in youtube.com/user/Archosvalens
2008/10/21
Because we Were Born
The Way of a Warrior, de Andreas Pichler, é um documentário que faz luz sobre o envolvimento dos movimentos católicos na luta contra as ex-ditaduras sanguinárias latino-americanas e sobre a radicalização de um desses católicos: um missionário de origem austríaca que decidiu pegar em armas contra a ditadura que naquela época dominava a Bolívia. É um trabalho importante para se compreender o dito "terrorismo" latino-americano que, na verdade, foi uma reacção, legítima, de pessoas maioritariamente pacíficas contra as atrocidades de Estado que por lá diariamente aconteciam. The Way of a Warrior é também um trabalho relevante para que não nos esqueçamos dos apoios exteriores, que foram essenciais para a manutenção daqueles regimes, com que os ditadores latino-americanos contaram. Trata-se em nosso entender de um dos filmes mais cativantes que passaram no doclisboa 2008.
We (Wo Men), de Huang Wenhai, relata-nos uma série de episódios em que a oposição ao actual regime chinês se mostra particularmente desorganizada face a uma máquina poderosa habituada a utilizar técnicas ancestrais de desinformação e controle. O mais interessante é vermos ex-membros do Comité Central do Partido Comunista Chinês, e até o próprio ex-secretário de Mao Tsé-Tung, criticarem a falta de democracia do actual governo... Um trabalho interessante e indispensável para se compreender o actual estado de coisas na China.
Because we Were Born, de Jean-Pierre Duret e Andrea Santana, retrata a vida de duas "crianças de rua" brasileiras, do estado de Pernambuco, uma das quais vive num camião abandonado e sonha ser camionista, fala-nos dos seus sonhos e do seu dia a dia na luta pela sobrevivência. Trata-se de um acutilante documento que referindo-se a duas vidas particulares de alguma maneira nos dá notícia dos milhões de crianças às quais é negada a condição de criança. Um belíssimo documentário ao qual a objectividade não impediu uma elevada carga poética.
Frederick Wiseman, ele mesmo, andou pelo doclisboa 2008. Conversou com os espectadores, respondeu a perguntas inteligentes e a perguntas idiotas, talvez a maioria (...), e até dinamizou uma "master-class". A retrospectiva da obra de Wiseman foi o grande acontecimento do doclisboa 2008. Não é demais lembrar que o primeiro trabalho de Wiseman, Titicut Folies, impô-lo quase instantaneamente como uma referência no cinema documental. Em nosso entender Titicut Folies e Welfare são as obras mais interessantes daquele que nos foi apresentado como sendo o "mais importante documentarista em actividade". Quem não aproveitou para as ver perdeu uma boa oportunidade para tentar compreender o que pode ser a "essência" do trabalho de um(a) realizador(a) documentarista. No entanto até ao final do doclisboa ainda as poderá visualizar na videoteca do festival.
The Way of a Warrior, de Andreas Pichler, é um documentário que faz luz sobre o envolvimento dos movimentos católicos na luta contra as ex-ditaduras sanguinárias latino-americanas e sobre a radicalização de um desses católicos: um missionário de origem austríaca que decidiu pegar em armas contra a ditadura que naquela época dominava a Bolívia. É um trabalho importante para se compreender o dito "terrorismo" latino-americano que, na verdade, foi uma reacção, legítima, de pessoas maioritariamente pacíficas contra as atrocidades de Estado que por lá diariamente aconteciam. The Way of a Warrior é também um trabalho relevante para que não nos esqueçamos dos apoios exteriores, que foram essenciais para a manutenção daqueles regimes, com que os ditadores latino-americanos contaram. Trata-se em nosso entender de um dos filmes mais cativantes que passaram no doclisboa 2008.
We (Wo Men), de Huang Wenhai, relata-nos uma série de episódios em que a oposição ao actual regime chinês se mostra particularmente desorganizada face a uma máquina poderosa habituada a utilizar técnicas ancestrais de desinformação e controle. O mais interessante é vermos ex-membros do Comité Central do Partido Comunista Chinês, e até o próprio ex-secretário de Mao Tsé-Tung, criticarem a falta de democracia do actual governo... Um trabalho interessante e indispensável para se compreender o actual estado de coisas na China.
Because we Were Born, de Jean-Pierre Duret e Andrea Santana, retrata a vida de duas "crianças de rua" brasileiras, do estado de Pernambuco, uma das quais vive num camião abandonado e sonha ser camionista, fala-nos dos seus sonhos e do seu dia a dia na luta pela sobrevivência. Trata-se de um acutilante documento que referindo-se a duas vidas particulares de alguma maneira nos dá notícia dos milhões de crianças às quais é negada a condição de criança. Um belíssimo documentário ao qual a objectividade não impediu uma elevada carga poética.
Frederick Wiseman, ele mesmo, andou pelo doclisboa 2008. Conversou com os espectadores, respondeu a perguntas inteligentes e a perguntas idiotas, talvez a maioria (...), e até dinamizou uma "master-class". A retrospectiva da obra de Wiseman foi o grande acontecimento do doclisboa 2008. Não é demais lembrar que o primeiro trabalho de Wiseman, Titicut Folies, impô-lo quase instantaneamente como uma referência no cinema documental. Em nosso entender Titicut Folies e Welfare são as obras mais interessantes daquele que nos foi apresentado como sendo o "mais importante documentarista em actividade". Quem não aproveitou para as ver perdeu uma boa oportunidade para tentar compreender o que pode ser a "essência" do trabalho de um(a) realizador(a) documentarista. No entanto até ao final do doclisboa ainda as poderá visualizar na videoteca do festival.
2008/10/15
Imagine
Imagine a country where nobody can identify who owns what, [title to] property cannot be easily verified, people cannot be made to pay their debts, resources cannot conveniently be turned into money, ownership cannot be divided into shares, descriptions of assets are not standardized and cannot be easily compared, and the rules that govern property vary from neighborhood to neighborhood, or even from street to street. You have just put yourself into the life of a developing country or former communist nation…
These words are from the classic book on third-world economics, The Mystery of Capital by Professor Hernando de Soto.
Frighteningly, these words describe not only a third-world economy, they precisely describe the jumbled-up financial instruments called “credit derivative securities” (including the now-infamous “credit default swaps”) that are now identified as the toxic assets of the global banking system. Daniel Hass
Nixonland
There are all sorts of connections between the Nixon administration and the Bush administration. But here’s one I didn’t know about: Hank Paulson was John Ehrlichman’s assistant in 1972 and 1973. Maybe you have to have lived through Watergate to know what that means. Paul Krugman
Imagine a country where nobody can identify who owns what, [title to] property cannot be easily verified, people cannot be made to pay their debts, resources cannot conveniently be turned into money, ownership cannot be divided into shares, descriptions of assets are not standardized and cannot be easily compared, and the rules that govern property vary from neighborhood to neighborhood, or even from street to street. You have just put yourself into the life of a developing country or former communist nation…
These words are from the classic book on third-world economics, The Mystery of Capital by Professor Hernando de Soto.
Frighteningly, these words describe not only a third-world economy, they precisely describe the jumbled-up financial instruments called “credit derivative securities” (including the now-infamous “credit default swaps”) that are now identified as the toxic assets of the global banking system. Daniel Hass
Nixonland
There are all sorts of connections between the Nixon administration and the Bush administration. But here’s one I didn’t know about: Hank Paulson was John Ehrlichman’s assistant in 1972 and 1973. Maybe you have to have lived through Watergate to know what that means. Paul Krugman
2008/10/14
The problem this time may not be “too big to fail” but, more accurately, “too big to save”. Only time will tell. But, seriously, do you REALLY THINK that Paulson's $700 billion (yeah, it's really larger than that…) bailout plan will do anything considering the size of the problem?
In conclusion, I think you can see that we've been living in a world that is standing on its head; a topsy turvy world turned upside down. The forces of gravity pull equally hard on all Earthly structures and economic structures are no different. In the domain of today's digitized wealth, it's become all too easy to forget that the basis for all monetary and financial systems is TRUST , not financial ingenuity and computer programming skill. As in any relationship, trust - once lost - is not easily regained. David Haas in The Crushing Potential of Financial Derivatives
In conclusion, I think you can see that we've been living in a world that is standing on its head; a topsy turvy world turned upside down. The forces of gravity pull equally hard on all Earthly structures and economic structures are no different. In the domain of today's digitized wealth, it's become all too easy to forget that the basis for all monetary and financial systems is TRUST , not financial ingenuity and computer programming skill. As in any relationship, trust - once lost - is not easily regained. David Haas in The Crushing Potential of Financial Derivatives
Reputable business leaders and economists had been warning for years that our financial institutions were excessively leveraged. In mid-August of this year the New York Times Magazine published an article foolishly entitled "Dr. Doom" about a perfectly reputable academic economist, a professor at New York University named Nouriel Roubini, who for years had been predicting with uncanny accuracy what has happened. In September of 2006--two years ago--he had "announced that a crisis was brewing. In the coming months and years, he warned, the United States was likely to face a once-in-a-lifetime housing bust, an oil shock, sharply declining consumer confidence and, ultimately, a deep recession. He laid out a bleak sequence of events: homeowners defaulting on mortgages, trillions of dollars of mortgage-backed securities unraveling worldwide and the global financial system shuddering to a halt. These developments, he went on, could cripple or destroy hedge funds, investment banks and other major financial institutions like Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac." By August of this year, when the Times article was published, Roubini's predictions had come true, yet he continued to be ignored. Until mid-September, the magnitude of the crisis was greatly underestimated by government, the business community, and the economics profession, including specialists in financial economics. Bernanke had repeatedly stated that it was unlikely that the mortgage defaults that accelerated after the housing bubble burst in mid-2006 would spill over to the financial system or the broader, nonfinancial economy. In May of 2007, for example, he said: "Importantly, we see no serious broader spillover to banks or thrift institutions from the problems in the subprime market." It has been more than two years since the housing bubble burst. One might have thought that that was enough time to enable the experts to discover that our financial system was in serious trouble. Richard Posner
Traditionally, commodities futures were used by companies like Kellogg's Cereal as a form of “insurance” to help them manage the risk of major price fluctuations in the grains they use to make breakfast cereal. By purchasing a futures contract to guarantee the future delivery price of the grains they needed to make cereal for the consumer marketplace, they could be certain that they could maintain relative price stability at the retail level (benefiting consumers) and still operate with the profit they would need to stay in business and serve the market.In the early 1980's, derivatives began to appear that were of a strictly financial nature. The reasoning behind their regulatory approval was that producers of financial “products” and services also needed to have similar types of “insurance” to protect them against future risks and uncertainties - just like the non-financial operators had. The main selling point was, of course, that these financial futures contracts would help financial companies to stabilize their operations and provide powerful tools to manage their risks from fluctuating markets and future uncertainties, as well. Unfortunately, these sophisticated tools that were originally intended to help firms manage risk grew into potent vehicles for leveraged speculation… and this is where the systemic problems we're facing today originated.
