The Best American Poetry

Random Thoughts [by Lewis Saul]

Some random thoughts:

Random.org

Random.org is one of my favorite sites. I love to randomize all sorts of stuff.

"The randomness comes from atmospheric noise, which is better than the pseudo-random number algorithms typically used in computer programs."

Nineteen Years Ago

Stacey Harwood-Lehman published an essay at poets.org entitled The Well-Versed Movie. This well-written comprehensive catalog of poems in films is astonishing! Did I recall "she walks in beauty," from one of my favorite Hitchcocks -- Jamaica Inn (1939)? Have to re-watch it!

There is a submission link to which I added the poetry of Arseny Tarkovsky -- used in nearly all of his son's Andrei's great films. [but the link is dead]

Although I know most of the films, I realize I have a lot of poems to read ...

K-Pop

Don't really like most of the contemporary pop music from any country, but discovering this song really impressed me.

Eve, Psyche & The Bluebeard's Wife
Le Sserafim

The title promises something interesting -- female empowerment. The group's name nicely anagrams into I'm Fearless.

I'm a mess mess mess mess mess mess mess
I'm a mess mess mess mess mess mess mess
I'm a mess in distress
But we're still the best dressed
Fearless say yes
We don't dress to impress

So many things to like about this. The nice powerful major ninth chords; the 8/4/4 rhythm.

What comes next is a mix of Korean and English (unless you're watching the English-language version).

There are many versions of this video. Here are my two favorites:

 

 

 

X

 

The editors of the New York Times style book must be working overtime.

The ambassador posted on

X, the social-media platform formerly known as Twitter
X, the cesspool once known as Twitter [actually used in an op-ed]
X, formerly known as Twitter
X, formerly Twitter
X [saw that today -- first time I noticed it as a stand-alone]

Attention Old People:

Things you ought'nt not buy because they're useless:

Prevagen, Neuriva, LifeLock, California Psychics and oh so many more ...

Now and Then

Although the video is heartbreakingly nostalgic and Ringo can still play, the song is a dreary minor-key dirge to something ... is this John telling his mates how much he loves them? Recorded in 1970, I tend to doubt it.

Free as a Bird and Real Love are so much more interesting. You decide:





Etsy Commercials

These ads use Lalo Schifrin's theme from Mission Impossible. Can you name another commercial with music in 5/4?

Listening/Analyzing

Debussy's awesome Sonata for Flute, Viola and Harp:

Reading

 

1) Years ago, I wanted to read Barry Lyndon because of Kubrick. But Vanity Fair sounded good, so I was browsing E-Bay when I saw this 20-volume set, so (being a completist at heart) I bought it for a song.

After devouring the above two novels, I moved to Pendennis.

And so now I'm tackling the two-volume The Newcomes. Pendennis narrates the history of the family -- particularly young Clive, an old classmate of Pendennis and aspiring artist.

Thackeray begins this opera with a parable that hints at the humans who will make their appearance directly:

A crow, who had flown away with a cheese from a dairy window, sat perched on a tree looking down at a great big frog in a pool underneath him. The frog's hideous large eyes were goggling out of his head in a manner which appeared quite ridiculous to the old black-a-moor, who watched the splay-footed slimy wretch with that peculiar grim humor belonging to crows. Not far from the frog a fat ox was browsing; whilst a few lambs frisked about the meadow, or nibbled the grass and buttercups there.

The cast of characters is filled with wonderfully drawn characters that really come to life.

I just started Volume Two.

2) Michael Fanone: Hold the Line

Somebody's gonna option this for a film someday, if they haven't already.

As an undercover agent, he befriended one of his sources, with various consequences. We've all seen the footage -- the book fills in the parts CNN never had time for ...

Bites of the Rite [by Lewis Saul]

I mean to look at five different very small-scale details, and demonstrate the hard-to-beat Pierre Boulez's 1969 recording with the Cleveland  Orchestra:

 

:

Obviously, recording techniques have evolved a lot since then -- and there are many other great recordings; here's just a few:

 

Monteux/Grand Orchestre Symphonique (1929). He conducted the premiere and was one of the first to record it.
Bernstein/NY (1958). A really excellent and thoughtful interp. The Phil was at its best here ...
Orozco-Estrada/Frankfurt Radio (2015). Love this guy and this band.
Gemma New/Dallas (2023). I highly recommend this version, especially for the video work, which marries the audio perfectly ...

I.

Stravinsky's subtitle is so descriptive: Fertility of the Earth.

 

This four-bar nibble occurs just a few moments into the piece. For the purpose of this example, I want to draw your attention to the two bass clarinets.

There are two other things going on -- a fluttering alto flute and the insistent English horn.

 

 

 

II.

 

This cookie is a wonderful taste of courageous orchestration.

Stravinsky has a nice steady pulse going on -- the piccolo plays a familiar melody, while the contrabassoons and the fourth French horn (in its lowest register!) plays 1/4 notes on the offbeats in major sevenths. In some recordings, this lovely off-beat rhythm is barely heard ... or worse.

 

 

III.

 

Stravinsky is building up to this massive climax which culminates in a bar of silence before the Dance of the Earth. This little detail has always fascinated me ... and is not as well-defined by other recordings as in this one.

There are four main things going on. We're concerning ourselves only with #3-4!

1. The melody is a clever five-bar phrase, where bar 3 is repeated;
2. These are the tenor and bass "Wagner" tubas (they produce a sound similar to a baritone horn). Long notes, also composed as a five-note phrase;
3. The entrance of the bass drum. Notice that it's in 3/4 (the 1/8th-notes in the timpani help define the beat) -- producing that wonderful two-against-three effect ... but it gets even better!
4. The tam-tam plays one beat between two bass drum beats, creating yet another polyrhythm! All this is clear as a bell in this magical Cleveland recording!

 

IV.

 

Two muted trumpets. Listen to how carefully the Cleveland players match each other's tone!

 

Stravinsky lengthens the duet for a bar or two, and then drops in this beautiful counter-riff:

Two violas and two cellos play this spooky little jagged triplet, while the rest of the cellos keep a steady 1/8th-note pulse.

The trumpets repeat their somber theme one more time, and Stravinsky sweeps everything up with his great, magical orchestration. Like a floating ghost, the trumpet theme is taken up by a new combination -- clarinets and horn. The only pulse is the pizzicato cello, as the texture thickens with the triplet motif. 

 

 

V.

 

 

A glissando by the English horn ends on a held G-Sharp against the steady plucked D's (a tritone apart). An alto flute joins in.

 

After much working out, Stravinsky returns to this idea, which will lead directly into the ferocious Sacrificial Dance. But note a small detail of orchestration. The glissando is played by a muted bass trumpet

which must carefully lead into the English horn note, which it does three more times. The alto flute again answers the E.H.

 

 

Once again, Stravinsky challenges the two bass clarinet players:

 

 

Melodica Men
Bad Plus

Beethoven's Letters [by Lewis Saul]

 

 

Beethoven's letters give us an unvarnished canvas upon which we can try to decipher his contradictions:

 

Deafness

 

To Dr. F. Wegeler, Bonn

June 29, 1800

 

"The humming in my ears continues day and night without ceasing. I may truly say that my life is a wretched one. For the last two years I have avoided all society, for it is impossible for me to say to people, 'I am deaf.' Were my profession any other, it would not so much matter, but in my profession it is a terrible thing; and my enemies of whom there are not a few, what would they say to this? ... Often I can scarcely hear any one speaking to me; the tones yes, but not the actual words; yet as soon as any one shouts, it is unbearable ..."

