Pytheas Talk

I"ve listened a few times to Osvaldo Golojov&...

2011-04-06T15:52:13.261-07:00

I"ve listened a few times to Osvaldo Golojov's Tenebrae.
Tho the harmonic rhythm is slow, the ongoing "tremolo"(starts in viola) gives it a feeling of movement, along with certain tension tones that are milked , which enhance the natural beauty of the lines.

I"m now listening to MIchael Brecker playing ...

2011-04-06T05:45:18.148-07:00

I"m now listening to MIchael Brecker playing Psathas' Omnifenix, since it was 2 videos below Alvaraz, and I"ve heard tracks from some of Brecker's jazz CDs(before his tragic untimely death from a rare blood disease). I just noticed a trascription of his solo(in one of my old JazzImprov magazines) in his tune "Madame Toulouse".
In Psathas I"m having trouble discerning any specific identifiable harmonies( no clear tension/resolution) that he's playing over... seems to be kind of clusters of sound much of the time. And with basically no groove, I"m having trouble getting my teeth into anything here, but Michael's playing is impressive.. i wonder if he's improvising any of it. But as always, I would like to know the composer's intentions before passing any judgement.

I want to comment on a piece that others have hear...

2011-04-06T04:48:05.557-07:00

I want to comment on a piece that others have heard, so I just listened to the Alverez. IT's one of the few so far that I really liked. And is it really that short??
I should say up front that I listen for concrete elements.. harmonic structure, voicings, motivic development, odd meters/numbers, etc, as I try to find something that could be useful or at least inspiring for improvisation.

I usually like the percussive use of strings, especially like this in perpetual motion. I think it's in 9/4 or 9/8, and seems to overlay the basic Afro-Cuban(tumbao) rhythm some of the time. I like the was it starts with the tension of the Bb and A. i like the use of the basic melodic/rhythmic motive in the violin and the chord progressions, tho mostly diatonic to d minor.

Yes, haunting. As I listened to it, I thought of t...

2011-04-04T19:20:33.718-07:00

Yes, haunting. As I listened to it, I thought of the rain outside, and imagined for a moment that they were synchronized. But then, the basketball game came back on and reminded me where I was! I scrolled down and had the pleasure of seeing a video of Eric, ummmmm, I forgot his last name, the one who did the virtual choir. Very cool.

Maybe Its Better Live Edward Wright ~ Polarities ...

2011-04-03T13:26:02.577-07:00

Maybe Its Better Live

Edward Wright ~ Polarities movt. 3 Tarantella - Live

This seems like music designed to stretch one's imagination, in sometimes conventional, but often erratic ways. It is brew of sounds, coherent and not, sometimes thematic and often brazen. Are we witnessing a storm? Chaotic conflict? Then there are the majestic parts with cacophony and just plain noise. All in all, it is not particularly a satisfying piece on aesthetic grounds. It might be labeled " gobbledygook" rather than Tarantella. But then, I didn't hear it in the context of the other movements of Polarities.

-- Gordon Wilcox

The Hitchcockian (actually Bernard Herrmann!) edge...

2011-04-03T12:24:41.363-07:00

The Hitchcockian (actually Bernard Herrmann!) edge didn't occur to me at first, but it's definitely there - with a nice Latin American groove and beat.
- Vinny

Hey Vinny, cool background music, somewhat Philip ...

2011-04-03T12:23:49.047-07:00

Hey Vinny, cool background music, somewhat Philip Glass like simple,sparse, with a Hitchcockian Hauffman (sp?) ice edge...
Tracy Ginn

A Mental Musical Journey Edward Wright ~ Y Twr ......

2011-04-03T12:21:00.042-07:00

A Mental Musical Journey
Edward Wright ~ Y Twr
..."We are sitting on the porch on a stormy night. There is blacksmith, or perhaps several, pounding steel. The weather clears and seagulls are very close to the horse-drawn carriage we are riding in which is pulling up to the wailing pipers. We get out into a small boat (in a very large puddle left by the rain) and sail past the church ... opps!, we're back in the carriage, trotting along side a choo-choo train, which hisses to a stop as a plane flies over. We get out and walk through the throng of people and variety of noises; the car stops; the boat rows; the train chugs; the telephone rings; and the chimes bleat and jingle when, finally, the blacksmith returns to hit the bell. Are those bagpipes I hear? No, it is nothing -- and it is over..."
-- Gordon Wilcox

Thank you for introducing me to contemporary music...

2011-04-03T12:04:57.621-07:00

Thank you for introducing me to contemporary music. I'm very excited to be part of the Listening Group for YCMD 2011. Looking forward to hearing more! Sharon

You can check out more of Eric Whitacre's musi...

2011-04-02T07:06:28.117-07:00

You can check out more of Eric Whitacre's music at Pytheas!
http://www.pytheasmusic.org/whitacre.html

I found this amazing music on ted.com. I love the ...

2011-04-02T06:38:02.760-07:00

I found this amazing music on ted.com. I love the idea of virtual compositions.
http://www.ted.com/talks/eric_whitacre_a_virtual_choir_2_000_voices_strong.html

Thanks for joining in the conversation. And welcom...

2010-01-27T08:19:20.908-08:00

Thanks for joining in the conversation. And welcome to Pytheas!
Vinny

Excellent composition by Svitlana Azarova. Stephan...

2010-01-26T10:24:07.674-08:00

Excellent composition by Svitlana Azarova. Stephan Vermeersch really shows this piece off!
Thanks for featuring it.
Michel

Thanks for sharing a link and spreading the word. ...

2009-09-29T19:13:43.040-07:00

Thanks for sharing a link and spreading the word. Just a note ... the video has moved to the "Archives", and so the link is now: http://www.pytheasmusic.org/new_music_video_archive_0903.html#gorecki_3

Thank you for sharing this! I have never seen a vi...

2009-09-26T17:46:40.884-07:00

Thank you for sharing this! I have never seen a video of this song, and the setting was so moving. I shared the link with my yoga teacher training class!

Here's a performance with just typewriter and ...

2009-09-03T20:42:16.377-07:00

Here's a performance with just typewriter and piano. Really nicely done!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bht-JHb31qc
Vinny

Hey Kevin, Here's a performance of the Romanc...

2009-09-03T20:35:09.512-07:00

Hey Kevin,
Here's a performance of the Romance on YouTube...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GTAObZbvx3s

Here's a listing (and first page) of the music - but it looks like it's out of print...
http://www.musicroom.com/se/ID_No/065214/details.html

And here's a listing of the US libraries that have the music. You can borrow it through your local library's Interlibrary Loan.
http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/5179162&referer=brief_results

Hope that helps. And thanks for reading!
Vinny

where can I get a copy of "Romance for Harmon...

2009-09-02T17:42:30.787-07:00

where can I get a copy of "Romance for Harmonica??"

I love the Leroy Anderson piece. I wonder if Jerry...

2009-07-23T09:58:05.622-07:00

I love the Leroy Anderson piece. I wonder if Jerry is reading from the score? Does anyone know if there is a video of the orchestra permorming this?

This is not necessarily the kind of film I would h...

2009-06-06T09:48:40.132-07:00

This is not necessarily the kind of film I would have imagined for "Begleitungsmusik zu einer Lichtspielszene," but I really enjoyed listening to the piece in some kind of film context. I always wondered what the film music that Schoenberg did for Hollywood was like, but I suppose we'll never know, right?