During the 1990's, more and more firms (financial and non-financial alike) began realizing they could make tremendous profits trading in financial vehicles. Many firms made more money trading than they did in their core manufacturing businesses. Word spread and firms of all kinds across all industries began bringing in experienced traders and setting them up with computerized trading operations or they employed the services of outside money managers and hedge funds to do the job for them. Either way, with the seemingly endless expansion of financial opportunity brought about by the rapidly globalizing markets, companies feared they would look foolish to shareholders if they weren't participating in this leveraged gamesmanship. And why not? Everyone else seemed to be doing it, so they should too.
The first major threat to the global “casino” came in 1998 with the collapse of Long Term Capital Management (LTCM). LTCM was a highly-leveraged, computer-based trading firm whose ingenious program authors had not fully considered the possibility that a “statistically unlikely” series of events could occur in a short span of time and wipe them out. A series of such events (East Asian collapse, Russian financial crisis, etc.) did occur, bringing down LTCM and the failure of LTCM was, singlehandedly, large enough to destabilize the entire global financial system. At that time, governments banded together to stabilize the financial system and in doing so created the world's first example of a firm being “too big to fail”.
Once the “too big to fail” precedent had been firmly established, the structured finance and derivatives industry was off and running, emboldened by the fact that they'd proven governments could be relied upon for bailouts of massive, yet risky ventures pursued by financial firms in the future. The bigger the venture, the bigger the risk, the more likely it would be insulated from ultimate failure by government bailout or intervention with taxpayer money. This is what's commonly known as MORAL HAZARD in industry parlance.
This new philosophy was a speculator's dream and it rocketed around the globe at the speed of light gathering eager new participants and “hot” capital wherever it went. According to my understanding, here's what it did to the global financial structure - mainly between 1996 and 2007 - leading us to the “edge of the abyss” that we are peering into today. David Haas in The Crushing Potential of Financial Derivatives
We are brilliant! 25 billion for me, 10 billion for you...
Citigroup and JPMorgan Chase were told they would each get $25 billion; Bank of America and Wells Fargo, $20 billion; Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley, $10 billion each, with Bank of New York and State Street each receiving $2 to 3 billion. Wells Fargo will get an additional $5 billion, reflecting its acquisition of Wachovia, and Bank of America receives the same for amount for its purchase of Merrill Lynch. MARK LANDLER, October 13, 2008 in nytimes.com (Photo by Susan Etheridge for The New York Times: John J. Mack, Morgan Stanley's chief executive, left, and Vikram S. Pandit, chief executive of Citigroup, after a meeting at the Treasury Department on Monday)
The Voices of Paul Bowles
«Curated by Claudia Gould and Stephen Frailey, ‘The Voices of Paul Bowles’ [1910-1999] is an audio portrait combining some of the composer’s music with readings from his own texts, morrocan traditional music and location recordings from Tangier and Morroco where he lived from 1947. The most striking device is the handsome and warm voice of Bowles reading through his writings. Also notable are the lively field recordings of folk local music Bowles made himself in 1959 (tracks #01, 03, 06 & 09). The simoon (my conjecture) heard at the end of ‘The Garden’, track #08, is a short but evocative recording of a North Africa typical wind. Bowles own compositions are exquisite vignettes full of humour and wit. A microcosm in itself, a day in the life of Paul Bowles, the tape starts with the muezzin’s morning call to prayer and ends with dogs barking at sunset, an amazing barking chorale recorded amid the rising desert wind. A poignant conclusion to an utterly beautiful tape». UbuWeb Sound in Jazz e Arredores
2008/10/12
Gianni Coscia in Portugallo
Foi um concerto agradável, este promovido pelo Instituto Italiano de Cultura de Lisboa, em que Gianni Coscia tocou e falou numa sala pequena para uma dúzia (duas dúzias...) de convidados. Sem necessidade da amplificação a que os grandes espaços obrigam, podemos escutar a sonoridade "autêntica" do acordeonista-compositor.
Nas sonoridades jazzísticas Costia trouxe-nos nomeadamente as suas interessantes recriações do tango, mas foi pena que nas suas prelecções inter-musicais omitisse o nome do grande Piazzolla, porque é incontornável. Mesmo para os acordeonistas...
O "tango moderno", como o designou Coscia numa tonalidade depreciativa, tem um nome: Astor Piazzolla, um grande músico, um grande artista que tive o privilégio de escutar ao vivo em dois concertos no Teatro Rivoli do Porto.
Sem querer minimizar Coscia, que foi a vedeta deste dia (sábado) e que é um grande acordeonista, não poderia omitir o meu espanto pela sua omissão, desastrosamente investida de alguma arrogância. Porque uma coisa é dizer que não gosta da música de Piazzolla, outra é falar de Carlos Gardel (que disse apreciar muito) e referir-se ao "tango moderno" com um encolher de ombros, sem dizer quem criou o tal "tango moderno".
Foi um concerto agradável, este promovido pelo Instituto Italiano de Cultura de Lisboa, em que Gianni Coscia tocou e falou numa sala pequena para uma dúzia (duas dúzias...) de convidados. Sem necessidade da amplificação a que os grandes espaços obrigam, podemos escutar a sonoridade "autêntica" do acordeonista-compositor.
Nas sonoridades jazzísticas Costia trouxe-nos nomeadamente as suas interessantes recriações do tango, mas foi pena que nas suas prelecções inter-musicais omitisse o nome do grande Piazzolla, porque é incontornável. Mesmo para os acordeonistas...
O "tango moderno", como o designou Coscia numa tonalidade depreciativa, tem um nome: Astor Piazzolla, um grande músico, um grande artista que tive o privilégio de escutar ao vivo em dois concertos no Teatro Rivoli do Porto.
Sem querer minimizar Coscia, que foi a vedeta deste dia (sábado) e que é um grande acordeonista, não poderia omitir o meu espanto pela sua omissão, desastrosamente investida de alguma arrogância. Porque uma coisa é dizer que não gosta da música de Piazzolla, outra é falar de Carlos Gardel (que disse apreciar muito) e referir-se ao "tango moderno" com um encolher de ombros, sem dizer quem criou o tal "tango moderno".
2008/10/10
Portuguese traditions
Six weeks ago I arrived in Évora for the first time. It was on the advice of a friend who knew that I was looking for a spiritual centre in Portugal, a place of peace and tranquillity. These qualities unfortunately seem more and more difficult to find in this modern world, and one has to look hard to find such an oasis.
I quickly fell in love with Évora, a beautiful city with its longstanding traditions reflecting the variety of cultures from its history. I found myself accommodation in the historical centre, and settled down to continue my work.
Around mid September, I was rather surprised and disappointed when this peaceful and ancient city was suddenly transformed into a placed of noise and chaos. What appeared to me as gangs of uneducated youths wandered aimlessly up and down the streets from morning until night for three whole weeks. The noise level from their shouting, and their behaviour in general, gave the impression that they were half drunk. My surprise then turned to shock as I was informed that these mobs were in fact students from the famous University of Évora! This, I was told, is their tradition.
During these disturbing weeks, I witnessed many things and I would like to mention three of them:
1. Students being forced to kneel on the ground in full view of passers-by and tourists, whilst their "lectures" (?) shouted or even screamed at them. Several tourists I spoke to, said this reminded them of a dictatorship country.
2. Long lines of students forced to walk one behind the other, holding the person in front and chanting/shouting. These scenes reminded me of a documentary I once saw on chain gangs in America in the 1920's - lines of prisoners.
3. One evening just as it was getting dark, I came upon an incident that I found hard to believe. One young female student was kneeling on the pavement surrounded by three of her "lectures". All the other students had gone and she was alone. I heard the "lectures" shouting and speaking harshly to her, and as I approached I could see that she was crying. She was clearly being humiliated and, despite the fact that several passers-by stopped, the treatment continued for about a further 5 minutes. I remember wondering whether or not they knew of the possible damage they could be doing to this young girl. After a while, one of the "lectures" produced the student's mobile phone from an inside pocket, gave it to her and, as if speaking to a criminal, told her harshly to go. She ran off, still crying as she passed me. The whole scene was difficult to believe. It was just like seeing something from Nazi Germany in the late 30's.
The ironical part of all this last incident was that, as I was leaving the scene, I realised it had taken place right outside the Church of the Holy Spirit. I wondered what God might be thinking.
So, if this is a tradition of the University in Évora, is it perhaps time to re-look at it to see whether it still has any value in a modern society? When the Colégio do Espírito Santo was founded in 1559, the Jesuits would have placed the teachings of Jesus Christ as the foundation for their learning. His message was one of love, compassion, friendship and respect for one another - all of these are matters of the heart, and exactly what the world needs now. What I have witnessed recently in Évora can hardly be described as "matters of the heart", but rather an old-fashioned, out-dated behaviour based on bullying and fear. In the 21st century, the world needs new young leaders who listen to their hearts and not their heads.
Michael Telfer
Évora, 9th October, 2008
Six weeks ago I arrived in Évora for the first time. It was on the advice of a friend who knew that I was looking for a spiritual centre in Portugal, a place of peace and tranquillity. These qualities unfortunately seem more and more difficult to find in this modern world, and one has to look hard to find such an oasis.
I quickly fell in love with Évora, a beautiful city with its longstanding traditions reflecting the variety of cultures from its history. I found myself accommodation in the historical centre, and settled down to continue my work.
Around mid September, I was rather surprised and disappointed when this peaceful and ancient city was suddenly transformed into a placed of noise and chaos. What appeared to me as gangs of uneducated youths wandered aimlessly up and down the streets from morning until night for three whole weeks. The noise level from their shouting, and their behaviour in general, gave the impression that they were half drunk. My surprise then turned to shock as I was informed that these mobs were in fact students from the famous University of Évora! This, I was told, is their tradition.
During these disturbing weeks, I witnessed many things and I would like to mention three of them:
1. Students being forced to kneel on the ground in full view of passers-by and tourists, whilst their "lectures" (?) shouted or even screamed at them. Several tourists I spoke to, said this reminded them of a dictatorship country.
2. Long lines of students forced to walk one behind the other, holding the person in front and chanting/shouting. These scenes reminded me of a documentary I once saw on chain gangs in America in the 1920's - lines of prisoners.