To the same
November 16, 1801

"My life is again somewhat pleasanter, for I mix in society. You can scarcely imagine what a dreary, sad life I have led during the past two years. My weak hearing seemed always to be haunting me, and I ran away from people, was forced to appear a misanthrope, thought not at all in my character. This change has been brought about by an enchanting maiden, who loves me, and whom I love. Once again, after two years I have had some happy moments, and for the first time I feel that marriage can bring happiness. Unfortunately she is not of my station in life, and now -- for the moment I certainly could not marry -- I must bravely bustle about ..."

Bach

 

To the music publishers Breitkopf and Haertel, Leipzig
April 22, 1801

 

"When I recently visited a good friend of mine, and he showed me the amount which had been collected for the daughter of the immortal god of harmony [Regina Johanna Bach, living alone and in poverty], I was astonished at the small sum which Germany had thought sufficient for the person worthy to me of honour on account of her father ... answer quickly how this can best be brought about so that it may be done before this daughter of Bach dies, before this brook dries up, and we can no longer supply it with water" [Bach means "brook" in German].

It would be several more decades until Mendelssohn succeeded in bringing "Old Bach" to the attention of the world in the middle of the century.

 

The Immortal Beloved ?

To Countess Giulietta Guicciardi
July 6, 1801

 

"My angel, my all, my very self,

Oh! gaze at nature in all its beauty, and calmly accept the inevitable -- love demands everything, and rightly so. Thus is it for me with thee, for thee with me, only thou so easily forgettest, that I must live for myself and for thee -- were we wholly united thou wouldst feel this painful fact as little as I should ..."

To the same
July 7, 1801

"Waiting to see whether fate will take pity on us. Either I must live wholly with thee or not at all. Yes, I have resolved to wander in distant lands, until I can fly to thy arms, and feel that with thee I have a real home; with thee encircling me about, I can send my soul into the kingdom of spirits ..."

 

His trouble with women; the increasing severity of his deafness; his constant battle with the publishers; impresarios, etc. all played a role in the creation of this suicidal-sounding Last Will and Testament written shortly before Beethoven's 32nd birthday ...

The Heiligenstadt Testament
October 6, 1802

"O ye men who regard or declare me to be malignant, stubborn or cynical, how unjust are ye towards me. You do not know the secret cause of my seeming so. From childhood onward, my heart and mind prompted me to be kind and tender, and I was ever inclined to accomplish great deeds. But only think that during the last six years, I have been in a wretched condition, rendered worse by unintelligent physicians. Deceived from year to year with hopes of improvement, and then finally forced to the prospect of lasting infirmity (which may last for years, or even be totally incurable). Born with a fiery, active temperament, even susceptive of the diversions of society, I had soon to retire from the world, to live a solitary life. At times, even, I endeavored to forget all this, but how harshly was I driven back by the redoubled experience of my bad hearing. Yet it was not possible for me to say to men: Speak louder, shout, for I am deaf. Alas! how could I declare the weakness of a sense which in me ought to be more acute than in others -- a sense which formerly I possessed in highest perfection, a perfection such as few in my profession enjoy, or ever have enjoyed; no I cannot do it. Forgive, therefore, if you see me withdraw, when I would willingly mix with you. My misfortune pains me doubly, in that I am certain to be misunderstood. For me there can be no recreation in the society of my fellow creatures, no refined conversations, no interchange of thought. Almost alone, and only mixing in society when absolutely necessary, I am compelled to live as an exile. If I approach near to people, a feeling of hot anxiety comes over me lest my condition should be noticed ... my prayer is that your life may be better, less troubled by cares than mine. Recommend to your children virtue; it alone can bring happiness, not money ..."

 

Finally, from the late period, a letter to Schindler -- his unreliable biographer. Beethoven suspected that he'd been swindled:

1824 (?)

"I do not accuse you of anything wrong as regards the concert, but many things have been spoilt through your imprudence and arbitrary conduct. But anyhow, I have a certain fear that some great misfortune will befall me through you ... I should not like to trust my welfare to you, as you lack judgment ..."

They later made up.

 

Joni Mitchell [by Lewis Saul]

Yes, lyricists and poets are different species.

But for me, Joni has always been both. I like her early albums, but they lack gravitas -- in both the compositions and lyrics.

Beginning in 1974, she began to learn from the jazz musicians she hung around with. Tom Scott, Jaco Pastorius and Larry Klein taught her things like rearranging chord roots and changing up rhythmic patterns. Her lyrics/poetry got tighter.

Here are seven tunes from her middle period (1974-1985) which I think are extraordinary -- both musically and lyrically:

1. Free Man in Paris
from Court and Spark (1974)

 

 

I was a free man in Paris
I felt unfettered and alive
There was nobody calling me up for favors
And no one's future to decide
You know I'd go back there tomorrow
But for the work I've taken on
Stoking the star making machinery
Behind the popular song

 

2. Harry's House/Centerpiece
from The Hissing of Summer Lawns (1975)



Heatwaves on the runway
As the wheels set down
He takes his baggage off the carousel
He takes a taxi into town
Yellow schools of taxi fishes
Jonah in a ticking whale
Caught up at the light in the fishnet windows
Of Bloomingdale's
Watching those high fashion girls
Skinny black models with raveen curls
Beauty parlor blondes with credit card eyes
Looking for the chic and the fancy to buy

 

3. Talk to Me
from Don Juan's Reckless Daughter (1977)

 

 

We could talk about Martha
We could talk about landscapes
I'm not above gossip
But I'll sit on a secret where honor is at stake
Or we could talk about power
About Jesus and Hitler and Howard Hughes
Or Charlie Chaplin's movies
Or Bergman's nordic blues
Please just talk to me
Any old theme you choose
Just come and talk to me
My Mystery talk to me

 

4. Jericho
from Don Juan's Reckless Daughter (1977)

 

 

I'll try to keep myself open up to you
That's a promise that I made to love
When it was new
Just like Jericho I said
"Let these walls come tumbling down"
I said it like I finally found the way
To keep the good feelings alive
I said it like it was something to strive for

 

5. The Dry Cleaner from Des Moines
from Mingus (1979)

 

 

I'm down to a roll of dimes
I'm stalking the slot that's hot
I keep hearing bells all around me
Jingling in the lucky jackpots
They keep you tantalized
They keep you reaching for your wallet
Here in fools' paradise

 

6. Be Cool
from Wild Things Run Fast (1982)

 

If there's one rule to this game
Everybody's gonna name
It's be cool
If you're worried or uncertain
If your feelings are hurtin'
You're a fool if you can't keep cool
Charm 'em
Don't alarm 'em
Keep things light
Keep your worries out of sight
And play it cool
Play it cool
Fifty-fifty
Fire and ice

 

7. The Three Great Stimulants
from Dog Eat Dog (1985)

 

 

I picked the morning paper off the floor
It was full of other people's little wars
Wouldn't they like their peace
Don't we get bored
And we call for the three great stimulants
Of the exhausted ones
Artifice brutality and innocence
Artifice and innocence

Long Takes [by Lewis Saul]

A few weeks ago, I discussed filmic punctuation -- specifically that of the three great Japanese directors -- Mizoguchi, Kurosawa and Ozu.

