Changed My Mind

After some consideration and the fact that Blogspot won't support my examples, I've decided to just post any thoughts about the Franck Choral #3 strictly here without examples just for my own edification.  My attempt to provoke some thought on how to approach the piece has... well, let's say... not worked.  I shouldn't expect anyone to seriously consider my ideas (no matter how well thought), since I'm not "famous" or "established."  So be it.  If anyone IS interested in my thoughts you know to come here.

Franck a minor update

Not much other than to say it's become more involved than I thought.  If I was giving a masterclass on this I could demonstrate what I'm trying say.  As it stands, since I don't have an organ at my disposal at the moment I force to use excessively detailed verbal language with piksters.  Therefore, Part II will only go up to the cadence to the "chorale."

Trinity Sunday at Church of the Advent, Boston

I say, when it comes to feast days in the Christian Year, Church of the Advent does it right.  We went to high mass there today in celebration of Trinity Sunday and it was glorious.  Starting with a very stylish yet, imaginative, rendering of J. S. Bach's of Allein Gott din der Höh sei Ehr, BWV 664 (I think it was Ross Wood playing) and the opening hymn Nicea, (Trinity Sunday without Nicea would be like Christmas without Adeste Fidelis).

The Ordinary was the Missa Deus omnipotens  by 16th Century Franco-Flemish polyphonic composer Thomas Crécquillon, who was previously unknown to me, and was an exquisite surprise.  The Communion motet was With all our hearts and mouths by Tallis.  Going into detail is unnecessary here.  All you need to know is that when the liturgy, with all the "smells & bells" as they say, is done with the seamlessness the Church of the Advent, with glorious 16th Century polyphony and plainsong  perfectly sung, and marvellous organ playing, THAT is what worship is all about.  It's not entertainment, it's not just happy clappy jumping up and down senseless emotional release, it's worship.  It's communing with one's god to make yourself a better, deeper, more enlightened person.  

Oh, by the way, the mass ended with a solemn plainchant Te Deum with a few change ringing handbells and incense.  The postlude, as a result, was Duruflé's reconstruction of Tournemire's Improvisation sur le Te Deum  played by Dr. Dwyer himself.  Perfect. 

Stiff Fingers

I can't believe how stiff my fingers have become, just going through the Gigout "Toccata" I thought I was gonna die! Maybe, now that I've finally got all the logistical things done I can concentrate on my manual (piano) technique. after over a month of non -practise. I'd better be careful not to do a Schumann.

Some Thoughts on Playing Franck's Chorale #3 in a

Some Thoughts on Playing Franck's Chorale #3 in a

Part I Setting the premise   

I saved learning the Chorale #3 in a by César Franck until later in life for very personal reasons, mostly regarding my reverence of mon Maitre as a composer and an organist.  The Third Chorale is Franck's last major work.  Some consider it (as do I) his very last work — deathbed work, so to speak.  And it's very evident to me that he was very much aware that this was so.  Knowing this, I made a conscious decision to hold off learning this psychologically and spiritually overwhelming work until I was mature and life-experienced enough to to it justice.

Technically the a minor is the least demanding of the three chorales.  Any second or third year organ student with a solid piano background can master this piece in a matter of weeks.  However, fathoming its profoundly emotional and spiritually fervent content, well, that's another matter altogether; and, it is this aspect of the piece which makes it the supreme challenge of any serious organist. 

We have this image, as perpetrated by his students, Vincent d'Indy in particular, of César Franck as this placid, spiritually serene, retiring man; a patient, equanimous teacher, mentor and friend.  However, Franck was an highly conflicted man.  A failed concert pianist (his father, like the fathers of so many prodigies, tried desperately to make young César the equivalent of another Mozart or Mendelssohn), his unassuming disposition prevented him from taking to the glamour of the concert stage. He married into a family which expected him to be another Delibes, Messager or Adam, writing for the theatre being the fashion in those days rather than the concert stage or the church.  Franck was never comfortable with the concert stage.  He played recitals primarily as a means of promoting his own compositions; otherwise he was more than content to simply guide his students, compose, and improvise at the organ console.  He was a man of great faith, and to his students and close friends he was both disarmingly modest, though not without wit, rather ingenuous; yet, his music, I believe, belies much of this image.  The harmonic language in Franck's later works, from the 1878 Piano Quintet in f and on, is not only complex because it's chromatic, rather — unlike Liszt and Wagner whose chromaticism were essentially "colouristic," for its own sake — Franck's chromaticism was primarily functional: facilitating modulation, his expanded use of cyclic development, and his constant use of counterpoint tell me that this was no guileless dullard, but a well disciplined, musically sophisticated, psychologically complex man.  