3. One evening just as it was getting dark, I came upon an incident that I found hard to believe. One young female student was kneeling on the pavement surrounded by three of her "lectures". All the other students had gone and she was alone. I heard the "lectures" shouting and speaking harshly to her, and as I approached I could see that she was crying. She was clearly being humiliated and, despite the fact that several passers-by stopped, the treatment continued for about a further 5 minutes. I remember wondering whether or not they knew of the possible damage they could be doing to this young girl. After a while, one of the "lectures" produced the student's mobile phone from an inside pocket, gave it to her and, as if speaking to a criminal, told her harshly to go. She ran off, still crying as she passed me. The whole scene was difficult to believe. It was just like seeing something from Nazi Germany in the late 30's.
The ironical part of all this last incident was that, as I was leaving the scene, I realised it had taken place right outside the Church of the Holy Spirit. I wondered what God might be thinking.
So, if this is a tradition of the University in Évora, is it perhaps time to re-look at it to see whether it still has any value in a modern society? When the Colégio do Espírito Santo was founded in 1559, the Jesuits would have placed the teachings of Jesus Christ as the foundation for their learning. His message was one of love, compassion, friendship and respect for one another - all of these are matters of the heart, and exactly what the world needs now. What I have witnessed recently in Évora can hardly be described as "matters of the heart", but rather an old-fashioned, out-dated behaviour based on bullying and fear. In the 21st century, the world needs new young leaders who listen to their hearts and not their heads.
Michael Telfer
Évora, 9th October, 2008
2008/10/05
Kaija Saariaho - Lonh
Extracts of a performance of a piece for soprano and electronics by Kaija Saariaho, performed by Valérie Gabail, visual part conceived by Jean-Baptiste Barrière & realized by Pierre-Jean Bouyer, video by Isabelle Barrière. in youtube.com/user/jbbarriere
2008/10/04
2008/10/03
Андре́й Арсе́ньевич Тарко́вский
Andrei Arsenyevich Tarkovsky (Russian: Андре́й Арсе́ньевич Тарко́вский) (April 4, 1932 - December 29, 1986) was a Soviet film director, writer and opera director. Tarkovksy is listed among the 100 most critically acclaimed filmmakers[1]; director Ingmar Bergman was famously quoted as saying "Tarkovsky for me is the greatest [director], the one who invented a new language, true to the nature of film, as it captures life as a reflection, life as a dream".[2] Tarkovsky attained critical acclaim for directing such films as Andrei Rublev, Solaris and Stalker.
Tarkovsky also worked extensively as a screenwriter, film editor, film theorist and theater director. He directed most of his films in the Soviet Union, with the exception of his last two films which were produced in Italy and Sweden. His films are characterized by Christian spirituality and metaphysical themes, extremely long takes, lack of conventional dramatic structure and plot, and memorable images of exceptional beauty.
...
Tarkovsky's first feature film was Ivan's Childhood in 1962. He had inherited the film from director Eduard Abalov, who had to abort the project. The film earned Tarkovksy international acclaim and won him the Golden Lion award at the Venice Film Festival in 1962. In the same year, on September 30, his first son Arseny (called Senka in Tarkovsky's diaries) Tarkovsky was born.
In 1965, he directed the film Andrei Rublev about the life of Andrei Rublev, the 15th century Russian icon painter. Andrei Rublev was not immediately released after completion due to problems with Soviet authorities. Tarkovsky had to cut the film several times, resulting in several different versions of varying lengths. A version of the film was presented at the Cannes Film Festival in 1969 and won the FIPRESCI prize. The film was officially released in the Soviet Union in a cut version in 1971.
...
Tarkovsky returned to Italy in 1982 to start shooting Nostalghia. He never went back to his home country. As Mosfilm withdrew from the project, he had to complete the film with financial support provided by the Italian RAI. Tarkovsky completed the film in 1983. Nostalghia was presented at the Cannes Film Festival and won the Grand Prix Spécial du Jury, the FIPRESCI prize and the Prize of the Ecumenical Jury. Soviet authorities prevented the film from winning the Palme d'Or, a fact that hardened Tarkovsky's resolve to never work in the Soviet Union again. In the same year, he also arranged the opera Boris Godunov at the Royal Opera House in London under the musical direction of Claudio Abbado.
He spend most of 1984 preparing the film The Sacrifice. At a press conference in Milan on July 10, 1984 he announced that he would never return to the Soviet Union and would remain in the West. At that time, his son Andrei Jr. was still in the Soviet Union and not allowed to leave the country.
During 1985, he shot the film The Sacrifice in Sweden. At the end of the year he was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer. In January 1986, he began treatment in Paris, and was joined there by his wife and his son, who were finally allowed to leave the Soviet Union. The Sacrifice was presented at the Cannes Film Festival and received the Grand Prix Spécial du Jury, the FIPRESCI prize and the Prize of the Ecumenical Jury. As Tarkovsky was unable to attend due to his illness, the prizes were collected by his son, Andrei Jr.
...
Tarkovsky died on December 29, 1986 in Paris at age 54. He was buried on January 3, 1987 in the Sainte-Geneviève-des-Bois Russian Cemetery in Sainte-Geneviève-des-Bois in France. The inscription on his grave stone, which was created by the Russian sculptor Ernst Neizvestny, reads To the man who saw the Angel. in en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrei_Tarkovsky
Andrei Arsenyevich Tarkovsky (Russian: Андре́й Арсе́ньевич Тарко́вский) (April 4, 1932 - December 29, 1986) was a Soviet film director, writer and opera director. Tarkovksy is listed among the 100 most critically acclaimed filmmakers[1]; director Ingmar Bergman was famously quoted as saying "Tarkovsky for me is the greatest [director], the one who invented a new language, true to the nature of film, as it captures life as a reflection, life as a dream".[2] Tarkovsky attained critical acclaim for directing such films as Andrei Rublev, Solaris and Stalker.
Tarkovsky also worked extensively as a screenwriter, film editor, film theorist and theater director. He directed most of his films in the Soviet Union, with the exception of his last two films which were produced in Italy and Sweden. His films are characterized by Christian spirituality and metaphysical themes, extremely long takes, lack of conventional dramatic structure and plot, and memorable images of exceptional beauty.
...
Tarkovsky's first feature film was Ivan's Childhood in 1962. He had inherited the film from director Eduard Abalov, who had to abort the project. The film earned Tarkovksy international acclaim and won him the Golden Lion award at the Venice Film Festival in 1962. In the same year, on September 30, his first son Arseny (called Senka in Tarkovsky's diaries) Tarkovsky was born.
In 1965, he directed the film Andrei Rublev about the life of Andrei Rublev, the 15th century Russian icon painter. Andrei Rublev was not immediately released after completion due to problems with Soviet authorities. Tarkovsky had to cut the film several times, resulting in several different versions of varying lengths. A version of the film was presented at the Cannes Film Festival in 1969 and won the FIPRESCI prize. The film was officially released in the Soviet Union in a cut version in 1971.
...
Tarkovsky returned to Italy in 1982 to start shooting Nostalghia. He never went back to his home country. As Mosfilm withdrew from the project, he had to complete the film with financial support provided by the Italian RAI. Tarkovsky completed the film in 1983. Nostalghia was presented at the Cannes Film Festival and won the Grand Prix Spécial du Jury, the FIPRESCI prize and the Prize of the Ecumenical Jury. Soviet authorities prevented the film from winning the Palme d'Or, a fact that hardened Tarkovsky's resolve to never work in the Soviet Union again. In the same year, he also arranged the opera Boris Godunov at the Royal Opera House in London under the musical direction of Claudio Abbado.
He spend most of 1984 preparing the film The Sacrifice. At a press conference in Milan on July 10, 1984 he announced that he would never return to the Soviet Union and would remain in the West. At that time, his son Andrei Jr. was still in the Soviet Union and not allowed to leave the country.
During 1985, he shot the film The Sacrifice in Sweden. At the end of the year he was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer. In January 1986, he began treatment in Paris, and was joined there by his wife and his son, who were finally allowed to leave the Soviet Union. The Sacrifice was presented at the Cannes Film Festival and received the Grand Prix Spécial du Jury, the FIPRESCI prize and the Prize of the Ecumenical Jury. As Tarkovsky was unable to attend due to his illness, the prizes were collected by his son, Andrei Jr.
...
Tarkovsky died on December 29, 1986 in Paris at age 54. He was buried on January 3, 1987 in the Sainte-Geneviève-des-Bois Russian Cemetery in Sainte-Geneviève-des-Bois in France. The inscription on his grave stone, which was created by the Russian sculptor Ernst Neizvestny, reads To the man who saw the Angel. in en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrei_Tarkovsky
2008/09/29
2008/09/25
The Grand Finale of musikfest berlin 08
musikfest berlin 08 came to a resounding close with a grand festival finale in Hangar 2 of Tempelhof Airport. On the program were Karlheinz Stockhausen's Gruppen für drei Orchester and Olivier Messiaen's Et exspecto resurrectionem mortuorum, performed by the Berliner Philharmoniker under the direction of Principal Conductor Sir Simon Rattle and co-conductors Daniel Harding and Michael Boder. Also receiving a performance in the 4200 m² and 18-meter-tall Hangar 2 by the Ensemble intercontemporain under the direction of Susanna Mälkki was Messiaen's two hour long work Des Canyons aux Étoiles.
Making guest appearances beginning on September 4 at musikfest berlin 08 at the invitation of the Berliner Festspiele and in cooperation with the Stiftung Berliner Philharmoniker besides the five great symphony orchestras of the German capital were numerous top-flight orchestras from the international musical scene. Among the guests were the Koninklijk Concertgebouworkest Amsterdam with Mariss Jansons, the Göteborgs Symfoniker with Alexander Briger, the London Symphony Orchestra with Daniel Harding, the Orchestre de Paris with Christoph Eschenbach, the SWR-Sinfonieorchester Baden-Baden and Freiburg with Sylvain Cambreling, as well as the Orchestre des Champs-Elysées with Philippe Herreweghe. Also invited were renowned soloists such as Pierre-Laurent Aimard, Akiko Suwanai, Michelle de Young, Angela Denoke, and Measha Brueggergosman.
At the center of the festival as a whole were the orchestral works of Olivier Messiaen - an homage to a great French composer, who would have celebrated his 100th birthday this year. Performed together with orchestral music by Messiaen were works by Anton Bruckner and Karlheinz Stockhausen. Speaking at the festival's conclusion, Joachim Sartorius, general manager of the Berliner Festspiele, remarked that "Stockhausen once referred to a piano piece by Messiaen as 'fantastic music of the stars.' Over the past 18 days, these two composers, with Anton Bruckner at their side, have guided us through glittering, emotionally powerful, and ecstatic sound worlds, allowing us to experience transcendence."