Such techniques define the editorial nature of the filmmaker.

In 1948, in Rope, Alfred Hitchcock attempted to break free from traditional transitions by using a shot that would fill the screen with black for only a second before changing to a different perspective -- as in this shot where the actor's back serves as a Fade-to-Black.

 

Editing techniques have obviously advanced since 1948. Today, film's like Iñárritu's Birdman, or Mendes's 1917 are stitched together seamlessly to hide cuts -- but they still use Hitchcock's basic idea of hiding the cuts where you can't see them.

The obvious purpose of hiding cuts is to give the audience an uninterrupted look at the action without the editorial comment of a cut or other type of punctuation.

In a way -- and I think this is what Hitchcock was after -- this turns a film into a forever frozen theatrical production. Of course, the camera itself can travel and we can see angles and action unavailable to theater.

But the long take is the basic tool these filmmakers use to emulate the theatrical gaze.

 

Cristian Mungiu
Beyond the Hills (2012)

 

The Romanian New Wave movement picked up steam very quickly after the fall of Communism. Mungiu became a leading figure, and his films have reached an international audience.

Mingiu's fourth feature-length film perfectly encapsulates the idea of using long, well-rehearsed takes to allow the story to flow, uninterrupted by a director's editing.

There is no soundtrack, only diegetic sound accompanying the long takes.

The filmmaker is completely non-judgmental in this fictional recreation of a true incident. The viewer is left to ponder the significance of this or that character; of this or that situation -- but never does he interrupt the flow of the story, requiring the viewer to ponder the action -- especially interior motives -- without having the director specifically guiding you towards a viewpoint or attitude.

Cosmina Stratan (Voichita) and Cristina Flutur (Alina) shared the Best Actress prize at Cannes, and deservedly so. They both play amazingly authentic, relatable characters -- each with her own intense emotional baggage -- and with Mingiu's guidance, hold the viewer in rapt attention.

Valeriu Andriuta (Priest) is equally authentic as the sincere, but misguided, Papa. Dana Tapalagá (Mama Superior) is mesmerizing.

Not a false moment in the 152 minutes, which fly by without a frame of tedium.

**

The main thematic material for this film focuses on those faithful Orthodox Christians who lived precariously under godless Communism for so many years and the rest of secular society, caught up in the gray uncomfortable position of the country's pseudo-Capitalism and Consumerism -- trying desperately to keep their phones charged, while directing land speculators to a place "beyond the hills."

The last shot of the film is a doozy.

 

BOULEZ: Third Piano Sonata [by Lewis Saul]

BOULEZ, Pierre (1925-2016)

Third Piano Sonata (1955-57/63-      )
1. Formant I -- Antiphonie (unpublished)
2. Formant II -- Trope
3. Formant III -- Constellation/Constellation-miroir
4. Formant IV -- Strophe (unpublished)
5. Formant V -- Séquence (unpublished)
6. Sigle
Pierre Boulez, piano
(25:26)

"I have often compared this work with the plan of a city. One does not change its design, one perceives exactly what it is, and there are different ways of going through it. One can choose one's own way through it, but there are certain traffic regulations." - PB

Boulez always referred to the Third Sonata as a "work in progress." Since his death, it is now officially "unfinished." Nevertheless, this 1958 recording with the composer at the piano, might contain at least snippets of the original, unpublished music.

His primary inspirations were Mallarmé and Joyce -- Finnegans Wake, in particular. From his old Darmstadt friendship with Stockhausen, Boulez revisits the idea of a score with no fixed entry point -- but a cyclical form nonetheless -- like FW and Stockhausen's Zyklus (Cycle) ...

In fact, Formant II -- Trope is bound in a spiral, exactly like Zyklus.

"Music is a labyrinth with no beginning and no end, full of new paths to discover, where mystery remains eternal." -- PB

 

Critic Peggy Glanville-Hicks figured it out:

" ... organized, stabilized chaos ... not everyone's ear conducts the same arbitration, and Boulez is the perfect example of the humorous caveat, 'you'll like it if you're the type who likes that sort of thing.'"

 

Ben Sidran: Life's a Lesson [by Lewis Saul]

BEN SIDRAN (1943-       )

Life's a Lesson (1993)

 

I first discovered Sidran when he was hosting a late-night program on VH1 called New Visions.

It was amazing -- he played the few jazz videos that would never get airplay on sister MTV (stuff like Donald Fagen's New Frontier; Pat Metheny's Are You Going With Me? and Weather Report's Procession).

 

And he did a lot of live stuff.

I taped the program as often as I could -- I still marvel at the impromptu 15-minute jam with just Dizzy Gillespie and Joe Williams. He showcased some of the best talent in jazz on the show.

**

Sidran went to the Univ. of Wisconsin, earning a degree in English lit in 1966. He had been in a band with Steve Miller and Boz Scaggs, and when they set off for Hollywood, Sidran stayed behind to get his PhD in Sussex, England. When he had a bit of free time, he sessioned with the likes of Clapton, the Stones, and Frampton.

He then joined Miller for good, playing keyboards and writing songs, including the hit song Space Cowboy (1969).

 

 

In the meantime, Sidran became a successful producer and performer, returning to Madison, where he taught and hosted an award-winning NPR series Jazz Alive.

 

**

In 1993, a long, difficult journey culminated in Life's a Lesson.

"After six years, hundreds of phone calls, maybe more than one hundred thousand miles of travel, and many hours of work, fun and occasional moments of rapture, this album is the result." -- BS

Ben recruited 20 of the best Jewish musicians in the industry. You'll hear some of them in the videos below, but here's the complete list:

Bob Berg
Randy Brecker
Eddie Daniels
Debra Dobkin
Gil Goldstein
Danny Gottlieb
Steve Khan
Carole King
Lee Konitz
Howard Levy
David Liebman
Mike Mainieri
Bob Mintzer
Andy Narrell
Josh Redman
Mike Richmond
David Rivkin
Haim Sharum
Lou Soloff
Jeremy Steig

 

"Singing has always played a large part in Jewish experience. Virtually all of the Hebrew text is traditionally chanted, and the importance of song harkens back to the days of the Exodus, when the people of Israel wandered with no possessions except their history and their teachings. It's likely that some of the melodies we sing today have their roots in these earliest times. What I find so moving about this music is its sense of hope; it recognizes our weaknesses but still insists that we work for peace and justice ... for me, the music reaches back to the days when I stood as a young boy and listened to the old men chanting. I felt that this music could unlock the mysteries of emotion and understanding." -- BS

Here are four tracks from this 15-track album:

ELIYAHU

 

 

OSEH SHALOM

 

 

ANI MA'AMIN

 

 

ELI ELI

 

Filmic Punctuation / MIZOGUCHI: Ugetsu [by Lewis Saul]

A director edits a film from the start

Where to place the camera; what kind of lens to use; shot composition (master, close-up, telephoto), etc. Editorial decisions are why all serious filmmakers are auteurs. The hundreds (or thousands) of individuals who work for the director make indispensable individual contributions to the final product, but it is the director who makes all the final decisions (hopefully).

 

Filmic punctuation

 

is about inserting post-production (editing) optical effects into a film to achieve some kind of transition.

