Sándor Balassa

In my reading of the book 3 questions for 65 composers by Bálint András Varga I´ve encountered few nuggets of gold in my oppinion and I intend to write them here to make them easier for me to remember. If you dont know me, then believe me when I say that I do have a bad memory. If I want to remember stuff I have to work at it, like by writing it down or reciting it a few times in my head. I drift easily, which is a pro in some situations I like to think.

Last I read the chapter where the Hungarian composer Sándor Balassa answers the 3 questions presented by Bálint (The questions in question are not important in understanding the quotes I write here). I find some of things he says very interesting in the context of discovering one-self as a composer.

The composer renews himself all the time and remains the same nevertheless. He struggles to re-create himself day by day, but strives also to link the changes to the values he has already created in the past.

The forum created by art is a place where man can meet himself and the cosmos.

The fact that modernist music has lost the sympathy of listeners is due in part to its renunciation of the principle of repetition.  Look, I am no linguist. I have no intention of inventing new languages. I would like to communicate something in the language we have, so that my message should reach it´s addressees.

If I do not concentrate on the principal voice, I will end up being the main obstacle of rendering my music effective.

The GuitarViol

I saw an online show today called "On the score".  

"In this edition of "On the Score", Jonathan Wilson (creator of the TogaMan GuitarViol) visits the studio of film/TV composer Kevin Kiner (CSI Miami, Clone Wars, and AMC's new series "Hell on Wheels"".

A quite interesting show which I will most likely watch more of in the future (see last video).

Mostly they discuss instruments like the GuitarViol, a new instrument, roughly a mix of a guitar and a cello/viola. Here is the official website: http://www.togamanguitars.com

A very beautiful instrument. And the most beautiful part is that it´s tuned as a guitar [EADGBE] so guitarists all over the world must craving one of these. For me, a non-guitar-playing composer, it´s a very interesting folk-y sound and the pedal / electronic possibilities make it just the thing I´ve been looking for. I´ve wanted to write the electric guitar into my ensemble for awhile but never really found the right sound in my head until now. Maybe double the guitarviol with a standard electronic guitar with a small string orchestra, some winds and percussion. An idea in the making...

Jonathan obviously knows more about this than I do so I´ll pass the ball over to him:

Free download: "Arrange"

For a limited time only you can download my song "Arrange" 

as performed by Flugdrekafélagið (The KiteCompany) live @ Norðurpóllinn leikhús here: 

http://soundcloud.com/helgirafn/arrange

Jón Leifs presentation

Only a week till me and Sara go home to Iceland for our Christmas holiday. We are very excited but try to remain calm. Then we will, like hopefully everyone else, have some time to relax and I am planing to read the book I just bought "Three questions for sixty-five composers" by Balint Andras Varga.

Yesterday I finished my last big assignment at Guildhall. So I´ve somewhat got one foot in the holiday door, except for a couple of competition deadlines. 

Each of us, the 4 1st year Mmus Composers, must do a 45 min presentation on something to do with our studies. I decided to do mine yesterday on the Icelandic Composer Jón Leifs, focusing on the first part of his live, his studies on the Icelandic folk song and his piece Hekla op.52 (1961) - Listen below.

 

I wont outline my whole presentation here but I found some interesting sounds/music/texts you might enjoy.

Like this statement of Sigurður Nordal, 20th century scholar, of the Icelandic rímur or chanting.

• “Icelandic rímur are probably the most absurd example of literary conservatism that has ever been noted. It can be said that they remain unchanged for five whole centuries although everything around them changes. And although they frequently have little poetic value and sometimes even border on complete tastelessness, they have demonstrated with their tenacity that they satisfy the needs of the nation peculiarly well.” –Sigurður Nordal (reference)

 Strange but true. Next is a loosely translated text (by me) from Jón Leifs:

 •“The Icelandic folk song is, naturally, strongly influenced by the nature of Iceland and the woe's the nation has been struck with through the centuries. Deep seriousness and toughness surrounds each performance. Merrymaking is known to rear it's head but is then presented in a quite rugged manner and with a cold laughter…” – Jón Leifs

Icelandic:

          Eðlilega hefir andi íslenzkra þjóðlaga mótast af náttúru landsins og hörmungum þeim, sem á þjóðinni dundu. Djúpa alvöru flytja lögin og hrikaleik og harðneskju meiri en nokkur önnur þjóðlög. Þar er oft sem bitið sje á jaxl og tönnum gníst gegn örlögunum. Gleðskapar verður einnig vart, en þá lendir oft í harðgerðum (groteskum) gáska og köldum hlátri. Ríkir þar ramíslenzkur andi og sá norrænasti. Trúarauðmýkt og þokuþunglyndi má einnig finna, en oftast býr þar undir hulin harðneskja. Fagurt tákn þess að örlögin fá ekki bugað Íslendinga. (reference)

That is true. Most of the time the old folk songs sound beautiful, but if you look closer it´s mostly about ravens starving and having no corpse to feed on, or mothers killing their babies. 

Ravens:

  

Mothers (lyrics found on youtube site: english and icelandic):

Most of the time you forget that though and just enjoy the music.

Here is a special treat. A folk song named Sjö sinnum það sagt er mér, ("I´m told seven times"). It´s somewhat of a singing-hurdel or challenge. You have to try to sing the song 7 times. Each time begining on the note the last "cycle" ended on. So it´s transposed up a perfect 4th each time as you can see (new cycle starts in line 3).

Last but not least, Jón´s piece Hekla op.52, a crasy piece, somewhat based on our folk song tradition. Those influences can be heard most clearly in the 1st section. This piece features 2 percussion ensambles, one on-stage and the other off-stage. E.g. chains, rocks & canons mixed with more traditional percussion make this soundscape different that most. The 2 piccolos, strong brass and a church organ also do their parts. 

Hekla is a volcano in Iceland, you can see it on this map: 

Day of Icelandic Music

I just have to take a small brake from my school projects to celebrate the day of Icelandic music with you all by sharing some music. I hope you enjoy.

Here are samples from 3 categories.

1. Pop/Rock
2.Folk
3.Classical

1. Agent Fresco - A long time listening (I must recommend 480p resolution)



2. [Unknown] - Ólafur Liljurós (Olaf the Lilyrose)



3. Páll Ísólfsson - Brennið þið vitar (Loosely translated: Light my way lighthouses)




But what is new with me you ask? Yesterday I finished 2 major projects. My piece for 2 pianos, "Burned Alive", was presented in an open workshop at Guildhall and the deadline for my commission for Elektra Ensemble ran out. It´s a piece for flute, clarinet, piano, violin and cello and got the title "Hálfgerðir Hringir" or "So-Called Cycles" since I based it on a series of cycles I made, some were cycles of harmony, others of techniques, yet others of rythms and so on. These cycles interact differently with each other depending on how their "cogs" meet.

When I found myself braking my own "rule of cycles" again and again I changed the title from "Hringir" ("Cycles") to "Hálfgerðir Hringir" ("So-Called Cycles"). There are 2 reasons for these rule violations: Aesthetics and lack of time. Maður verður að haga seglum sínum eftir vindi.

My dear performers of "Burned Alive", Siwan Ryhs and Ricardo Gosalbo, have offered to record the piece with me soon. That I am looking very much forward to.

Kærar kveðjur / Best wishes
-Helgi