On the program of musikfest berlin 08 were altogether 44 works by 18 composers, among others Richard Wagner, Alexander Zemlinsky, Igor Stravinsky, Maurice Ravel, Pierre Boulez, Arvo Pärt, Astor Piazolla, Francis Poulenc, Alexander Scriabin, Peter Eötvös, and Gérard Grisey. Wolfgang Rihm's Concerto "Séraphin" received its world premiere, performed at Radialsystem V by MusikFabrik under the direction of Emilio Pomárico. In honor of American composer Elliott Carter, who will turn 100 in December of this year, the Staatskapelle Berlin under the direction of Principal Conductor Daniel Barenboim performed a portrait concert featuring works from his most recent and highly productive decade.
musikfest berlin 09 took place between September 4 and 20. Detailed information on the upcoming season's program and on advanced sales will be announced in spring 2009. The press office, September 24.
musikfest berlin 08 came to a resounding close with a grand festival finale in Hangar 2 of Tempelhof Airport. On the program were Karlheinz Stockhausen's Gruppen für drei Orchester and Olivier Messiaen's Et exspecto resurrectionem mortuorum, performed by the Berliner Philharmoniker under the direction of Principal Conductor Sir Simon Rattle and co-conductors Daniel Harding and Michael Boder. Also receiving a performance in the 4200 m² and 18-meter-tall Hangar 2 by the Ensemble intercontemporain under the direction of Susanna Mälkki was Messiaen's two hour long work Des Canyons aux Étoiles.
Making guest appearances beginning on September 4 at musikfest berlin 08 at the invitation of the Berliner Festspiele and in cooperation with the Stiftung Berliner Philharmoniker besides the five great symphony orchestras of the German capital were numerous top-flight orchestras from the international musical scene. Among the guests were the Koninklijk Concertgebouworkest Amsterdam with Mariss Jansons, the Göteborgs Symfoniker with Alexander Briger, the London Symphony Orchestra with Daniel Harding, the Orchestre de Paris with Christoph Eschenbach, the SWR-Sinfonieorchester Baden-Baden and Freiburg with Sylvain Cambreling, as well as the Orchestre des Champs-Elysées with Philippe Herreweghe. Also invited were renowned soloists such as Pierre-Laurent Aimard, Akiko Suwanai, Michelle de Young, Angela Denoke, and Measha Brueggergosman.
At the center of the festival as a whole were the orchestral works of Olivier Messiaen - an homage to a great French composer, who would have celebrated his 100th birthday this year. Performed together with orchestral music by Messiaen were works by Anton Bruckner and Karlheinz Stockhausen. Speaking at the festival's conclusion, Joachim Sartorius, general manager of the Berliner Festspiele, remarked that "Stockhausen once referred to a piano piece by Messiaen as 'fantastic music of the stars.' Over the past 18 days, these two composers, with Anton Bruckner at their side, have guided us through glittering, emotionally powerful, and ecstatic sound worlds, allowing us to experience transcendence."
On the program of musikfest berlin 08 were altogether 44 works by 18 composers, among others Richard Wagner, Alexander Zemlinsky, Igor Stravinsky, Maurice Ravel, Pierre Boulez, Arvo Pärt, Astor Piazolla, Francis Poulenc, Alexander Scriabin, Peter Eötvös, and Gérard Grisey. Wolfgang Rihm's Concerto "Séraphin" received its world premiere, performed at Radialsystem V by MusikFabrik under the direction of Emilio Pomárico. In honor of American composer Elliott Carter, who will turn 100 in December of this year, the Staatskapelle Berlin under the direction of Principal Conductor Daniel Barenboim performed a portrait concert featuring works from his most recent and highly productive decade.
musikfest berlin 09 took place between September 4 and 20. Detailed information on the upcoming season's program and on advanced sales will be announced in spring 2009. The press office, September 24.
2008/09/11
Elliott Carter celebrates his 100th birthday
In his honor, Daniel Barenboim and the Staatskapelle Berlin will perform a jubilee concert in the framework of musikfest berlin 08. Scheduled for September 15th in the Philharmonic, the program will include Soundings, Of Rewaking, Horn Concerto, and Symphonia: sum fluxae pretium spei. The two last-named works will be receiving their German first performances. This event serves as an upbeat to a series of concerts in Elliott Carter’s honor presented by the Berliner Philharmoniker and the Staatskapelle Berlin.
Daniel Barenboim has been an admirer of Carter's compositional artistry for many years, and has performed many of his works. For musikfest berlin 08, he has assembled an all Carter program, one designed (according to Barenboim) to be “as variegated as possible.” Barenboim is fascinated in particular by the complexity of this music. “I have always held Elliott Carter in the highest esteem as a composer. He is an endless source of knowledge about music. Moreover, there exists a personal tie between us: both of us studied with the same composition teacher – Nadia Boulanger.” Barenboim will be the soloist in the performance of Carter's piano concerto Soundings. “I'm simply delighted to perform an entire evening of his works in Berlin! A hundred years from now, people will refer to Elliott Carter as one of the most important figures in the musical scene during the second half of the 20th century.” (Daniel Barenboim)
Elliott Carter – who was born in New York City in 1908 – will be 100 years old in December. He cultivated friendships with Charles Ives and Gustav Holst, and studied languages, philosophy, piano, and oboe. Again and again, the phenomena of his times have spurred him on toward new compositional possibilities - one powerful influence was the literary modernity exemplified by such writers as Marcel Proust and James Joyce. Carter is one of the most important 20th century composers. musikfest berlin 08 celebrates his birthday at the Berlin Philharmonic. in musikfest berlin 08' s Press Release - 11 September
In his honor, Daniel Barenboim and the Staatskapelle Berlin will perform a jubilee concert in the framework of musikfest berlin 08. Scheduled for September 15th in the Philharmonic, the program will include Soundings, Of Rewaking, Horn Concerto, and Symphonia: sum fluxae pretium spei. The two last-named works will be receiving their German first performances. This event serves as an upbeat to a series of concerts in Elliott Carter’s honor presented by the Berliner Philharmoniker and the Staatskapelle Berlin.
Daniel Barenboim has been an admirer of Carter's compositional artistry for many years, and has performed many of his works. For musikfest berlin 08, he has assembled an all Carter program, one designed (according to Barenboim) to be “as variegated as possible.” Barenboim is fascinated in particular by the complexity of this music. “I have always held Elliott Carter in the highest esteem as a composer. He is an endless source of knowledge about music. Moreover, there exists a personal tie between us: both of us studied with the same composition teacher – Nadia Boulanger.” Barenboim will be the soloist in the performance of Carter's piano concerto Soundings. “I'm simply delighted to perform an entire evening of his works in Berlin! A hundred years from now, people will refer to Elliott Carter as one of the most important figures in the musical scene during the second half of the 20th century.” (Daniel Barenboim)
Elliott Carter – who was born in New York City in 1908 – will be 100 years old in December. He cultivated friendships with Charles Ives and Gustav Holst, and studied languages, philosophy, piano, and oboe. Again and again, the phenomena of his times have spurred him on toward new compositional possibilities - one powerful influence was the literary modernity exemplified by such writers as Marcel Proust and James Joyce. Carter is one of the most important 20th century composers. musikfest berlin 08 celebrates his birthday at the Berlin Philharmonic. in musikfest berlin 08' s Press Release - 11 September
2008/09/08
Tribal custom
ISLAMABAD, Aug 29: Balochistan Senator Sardar Israrullah Zehri stunned the upper house on Friday when he defended the recent incident of burying alive three teenage girls and two women in his province, saying it was part of “our tribal custom.”
Senator Bibi Yasmin Shah of the PML-Q raised the issue citing a newspaper report that the girls, three of them aged between 16 and 18 years, had been buried alive a month ago for wishing to marry of their own will.
The barbaric incident took place in a remote village of Jafarabad district and a PPP minister and some other influential people were reported to have been involved. The report accused the provincial government of trying to hush up the issue.
Ms Shah said that the hapless girls and the women were first shot in the name of honour and then buried while they were alive. She also said that no criminal had been arrested so far.
Acting Chairman of Senate Jan Mohammad Jamali, who was presiding over the session, said: “Yasmin Shah should go to our society and see for herself what the situation is like there and then come back to raise such questions in the house.”
Maulana Ghafoor Haideri of the JUI-F said there was no tradition of burying women alive in Baloch society because it was against Islam’s teachings.
Jamal Leghari of PML-Q emphatically stated that there was no custom of burying people alive, adding that the Baloch people did not believe in it.
Senator Jan Jamali commented: “This is a provincial matter and it is being investigated at the provincial level and let us wait for the report of the investigation.” Leader of the Opposition Kamil Ali Agha accused the Balochistan government of ignoring the incident and said no jirga could order the burying of women alive and no law allowed anyone to commit such a crime and go unpunished. He urged the government to punish the people involved in it.
Leader of the House Mian Raza Rabbani said: “We condemn the heinous act and assure the house that a complete report on the incident would be submitted on Monday.” Ahmed Hassan in dawn.com (2008/08/30)
ISLAMABAD, Aug 29: Balochistan Senator Sardar Israrullah Zehri stunned the upper house on Friday when he defended the recent incident of burying alive three teenage girls and two women in his province, saying it was part of “our tribal custom.”
Senator Bibi Yasmin Shah of the PML-Q raised the issue citing a newspaper report that the girls, three of them aged between 16 and 18 years, had been buried alive a month ago for wishing to marry of their own will.
The barbaric incident took place in a remote village of Jafarabad district and a PPP minister and some other influential people were reported to have been involved. The report accused the provincial government of trying to hush up the issue.
Ms Shah said that the hapless girls and the women were first shot in the name of honour and then buried while they were alive. She also said that no criminal had been arrested so far.
Acting Chairman of Senate Jan Mohammad Jamali, who was presiding over the session, said: “Yasmin Shah should go to our society and see for herself what the situation is like there and then come back to raise such questions in the house.”
Maulana Ghafoor Haideri of the JUI-F said there was no tradition of burying women alive in Baloch society because it was against Islam’s teachings.
Jamal Leghari of PML-Q emphatically stated that there was no custom of burying people alive, adding that the Baloch people did not believe in it.
Senator Jan Jamali commented: “This is a provincial matter and it is being investigated at the provincial level and let us wait for the report of the investigation.” Leader of the Opposition Kamil Ali Agha accused the Balochistan government of ignoring the incident and said no jirga could order the burying of women alive and no law allowed anyone to commit such a crime and go unpunished. He urged the government to punish the people involved in it.