This excellent article details them all, but for today's purposes, I'll put them into four categories:

1. The straight cut. The most common form of punctuation. The last frame of one scene is replaced with frame one from a new scene. The viewer shouldn't even notice it.
2. The dissolve. The shot changes gradually, letting the first image on the screen bleed slowly into the next.
3. The Fade to Black (FTB).
4. The wipe. A vertical or horizontal "bar" pushes the first image off the screen (left-to-right, right-to-left, top-to-bottom; or bottom-to-top).

The Big Three

 

(of Japanese cinema's "golden age") -- Kurosawa, Ozu, and Mizoguchi.

• Kurosawa was fond of the wipe. He watched a lot of American serials (1930s) as a kid and discovered it there.
• Seven Samurai, for example, contains 1,467 punctuation marks. 1,399 are straight cuts; 15 FTBs; 45 wipes; and eight dissolves. That means  that only about 3% are wipes -- but you will notice them!
• Ozu -- perhaps one of the least editorial auteurs -- disdains any effect other than the straight cut. Many of these cuts, however, might qualify as jump cuts -- startling the viewer into unfamiliar territory. He also rarely moves the camera from its very low position at tatami eye-level, and almost never uses anything other than a 50mm lens.
• Ozu's true originality stems from his story elision. A girl is getting married and Ozu concentrates on the aspect of the story involving the preparations; the emotional state of the characters -- but we never see the actual wedding ceremony.
• Mizoguchi loved the dissolve, giving his films have a dreamy quality.

Ugetsu (1953)

97 minutes
Black & White
Monaural
in Japanese
1:33:1 aspect ratio
Criterion Release 2005

 

 

Original story by Akinari Ueda.

Screenplay by Matsutarô Kawaguchi  and Yoshikata Yoda.

Kenji Mizoguchi was 55 when he directed Ugetsu.

 

Mizoguchi’s reputation as a “woman’s director” may stem from the fact that the strong influences in his early life were female. His father basically sold his sister, Suzu, into geishadom, and his mother died when he was 17. Suzu took care of young Kenji, and later helped him find work.

 

In the early ‘20s, a prostitute he was living with slashed him on his back with a razor. Almost all of his early films from the ‘20s and ‘30s are lost.

 

Two films in 1936 helped to secure his reputation as a creative force in the industry: Osaka Elegy and Sisters of the Gion. Both films concern the problems facing women.

 

During the war, he was pressured to make The 47 Ronin (1941), as propaganda — but it’s actually an excellent, thrilling film.

 

During the ‘50s, Mizoguchi made some of his finest films; several of which are perhaps the finest in cinematic history: The Life of Oharu (1952); Ugetsu, and Sansho the Bailiff (1954).

 

Yoda wrote Mizoguchi’s screenplays, beginning with Osaka Elegy. Not credited is Guy de Maupassant, who contributed the idea which became the basis for part of Tōbei (Eitarô Ozawa)’s subplot. [Ozawa is great as Hori in Kurosawa’s underrated Scandal (1950)].

 

**

A great film does so many things at once. It captures your attention from Shot One. You notice that the compositions are beautiful. Composition forwards meaning. Soon you’re hooked by the great acting, the sets, the long takes, and the sheer beauty of the stream of black and white images.

 

The stars (Machiko Kyô [Lady Wakasa], Mitsuko Mito [Ohama], Kinuyo Tanaka [Miyagi], Masayuki Mori [Genjurô], and Ozawa) are all spectacular. Their characters are so well-drawn, and Mizoguchi’s loving care with the smallest details of sets, lighting and camera makes them shimmer in their clarity.

 

The score by Fumio Hayasaka — who revolutionized Japanese film music — is particularly fine. (Tamekichi Mochizuki and Ichirô Saitô are also credited). It uses mostly traditional Japanese instruments except for the scenes with Lady Wakasa, where a Western harp is used to express fantasia.

 

The Gagaku music played under the opening credits, for example, sets a strong mood for the upcoming magic, particularly the sound of the Shō.

 

Mizoguchi liked long takes and long lenses, using both for strong cinematic mise-en-scène, and he was a perfectionist; just look how he prepares a scene (0:06:49) with a foreground, middle and background — all moving around quite naturally. The fades and dissolves create seamless transitions from scene to scene, and Mizoguchi keeps things moving briskly, switching back and forth between the stories of both Genjurô  and Tōbei.

 

Watch Ugetsu

On the Criterion Channel.

 

**

For the hardcores:
Complete list of the fades and dissolves in Ugetsu

Mizoguchi uses 16 dissolves and 15 FTBs in Ugetsu. The longest scene in the film is 9:25; most are somewhere between three and five minutes. Occasionally, he separates a scene of mere seconds (Dissolve 3). Here is a list of all the transitional devices Mizoguchi uses in this film, including the length of each shot before the transition ...

