NEW VOCAL REPERTORY

An Introduction NEW VOCAL REPERTORY An Introduction

by Jane Manning

M MACMILLAN PRESS Music Division © Jane Manning 1986 All rights reserved. No reproduction, copy or transmission of this publication may be made without written permission. No paragraph of this publication may be reproduced, copied or transmitted save with written permission or in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright Act 1956 (as amended). Any person who does any unauthorised act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.

First published 1986

Published by THE MACMILLAN PRESS LTD Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG2I 2XS and London Companies and representatives throughout the world

Typeset by Rowland Phototypesetting Ltd Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk in IIIupt Sabon

Music examples drawn by Michael Finnissy

British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data Manning, Jane New vocal repertory. 1. Vocal music--History and criticism I. Tide 784 ML1400 ISBN 978-0-333-40538-3 ISBN 978-1-349-18494-1 (eBook) DOI 10.1007/978-1-349-18494-1 Contents

Preface I

Technical I

Milton Babbitt: Three Theatrical Songs (any voice) 5 Barry Seaman: Chamber Music Book I (any voice) 7 George Newson: Four Songs (high voice) II Karl Aage Rasmussen: One and All (any voice) I4

Technicalll Lou Harrison: May Rain (any voice) I7 John Cage: The Wonderful Widow of Eighteen Springs and A Flower (any voice) I8 Peter Racine Fricker: Two Songs (baritone) 2.I Keith Humble: Five Cabaret Songs (any voice) 2.3 Thea Musgrave: A Suite o• Bairnsangs (medium/high voice) 2.6 Ronald Perera: Five Summer Songs (medium voice) 2.8 Alison Bauld: Dear Emily (soprano) 32. John Beckwith: Five Lyrics of the Tan;_Dynasty (high voice) 34 Elliott Carter: Three Poems of Robert Frost (medium voice) 36 Brian Dennis: The Exiled King (baritone) 39 Elaine Hugh-Jones: Six de Ia Mare Songs (soprano/tenor) 43 Earl Kim: Letters found near a Suicide (high voice) 47 Andre Previn: Five Songs (mezzo-soprano) so James Wilson: Bucolics (soprano/tenor) 53 Ronald Caltabiano: First Dream of Honeysuckle Petals Falling Alone (mezzo-soprano) 56 Harry Freedman: Anerca (soprano) 58 Gunther Schuller: Meditation (high voice) 62.

Technicalm Trevor Hold: Something Rich and Strange (soprano/tenor) Karel Husa: Twelve Moravian Songs (medium voice)

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John Tavener: A Mini Song Cycle for Gina (tenor/soprano) 72. David Bedford: Come in here child (soprano) 74 : A Garland for Marjory Fleming (soprano) 77 Leonard Bernstein: I Hate Music! (soprano) 79 Donald Crockett: The Pensive Traveller (high voice) 83 Gordon Crosse: Voice from the Tomb (medium voice) 88 lain Hamilton: Songs ofSummer (high voice) 92. John Harbison: Mirabai Songs (female voice) 95 Robin Holloway: Wherever We May Be (soprano) 99 Jeremy Dale Roberts: Beautiful Lie the Dead (high voice) I04 Richard Steinitz: Songs from the Thousand and One Nights (tenor) Io6 Virgil Thomson: Five Songs (baritone) I09 Peter Dickinson: Extravaganzas (medium voice) I 14 Ross Edwards: The Hermit of Green Light (countertenor) I I7 Hans Werner Henze: Three Auden Songs (tenor) I2.I Daniel Manneke: Five Songs on English Poems (low voice) I2.4 Irving Fine: Mutability (mezzo-soprano) I2.9 Roger Smalley: Three Songs (mezzo-soprano) I32. : Scotch Minstrelsy (tenor) I3S

Technical IV William Alwyn: Mirages (baritone) I40 Robert Beaser: The Seven Deadly Sins (tenor/baritone) I46 Alan Bush: Voices of the Prophets (tenor) ISO Corey Field: Escape at Bedtime (high voice/unison chorus) I 54 William Mathias: A Vision of Time and Eternity (contralto) IS6 Priaulx Rainier: Three Greek Epigrams (soprano) I6o Robert Heppener: Four Songs (high voice) I63 Peter Lawson: Care Charmer Sleepe (soprano/tenor) I67 : Evening Land (medium voice) I72. Roger Sessions: On the Beach at Fontana (high voice) I77 Hugh Wood: Graves Songs Set II (high voice) I79 David Del Tredici: Four Songs (high voice) I83 Paavo Heininen: Love's Philosophy (high voice) I86 Donald Martino: Three Songs (bass/high voice) I89 Nicholas Maw: The Voice of Love (mezzo-soprano) I92. Barbara Pentland: Sung Songs nos. 4 and 5 (medium voice) I98 Leif Segerstam: Three Leaves of Grass (high voice) 2.00 Brian Elias: At the Edge of Time (tenor) 2.03 Elisabeth Lutyens: In the Temple ofa Bird's Wing (baritone) 2.07