Leader of the House Mian Raza Rabbani said: “We condemn the heinous act and assure the house that a complete report on the incident would be submitted on Monday.” Ahmed Hassan in dawn.com (2008/08/30)
2008/09/06
Paavo Järvi: the new music can start anywhere
Álvaro S. Teixeira: Which 20th century (not contemporaries) composers are the more interesting for you? And the more important?
Paavo Järvi: There is Shostakovich, Rachmaninoff, Stravinsky, Nielsen, Prokofiev, Sibelius. Obviously there are representatives from other countries, such as Debussy, and Ravel. One can name others that have made major contributions to the 20th century repertoire. No two are more influential, for me, than Debussy and Stravinsky. There are two kinds of composers, one who creates new language, and one who creates something new by using the already established vocabulary. Take for example, Richard Strauss and Gustav Mahler.
But it is the composer who is able to create a new language that brings the music forward in the most influential way. There is no question that composers such as Schoenberg, Stravinsky, Prokofiev, Nielsen, Debussy, are pioneers in this respect.
AT: What do you search when you play contemporary works?
PJ: I try keeping an open mind. In today's new music environment, one does not necessarily have to go in searching for one particular style or method of getting a message across. There is no limitation of how to express one's ideas and therefore it is a very good time for New Music. You can go from the traditional approach, to Schoenberg's approach, or one can start from minimalism. There are many varieties of possibilities in the middle, and mutations of these possibilities. Today the new music can start anywhere.
What's most important is to keep an open mind when one looks at the score.
What I am looking for ultimately is not how the work is put together, but rather what the work is able to communicate in the performance. In other words, I look for what is being communicated and how the work communicates with the listener. I am not interested in intellectual exercise just for the sake of it.
AT: Do you feel that it's good to play, in the first part, a classic or romantic work and, in a second one, a contemporary creation, or the opposite?
PJ: It all depends on a piece and the environment you play the piece in. In general, the opening work is short so one can continue with standard repertoire, which to me is not always ideal. It often diminishes the first piece to an opening fanfare role. On the other hand, in most cities, there is major difficulty programming a completely new piece in the second half, unless there is a good enough reason to keep the audience interested in staying. The current notion is that there is no use putting a new work in the second half if means losing the audience. Again, it ultimately depends on the environment and the work itself.
AT: Some heads of festivals and music halls they imagine that people don't come to contemporary music concerts. It's true, it's just a stupid idea, or can be true in some undeveloped countries?
PJ: There is some truth to all three that you suggest in your question. In many communities around the world it is difficult to program New Music because of audiences. This is certainly true in the US. In some cities in the US, it is absolutely mandatory to feature a new work, in other cities it is seen as too much of a risk which might translate into decreasing audiences. Ultimately, each city knows their audience and their own traditions. Each needs to be sensitive to the realities they face. Some older audiences fear the new music. Audiences in the 60s and 70s were so frightened of the New Music played at that time that they now distrust new music. We are, in essence, paying for our's parents sins ±. I notice that right now there is less fear associated with new music. Concert goers now are much more positive towards discovering new. Today the music that we play often gets better response than the standard repertoire because the audience can identify with it. The key is to keep programming New Music that the audience can connect with. In saying that, I don't mean we should program works that aren't difficult, but rather high quality music that challenges the audience.
AT: When you conduct the precision it's the most important?
PJ: It's always important to be clear, but it is obviously not the most important thing about conducting, to be manually clear. The most important part is to be able to communicate through your movements, what the music should sound like. A display of virtuosity, for virtuosity's sake is meaningless.
AT: Before start work with a orchestra how many days you need to know a new orchestral work?
PJ: It all depends on the piece. I always find that learning a piece, especially a completely new work, is just the beginning of the journey. No work can be completely understood before the first orchestra rehearsal; before the score comes to life for the first time, in real time. It is not unusual, even for exceptional composers to change many things in the score after or during the first rehearsal with orchestra. While studying the score is extremely important, it is only the beginning of a longer process.
AT: In your first lecture, alone, what do you search?
PJ: I have, over the years, developed an established system of approaching a score. I always start every score with same exact step-by-step approach. It's something that I do with each score, new or old.
AT: It's a good idea to be conductor and composer?
PJ: I think it is a very good idea. It is not absolutely necessary. But composers look at music in a different way than performers do. If the composer happens to take the art of conducting seriously then a conductor/composer combination can be a very powerful one. Conducting is an art and not a hobby. Many composers and soloist turned Conductors forget this. Often, great composers are weak conductors, and perhaps do more damage by conducting their own music than good. This was not the case, of course, with Gustav Mahler and Richard Strauss and many other great composers and equally formidable conductors. For example Esa-Pekka Salonen is an excellent conductor and composer. So, if both art forms are treated equally, the combination can be powerful.
AT: Give us 10 contemporary pieces that you find very interesting, and, in your opinion, the world must to know.
PJ: I can give you 200 pieces that people should hear and it still would be meaningless. It is not always helpful to create a gradation of music you should hear. We need to establish a culture that encourages people hear new music. From Northern Europe, I can name many composers whose music should be heard. They are Saariaho, Tüür, Sumera, Salonen, and Lindberg, to name but a few. A similar list could be put together practically from each European country and certainly from the US. I never look a list of top 10 contemporary composers and grade them. I am more (...) piece¡± oriented. If there is a piece that is exceptional, it needs to be heard. It does not necessarily mean that the composer who wrote it is automatically the best. It is important to take things piece-by-piece and see what each has to offer. Only history will tell how correct our judgments were. I don't want to contemplate a ranking because that would be completely pointless.
August 2006
Paavo Järvi: There is Shostakovich, Rachmaninoff, Stravinsky, Nielsen, Prokofiev, Sibelius. Obviously there are representatives from other countries, such as Debussy, and Ravel. One can name others that have made major contributions to the 20th century repertoire. No two are more influential, for me, than Debussy and Stravinsky. There are two kinds of composers, one who creates new language, and one who creates something new by using the already established vocabulary. Take for example, Richard Strauss and Gustav Mahler.
But it is the composer who is able to create a new language that brings the music forward in the most influential way. There is no question that composers such as Schoenberg, Stravinsky, Prokofiev, Nielsen, Debussy, are pioneers in this respect.
AT: What do you search when you play contemporary works?
PJ: I try keeping an open mind. In today's new music environment, one does not necessarily have to go in searching for one particular style or method of getting a message across. There is no limitation of how to express one's ideas and therefore it is a very good time for New Music. You can go from the traditional approach, to Schoenberg's approach, or one can start from minimalism. There are many varieties of possibilities in the middle, and mutations of these possibilities. Today the new music can start anywhere.
What's most important is to keep an open mind when one looks at the score.
What I am looking for ultimately is not how the work is put together, but rather what the work is able to communicate in the performance. In other words, I look for what is being communicated and how the work communicates with the listener. I am not interested in intellectual exercise just for the sake of it.
AT: Do you feel that it's good to play, in the first part, a classic or romantic work and, in a second one, a contemporary creation, or the opposite?
PJ: It all depends on a piece and the environment you play the piece in. In general, the opening work is short so one can continue with standard repertoire, which to me is not always ideal. It often diminishes the first piece to an opening fanfare role. On the other hand, in most cities, there is major difficulty programming a completely new piece in the second half, unless there is a good enough reason to keep the audience interested in staying. The current notion is that there is no use putting a new work in the second half if means losing the audience. Again, it ultimately depends on the environment and the work itself.
AT: Some heads of festivals and music halls they imagine that people don't come to contemporary music concerts. It's true, it's just a stupid idea, or can be true in some undeveloped countries?
PJ: There is some truth to all three that you suggest in your question. In many communities around the world it is difficult to program New Music because of audiences. This is certainly true in the US. In some cities in the US, it is absolutely mandatory to feature a new work, in other cities it is seen as too much of a risk which might translate into decreasing audiences. Ultimately, each city knows their audience and their own traditions. Each needs to be sensitive to the realities they face. Some older audiences fear the new music. Audiences in the 60s and 70s were so frightened of the New Music played at that time that they now distrust new music. We are, in essence, paying for our's parents sins ±. I notice that right now there is less fear associated with new music. Concert goers now are much more positive towards discovering new. Today the music that we play often gets better response than the standard repertoire because the audience can identify with it. The key is to keep programming New Music that the audience can connect with. In saying that, I don't mean we should program works that aren't difficult, but rather high quality music that challenges the audience.
AT: When you conduct the precision it's the most important?
PJ: It's always important to be clear, but it is obviously not the most important thing about conducting, to be manually clear. The most important part is to be able to communicate through your movements, what the music should sound like. A display of virtuosity, for virtuosity's sake is meaningless.
AT: Before start work with a orchestra how many days you need to know a new orchestral work?
PJ: It all depends on the piece. I always find that learning a piece, especially a completely new work, is just the beginning of the journey. No work can be completely understood before the first orchestra rehearsal; before the score comes to life for the first time, in real time. It is not unusual, even for exceptional composers to change many things in the score after or during the first rehearsal with orchestra. While studying the score is extremely important, it is only the beginning of a longer process.
AT: In your first lecture, alone, what do you search?
PJ: I have, over the years, developed an established system of approaching a score. I always start every score with same exact step-by-step approach. It's something that I do with each score, new or old.
AT: It's a good idea to be conductor and composer?
PJ: I think it is a very good idea. It is not absolutely necessary. But composers look at music in a different way than performers do. If the composer happens to take the art of conducting seriously then a conductor/composer combination can be a very powerful one. Conducting is an art and not a hobby. Many composers and soloist turned Conductors forget this. Often, great composers are weak conductors, and perhaps do more damage by conducting their own music than good. This was not the case, of course, with Gustav Mahler and Richard Strauss and many other great composers and equally formidable conductors. For example Esa-Pekka Salonen is an excellent conductor and composer. So, if both art forms are treated equally, the combination can be powerful.
AT: Give us 10 contemporary pieces that you find very interesting, and, in your opinion, the world must to know.
PJ: I can give you 200 pieces that people should hear and it still would be meaningless. It is not always helpful to create a gradation of music you should hear. We need to establish a culture that encourages people hear new music. From Northern Europe, I can name many composers whose music should be heard. They are Saariaho, Tüür, Sumera, Salonen, and Lindberg, to name but a few. A similar list could be put together practically from each European country and certainly from the US. I never look a list of top 10 contemporary composers and grade them. I am more (...) piece¡± oriented. If there is a piece that is exceptional, it needs to be heard. It does not necessarily mean that the composer who wrote it is automatically the best. It is important to take things piece-by-piece and see what each has to offer. Only history will tell how correct our judgments were. I don't want to contemplate a ranking because that would be completely pointless.