• 0:00:42 FTB 1 after Daiei logo [0:11]
• 0:00:53 Dissolve 1 after title card [1:29]
• 0:02:22 FTB 2 after director’s credit. A few title cards crediting the original stories [0:20]
• 0:02:42 Dissolve 2. The opening scene: Genjurô and Tōbei are leaving their wives to sell Genjurô’s pottery [2:10]
• 0:04:52 Dissolve 3. Pushing the cart on a path. (Note all the extras in the mid- and background, populating the frame beautifully [0:17]
• 0:05:09 FTB 3. Genjurô returns home with money. Tōbei is trying to become a samurai [2:50]
• 0:07:59 Dissolve 4. Back to Genjurô’s story. Tōbei returns home [2:46]
• 0:10:45 FTB 4. Genjurô making pottery. (Look at how Mizoguchi shows us Genjurô’s all-consuming greed, as he yells at his hungry son, Genichi [Ichisaburo Sawamura, his sole IMDb credit!], while Miyagi turns the wheel ... a series of cuts, slowly leading up to a CU of Miyagi. [2:07]
• 0:12:52 Dissolve 5. The men are sleeping. The women are stoking the kiln. Shibata’s army is nearby, and the villagers are scattering. [4:42]
• 0:17:34 Dissolve 6. The two families are camped out in the woods. Genjurô, against advice, returns home to tend to his kiln. Miyagi, Tōbei, and Ohama follow and they discover that the pots are all perfectly baked. They quickly load the pottery. [5:12]
• 0:22:46 Dissolve 7 to possibly one of the most beautiful shots of the film! A composition of such intensity, urgency ... they are loading the pottery onto a boat on Lake Biwa (studio set) with reeds in the left background, and a misty white void on the right. [0:26]
• 0:23:12 FTB 5. Kurosawa worshipped Mizoguchi. So his fascination with the image of a horse emerging from a mist (see: Throne of Blood [1957]), seems copied from what Mizoguchi does here, with the boat floating out of the white mist. After their encounter with the man who was attacked by pirates, the men decide to return to shore to drop off the women and Genichi. [4:52]
• 0:28:04 Dissolve 8. Beautiful shot of Miyagi and Genichi on the shore, mid-background and centered, with the boat in the foreground, Genjurô far left, Tōbei far right, and Ohama (she decided to stay with her husband) in the center. Mizoguchi lingers on alternating CUs of the mother and child on the shore, with the other three in the boat. [1:32]
• 0:29:36 FTB 6. Nice high shot of a busy marketplace. The entire frame is jam-packed with detail. Lady Wakasa and her lady-in-waiting, Ukon (Kikue Môri) are admiring Genjurô’s pottery, which they buy and instruct him to deliver it all to Kutsuki Manor. In the meantime, Tōbei has run off to buy armor and spear, so he can become a samurai. Ohama searches for him. [3:43]
• 0:33:19 Dissolve 9. Ohama, alone, still searching. She is raped by soldiers. Alone, she screams at her missing husband. [3:12]
• 0:36:31 FTB 7. Genjurô wants to buy an expensive kimono. Suddenly, the score turns Western: harp, celesta and strings. As if to confirm the fantasy, suddenly Miyagi appears,  fawning over the kimonos. Genjurô awakens from the fantasy, only to hear the voice of Ukon. He turns, and the camera faces her and Lady Wakasa.
• “We thought you might need a guide to find the way.”
• Mizoguchi spends a moment on Genjurô’s confused face before cutting to a CU of Lady Wasaka — Kyô is radiant [2:41]
• 0:39:12 Dissolve 10. A long scene. Genjurô enters Kutsuki Manor. Wasaka seduces him. Her father speaks from the grave (Mizoguchi brings down the light level). He awakes and is pronounced a husband. [15:23]
• 0:54:35 Is this a cut or a dissolve? It’s very subtle, in any case, and merely serves to bridge the previous scene to this one. The camera approaches slowly, almost stealthily. Genjurô is bathing, his back to the camera. Wasaka faces us:
• “You seem to distrust me. You think I’m an enchantress, don’t you?” (she washes his back) ... the camera pulls closer ... “but you’re mine now. (he pulls her closer) ... from now on you must devote your entire life to me.” Wasaka begins to undress, moving out of frame, right. Cut to Genjurô. The camera remains on his ecstatic face, even as we hear the plop of Wasaka entering the tub, laughing, as Genjurô moves out of frame, right. As if to give the lovers some privacy, the camera slowly pans to the left, over rocks and pebbles. [1:28]
• 0:55:58 Dissolve 11. The two shots merge beautifully, as we gradually recognize the new shot as being carefully raked, like a Japanese garden.
• The camera pans and stops on a museum-worthy painting on film. Mid-foreground, Wakasa and Genjurô are having a picnic on a blanket on the grass — she is singing — while Mizoguchi completes the picture with a pair of barren trees on the right (the larger looking like it’s threatening the smaller), the lake beyond that and the mountains even more distant. The couple make love. [1:20]
• 0:57:18 FTB 8. Miyagi and Genichi are hiding from hungry soldiers. An old woman gives them food and helps them escape. [1:47]
• 0:59:05 FTB 9. But they are attacked on the road, and Miyagi is stabbed with a spear. [1:43]
• 1:00:48 FTB 10. Tōbei is following two samurai. As he hides, he watches as the younger samurai ritually beheads the older one, a general. Tōbei kills the samurai, and steals the head. [1:43]
• 1:02:45 Dissolve 12. Tōbei presents the severed head to the warlord and receives his reward. He is finally a samurai. [0:57]
• 1:03:42 FTB 11. Followed by his newly-appointed vassals, Tōbei sits atop his horse, looking quite satisfied. Prostitutes call out to the men, and they ask Tōbei to stop. At first, he refuses, saying he wants to return home to show Ohama his success. But they persuade him and they stop at the brothel. The men are all having fun. Suddenly, a ruckus ensues when a customer tries to leave without paying. The prostitute is Ohama. Tōbei stares in disbelief.
• This is where Mizoguchi shows his feminism. While, Tōbei stares, Ohama pours her heart out. Certainly, he has made it big — but because of him, she is trapped at the very bottom of society. [6:17]
• 1:09:59 FTB 12. Overhead shot of some stores. Genjurô is buying something, but when he mentions Kutsuki Manor, the shop owner becomes panicked and tells him to take everything and leave. He meets a monk who tells him he has death written on his face. When he hears the name Lady Wakasa, he insists on exorcising her ghost from Genjurô before he departs. [3:18]
• 1:13:17 Dissolve 13. Lady Wakasa discovers that Sanskrit characters are written on Genjurô’s back, and flips out. (btw, check out a similar story in Masaki Kobayashi’s Kwaidan [1965]).
• An important scene: while Genjurô writhes in agony on the floor, Ukon describes their true situation. As she speaks, the camera moves around — from a CU of the tortured Wakasa to Genjurô’s back — and the emotional weight of her words are felt through the images. Genjurô grabs a sword and, swinging it wildly, escapes the Manor. A CU on Genjurô’s face pulls back and reveals a group of men who accuse him of stealing the sword in his possession. When he’s told that Kutsuki Manor was burned down and the clan wiped out, it is still a few moments until Genjurô sees the charred wood for himself. [9:25]
• 1:22:42 FTB 13. Genjurô is going home.
• Mizoguchi created something so simple, yet so beautiful, to set up this final scene of the ghost story: Genjurô walks through his home, seemingly completely deserted. He then exits a door. The camera stays inside as it pans across the room — tracking an unseen Genjurô — until he again arrives at the front door. This time, he walks in to see Miyagi tending the cooking pot. Their reunion is ecstatic. He holds his son, Genichi, puts him back to bed, then falls asleep himself besides his young son. [5:25]
• 1:28:07 Dissolve 14. Morning. Miyagi is awake; Genjurô and Genichi still asleep. There is a diffused, soft light permeating the frame. / cut / outside the house it is sunny ... the village chief wakes up Genjurô and has to tell him that Miyagi was actually killed during the war.
• Genjurô’s reaction is so profound that Mizoguchi films him with his head turned away from the camera. No facial reaction is needed here. [4:28]
• 1:32:35 FTB 14. Tōbei throws his samurai gear into the river. A soothing, long pan shot covers their weary conversation along the path. [0:43]
• 1:33:18 FTB 15. Genjurô praying at Miyagi’s grave. Her ghostly voice comes to him to tell him that his “delusion has come to an end.” The camera pulls back to reveal Genichi, playing nearby. [1:00]
• 1:34:18 Dissolve 15. Genjurô is throwing a pot, and Miyagi’s voice — less ghostly now, more comforting and intimate — speaks to him as she “watches” him work:
• “What a beautiful shape! Helping you spin the wheel is my greatest pleasure. How I long to see it when it’s baked! The firewood is cut and ready. The rampaging soldiers are gone. So make your wonderful pottery in peace” (here, a CU of the wheel). [0:41]
• 1:34:59 Dissolve 16. Genjurô is feeding the kiln. Genichi is nearby / cut / Tōbei and Ohama are working in the garden. She brings Genichi some food, which he offers to his mother’s grave. The final crane shot rises high above the farmers — hard at work — especially the women.

 

Shostakovich: Six Poems of Marina Tsvetaeva [by Lewis Saul]

SHOSTAKOVICH, Dmitri (1906-1975)

Six Poems of Marina Tsvetaeva, Op. 143a (1973)
1. My poems (3:26)
2. Such tenderness (3:53)
3. Hamlet's dialogue with his conscience (3:23)
4. The Poet and the Tsar (1:40)
5. No, the drum beat (3:28)
6. To Anna Akhmatova (6:09)
Ortrun Wenkel, contralto
Concertgebouw Orchestra
Bernard Haitink, cond.

 

Marina Tsvetaeva

 

Of course, DS could never have composed such a work during the Stalin years.

 

Tsvetaeva -- born in 1892 -- lived a life of such intense tragedy, that her poems provide Shostakovich with a built-in template for his greatest theme -- suffering.

