Luca Lombardi CONSTRUCTION OF FREEDOM COLLECTION D’ÉTUDES MUSICOLOGIQUES SAMMLUNG MUSIKWISSENSCHAFTLICHER ABHANDLUNGEN Volume 97 LUCA LOMBARDI CONSTRUCTION OF FREEDOM and other writings Translated by THOMAS DONNAN and JÜRGEN THYM Edited by JÜRGEN THYM With Lists of the Composer’s Writings and Works by GABRIELE BECHERI 2006 VERLAG VALENTIN KOERNER • BADEN-BADEN Luca Lombardi: Construction of Freedom and other writings./ Translated by Thomas Donnan and Jürgen Thym. Edited by Jürgen Thym Luca Lombardi – Baden-Baden: Koerner 2006 (Sammlung musikwissenschaftlicher Abhandlungen 97) ISBN 3-87320-597-1 ISSN 0085-588x Photograph of Luca Lombardi: © Roberto Masotti Alle Rechte vorbehalten © 2006 Printed in Germany Luca Lombardi is an important composer of our time and also an important thinker in matters musical, especially when it comes to issues involving the often tricky relations between music and society. For that reason I salute the publication at hand that makes Lombardi’s widely-scattered writings available, at least in form of a selection, in one volume: not only in trans- lations in English but, in the appendix, also in their Italian and German originals. What wealth (and also what clarity) of thoughts and insights during difficult and critical decades—years that witnessed developments and paradigm shifts of historical significance, both politically and musically. I admire the intellectual honesty as much as the consistency of thought that manifests itself in the texts: Lombardi is an author who remains faithful to himself, even (or precisely) when he considers it necessary to revise earlier opinions. As in his music, he formulates his positions with precision, poignancy, and wit—in that respect he is the heir to the classical tradition of his native land with which he grew up. But what makes his music and also his essays so interesting is that they are deeply imbued by the philosophical ideals of German culture which he encountered early in his life. Lombardi is a wanderer between different cultures and worlds—perhaps comparable in this respect, as Wolfgang Rihm pointed out a decade ago, with Ferruccio Busoni who, one hundred years ago, found himself in a similar situation: a seeker equipped with sensory tools and a biography that predestined him to mediate between Italian and German culture. Lombardi’s writings shed light on an intellectual and artistic force which does not shy away from being confronted with contrasting cultures, who is open to all things new. (During the last decade-and-a-half Japanese and Jewish traditions have been added.) Lombardi is an artist who finds his energy and rationale to continue with his life and work precisely by confronting the unknown and the new. I hope that the volume at hand will give a wide circle of readers in different cultures and languages an image of a human being and artist of our time who is worthy of the highest respect and attention. Samuel Adler Professor Emeritus of Composition, Eastman School of Music Composition Faculty of the Juilliard School of Music 6 Acknowledgments “It takes a village to raise a child,” said Hillary Clinton a few years ago, giving her book on child-rearing a catchy title. And she was right: it takes more than one person to put a book together, and the volume at hand is no exception. First and foremost, I have to thank Luca Lombardi and his wife, Miriam Meghnagi, for opening their home to the inquisitive scholar for research in the composer’s library and archive (both are well-organized, I should add). Their house overlooking Lago Albano with a view toward the papal summer residence in Castel Gandolfo (mentioned in one of the essays) was a splendid setting to gather one’s thoughts, stay focused, and be inspired at the same time. Next in line of acknowledgments is my co-translator and colleague at the University of Rochester’s Eastman School of Music, Thomas Donnan, whose expertise of Italian language and culture complemented my knowledge of the German equivalents and, indeed, made this multi-lingual volume possible. My colleague and friend Ralph Locke deserves to be mentioned as well, since he became almost a contributing editor: reading Tom’s and my translations, suggesting rewordings and revisions, and, in general, alerting me to issues that only his experienced editorial eye would catch. Sloan Calvert, my research assistant in the fall of 2004, caught quite a number of inonsistencies by reading the first version of the complete typescript; Antonius Bittmann (Rutgers University) and Rob Haskins (University of New Hampshire) helped in answering specific questions that popped up. Gabriele Becheri (Florence, Italy) contributed two most valuable lists of the composer’s writings and works (published here in the Appendix); his bibliographic control convinced me to add “Becheri” numbers to the various items translated in this volume. In addition, he generously gave his time in the proofreading stage