August 2006
2008/09/04
Iannis Xenakis - Metastasis (Spectral View)
Hans Rosbaud, conductor; SWF Symphony Orchestra; October 1955; Metastasis or Metastaseis ("dialectic transformations"), is an orchestral work by Iannis Xenakis, a Greek composer-architect and a major figure in the postwar development of musical modernism worldwide. He is particularly remembered for the pioneering use of stochastic mathematical techniques in his compositions, including probability (Maxwell-Boltzmann kinetic theory of gases, aleatory distribution of points on a plane, minimal constraints, Gaussian distribution, Markov chains), game theory, group theory, Boolean algebra and Brownian motion.
Metastasis was inspired by Einstein's view of time (a function of matter & energy) and structured on mathematical ideas by Xenakis's colleague Le Corbusier. The 1st and 3rd movements don't have a melodic theme to hold them together, but rather depend on the strength of this conceptualization of time. The 2nd movement does have some sort of melodic element. A fragment of a 12-tone row is used, with durations based on the Fibonacci sequence (1,1,2,3,5,8,13,21,34...)
The preliminary sketch for Metastasis was in graphic notation looking more like a blueprint than a musical score, showing graphs of mass motion and glissandi like structural beams of the piece, with sound frequencies on one axis and time on the other. In this video I tried to display this by presenting the frequency spectrum (0-20.000Hz) of the piece and how Xenakis actually "drew" music. in youtube.com/user/babylonianman
Metastasis was inspired by Einstein's view of time (a function of matter & energy) and structured on mathematical ideas by Xenakis's colleague Le Corbusier. The 1st and 3rd movements don't have a melodic theme to hold them together, but rather depend on the strength of this conceptualization of time. The 2nd movement does have some sort of melodic element. A fragment of a 12-tone row is used, with durations based on the Fibonacci sequence (1,1,2,3,5,8,13,21,34...)
The preliminary sketch for Metastasis was in graphic notation looking more like a blueprint than a musical score, showing graphs of mass motion and glissandi like structural beams of the piece, with sound frequencies on one axis and time on the other. In this video I tried to display this by presenting the frequency spectrum (0-20.000Hz) of the piece and how Xenakis actually "drew" music. in youtube.com/user/babylonianman
2008/09/03
Varèse / Xenakis / Le Corbusier - poeme électronique
Originally performed during the universal exhibition of Bruxelles in 1958. A mix of colors, lights, sounds, voices, images and electroacoustic music. As Le Corbusier said himself: "Le Poème électronique se propose de montrer, au sein d'un tumulte angoissant, notre civilisation partie à la conquête des temps modernes". ////"Le poeme electronique proposes to show, within a distressing tumult, our civilization on her way to conquest modern times"//// in youtube.com/user/phantomoftheradio
2008/08/31
Proms: New York Philharmonic, Lorin Maazel...
Lorin Maazel, um dos chefes-de-orquestra que (ainda) restam de uma imaginada "idade do ouro", conduziu a "sua" orquestra em dois grandes concertos integrados nos Proms 2008, que foram, em meu entender, dois dos eventos principais destes Proms.
Em 29 de Agosto foi interpretada, em estreia mundial, um obra de Steven Stucky, bem escrita e musicalmente interessante, que recebeu fortes aplausos de um Royal Albert Hall completamente cheio. Seguidamente Jean-Yves Thibaudet foi solista no concerto para piano de Gershwin. Thibaudet, frequentemente neutralizado pela orquestra nos "tuttis", conseguiu ser convincente e demonstrar que possui grande talento e musicalidade.
Mas o "prato forte" foi, evidentemente, The Rite of Spring, de Igor Stravinsky, onde a orquestra demonstrou estarmos perante um dos mais importantes agrupamentos musicais da actualidade e onde Maazel nos relembrou, uma vez mais, ser um dos grandes maestros de todos os tempos.
No dia seguinte esta imensa orquestra, dirigida por este infinito chefe-de-orquestra, ofereceu-nos uma bela leitura da suite Mother Goose, de Maurice Ravel, seguida de um alucinante e miraculoso Miraculous Mandarin, de Bela Bartok, acabando com uma potente, e sublime, Sinfonia no. 4 de Peter Tchaikovsky.
Portanto: em dois concertos que a NYPO trouxe a Londres somente a sinfonia de Tchaikovsky fugiu da "modernidade". E funcionou. Melhor: todos adoraram e pediram mais, ao ponto da Maazel se ver "obrigado", devido ao entusiasmo dos aplausos, a oferecer um total de cinco "encores" nos dois concertos. Claro! Com uma orquestra como a NYPO dirigida por este maestro...
Seria injusto ignorar o concerto do dia seguinte, 30 de Agosto, com a Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra, dirigida por Jukka-Pekka Saraste.
Primeiro, porque se trata de uma excelente orquestra dirigida por um excelente maestro. Segundo, porque interpretou um fantástico programa que acrescentou ainda mais luminosidade e genialidade a estes Proms: Seth die Sonne, de Magnus Lindberg; concerto para piano e orquestra no. 3, de Serguei Rachmaninov, onde foi solista Nikolai Lugansky; e a fabulosa sinfonia no. 1 de Jean Sibelius.
Magnus Lindberg, todos sabemos ser um dos mais criativos e mais relevantes compositores da actualidade. Possui uma escrita libre, recusa todas as ortodoxias e baseia-se frequentemente nos espectros sonoros a partir dos quais elabora uma macro-estrutura fundada nos elementos discretos que organiza a partir da análise de um determinado espectro sonoro. Esta obra, que foi apresentada pela primeira vez em Inglaterra, reflete a filosofia que preside ao trabalho deste criador: uma obra que recusa um "corpus homogeneous" subordinado a um pensamento circular. Uma obra que trata o impacto sonoro, o jogo de sonoridades e dos elementos que as constituem. Uma obra que comunica com os ouvintes e visa a musicalidade. Pekka Saraste entendeu, a orquestra compreendeu e o resultado fez levantar os ouvintes das cadeiras (os da arena estavam por natureza, e escolha, levantados...) para aplaudir e saudar o compositor que agradeceu poder ter uma maestro e uma orquestra de grande classe para interpretar a sua obra. E claro, uma casa como o Royal Albert Hall carregada com muitos milhares de ouvintes...
O concerto de Rachmaninov por Lugansky fez, como seria de esperar, ouvir milhares de "bravos" para um pianista que prescindiu de oferecer qualquer "encore" (se tivessem aplaudido um pouco mais ele acabaria por ceder...), muito compreensivelmente pois este concerto deixa exausto qualquer um...
Finalmente a genial primeira sinfonia de Sibelius. Esta sinfonia, todas as sinfonias de Sibelius, pertencem ao grande e mais eterno patrimonio da humanidade. Mas esta primeira sinfonia consegue comover-me mais que as outras, mais inovadoras e mesmo mais interessantes, que o grande Sibelius escreveu. Esta sinfonia noticia o ponto a que Sibelius iria levar a sua escrita em ruptura com um passado marcado por obras marcadas por um pensamento de cariz wagneriano, construindo o seu estilo pessoal, "conservador" porque totalmente desinteressado do pensamento da segunda escola de Wien. Claro que Wagner deixou marcas presentes na primeira sinfonia de Sibelius. A criatividade de Sibelius assumiu-as com naturalidade mas negou-lhes qualquer papel fundamental, e Sibelius surge, com todo explendor, como ele mesmo, Jean Sibelius, um dos maiores criadores musicais de todos os tempos, logo na sua primeira sinfonia.
Pekka Saraste demonstrou compreender o seu compatriota Jean Sibelius melhor que por vezes poderiamos imaginar e o resultado foi simplesmente deslumbrante, forte e comovente. Claro: devido ao excelente desempenho da orquestra. Evidentemente. Mas depois deste concerto creio que especialmente devido ao talento de Saraste que soube conduzir a orquestra a este ponto.
Lorin Maazel, um dos chefes-de-orquestra que (ainda) restam de uma imaginada "idade do ouro", conduziu a "sua" orquestra em dois grandes concertos integrados nos Proms 2008, que foram, em meu entender, dois dos eventos principais destes Proms.
Em 29 de Agosto foi interpretada, em estreia mundial, um obra de Steven Stucky, bem escrita e musicalmente interessante, que recebeu fortes aplausos de um Royal Albert Hall completamente cheio. Seguidamente Jean-Yves Thibaudet foi solista no concerto para piano de Gershwin. Thibaudet, frequentemente neutralizado pela orquestra nos "tuttis", conseguiu ser convincente e demonstrar que possui grande talento e musicalidade.
Mas o "prato forte" foi, evidentemente, The Rite of Spring, de Igor Stravinsky, onde a orquestra demonstrou estarmos perante um dos mais importantes agrupamentos musicais da actualidade e onde Maazel nos relembrou, uma vez mais, ser um dos grandes maestros de todos os tempos.
No dia seguinte esta imensa orquestra, dirigida por este infinito chefe-de-orquestra, ofereceu-nos uma bela leitura da suite Mother Goose, de Maurice Ravel, seguida de um alucinante e miraculoso Miraculous Mandarin, de Bela Bartok, acabando com uma potente, e sublime, Sinfonia no. 4 de Peter Tchaikovsky.
Portanto: em dois concertos que a NYPO trouxe a Londres somente a sinfonia de Tchaikovsky fugiu da "modernidade". E funcionou. Melhor: todos adoraram e pediram mais, ao ponto da Maazel se ver "obrigado", devido ao entusiasmo dos aplausos, a oferecer um total de cinco "encores" nos dois concertos. Claro! Com uma orquestra como a NYPO dirigida por este maestro...
Seria injusto ignorar o concerto do dia seguinte, 30 de Agosto, com a Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra, dirigida por Jukka-Pekka Saraste.
Primeiro, porque se trata de uma excelente orquestra dirigida por um excelente maestro. Segundo, porque interpretou um fantástico programa que acrescentou ainda mais luminosidade e genialidade a estes Proms: Seth die Sonne, de Magnus Lindberg; concerto para piano e orquestra no. 3, de Serguei Rachmaninov, onde foi solista Nikolai Lugansky; e a fabulosa sinfonia no. 1 de Jean Sibelius.
Magnus Lindberg, todos sabemos ser um dos mais criativos e mais relevantes compositores da actualidade. Possui uma escrita libre, recusa todas as ortodoxias e baseia-se frequentemente nos espectros sonoros a partir dos quais elabora uma macro-estrutura fundada nos elementos discretos que organiza a partir da análise de um determinado espectro sonoro. Esta obra, que foi apresentada pela primeira vez em Inglaterra, reflete a filosofia que preside ao trabalho deste criador: uma obra que recusa um "corpus homogeneous" subordinado a um pensamento circular. Uma obra que trata o impacto sonoro, o jogo de sonoridades e dos elementos que as constituem. Uma obra que comunica com os ouvintes e visa a musicalidade. Pekka Saraste entendeu, a orquestra compreendeu e o resultado fez levantar os ouvintes das cadeiras (os da arena estavam por natureza, e escolha, levantados...) para aplaudir e saudar o compositor que agradeceu poder ter uma maestro e uma orquestra de grande classe para interpretar a sua obra. E claro, uma casa como o Royal Albert Hall carregada com muitos milhares de ouvintes...