 

She lived through the Revolution and the subsequent famine, but placed her daughter in a state orphanage in 1919, where the girl starved to death.

 

She left Russia in '22, moving about Europe; Paris-Berlin-Prague until moving back to Moscow in '39. Then her husband and daughter were arrested on espionage charges; her husband was executed.

 

Two years later, Tsvetaeva committed suicide.

 

**

 

 

1. My Poems

 

To my poems, written so early that I didn't
even know then that I was a poet;
that took flight, like spray from a fountain,
like sparks from a rocket;
that burst in, like little devils, into a temple
filled with sleep and incense . . .
to my poems of youth and death --
unread poems! --
carelessly scattered in the dust of shops
(where no one has ever bought them!) . . .
To my poems, as to previous wines,
their time will come!

 

 

2. Such tenderness

 

Where does such tenderness come from?
These are not the first curls
I have stroked, and lips
I have known that were darker than yours.
Stars have shone and dimmed again
(where does this tenderness come from?)
eyes have shone and dimmed again
so close to my own eyes.
Songs that were greater than this
have I heard in the darkness of the night
(where does this tenderness come from?)
on the very breast of the singer.
Where does this tenderness come from?
And what to do with it, sly
boy, passing stranger,
with those eyelashes (how long they are!)?

 

3. Hamlet's dialogue with his conscience

 

She's at the bottom
in the mud and weeds . . .
She sought sleep there,
but there's no sleep there either!
    But I loved her;
    forty thousand brothers
    could not make up my sum!
Hamlet!
She's at the bottom, in the mud:
the mud! . . .
And the last wreath has floated
up past the logs on the river bank . . .
    But I loved her;
    forty thousand brothers . . .
Less,
though, than a single lover.
She's at the bottom, in the mud.
    But I loved her . . . 

 

 

4. The Poet and the Tsar

 

In the unearthly,
hall of the Tsars:
who's this proud one
carved in marble?
So magnificent,
adorned with gold?
The wretched gendarme
Of Pushkin's glory.
He harrassed the writer,
clipped the manuscript.
The land of Poland
he butchered like an animal.
Take a good look!
Don't forget!
The poet-killer
Tsar Nicholas the First!

 

 

5. No, the drum beat

No, the drum beat
before the grieving troops,
when we buried our leader;
like the teeth of the Tsar
over the dead poet
drumming the roll of honour.
Such great honour
that for his closest friends
there's no room. At his head, his feet,
to right and to left --
arms down their seams --
the chests and ugly mugs of the police.
Isn't it strange --
even on the quietest of beds
to be supervised like a naughty little boy?
Whatever, whatever, whatever
could surpass such honour.
This honour's too much!
"Look my country," he cries:
"how despite what they say,
the monarch prizes the poet!"
With honours -- honours -- honours --
supreme honours -- honours --
to hell with it!
Who, then -- like thieves with a crony
who's been shot -- did they carry out?
Some traitor? No. From the courtyard
they carried the wisest man in Russia.

 

6. To Anna Akhmatova

O muse of weeping,
the most beautiful of muses!
O wild fiend of the white night!
You spread a black blizzard over Russia,
and your howling pierces us like arrows.
And we shy away, and a hollow whisper
a hundred thousand-fold -- swears to you.
Anna Akhmatova!
This name is a great sigh,
falling into a nameless depth.
We are crowned by this --
that we tread the same earth as you,
that the sky above us is the same!
And he who has been wounded by your
mortal fate departs already immortal
to his deathbed.
The domes burn in my singing city,
and the blind wanderer
praises the Holy Saviour . . .
And I make a gift to you of my city of bells,
Akhmatova! And of my heart as well.

But Not For Me [by Lewis Saul]

VARIOUS ARTISTS

But Not For Me

Ten versions

 

The Gershwins' musical -- Girl Crazy -- opened in 1930, starring Ethel Merman and Ginger Rogers (overnight stardom). It takes place in Custerville, Arizona. (As an Arizonan, I can guarantee you there is no such place.)

The 1943 film starred Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland.

A standard 16-bar form, but notice how George uses diminished seventh chords, creating a short uncertainty:

 

Some take it slow
Some take it fast
But all this music's
From a glorious past

1. Judy Garland (1943)
(2:26)

2. Chet Baker (1954)
CB, trumpet, vocal
Russ Freeman, piano, celesta
Carson Smith, bass
James Bond, bass
Bab Neel, drums
Lawrence Marable, drums
Peter Littman, drums
(3:04)

3. Modern Jazz Quartet (1956)
Milt Jackson, vibraphone
John Lewis, piano
Percy Heath, bass
Kenny Clarke, drums
(3:43)

4. Red Garland (1957)
RG, piano
Paul Chambers, bass
Arthur Taylor, drums
(5:51)

5. Miles Davis (1957)
MD, trumpet
Sonny Rollins, tenor saxophone
Horace Silver, piano
Percy Heath, bass
Kenny Clarke, drums
(5:43)

6. Ella Fitzgerald (1959)
EF, vocal
Strings
(3:34)

7. John Coltrane (1961)
JC, tenor saxophone
McCoy Tyner, piano
Steve Davis, bass
Elvin Jones, drums
(9:36)

8. Frank Sinatra (1980)
(3:52)

9. Linda Ronstadt (1986)
LR, vocals
Don Grolnick, piano
Plas Johnson, tenor saxophone
Bob Mann, guitar
Bob Magnusson, bass
John Guerin, drums
(5:27)

10. Diana Krall (2018)
DK, vocals
Bill Charlap, piano
Peter Washington, bass
Kenny Washington, drums
(3:07)

Terry Riley [by Lewis Saul]

Gawd, I detest fit-me-into-a-shoebox musical terminology.

Baroque. If it's not baroque, don't fix it.

Classical. Classical music. But from 1750-1830, when forms such as the symphony, concerto and sonata were developed, someone decided it needed a name. Stalin would have called it formalism. People were executed for practicing it.

Romantic. Generally thought of as everything after 1804 -- when Beethoven's Third Symphony ("Eroica") came into our universe.

Late Romantic. Schmaltz (Except for Mahler) ...

20th century. Richard Strauss died in 1949. Show me some of his "20th century music"!

**

Of course, I know we need words to describe things -- but music is universal and often refuses to shoehorn into labels.

Wikipedia:

Minimal music (also called minimalism) is a form of art music or other compositional practice that employs limited or minimal musical materials. Prominent features of minimalist music include repetitive patterns or pulses, steady drones, consonant harmony, and reiteration of musical phrases or smaller units. It may include features such as phase shifting, resulting in what is termed phase music, or process techniques that follow strict rules, usually described as process music. The approach is marked by a non-narrative, non-teleological, and non-representational approach, and calls attention to the activity of listening by focusing on the internal processes of the music.

employs limited or minimal musical materials

In the first movement Beethoven's Fifth, he breaks down that famous four-note theme (or motif) into a single note. Minimalism.

repetitive patterns or pulses, steady drones, consonant harmony, and reiteration of musical phrases or smaller units

 

Beethoven again -- apparently a minimalist.

process techniques

 

What the hell does that mean? All music involves "processing technique."

 

**

So, today let's listen to two very different works by the composer Terry Riley (b. 1935) -- each written between 1968 and 1969.

