka Trio's take on Brian Wilson's God Only Knows is the standout. Read about Pete Letanka at Aldeburgh here. And while we are on the subject of blue electricity and great tunes le

Where is your pie?

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Yesterday the music press was full of pie in the sky. There is no doubt, the core story was a positive one. London's Barbican Arts Centre has long-term plans to host extended stays by four top orchestras that will include time in schools. But the music press does not do balance these days: it does press releases. The news that the Los Angeles Philharmonic is coming to town brought on one of the Guardian's all too frequent Dudamel moments under the gushing headline 'Barbican transformed by dancing to Bowie and Venezuela's maestro' . Very few journalists bothered to drill down. The LA Phil's residency is not until the 2012-13 season; that's an awfully long time off in a country where financial planning horizons are currently weeks, not months, yet alone years. Another of the resident orchestras is the New York Philharmonic under a different man of the moment, Alan Gilbert . But the New York orchestra's next visit in far-off February 2010 is business a

Journals of resistance

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This LP sleeve perfectly captures the zeitgeist of the late 1960s and early 1970s. On the 1971 CBS disc Maria Farantouri and John Williams perform music by Mikis Theodorakis, including the theme from Constatin Costa Gravas' film Z . For my money it is one of the most beautiful records ever made. It is available on a Sony Greece CD ; but, sadly, the cover photograph has been replaced by bland graphics . As the LP sleeve notes explains: Theodorakis has set to music a number of passages from the verse-drama "The Hostage" by the Irish writer Brendan Behan . Although "The Hostage" deals with the Irish troubles, the Greek people applied the songs to their own struggle against the tyranny set up in Athens after the coup d'etat of April 1967, and in particular "The Smiling Boy" was taken as referring to the death of Lambrakis . Mikis Theodorakis was imprisoned by the Greek military dictatorship. Below is the title page from my copy of his account of thos

Lost in ambition

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At the Metropolitan Opera in New York Renée Fleming leads a star-studded cast in Dvorak's Rusalka with Jirí Belohlávek conducting. While at the Barbican Centre in London the BBC Symphony Orchestra presents a festival of Iannis Xenakis' music conducted by Martyn Brabbins . The connection between the two events is that Jirí Belohlávek is the chief conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra . However, he does not conduct his BBC orchestra very often these days, except on foreign tours . By complete coincidence maestro Belohlávek's agent , IMG Artists, also represent Renée Fleming , as well as Christine Goerke , who sings the important role of the Foreign Princess in Rusalka. By another sheer chance IMG Artists include the BBC Symphony Orchestra among their clients for foreign tour management . The BBC Symphony Orchestra also work with John Adams, who by coincidence is also an IMG Artists conductor . While, in an unrelated development, IMG Artists managed the BBC Legends recor

This intriguing and provocative blog works

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The City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra blog takes up my advocacy of E. J. Moeran's Symphony in G minor . Could this lead to a future performance by the CBSO of this splendid and neglected work ? 'I've always felt that it is and will be strong enthusiasm that will change the world !' Any copyrighted material on these pages is included as "fair use", for the purpose of study, review or critical analysis only, and will be removed at the request of copyright owner(s). Report errors to - overgrownpath at hotmail dot co dot uk

Is classical music a lifestyle?

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Steinway owned ArchivMusic are doing some interesting things . These now include launching Listen, a new $4.95 bi-monthly print publication which is described as 'a lifestyle magazine for classical music' . But isn't that what Haymarket Publications set out to create when they ruined the Gramophone ? Is classical music a lifestyle? Is it a brand? Any copyrighted material on these pages is included as "fair use", for the purpose of study, review or critical analysis only, and will be removed at the request of copyright owner(s). Report errors to - overgrownpath at hotmail dot co dot uk

Noddy and Berg's ears

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Question - what is the link between Alban Berg and Enid Blyton? Answer - the result seen above , which is returned when you search for the terms ' Alban Berg Enid Blyton' on amazon.co.uk Thanks to reader John Shimwell. But you can't call that music. Any copyrighted material on these pages is included as "fair use", for the purpose of study, review or critical analysis only, and will be removed at the request of copyright owner(s). Report errors to - overgrownpath at hotmail dot co dot uk

Talking of Sibelius ...

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'The fact that I'm a Sibelian would ... certainly explain why I was quite bowled over by the (Rubbra) Fifth' said Philip on Desert island diversion . Philip, do you know the Sibelius influenced (listen to the closing bars) Symphony in G minor by the Norfolk bred E. J. Moeran ? The sleeve above is my 1975 Lyrita LP. It is now transferred to CD , alas without the stunning Turner painting 'Storm Clouds: Sunset' The Boult Lyrita account is superior to Tod Handley on Chandos. In fact Sir Adrian's account is one of his many great underrated recordings, and, of course, the Lyrita sound is sensational. I would also recommend the Moeran Violin and Cello Concertos and, indeed, the Rubbra Violin and Viola Concertos. I have the long-deleted Tod Handley Conifer CD of the Rubbra Concertos with Tasmin Little and Rivka Golani as soloists. The two concertos are available separately with different couplings on other labels. And talking of Norfolk and sunsets, there is a A No