O concerto de Rachmaninov por Lugansky fez, como seria de esperar, ouvir milhares de "bravos" para um pianista que prescindiu de oferecer qualquer "encore" (se tivessem aplaudido um pouco mais ele acabaria por ceder...), muito compreensivelmente pois este concerto deixa exausto qualquer um...
Finalmente a genial primeira sinfonia de Sibelius. Esta sinfonia, todas as sinfonias de Sibelius, pertencem ao grande e mais eterno patrimonio da humanidade. Mas esta primeira sinfonia consegue comover-me mais que as outras, mais inovadoras e mesmo mais interessantes, que o grande Sibelius escreveu. Esta sinfonia noticia o ponto a que Sibelius iria levar a sua escrita em ruptura com um passado marcado por obras marcadas por um pensamento de cariz wagneriano, construindo o seu estilo pessoal, "conservador" porque totalmente desinteressado do pensamento da segunda escola de Wien. Claro que Wagner deixou marcas presentes na primeira sinfonia de Sibelius. A criatividade de Sibelius assumiu-as com naturalidade mas negou-lhes qualquer papel fundamental, e Sibelius surge, com todo explendor, como ele mesmo, Jean Sibelius, um dos maiores criadores musicais de todos os tempos, logo na sua primeira sinfonia.
Pekka Saraste demonstrou compreender o seu compatriota Jean Sibelius melhor que por vezes poderiamos imaginar e o resultado foi simplesmente deslumbrante, forte e comovente. Claro: devido ao excelente desempenho da orquestra. Evidentemente. Mas depois deste concerto creio que especialmente devido ao talento de Saraste que soube conduzir a orquestra a este ponto.
2008/08/30
Maurizio Pollini reigns supreme
The latest instalment of this embarrassment of riches was the first concert of the Pollini Project - programmes curated by Maurizio Pollini that combine different performers and periods of music history, from the early romantics to the modernists. I've seen him play a few times over the years in London, and talked to him at length about his commitment to new music, but until yesterday I had never heard him play Stockhausen.
In the middle of a programme that started with Boulez and Berg, and ended with Liszt, Pollini performed Stockhausen's Piano Pieces VII, VIII, and IX. He played this music with a complete technical command of its ferocious difficulties, as you would expect, but I wasn't prepared for the blazing emotional and lyrical power Pollini found in this music. He made its every gesture, from the obsessive repetitions of a single chord in the ninth piece, to the unpredictable skirls of sound in the seventh, dazzlingly communicative. From where I was sitting, I could see Pollini's face, contorted with as much passion and intensity as it was in the all-Liszt second half.
This was a brilliant programme: after the modernisms of the first half, you heard Liszt with different ears. Pollini played a selection of Liszt's otherworldly late pieces, such as Nuages gris and La lugubre gondola, music in which you can hear tonality melting into something richer and stranger, as well as the Sonata in B Minor.
The sonata was a vast tour de force of architectural power and technical bravura, but in the context of the whole concert, you heard the disturbing, discontinuous elements most in this music: its thematic obsession no less shocking than Stockhausen, its emotional extremity that tests its structure to breaking point. In fact, the most homogenous and least radical music of the concert was also the most recent: Boulez's Dialogue de l'ombre double, a shadow play for clarinet and tape, in which Alain Damiens stepped in and out of the gloom to play a series of solos with electronic interludes. It was sensuous and beguiling, but seemed expressively one-dimensional, especially next to the diamond-like brilliance of the Stockhausen. in Tom Service´s blog , August 22, 2008, 11:20 AM
The latest instalment of this embarrassment of riches was the first concert of the Pollini Project - programmes curated by Maurizio Pollini that combine different performers and periods of music history, from the early romantics to the modernists. I've seen him play a few times over the years in London, and talked to him at length about his commitment to new music, but until yesterday I had never heard him play Stockhausen.
In the middle of a programme that started with Boulez and Berg, and ended with Liszt, Pollini performed Stockhausen's Piano Pieces VII, VIII, and IX. He played this music with a complete technical command of its ferocious difficulties, as you would expect, but I wasn't prepared for the blazing emotional and lyrical power Pollini found in this music. He made its every gesture, from the obsessive repetitions of a single chord in the ninth piece, to the unpredictable skirls of sound in the seventh, dazzlingly communicative. From where I was sitting, I could see Pollini's face, contorted with as much passion and intensity as it was in the all-Liszt second half.
This was a brilliant programme: after the modernisms of the first half, you heard Liszt with different ears. Pollini played a selection of Liszt's otherworldly late pieces, such as Nuages gris and La lugubre gondola, music in which you can hear tonality melting into something richer and stranger, as well as the Sonata in B Minor.
The sonata was a vast tour de force of architectural power and technical bravura, but in the context of the whole concert, you heard the disturbing, discontinuous elements most in this music: its thematic obsession no less shocking than Stockhausen, its emotional extremity that tests its structure to breaking point. In fact, the most homogenous and least radical music of the concert was also the most recent: Boulez's Dialogue de l'ombre double, a shadow play for clarinet and tape, in which Alain Damiens stepped in and out of the gloom to play a series of solos with electronic interludes. It was sensuous and beguiling, but seemed expressively one-dimensional, especially next to the diamond-like brilliance of the Stockhausen. in Tom Service´s blog , August 22, 2008, 11:20 AM
Gergiev's South Ossetia concert
And they say that symphonic music doesn't mean anything: Valery Gergiev's performance yesterday of Shostakovich's Seventh Symphony with the orchestra of the Mariinsky Theatre in the ruins of Tskhinvali, the capital of South Ossetia, completely disproves the point. The choice of work couldn't have been any more symbolic for Russians: Shostakovich completed his piece, known as the Leningrad, during the siege of the city in the second world war. After its premiere in March 1942, it was performed in Leningrad in the still-besieged city by a makeshift orchestra in August.
Gergiev, who comes from Vladikavkaz in North Ossetia, spoke last night (in Russian and English) of "the horrible destruction of the city". He said that what happened in Tskhinvali was "a huge act of aggression on the part of the Georgian army". He continued: "If it wasn't for the help of the Russian army here, there would be thousands and thousands more victims. I am very grateful as an Ossetian to my country, Great Russia, for this help." But the music would have made that point even more strongly and even more clearly than his words did. The Seventh Symphony is the sound and symbol of liberation for Russians, as it was for all of the Allies in 1942, when Henry Wood and Arturo Toscanini conducted it that year in transatlantic performances.
Without doubt, Gergiev's performance in Tskhinvali was music as politics. Other conductors, notably Daniel Barenboim with his West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, have taken political risks with their music-making (although Barenboim always cannily insists that he is not a politician, just a musician who brings people together). But no other conductor in recent years has made so naked a political gesture, in the middle of an ongoing conflict, as Gergiev did last night.
He would have been heard, as well: Gergiev has transformed the musical life of St Petersburg, recently building a new opera house and concert hall in the same time it takes most cities to file a planning application. He is ruthlessly single-minded about getting what he wants, musically speaking, whether pushing his Mariinsky Theatre forces to the limits of their stamina with their concert and touring schedule, or producing incendiary performances with the London Symphony Orchestra.
Although he is a friend of Putin's, Gergiev is no political pawn. There's no doubt that his patriotism is genuine. He felt the tragedy of Beslan with personal intensity and gave an unforgettable benefit concert for the victims at the Coliseum in London. It remains to be seen what effect Gergiev's intervention will have on the situation: at the very least, it can only have galvanised the strength of Ossetians and Russians to stand firm against Georgia and the UN. Gergiev, after all, is a musician who wants to make a difference, musically and politically. August 22, 2008, 1:00 PM
One of the musical highlights of my life was Valery Gergiev playing Shostakovich 7 (the Leningrad) at a Melbourne Festival. Now I see he has performed the same work as a deliberate political statement in South Ossetia as Russian tanks occupy Georgia - and I've bought my last-ever Gergiev CD. I think it is a despicable and contemptible bit of politicisation by an ambitious and unscrupulous careerist. Gergiev would have been right at home in the Third Reich beneath those massive swastikas hobnobbing with Hitler and Goebbels; or kowtowing to Stalin and his friends in a different totalitarian state. Just goes to show, as though we didn't know, that musical genius has nothing to do with ethics or honour. As Putin tries to rebuild the Russian empire on the aspirations and the graves of non-Russians unfortunate enough to live next door, Gergiev will be there conducting encores. It is the exact opposite of courageous conductors such as Barenboim, trying to use music to enhance peace in the Middle East. I can only hope that Western music lovers take notice and react, and that his career in this hemisphere falters as it deserves. Comment No. 1285857, August 23, 16:14
PS: You should be ashamed of such disgusting sycophancy, Tom. No doubt Furtwangler was sublime and patriotic as he conducted Beethoven and shook hands with Goebels afterwards, as the famous YouTube clips show. Doubtless there were brave Serb musicians happy to play amid the ruins of Sarajevo. Your choice of words betrays a remarkable lack of understanding, but what the heck - at least you are on the side of the powerful, the thugs and the bullies, and above all the winners. Good choice, Tom. Comment No. 1285872, August 23, 16:36
David, Deputy - I appreciate your comments, thanks. The point was to show how self-consciously political a gesture Gergiev was making with Shostakovich, and how a piece of supposedly abstract symphonic music can have directly political meanings and consequences, and be used to serve ideas and ideologies; not to take sides or to condone his, and Russia's, view of what's happening in Georgia and Ossetia. Apologies if the piece suggested otherwise - and I see I could have made that clearer. And yes, you're right, certainly Barenboim's initiative is of a different order: peace-enhancing where Gergiev's concert was explicitly politics-enhancing.