Technical V Naresh Sohal: Poems ofTagore I (soprano) 2.I2.

VI CONTENTS

Bernard Rands: Ballad 2 (female voice) 214 Paul Robinson: Music as Climate (bass/baritone) 218 George Rochberg: Songs in Praise of Krishna (soprano) 222 Malcolm Williamson: Celebration of Divine Love (high voice) 228 Lyell Cresswell: Eight Shaker Songs (high voice) 232 John Joubert: The Turning Wheel (soprano) 238 Elizabeth Maconchy: Sun, Moon and Stars (soprano) 242 George Nicholson: Peripheral Visions (soprano) 246 David Blake: Beata /'alma (high voice) 250 Jonathan Harvey: Cantata II- Three Lovescapes (high voice) 253 Nicola LeFanu: A Penny for a Song (soprano) 25 8 Malcolm Singer: i am a little church (soprano) 263

Technical VI John Casken: Ia Orana, Gauguin (soprano) 266 Gwyn Pritchard: Enitharmon (mezzo-soprano) 270

Acknowledgments and publishers' addresses Composer index

vii Preface

It has long been my impression that the quality of the 'English­ language group' in a traditional song recital has been a little dis­ appointing, especially when compared with the richness of the German and French repertory. The same few songs, often culled from some examination syllabus many years ago, tum up constantly, and it appears that the available resources are not being used to best advantage. Our present century continues to provide us with the widest variety of styles imaginable, and works for voice and piano in English reflect this diversity. Recital items can range from weighty song cycles by British and American composers at their full maturity, to a wealth of more lighthearted fare. This book represents a highly personal selection of suggestions for extending an English-language repertory right up to the present day. It is not intended as a comprehensive catalogue, and doubtless contains some idiosyncrasies. There are bound to be omissions because of the wide-ranging nature of the task; some are conscious, however, as I felt these composers were perhaps well enough exposed for the time being. I had to cast my bread upon the waters in obtaining scores, especially those from sources abroad, and I am well aware that for all the many fine composers I have managed to include, there are as many more that should have had a place. However, it is a special pleasure to find myself in the position of being able to promote the cause of some lesser-known music of the highest quality, most of it by living composers. It became clear early on in the project that I could fill several volumes with eminently suitable material. I therefore had to limit myself by way of a few basic guidelines. It must be stressed that the book is not aimed at specialist virtuoso singers of new music or their audiences. Those of us who work in the new music world must beware the dangers of an elitism which may alienate others. Potential new­ comers to the field are understandably put off if they are made to feel like outsiders, particularly when they may have to negotiate an obstacle course to find the music and information they require.

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Prospective performers and vocal teachers, bewildered by the maze of available material and diffusion of publishers, may need positive encouragement and practical help to find the treasures that exist. Unpublished songs present further problems as many composers do not successfully promote their own music. Prejudice against the unfamiliar is unfortunately inevitable. I find it depressing when visiting institutions in this country and abroad to be told by singing teachers that their pupils will not be attending my master class because they are 'not advanced enough to sing modern music'. So perhaps the most important reason for my writing this book is that the breaking down of stylistic barriers in vocal music is long overdue. Of all performing artists, singers have sometimes tended to be the least inclined to question accepted patterns or to indulge in intellectual or philosophical argument about their repertory. It is unfortunate that an advanced musical idiom has tended to lead the faint-hearted to believe that new music is beyond their capabilities. In fact, many contemporary composers write as mellifluously for the voice as did Handel or Mozart; others may need more concentrated technical work before they lie easily, but are rarely more vocally taxing than Bach. The simplest avant-garde notation may look dauntingly modern on the page but turn out to be the most suitable of all for beginners. Executing so-called 'extended vocal techniques' may be less problematic than spinning a series of long legato notes with perfect control. Many new works can make the most modest demands vocally and musically yet give audiences a refreshing surprise. A crucial distinction must be made between the standard of vocal technique (including interpretation) and the standard of musicianship required. I aim to clarify the situation by grading all works in these two separate categories - technical and musical - ranging from I to VI in progressive difficulty. Difficulties of technique invariably present the greater barrier, since they inhibit musical interpretation; the songs have therefore been ordered by degree of technical difficulty and then subdivided by musical difficulty. I have a particular fondness for the many fine songs in 'English traditional' vein which are already familiar to all of us, but it does seem worth pointing out that some composers may have been over­ performed at the expense of others equally worthy; this may explain why some obvious names are missing from this selection. I have also assumed (perhaps dangerously!) that people will not need reminding of the existence of works by established figures that are already classics in the field- the major cycles of Britten, Tippett, Walton and Copland, for instance, and the distinguished and varied vocal output of Charles Ives and Samuel Barber. Some admirable songs by Bliss, Lennox Berkeley, Milner, Rawsthorne, Rubbra and Tate, and the Americans Rorem and Argento appear, happily, to have already reached a wider