and caught many typographical errors that had escaped Tom and me. My publisher Tobias Koerner, of Valentin-Koerner-Verlag, successfully argued (in other words: convinced me) to give the book the shape it is in right now—I could not have asked for better professional support and guidance in putting this project together. Last but not least, I would like to thank my wife, Peggy Dettwiler (Mansfield University of Pennsylvania), a choral director of considerable renown, and our several cats (over the years) for putting up with me when I was distracted and pre-occupied by what we termed the “Luca Project.” Several publishers granted me permission to incorporate in this volume Lombardi essays that were originally parts of books; I gratefully acknowledge them here: Bärenreiter in Kassel, Edition Hentrich in Berlin, Edizioni Scientifiche Italiane in Rome and Naples, Schott in Mainz, Suhrkamp in Frankfurt/Main, Unicopli in Milano, and Zecchini in Varese. 7 List of Tables and Musical Examples In Part I Table I, 1: Notational Symbols used in Das ist kein Bach 30 Ex. I, 1a: Materials from Bach Prelude in E flat minor (WTC I, viii) 32 Ex. I, 1b: Das ist kein Bach, sagte Beethoven, das ist ein Meer (first page of score) 33 Ex. I, 2: Gespräch über Bäume, Beginning 64 Ex. I, 3a: Non requiescat (mm.1-21) 68-71 Ex. I, 3b: Non requiescat (mm.79-102) 73-75 Ex. I, 4: Variazioni su Avanti popolo alla riscossa, Variations VI and VII 80 In Part II Ex. II, 1: Ophelia-Fragmente, “Wildharrend,” Beginning 124 Ex. II, 2: Wiederkehr, Beginning (pp.-5-7) 128 Ex. II, 3a: Majakowski, 3. “Wolkenkratzer im Längsschnitt” 133-134 Ex. II, 3b: Majakowski, 9. “Letzter Brief“ 135-136 Ex. II, 4a: Series derived from the Composer’s Name 161 Ex. II, 4b: Sisyphos II, Beginning 162 Ex. II, 5: Sisifo Felice (mm.65-72.) 174 Ex. II, 6: Basic Material of Klavierduo 217 Ex. II, 7: Klavierduo (p.9) 218 Ex. II, 8: Klavierduo (p.10) 219 Ex. II, 9: Klavierduo (p.20) 220 Ex. II, 10: Klavierduo (p.1) 221 Ex. II, 11: Klavierduo (p.24) 222 Ex. II, 12a: Schubert, Gretchen am Spinnrade 223 Ex. II, 12b: La Canzone di Greta from Faust: Un travestimento (mm.870-90) 224-225 In Part III Ex. III, 1: Primo quartetto, Motto (Section 0) and Beginning of Section 1 253-254 Ex. III, 2: Dmitri, Scene 1 (mm.242-61) 269-270 Ex. III, 3: Faust. Un travestimento, Act 1, Scene 3 (mm.627-38) 272 Ex. III, 4: Faust. Un travestimento, Beginning 273 Ex, III, 5: Dmitri, Beginning 274-276 Ex. III, 6: Dmitri, Epilogue (m.178 to end) 277-278 Ex. III, 7: Faust. Un travestimento, Interlude 280-281 Ex. III, 8: Faust. Un travestimento, Act 3, Scene 2, Beginning 282-283 Ex. III, 9, Vanitas?, Beginning 336 Ex. III, 10: Vanitas? (mm.292-315) 239-242 Ex. III, 11: “Oriental” Scale 357 8 CONTENTS Foreword 6 Acknowledgments 7 List of Tables and Musical Examples 8 Introduction 12 Part I Of Revolutionary and Musical Truths (1968-80) 17 The Task of the Composer Today 19 Albumblätter 21 An Example of Musical Cinema 22 Collective Composition 24 Wiederkehr 27 Chance, Improvisation and Freedom in Music 27 Non requiescat. Musica in memoria di Hanns Eisler 34 Canzone per orchestra 35 Revolution of Music and the Music of Revolution: Hanns Eisler—an Alternative 36 The Radio Play Von Gastgebern und Gästen 43 Popular Music and Art Music 45 Hans Werner Henze on His Fiftieth 47 Once Again: On Popular and Art Music 49 Gespräch über Bäume 52 Variazioni su “Avanti popolo alla riscossa” 52 Tui-Gesänge 53 Hasta que caigan las puertas del odio 54 Reflections on Music and Politics 55 My Music 63 Paul Dessau zum Gedenken 83 Klavierduo 85 Essay 2 85 E subito riprende il viaggio 86 Majakowski 89 Prima sinfonia 89 Return to Disorder? Postscript to a Conversation with Wolfgang Rihm 93 9 Part II Between Sisyphus and Faust: Identification and travestimento (1981-1991) Chamber Music in Witten 99 Einklang 102 Mythenasche 103 Seconda sinfonia 103 Mozart 104 Karl Amadeus Hartmann 110 Musica/Realtà for a New Public in Italy 112 On Peace 118 Busoni 120 Thamar y Amnón 123 Ophelia-Fragmente 125 Construction of Freedom 125 Sei Bagatelle di fine estate 138 La notte di San Silvestro 139 Mirum 140 Schattenspiel 140 An Italian Requiem: Two Letters 141 Between the Anvil of the Conservatories and the Hammer of the Marketplace: On a Few Further Difficulties in Making and Teaching Music Today 144 Zimmermann Remembered (By Looking Ahead) 153 On Composing: Three Texts 161 I. Sisyphus as Self-Portrait (or, The Burden of Composing) 161 II. (Hypo)theses about Avant-garde and Tradition 167 III. The Pleasure of Composing 172 Sisifo felice 173 Ai piedi al faro 175 The Future of the Orchestra 176 Critical (But Not Overly Critical) Reflections on Music in Italy 182 Introduction to a Conversation with Goffredo Petrassi 186 Between Prehistory and Postmodernism 187 From the Ivory Tower to the Tower of Babel 202 Con Faust 207 La canzone di Greta 207 Truth Must Quietly Clear a Path for Itself: In memoriam Luigi Nono 208 Faust.