I'm not quite with you though, David, on the Furtwaengler case: I don't think the evidence of his biography suggests that he relished the role of Nazi flag-waver, and the final moments of that Beethoven 9 have a terrifying intensity, as you can see even on the few minutes of the performance on YouTube - there's something else in his music-making, I think, apart from state-sponsored celebration. We know that Furtwängler was tortuously conflicted over his relationship with the regime, and we know that Gergiev is a Putin supporter; the issue of how contemporary Russian nationalism relates to 30s Germany is another, more complicated question. Tom. Comment No. 1286306, August 24, 16:05, in Tom Service´s blog
And they say that symphonic music doesn't mean anything: Valery Gergiev's performance yesterday of Shostakovich's Seventh Symphony with the orchestra of the Mariinsky Theatre in the ruins of Tskhinvali, the capital of South Ossetia, completely disproves the point. The choice of work couldn't have been any more symbolic for Russians: Shostakovich completed his piece, known as the Leningrad, during the siege of the city in the second world war. After its premiere in March 1942, it was performed in Leningrad in the still-besieged city by a makeshift orchestra in August.
Gergiev, who comes from Vladikavkaz in North Ossetia, spoke last night (in Russian and English) of "the horrible destruction of the city". He said that what happened in Tskhinvali was "a huge act of aggression on the part of the Georgian army". He continued: "If it wasn't for the help of the Russian army here, there would be thousands and thousands more victims. I am very grateful as an Ossetian to my country, Great Russia, for this help." But the music would have made that point even more strongly and even more clearly than his words did. The Seventh Symphony is the sound and symbol of liberation for Russians, as it was for all of the Allies in 1942, when Henry Wood and Arturo Toscanini conducted it that year in transatlantic performances.
Without doubt, Gergiev's performance in Tskhinvali was music as politics. Other conductors, notably Daniel Barenboim with his West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, have taken political risks with their music-making (although Barenboim always cannily insists that he is not a politician, just a musician who brings people together). But no other conductor in recent years has made so naked a political gesture, in the middle of an ongoing conflict, as Gergiev did last night.
He would have been heard, as well: Gergiev has transformed the musical life of St Petersburg, recently building a new opera house and concert hall in the same time it takes most cities to file a planning application. He is ruthlessly single-minded about getting what he wants, musically speaking, whether pushing his Mariinsky Theatre forces to the limits of their stamina with their concert and touring schedule, or producing incendiary performances with the London Symphony Orchestra.
Although he is a friend of Putin's, Gergiev is no political pawn. There's no doubt that his patriotism is genuine. He felt the tragedy of Beslan with personal intensity and gave an unforgettable benefit concert for the victims at the Coliseum in London. It remains to be seen what effect Gergiev's intervention will have on the situation: at the very least, it can only have galvanised the strength of Ossetians and Russians to stand firm against Georgia and the UN. Gergiev, after all, is a musician who wants to make a difference, musically and politically. August 22, 2008, 1:00 PM
One of the musical highlights of my life was Valery Gergiev playing Shostakovich 7 (the Leningrad) at a Melbourne Festival. Now I see he has performed the same work as a deliberate political statement in South Ossetia as Russian tanks occupy Georgia - and I've bought my last-ever Gergiev CD. I think it is a despicable and contemptible bit of politicisation by an ambitious and unscrupulous careerist. Gergiev would have been right at home in the Third Reich beneath those massive swastikas hobnobbing with Hitler and Goebbels; or kowtowing to Stalin and his friends in a different totalitarian state. Just goes to show, as though we didn't know, that musical genius has nothing to do with ethics or honour. As Putin tries to rebuild the Russian empire on the aspirations and the graves of non-Russians unfortunate enough to live next door, Gergiev will be there conducting encores. It is the exact opposite of courageous conductors such as Barenboim, trying to use music to enhance peace in the Middle East. I can only hope that Western music lovers take notice and react, and that his career in this hemisphere falters as it deserves. Comment No. 1285857, August 23, 16:14
PS: You should be ashamed of such disgusting sycophancy, Tom. No doubt Furtwangler was sublime and patriotic as he conducted Beethoven and shook hands with Goebels afterwards, as the famous YouTube clips show. Doubtless there were brave Serb musicians happy to play amid the ruins of Sarajevo. Your choice of words betrays a remarkable lack of understanding, but what the heck - at least you are on the side of the powerful, the thugs and the bullies, and above all the winners. Good choice, Tom. Comment No. 1285872, August 23, 16:36
David, Deputy - I appreciate your comments, thanks. The point was to show how self-consciously political a gesture Gergiev was making with Shostakovich, and how a piece of supposedly abstract symphonic music can have directly political meanings and consequences, and be used to serve ideas and ideologies; not to take sides or to condone his, and Russia's, view of what's happening in Georgia and Ossetia. Apologies if the piece suggested otherwise - and I see I could have made that clearer. And yes, you're right, certainly Barenboim's initiative is of a different order: peace-enhancing where Gergiev's concert was explicitly politics-enhancing.
I'm not quite with you though, David, on the Furtwaengler case: I don't think the evidence of his biography suggests that he relished the role of Nazi flag-waver, and the final moments of that Beethoven 9 have a terrifying intensity, as you can see even on the few minutes of the performance on YouTube - there's something else in his music-making, I think, apart from state-sponsored celebration. We know that Furtwängler was tortuously conflicted over his relationship with the regime, and we know that Gergiev is a Putin supporter; the issue of how contemporary Russian nationalism relates to 30s Germany is another, more complicated question. Tom. Comment No. 1286306, August 24, 16:05, in Tom Service´s blog
2008/08/29
2008/08/21
Orquestra do Algarve - Portugal
We, the members of the Orquestra do Algarve, would like to inform you of the drastic events that have taken place and ask for your solidarity during these difficult times.
Last June, after all attempts at peaceful negotiations were exhausted, all the musicians in our orchestra, United, filed a lawsuit against the Associação Musical do Algarve to contest the legality of our working contracts and the conditions under which we work.
The goal of our lawsuit is to secure legal, "Efectivo" contracts for all musicians in the OA as well as to create a comprehensive set of by-laws or "Regulamentos" that will serve to protect us from the whims of unrestricted Capitalism. Any musician who has played with the OA knows first-hand how an orchestra run by a swimming pool salesmen is treated; unlike the weather here, it's not a paradise!
We hope that the fruits of this lawsuit will create a working environment that will elevate the name and reputation of this orchestra in the national and international community.
Since learning of the lawsuit in July, the administration has been working desperately to intimidate us. Last week, on July 31, they gave us an ultimatum: Either we drop the lawsuit or we will not have work in September. We will not drop it.
We will be at work on September 1. We will do all we can to protect our jobs. For this, we need your help!
If the administration of the OA calls you for extra work, or if you hear that a position has opened in the OA, please turn it down until these internal struggles have been settled.
Accepting any work with the OA will only serve to complicate our struggle. Help us improve the working conditions in our orchestra. Help us to make this an orchestra we can all be proud of!
Again, we ask for your solidarity during these difficult times. Please pass this on to all your friends and colleagues.
Thank you.
Committee of the Orquestra do Algarve
We, the members of the Orquestra do Algarve, would like to inform you of the drastic events that have taken place and ask for your solidarity during these difficult times.
Last June, after all attempts at peaceful negotiations were exhausted, all the musicians in our orchestra, United, filed a lawsuit against the Associação Musical do Algarve to contest the legality of our working contracts and the conditions under which we work.
The goal of our lawsuit is to secure legal, "Efectivo" contracts for all musicians in the OA as well as to create a comprehensive set of by-laws or "Regulamentos" that will serve to protect us from the whims of unrestricted Capitalism. Any musician who has played with the OA knows first-hand how an orchestra run by a swimming pool salesmen is treated; unlike the weather here, it's not a paradise!
We hope that the fruits of this lawsuit will create a working environment that will elevate the name and reputation of this orchestra in the national and international community.
Since learning of the lawsuit in July, the administration has been working desperately to intimidate us. Last week, on July 31, they gave us an ultimatum: Either we drop the lawsuit or we will not have work in September. We will not drop it.
We will be at work on September 1. We will do all we can to protect our jobs. For this, we need your help!
If the administration of the OA calls you for extra work, or if you hear that a position has opened in the OA, please turn it down until these internal struggles have been settled.
Accepting any work with the OA will only serve to complicate our struggle. Help us improve the working conditions in our orchestra. Help us to make this an orchestra we can all be proud of!
Again, we ask for your solidarity during these difficult times. Please pass this on to all your friends and colleagues.
Thank you.
Committee of the Orquestra do Algarve
2008/08/07
György Ligeti - Étude Nr. 1 "Désordre"
Ligeti - Étude Nr. 2 "Corde à vide"
Ligeti - Étude Nr. 5 "Arc-en-ciel"
Ligeti - Étude Nr. 13 "The Devil's Staircase"
Giuseppe Andaloro plays György Ligeti's Étude "Désordre"
Ligeti - Étude Nr. 2 "Corde à vide"
Giuseppe Andaloro plays György Ligeti's Étude "Corde à vide"
Ligeti - Étude Nr. 5 "Arc-en-ciel"
Giuseppe Andaloro plays György Ligeti's Étude "Arc-en-ciel"
Ligeti - Étude Nr. 13 "The Devil's Staircase"
Rudolf P Golez plays György Ligeti's "The Devil's Staircase"
2008/07/27
Bela Bartók - Contrasts Sz 111 (Mvt 1 & 2)
Mvt 3
Contrasts for Clarinet, Violin & Piano, Sz. 111 - Thea King (clarinet), Yehudi Menuhin (violin) and Jeremy Menuhin (piano). I - Recruiting Dance. Moderato, ben ritmato. II - Relaxation. Lento. (Filmed at the ORTF, Paris, 03/12/72 by Eric Tishkoff)
Mvt 3
III - Fast Dance. Allegro vivace. The final movement, Sebes (fast dance), is a frenzied dash, whose only detour is an off-balance, but still quick-moving section in the uncommon meter (8 + 5) / 8. The beginning of the final movement calls for the use of a violin with several of its strings tuned differently (scordatura). This yields a courser, rougher sound that suggests the playing of a folk musician. The clarinet part requires the use of both B-flat and A clarinets, which is done to more easily facilitate technical passages in different key signatures. While the first movement is scored for A clarinet, some players prefer to play it on B-flat clarinet. The transposition makes certain technical passages easier to play. However, there are several low Es in the movement, which the B-flat clarinet can't play, thus the transposition is somewhat problematic musically. Performance All three instrumental parts of Contrasts are extremely demanding from the standpoints of technique and ensemble. Compounding the unusual scales and intervals in many of the fast passages are complex rhythms within the individual parts, and almost constant rhythmic counterpoint, or cross-rhythms, between the parts. Thus, the most technically difficult passages also turn out to be the most treacherous in terms of playing together. A combination of individual preparation and rehearsal methods can be used to work out such sections. The most important method for solving or preventing ensemble issues is to know the other parts well. While most chamber music is such that the other parts can be easily learned while rehearsing, Contrasts is more problematic... in youtube.com/user/TheGreatPerformers
2008/07/26
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