The Chorale in a embodies the culmination of Franck's musical/spiritual thinking and life experience.  It is his "Schwanengesang," so to speak, and it needs to be played with that in mind; hence, the need for a certain amount of life experience — especially disheartening, even painful, life experience.  

  Music stirs the emotions.  That much is true: however, as to which specific emotions, that is strictly a personal matter for each individual.  Therefore, allow me to make this caveat:  The emotions to which I allude are strictly my own impressions; i.e., what this piece says to me and how I envision its meaning.  Although I will try to limit highly subjective feelings, it is not entirely possible in light of the deeply passionate nature of the music.  To me the Chorale in a gives us an insight into Franck's struggle with his faith as he approaches death.  Now, that may seem to be a bit extreme; but, it is not all that uncommon for people of strong and heartfelt faith to raise questions about what they've believed over the years.  Soul searching is a troubling process and often creates more questions than answers.  The a minor Chorale is full of questions and agonising deliberations; much of it — as we shall see even from the very opening — tortuous.

We'll discuss the particulars in Part II.

The Bane of Easy Access Technology

Technology can be a wonderful thing.  We think of all the marvels in space exploration, manufacturing (particularly nano-mechanics), medicine, data storage and a host of all kinds of advancements which reflect the human impulse to expand knowledge.  I love my Macbook.  It gives me access to libraries, museums, literature, music and countless other ways of editing my life of which I could only dream in my youth.  I'm grateful to technology for the myriad of things it affords me.

My problem is not with technological advancement, but with the irresponsible commercialisation of it; i. e., the easy accessibility of it to people who don't understand the consequences of its imprudent use.  Now, this is not a new phenomenon, every generation has this problem.  A new technology is developed and sooner or later (usually sooner) greed takes over and some corporation finds whatever way it can to mass market this new and wondrous technology to a general public of which a substantial portion are intellectually and culturally preliterate.  Granted this has been the case throughout history.  However, prior to the twentieth century, new technologies were much more slowly absorbed into the society.  In a sense, there was a learning curve; the one exception being the easy accessibility of firearms, particularly in the United States, where virtually anybody and everybody can get their hands on guns: and, well, we've seen the results of that.

Notwithstanding, as advances in technology increased, their speed of entry into the general society correspondingly accelerated.  Up to this point in recent history the general public almost managed to keep apace with the newest technologies released.  That was largely do, in part, to an extensive and well funded (generally) public school system.  During the post-war period up through the 60's US society was gradually becoming more and more technologically sophisticated.  Conversely, thanks to the anti-government movement, during the past three decades public education has continued to decline, particularly in poor urban and rural areas, where the decline has been precipitous.  Meanwhile, technology zooms along at a more an more accelerated pace. 

Couple this with the manifest deterioration of cultural norms of etiquette and civilised behaviour, as a result of a general decline in parenting skills, for which, of course, everyone else is to blame, so to speak, we now plagued with  more than one generation of loud, obnoxious, ignorant and gratuitously selfish neanderthals blathering on their cellphones or listening to the cacophonies of pop culture in public.  It's not that these "people" (for lack of a better term) weren't already ill-mannered and boorish, it's just that these technologies have made it easier for them to be so.  Corporate investment in dumbing down these technological devices has been so extensive, I'm sometimes amazed to see that people who can't even articulate a simple sentence or write their names, much less know the basics of polite behaviour, are able to master the fundamentals of most mobile devices.   And it's only going to get worse.  "Hang on, it's going to be a bumpy night."