In C (1968)

 

Technically, in the key of C, Riley adds a foreign F-Sharp (#14) and B-Flat (#35).

A pulse is activated by playing the highest octave of C's on a piano. Any group of instruments, then begins playing each numbered phrase -- maintaining the rhythm of the pulse.

It is up to each player to decide when to move on to the next section. This result is an amazing mélange of aleatoric glorious sound.

 

 

 

A Rainbow in Curved Air (1969)

 

In this piece, Riley uses tape-loops to overlay different phrases on an organ and soprano saxophone. The result is a hypnotic work of almost indescribable beauty.

The back of the LP contained a poem Riley wrote which you should read before listening:

And then all wars ended
Arms of every kind were outlawed and the masses gladly contributed them to giant foundries in which they were melted down and the metal poured back into the earth

The Pentagon was turned on its side and painted purple, yellow & green
All boundaries were dissolved
The slaughter of animals was forbidden
The whole of Lower Manhattan became a meadow in which unfortunates from the Bowery were allowed to live out their fantasies in the sunshine and were cured
People swam in the sparkling rivers under blue skies streaked only with incense pouring from the new factories
The energy from dismantled nuclear weapons provided free heat and light
World health was restored
An abundance of organic vegetables, fruits and grains was growing wild along the discarded highways
National flags were sewn together into brightly colored circus tents under which politicians were allowed to perform harmless theatrical games
The concept of work was forgotten

 

Béla Bartók [by Lewis Saul]

Béla Viktor János Bartók was born in the Banatian town of Nagyszentmiklós in the Kingdom of Hungary (present-day Sânnicolau Mare, Romania) on March 25, 1881.

By age four, he was able to play the piano fairly well. In 1888 -- he was seven -- his father died suddenly. Mom took Béla and his sister, Erzsébet, to live in Nagyszőkős (present-day Vynohradiv, Ukraine) then Pressburg (Pozsony, present-day Bratislava, Slovakia). There -- age 11 -- he gave his first public recital, playing a short composition entitled The Course of the Danube.

He began serious piano study at the Royal Academy of Music in Budapest with István Thomán, a former student of Liszt. There he met Zoltán Kodály, who became his lifelong friend and colleague.

In 1903 -- after hearing Strauss's Also Sprach Zarathustra and Ein Heldenleben -- he composed his own tone poem, Kossuth -- a magnificent work from the 22-year-old composer:

 

Ethnomusicology

In 1908, he and Kodály traveled into the countryside to collect, research and record old Magyar folk melodies.

Muzsikás has recorded many of these folk tunes. This one is a Chassid wedding song:

 

 

He began incorporating these discoveries into his own compositions. The Romanian Folk Dances for violin and piano is a good example:

 

After some disasters, like the rejection of his only opera -- Bluebeard's Castle (1911) -- and the ballet The Miraculous Mandarin (1918- ), not performed until 1926 because of its sexual content -- by the late 20's, Bartók really come into his own. Tackling the thorny string quartet milieu, 1927-28 ushered in a great development in the history of music. Not since the late Beethoven quartets, had the form seen such radical innovations.

Using unusual string techniques -- sul ponticello, a new type of pizzicato ("snap"), massive glissandi -- sometimes going in all four instruments -- the Third, Fourth and Fifth string quartets are unqualified masterpieces.

He also developed a new kind of form -- the arch. In the Fourth Quartet, the first and fifth movements, and the second and fourth, have similar relationships; while the middle movement can be roughly divided in two, thus creating a kind of arch form when viewing the work as a whole.

1. The first movement revolves around a six-note chromatic motif that is chased around by the four players, a whirling dance which will come to its ultimate fruition in the parallel fifth movement.
2. All four strings are muted, and in a bat-out-of-hell tempo, the music dances and flutters madly. This is extremely difficult music.
3. The pace comes to a near standstill. First the cello, and then (at the approximate half-way point) the violin play a jittery motif on top of held chords.
4. Like the second, this movement is certainly unusual. The players put down their bows, because the entire movement is played pizzicato.
5. A rugged Hungarian dance, which erupts with passion and energy.

This is the Leonkoro Quartet playing the Fourth:

 

During the Nazi era, he stuck around as long as he dared. First sending his manuscripts out of the country, he reluctantly emigrated to the U.S., settling in New York in 1940.

Although well known as a pianist and ethnomusicologist, his compositions were not well known in America.

Contrary to popular myth, Bartók did not die in poverty. Although his finances were always precarious, he had friends and supporters who generously gave him enough to live on -- but he was a proud man, and did not easily accept charity.

In the five years before his death in 1945, he became a very sick man. Leukemia went undiagnosed until April of 1944.

As his body slowly failed, his creative energy somehow increased. The masterpieces he composed in these years include The Sixth String Quartet, The Third Piano Concerto -- and most of all, the Concerto for Orchestra -- a magnificent, uplifting work -- a staple of the orchestral repertoire today.

 

A curious little moment in the fourth movement:

Bartók quotes a recent quote from an much earlier quote:

The original is from Franz Lehár's The Merry Widow (1905) (said to be Hitler's favorite operetta).

 

Hear that here.

 

Now here's the pertinent part of the Shostakovich "invasion" theme from the first movement of his Seventh Symphony (1942):

 

And now, the Bartók quote, played on a sardonic clarinet:

 

 

Following this he writes harsh, trilling sounds, descending jokey clarinet quintuplets, and restates the theme with added little funny details -- like smeary trombone glissandi -- then restates and permutates them with even more humor ...

 

Sadly, we'll probably never know what Bartók really had in mind. Was he quoting Shostakovich or Lehár? It sounds like he's sticking his tongue out at one or the other? Was it a dying gasp at Hitler?

 

Or was it -- more probably -- a tongue-in-cheek response to the Shostakovich theme (which goes for an eternity), and which was played on the radio endlessly during the later years of the war?

Alphabet Soup [by Lewis Saul]

For is tolerance weirdness what your?

Alphabet do like the you?

 

If you don't have a headache from my scrambled sentences, maybe you're ready for something a little stiffer.

**

Of Oz The Wizard

 

In 2001, Matt Bucy was challenged by a friend to agree that nothing original was possible. (Sheesh, my head hurts already.)

Matt disagreed and the idea of Of Oz The Wizard was born.

"Basically it was edited in Excel."

What makes Of Oz particularly special in my opinion is Bucy's editing; as soon a word is said or sung, the scene continues until the next word.

Thus, words like and, is, of, and the -- which are obviously plentiful, but are followed by a new repetition of the word in fractions of a second -- resulting in a dazzling Stockhausen-like blur of pure sound. (The words are all sorted in the film's chronological order).

On the other hand, if a word is said or sung -- and there is no more dialogue for awhile -- the pace reverts to "normal" mode; for instance, after Dorothy takes shelter in the farmhouse and says, Oh to Toto, we get to watch Dorothy open the door to Munchkinland and observe a beautiful lateral traveling shot.

Thank you, Ted, for introducing this wonderful weirdness to me.

[Someone applied the same concept for Star Wars, less successful, imo.]

 

**

 

Zorns Lemma (1970)

 

 

Hollis Frampton (1936-1984) was an avant-garde filmmaker, who was friends with poet Ezra Pound, painter Frank Stella, and sculptor Carl Andre.

