If you dig Led Zeppelin try this Janacek


Music journalist Stephen Davis emails "I'VE BEEN DIGGING "JANACEK CHORAL WORKS" ON HARMONIA MUNDI... I DROVE TO MANHATTAN LAST WEEKEND AND LISTENED TO THE "SIX MORAVIAN CHORUSES" ON MY JAG'S ALPINE SPEAKERS AT HIGH VOLUME. INCREDIBLE!" At first it may seem strange that the biographer of Led Zeppelin and ghost writer for Michael Jackson digs Janáček. But in fact Janáček's choral works, with their use of Bohemian and Moravian folk themes, provide a bridge between art music and popular culture. Stephen collaborated with me on my posts about art music colliding with popular culture in Jajouka, Morocco. Read them here and here.

Janáček's Choral Works was bought online. Impecunious UK readers should note HMV.com offer lower prices and a faster service than Amazon. Report broken links, missing images and errors to - overgrownpath at hotmail dot co dot uk Also on Facebook and Twitter.

Comments

Lyle Sanford, RMT said…
This reminds me of what I think is called the "Slovanic Mass" of Janacek's that I had an LP of back in the 60's. There's this amazing organ part that was as mind bending as anything in the pop/rock world of the time - or before or after for that matter.

Also - thought of you and your posts on animateurs on reading of this Daniel Levitin concert with audience participation:

http://www.toronto.com/article/714562--beethoven-s-brain-is-a-lot-like-yours
4:47 pm
Civic Center said…
Yeah, Janacek was god, why does it take so long for the news to become widespread? Never heard the choruses and thanks to you and Mr. Davis for pointing them out.

@Lyle: It's called the Glagolitic Mass, and it is beyond fab and mad. Janacek had an intimate and complicated relationship with both Catholocism and the organ. Check out his biography some time.
4:38 am
Pliable said…
Thanks for that Mike. To which I would add a heads up for Janáček's Lachian Dances - his first mature work and one that definitely deserves to be better known.
9:28 am
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