Re-evaluation: Frustration #2

     The other frustration I have is the more disheartening.  Although I love the organ, and not having regular access to a dependable and adequate instrument is frustrating, my inability to get people to show any serious interest in my music frustrates m.   Yes, I know the cliché stories of composers and artists whose works were largely (though not totally) ignored, even disdained, during their lifetimes or received the slings and arrows of negative reviews, but then became recognised late in life or after their dead, which of course did them no good at  all.  But, at least they got to be heard, albeit sporadically, but at least heard.  
     Of course, I'm told that the act of composing, like any creative act, is supposed to be an end unto itself.  But, those who tell me this are 1) not composers or 2) composers who have had the fortune of being performed.  The idea of creating as an end in and of itself is not without merit; but, that can only get you so far.  A painter paints not for himself, but for the world to see his vision.  Van Gogh, who is perhaps the quintessential example of the unfulfilled artist, wanted desperately to have the world see his work, and yes, to occasionally sell it.  What good is having an artistically creative revelation and not being able to share it with the world?   Why write music that won't be heard?  I can take great satisfaction drawing that double bar knowing I have achieved the goal of composing a piece of music; but, it doesn't end there.  It's music.  It needs to be heard or why else did it come into existence?  To just lie there on my hard drive or manuscript and become so much wasted memory or paper?
     I'm sick and tired of the condescension.  This comes in two fashions: I send somebody some music because they expressed interest it, and they tell how wonderful it is; then proceed either not learn it or even show a colleague hoping he or she will be interested.  Or it's (I'm) completely ignored, with not even recognition of receipt.  If you don't like the music then say so; however, if you do like what I've written then PROVE IT!
    Although this is not news, I've realised now for some time that, in the classical music world, if you aren't affiliated with a music department at a college or university you will not be heard as a composer.  If fact, you simply don't exist, no matter how much you've written or how good your music is.  These affiliations mean everything.  Performers are not interested in quality when it comes to doing new music; it's your academic connexions and your fashionableness, whether it be artistic (Glass, Pärt, Reich, Gorecki, etc) or socio-politcal (Higdon, Coates, Anderson-Harold)
     I joined Facebook in order to: 1) reconnect with people and family and to network with people in my art form, thinking (foolishly) that maybe I might be able to interest people in my music, since I'm not affiliated with a school, this might help.  Unfortunately, all that it seems to have done is isolate me more.
     So, I figure it's time to make some changes.  It's pretty evident that some of my "friends" are totally meaningless, particularly when it comes to music.  Therefore, I have some serious re-evaluations to make regarding my musical connections, maybe Facebook altogether.  I'm just tired of beating my head against the wall. 

Frustration 1: Organ Access

       I mentioned two of my greatest frustrations.  The first one having to do with being an organist in Philadelphia and not having access to a fully functional decent sized (3 manuals) organ on which I can prepare for a recital or, a possible regular position at a church.  I suppose that part of this problem is my own doing since I'm not well connected to the organ community in Philadelphia.  Oh, I'm a member of the AGO and all that; but, the inner circle is a bit difficult to penetrate (hmm, maybe that's not a wise choice of words).  Moreover, the number of good organs in Philadelphia (that is, Centre City) is small and the churches are at best not very welcoming.

     Part of it is the luck of the draw:  numerous times I've been lucky to have access to a good organ and managed to put together some decent repertoire — even play the occasional recital — only, due to circumstances beyond my control, to have the rug (pedalboard?) pulled out from beneath me leaving me stranded.

     Part of the shame right now is, the organ upon which I now practise is essentially a fine instrument, but, as is with so many city instruments, in need of serious repair and restoration.  For what and how I play it's essential to have a full working combination action, all the swell motor working, and all the notes working.  It is very distracting, and therefore, impeding when most of the pistons either work only partially or, not work.  Sometimes it's just too much aggravation and I just go home and work a little more on manual technique.  Of course, that can only get you so far.  It doesn't help that much with the Bach Prelude & Fugue in a, BWV 543.

     It's a shame, money could solve a lot of problems.  Maybe I'll win the lottery.

I have two frustrations in my life right now:  being an organist and not having access to a proper instrument upon which to practise serious repertoire, and being composer and knowing that nobody will perform my music. The latter more frustrating and anger inducing than the former.  I'll dwell on these further soon.

Two equal voices; i.e., of same or very similar timbre.  It helps on the 4th verse.  Please feel free to use.  Just let me know or send me an mp3.  Thanks.