2 PREFACE audience. Stephen Banfield's excellent and comprehensive two volumes Sensibility and English Song (Cambridge University Press, I 9 8 5) are essential reading for those requiring a full knowledge of the field, especially of early 2oth-century repertory. British readers are also urged to visit the indispensable British Music Information Centre in Stratford Place, London, to view scores at leisure. It is my belief that every piece in this volume can take its place in a standard recital, and will appeal, for a variety of reasons, to a general, non-specialist audience, particularly if placed carefully in the pro­ gramme. A short paragraph with a few suggestions on this aspect comes at the end of each feature. Performance impact and entertainment value have been high priori­ ties when making my choice. (Music is for performing after all, and competition Reading Panels ought always to keep this uppermost in their minds.) For this reason I have excluded any work, despite its distinction, which I feel to be so awkwardly set as to be impossible to sing with comfort, even after long practice. Singer and audience do not have to 'take their medicine', and the hedonistic side of performing is often overlooked! To be merely 'interesting' is not enough: a song should move and sensitise the listener. Songs for all moods and occasions are to be found. The range of styles has far exceeded even my own expectations and will, I firmly hope, prove stimulating to all those singers of reasonable competence for whom this book is meant. Finding the songs is of course only the beginning. More practical guidance is often needed to help newcomers over the inevitable technical and interpretative hurdles that occur when tackling some­ thing unfamiliar. The treatment of the selected works is extremely detailed and covers specific problems from the point of view of both performer and teacher. A review of the works from a musicological standpoint is not intended, although I have attempted to describe basic features; the piano accompaniments are also discussed. I think it fair to say that skilled pianists able to cope with difficult accompaniments seem to be in plentiful supply nowadays, and some piano parts require more virtuosity than do the vocal lines. Amongst those works which I was unable to include because of their exceptional vocal or musical requirements, I warmly recommend the following to singers of special expertise: Milton Babbitt: Phenomena (Peters Edition) George Crumb: Apparition (Peters Edition) Michael Finnissy: Anninia (UMP) Peter-Paul Nash: Five Poems ofWallace Stevens George Perle: Thirteen Dickinson Songs (Theodore Presser) Michael Rosenzweig: Song Cycle for High Voice and Piano David Rowland: Nashe Songs (Donemus)

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Joseph Schwantner: Two Poems of Agueda Pizarro (Helicon- European-American) Gillian Whitehead: Riddles Peter Wiegold: Songs from Grimm Charles Wuorinen: A Song to the Lute in Musicke (Peters Edition) The fact that all are for high voice highlights a situation that seems to have developed during the last 30 years or so. The principle of 'supply and demand' has meant that repertory has tended to be weighted heavily in favour of a handful of specialists. I am much indebted to a great number of friends, colleagues and well-wishers who have provided valuable advice, information and practical help, amongst whom I must particularly mention John Potter, who introduced me to some superb songs which would not otherwise have come my way. I must also thank the representatives of the Music Information Centres in Canada, Finland, Iceland, Australia and the United States of America for their kind co-operation, and most especially Roger Wright of the British Music Information Centre who may be contacted by anyone experiencing difficulty in obtaining scores. All in all, I would like to think that the suggestions and observations I have made prove a real help and encouragement to young and old, and- most importantly- awaken new enthusiasms and adventurous spirits at a time when 'playing safe' seems to be more prevalent than ever.

Jane Manning London,1986

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