New Composers Rachmaninoff
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Boosey & Hawkes Music Publishers Limited June 2008 2008/2 Birtwistle The Minotaur Mackey Harrison Birtwistle’s Included in this issue: in Manchester thrilling new opera reveals Andriessen The music of Steven Interview exploring opera the half-man, half-beast Mackey is celebrated in on Dante’s Commedia As the Sunday Times noted at the Covent Manchester between 16 Garden premiere on 15 April, “Harrison and 18 June, with 13 of his Birtwistle’s latest opera is a piece he might works performed across have been expected to write. The Minotaur, to three days. The Spring- words by David Harsent, was commissioned Loaded event combines by the Royal Opera House and premiered concerts by Psappha, the Photo: Alice Arnold there under Antonio Pappano, and is like a BBC Philharmonic and summary of Birtwistle’s preoccupations. students at the Royal Northern College of Greek mythology has rarely been far from his Music. Highlights include the UK premieres thoughts. Monstrous beings such as the of Measures of Turbulence for eight guitars Minotaur have regularly featured in his and of the electric cello concerto operas… and labyrinths such as the one Photo: Bill Cooper Banana/Dump Truck with its dedicatee Fred Daedalus made for King Minos, to cage the John Tomlinson as The Minotaur in Birtwistle's opera at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. Sherry as soloist. Also in the final orchestral Minotaur, have provided Birtwistle with a concert, conducted by Clark Rundell, are principle of form.” his thoughts only in his dreams, and acquires the “The music begins like flowing magma, muffled Lost and Found, Turn the Key and Eating Cherubini power of speech only after the fatal blow has and dark, forming itself frequently à la Alban Berg Greens, offering a showcase of Mackey’s Award-winning edition in landed.” The Guardian into a lengthy adagio... A few times there is “The most powerful and exuberant and zany style. Vienna and Brussels “The moment when the beast stands revealed is a opportunity for excessive, indeed explosive visions original opera yet to have brilliant coup de théâtre. The drama is now both of sound using the powerful range of percussion, Mackey is currently completing a violin wonderful and dreadful; as more victims are raped particularly in depicting the murderous acts of the concerto, Beautiful Passing, commissioned emerged this century.” beast… Even the end of the Minotaur is dazzlingly The Scotsman and gored, blood upon blood, the crowd intones by the BBC and Saint Louis Symphony for reaffirmed in this manner… Compared with a drugged and ecstatic chorale brutally shattered Leila Josefowicz, which promises to travel “Blood-drenched and sorrowful, majestic and raw, by a screeching chorus of winged furies. Here the somewhat fussy myth adaptations such as Ulisse by Dallapiccola or some of Henze’s late works, through both antagonistic and tranquil The Minotaur plunders the extremes of human music’s crazy momentum displays Birtwistle’s territories. HK Gruber conducts the world nature in music of coruscating, storming beauty… talents at magnificently full stretch… the evening is Birtwistle demonstrates absolutely the hand of a heady, heavyweight storyteller-in-sound.” premiere in Manchester with the BBC Low woodwind, sensuous strings and the spangly a glittering success.” The Independent clatter of the cimbalom colour the orchestra in Frankfurter Rundschau Philharmonic on 24 October and David sombre, glistening tones. The rewards are at once “He is such a master of orchestration – he Robertson the US premiere performances in unsettling and exhilarating… the applause, though constantly takes the ear to new places, producing “It is that rare beast – Saint Louis on 14 and 15 November. deserved by all, was primarily for yet further proof brilliant colours. And no one knows better how to build a tension, hold it, resolve it. There is hugely a successful new opera.” Mackey describes how “the governing of Birtwistle’s epic creative clarity.” Evening Standard impressive writing for the slaughter of the Bloomberg News metaphor of the concerto has to do with the “…in the Minotaur himself, a role specially innocents, shriek upon shriek cutting a swathe violin gaining control of its own destiny, conceived for the bass John Tomlinson, Birtwistle through the orchestra. Elsewhere, keening high With the premiere of The Minotaur and two Marsalis productions of Punch and Judy, London competing with, commanding and ultimately has created one of his most complex and brass over strings and low brass produces a letting go of the orchestra. This metaphor Leading jazz composers fascinating protagonists… It is a dramatic tour de mesmerizing effect. The work is broken by three was the epicentre of Birtwistle attention this sign new contracts force for Tomlinson, who handles it superbly and orchestral toccatas, again with hauntingly beautiful spring. The operatic focus shifts abroad later arises from my experience, during the gives eloquence to a creature who can articulate material.” Opera America