Song in Gold Pavilions ������������������������������������������������������������������� �������������������������������������������������������������������� ������������������������������������������������������������������� ��������������������������������������������������������������������� ����������������������������������������������������������������������� ������������������������������������������������������������������ �������������������������������������������������������������������� �������������������������������������������������������������������� ���������������������������������������������������������������� ������������������������������������������������������������������� ���������������������������������������������������������������������� �������������������������������������������������������������������������� Ronald Stevenson on Music �������������������������������������������������������������������� ������������������������������������������������������������������������ ���������������������������������������������������������������� ������������������������������������������������������������������� ����������������������������������������������������������������� ������������������������������������������������������������������� ��������������������������������������������������������������������� ��������������������������������������������������������������������� ����������������������������������������������������� ������������������������������������������������������������������ �������������������������������������������������������������������� ��������������������������� ��������� SSoonngg iinn GGoolldd PPaavviilliioonnss Ronald Stevenson on Music Editor CHRIS WALTON Song in Gold Pavilions – Ronald Stevenson on Music (The title of this book is derived from a line in Stevenson’s song cycle Border Boyhood to texts by Hugh MacDiarmid.) Published by SUN MeDIA Stellenbosch Copyright © 2009 Ronald Stevenson All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any electronic, photographic or mechanical means, including photocopying and recording on record, tape or laser disk, on microfilm, via the internet, by e-mail, or by any other information storage and retrieval system, without prior written permission by the publisher. First edition 2009 ISBN: 978-1-920109-68-4 e-ISBN: 978-1-920109-69-1 DOI: 10.18820/9781920109691 Cover artwork: Ronald Stevenson by Victoria Crowe, oil on paper. Reproduced with the kind permission of the artist. Cover design by Ilse Roelofse Typesetting by SUN MeDIA Stellenbosch Publisher: Liezel Meintjes Set in 10/12 RotisSerif SUN PReSS is an imprint of SUN MeDIA Stellenbosch. Academic, professional and reference works are published under this imprint in print and electronic format. This publication may be ordered directly from www.sun-e-shop.co.za. Printed and bound by SUN MeDIA Stellenbosch, Ryneveld Street, Stellenbosch 7600. www.africansunmedia.co.za www.sun-e-shop.co.za Ronald Stevenson CCoonntteennttss ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ........................................................................................................ i INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................................................... iii STEVENSON ON STEVENSON The Passacaglia on DSCH ..................................................................................................... 1 Stevenson’s Fugue on a Fragment of Chopin; Symphonic Elegy for Liszt ..................... 4 Purcell Washed Whiter?: Reflections on my Purcell transcriptions ............................... 6 One Pianist’s Credentials and Credo .................................................................................... 8 Composing a Song Cycle: Border Boyhood ........................................................................ 10 A Composer Loyal to his Principles: Stevenson in Interview with Martin Anderson .................................................................................................... 14 Ronald Stevenson and Art: Stevenson in Interview with Philip Hutton ....................... 20 STEVENSON ON BRITISH COMPOSERS Edward Elgar, Panjandrum and Poet .................................................................................. 27 Edward Elgar: Whimsy and Spleen ..................................................................................... 28 Frederick Delius and the Wisdom of Life ........................................................................... 31 Delius’s Sources ...................................................................................................................... 33 Francis George Scott (1880-1958) ....................................................................................... 37 Percy Grainger: Music’s Mowgli .......................................................................................... 39 Alan Bush: Committed Composer ........................................................................................ 42 Alan Bush in the 70s ............................................................................................................. 65 William Walton’s Extravaganza .......................................................................................... 69 Benjamin Britten’s War Requiem ......................................................................................... 70 Britten at Aldeburgh .............................................................................................................. 73 Bernard Stevens ..................................................................................................................... 74 STEVENSON ON SCOTS MUSIC Heifetz in Tartan .................................................................................................................... 79 Gaelic Music ........................................................................................................................... 80 Harps of their Own Sort: The Clarsach ............................................................................... 82 STEVENSON ON THE CONTINENTAL TRADITIONS Franz Schubert ....................................................................................................................... 89 Robert Schumann’s Romantic Selves .................................................................................. 91 Discovering Meyerbeer .......................................................................................................... 92 On the Nature of Music: Towards an Understanding of Music in Relation to the Absolute .................................................................................................................... 94 Sergei Rachmaninov, Nightingale and Raven ................................................................... 99 Szymanowski at the Piano ................................................................................................... 100 Leopold Godowsky ................................................................................................................. 105 Maurice Emmanuel: a Belated Apology ............................................................................. 106 Igor Stravinsky, Hedonist and Ritualist .............................................................................. 116 Gian-Carlo Menotti’s Seasonal Verismo ............................................................................. 117 An Introduction to the Music of Roman Vlad ................................................................... 119 INDEX OF NAMES AND WORKS ........................................................................................ 133 AAcckknnoowwlleeddggeemmeennttss irst and foremost, I wish to thank Marjorie and Ronald Stevenson for their constant encouragement and support. Joel Flegler of Fanfare Magazine, FF Malcolm MacDonald of Tempo, Antony Bye of the Musical Times, Harry Winstanley of the Godowsky Society and Will Scott of the Newsletter of the Stevenson Society have all generously allowed articles from their journals to be reprinted here, while Philip Hutton and Martin Anderson displayed the same generosity in allowing me to publish here their interviews with Ronald. Victoria Crowe kindly let us use her beautiful portrait of Ronald as the cover of this book, and I owe both her and Ken Gray much gratitude. I believe that I have made all reasonable efforts to notify the publishers of the original articles of our desire to republish here, though since some journals no longer exist and the ownership of them has since changed hands several times, this proved difficult in some cases. The examples of Bernard Stevens’s music are given by kind permission of Lengnick Publications, Bertha Stevens and the Bernard Stevens Trust. The copyright of Roman Vlad’s works lies with SUGARMUSIC S.P.A. (Milan), and I am grateful to them and to Alessandro Savasta for permission to quote from them here. The music examples from Alan Bush’s works are given by kind permission of his heirs, represented by his elder daughter, Rachel O’Higgins. My research assistant Annemie Stimie in Pretoria was responsible for typing the greater part of the first draft, and also – together with Karien Labuschagne – for typesetting the music examples; I owe them much gratitude. I further wish to thank the following individuals whose assistance and encouragement have proven vital to this project: Derek Watson, Isobel van der Walt of the University of Pretoria Library;
Details
-
File Typepdf
-
Upload Time-
-
Content LanguagesEnglish
-
Upload UserAnonymous/Not logged-in
-
File Pages159 Page
-
File Size-