in the year with the Italian premiere of The composition of the piece, watching my Last Supper as part of a Birtwistle feature at mother gain control of her destiny to the Settembre Musica in Turin and Milan point of predicting the day she would let go, (4-11 September), and the German premiere predicting the day of her death. Her last of The Io Passion at the Berlin Kammeroper words to me were: “Please tell everyone I New Composers (7-16 November). had a beautiful passing”. Qigang Enrico Chen b.1951 Chapela b.1974 Boosey & Hawkes is pleased Mexican composer Enrico to announce a publishing Chapela has signed a Rachmaninoff contract with Chinese publishing agreement with composer Qigang Chen, who Boosey & Hawkes covering Rautavaara this year directs the music at his existing output and future concerto from symphony Tapestry of Life premiere the opening ceremony of the works. Chapela is one of the Dances and Matsuev performing the recently and new CDs Photo: Frank Harders Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. most exciting young talents rediscovered Suite in D minor and Fugue in The new agreement covers Chen’s future to emerge from Latin America, with a D minor, as heard on his acclaimed Sony compositions, while his earlier works remain growing number of international BMG recording (88697155912). published by Billaudot and Durand. performances and commissions. Current projects include a rock trio concerto for the The initial idea to create Piano Concerto Qigang Chen was studying music as a Dresden Sinfoniker for premiere in “No.5” came from record producer Pieter teenager at the Central Conservatory of September, a new work for the NYDD van Winkel who was responsible for its first Music at the outbreak of the Cultural Ensemble in Tallinn, and a commission from recording on Brilliant Classics (8900) with Revolution in 1966. He was confined for the Los Angeles Philharmonic for soloist Wolfram Schmitt-Leonardy, the three years and underwent “ideological re- performance in the Green Umbrella new Janá÷ek Philharmonic Orchestra and education”, yet went on learning composition music series in 2009. Theodore Kuchar. A reviewer in FonoForum despite social and political anti-cultural praised the skill and sensitivity of pressures. In 1977 the state reopened entry Chapela studied guitar and composition at Warenberg’s arrangement: to the Conservatory and he studied there for the Centro de Investigación y Estudios de la “With the exception of occasional small five years with Luo Zhongrong. Música in Mexico City, and has combined activities as a guitarist with further studies at retouchings, Warenberg leaves In 1983 Chen won a postgraduate contest to the University of Paris at St Denis. His Rachmaninoff’s tonal language, his melody, travel abroad, and for four years was musical style fuses different geographic style of writing and instrumentation, Messiaen’s only student after the master’s traditions and musical soundworlds, so that Photo: Peter Joslin/ArenaPAL untouched. And in the newly-added solo retirement from the Paris Conservatoire. He contemporary techniques happily coexist This autumn brings the first concert part, he demonstrates a perfect sensitivity for described how Chen’s compositions “show with minimalist, jazz or rock idioms. This performance of a new arrangement of the work with his characteristic piano writing. real inventiveness, very great talent and a total dialogue of cultures is not ‘world music’, but Rachmaninoff’s Symphony No.2, It sounds from beginning to end like “real” assimiliation of Chinese thinking with rather a place where jam sessions can meet transformed into a three-movement piano Rachmaninoff. All in all, Warenberg must be European musical concepts.” Chen has complex metrical games, where the anarchic concerto with a duration of 42 minutes. credited with having perfectly assimilated received commissions from Radio France, drive of favela buskers can collide with the Rachmaninoff was himself ranked among an Rachmaninoff’s sound world, and he has Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie, Stuttgart chants of football fans. elite group of expert piano transcribers succeeded in creating a concerto not only RSO, Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal together with Liszt, Godowski and Busoni, based on his music, but also in his style.” and the Koussevitzky Foundation. He was Chapela’s symphonic poem Ínguesu has travelled widely since its premiere by the and the new arrangement by Russian-born The Serge Rachmaninoff Foundation is composer-in-residence at the Strasbourg performer and composer Alexander Philharmonic from 2004 to 2006. Carlos Chavez Symphony Orchestra in supporting a project by the BBC 2003, including a North American tour last Warenberg similarly aims to recast this Philharmonic under Gianandrea Noseda to Works that have travelled internationally autumn by the Philharmonic Orchestra of much-loved orchestral music into a form for reassess the composer’s Symphony No.1, include Iris devoilée (2001) for orchestra, the Americas. The Dallas News described performance by virtuoso pianists.