Zorns Lemma is a significant piece of experimental cinema. It is in three parts:

1. Joyce Wieland reads a Bay State Primer, a puritan work for children to learn the alphabet. ("In Adam's fall, we sinned all") ...
2. A twenty-four letter alphabet (I and U are omitted) is used; Frampton photographed all different types of signage to represent the letters -- they flash on the screen for exactly one second, and then loop back ... gradually, the word stills are replaced by an active film shot, such as washing hands, or peeling a tangerine, until their are only moving images. It is a hypnotic experience ...
3. A couple is walking across a snowy meadow. Six women are reading one word at a time from Theory of Light.

Some interpret Zorns as a comment on life's stages -- the Primer being childhood, the long alphabet section representing maturation and interaction with the world, and the third section representing old age and death.

Solo Percussion [by Lewis Saul]

I was 11 or 12 and my quality time with my father was Sunday afternoons at the Pittsburgh Symphony with William Steinberg in the old Syria Mosque:

I was already deep into classical music, and I can still remember the intense joy I felt in communing with Dad about the only thing that mattered to me at that time.

One concert, Dad was perusing the program and stopped at the symphony roster and pointed to a name under Percussion -- Eddie Myers -- and said that he was a cousin. As the orchestra prepared to play something with a lot of percussion (it might have been Rimsky-Korsakov's Scheherazade), he pointed him out to me -- he was playing the triangle.

At Intermission, we would go into the smoking lounge and he'd order a scotch and I'd have a Coke. We were discussing the music, and Dad said something like:

"Gee, that Eddie sure has it easy. He gets paid just to bang on that little triangle ... anyone could do that!"

 

Now I didn't normally "talk back" to my father -- but with a trace of outrage in my voice, I told him that percussionists were great musicians, who studied just as hard as a violinist ... he seemed unpersuaded, so by the time we got home, I had a plan:

I was really into Stockhausen (whom I wrote about here recently) and I pulled out my score and record to Zyklus (I wish we had had YouTube back then):

 

He was amazed (and had such a wonderful open mind about new music) ... we talked about how percussionists have to learn more than just one instrument -- they must master dozens or even hundreds of different types of drums, cymbals -- not to mention all the mallet instruments (xylophone, marimba, glockenspiel).

 

Ultimately, he complimented me for teaching him a lesson about glibness!

**

Fast-forward to me being a dad.

My violinist daughter married a percussionist -- and he is as badass a musician as I've ever known! We talk music together and our conversations are always magically inspirational!

So speaking of solo percussion pieces, I recently came across a young composer -- Rebecca Saunders -- who wrote this piece for solo percussion called Dust.

I hope you enjoy it as much as I do. Performed by Rebecca Lloyd-Jones:

Bach [by Lewis Saul]

Today, I'm here to talk about my favorite Bach ensemble -- The Netherlands Bach Society and their "All of Bach" project -- particularly Bach's long-form works.

The St. Matthew Passion (2:44:31) is at the top of the list for me. 164 minutes may seem like a long time, but the music is so sublime, the time just flies by. At the bottom of the above link is another link that says "into the weeds with me," which will take you to my first post here -- 13 years ago -- where I compare and contrast five different recordings of the Passion.

Equally demanding is the great Mass in B Minor (1:48:42).

 

**

Less demanding are the 250 cantatas (index). They average 20-30 minutes in length, and demonstrate Bach's consistently fabulous part-writing. The first 200 or so are sacred, and the rest secular (wedding, hunting -- even tax collectors [#212]).

But today, I'll speak of the magnificent Magnificat from 1733, a mere 28 minutes long. Click on the Luke links to see the English translation of each movement.

Magnificat, BWV 243 (1733)
1. Magnificat anima mea Dominum
2. Et exultavit spiritus meus in Deo salutari mea
3. Quia respexit humilitatem ancillae suae ecce enim ex hoc beatam me dicent
4. omnes generationes
5. Quia fecit mihi magna qui potens est et sanctum nomen ejus
6. Et misericordia ejus a progenie in progenies timentibus eum
7. Fecit potentiam in brachio suo dispersit superbos mente cordis sui
8. Deposuit potentes de sede et exaltavit humiles
9. Esurientes implevit bonis et divites dimisit inanes
10. Suscepit Israel puerum suum recordatus misericordiae suae
11. Sicut locutus est ad patres nostros Abraham et semini ejus in saecula
12. Gloria Patri, et Filio et Spiritui Sancto. Sicut erat in principio, et nunc, et semper et in saecula saeculorum. Amen.
Netherlands Bach Society
Jos van Veldhoven, cond.
(28:29)

 

 

 

 

In 1723, after taking up his post as Thomaskantor in Leipzig, Bach set this text in 12 movements for Christmas in the key of E-Flat Major.

A decade later, Bach revised the work, dropping the Christmas hymns, altering or expanding some instrumentation, and changing the key to D Major for the trumpets -- their natural key. The probable date for the first performance of this version was July 2, 1733, for the feast day of Visitation (although some scholars believe it wasn't until the following Christmas). That year there had been a period of mourning (February to June) after the death of Augustus the Strong, during which no concerted music was allowed in the churches.

 

The choir is in five voices: SSATB.

 

The arch symmetry is magical:

• Mvmnts 1/2 & 11/12 in tonic
• Mvmnts 3 & 10 in relative minor
• Mvmnts 5 & 9 in major keys other than D
• Mvmnts 6 & 8 minor key
• Mvmnt 7 tonic

1. Magnificat anima mea Dominum
Luke 1:46

2. Et exultavit spiritus meus in Deo salutari mea

Luke 1:47

 

All arias are non-da capo. This is sung by Soprano II, with string accompaniment, continuing the joyful feeling of the opening.

 

3. Quia respexit humilitatem ancillae suae ecce enim ex hoc beatam me dicent

Luke 1:48

 

Soprano I -- accompanied only by an oboe d'amore and continuo -- sings this magnificent aria. Spitta:

 

"Scarcely ever has the idea of virgin purity, simplicity, and humble happiness found more perfect expression than in this picture of the Madonna, translated, as it were, into musical language."

 

4. omnes generationes

 

The completion of the sentence (all generations) is given to the chorus.

 

5. Quia fecit mihi magna qui potens est et sanctum nomen ejus
Luke 1:49

 

This short aria for bass is accompanied only by the continuo.

 

6. Et misericordia ejus a progenie in progenies timentibus eum

Luke 1:50

 

This exquisite duet (alto/tenor) is accompanied by muted strings and flute doubling, in a gentle 12/8 ... the vocalists frequently pause for instrumental sections.

7. Fecit potentiam in brachio suo dispersit superbos mente cordis sui
Luke 1:51

 

He shows Strength! All five voices repeat a melisma on the word potentiam, from tenor, alto, soprano II, bass and soprano I. The conclusion (mente cordis sui) is adagio, illustrated by long chords, with trumpet accents.

 

8. Deposuit potentes de sede et exaltavit humiles
Luke 1:52

 

Tenor aria accompanied by unisono violins and continuo only.

 

9. Esurientes implevit bonis et divites dimisit inanes
Luke 1:53

 

Alto aria, accompanied by two flutes and continuo. Stretch out your imagination and you can almost hear a jazz bass player, as the continuo plucks out notes in a steady on-the-beat rhythm! The flutes decorate the alto with compassionate word-painting (he has filled the hungry with good things) ...

10. Suscepit Israel puerum suum recordatus misericordiae suae
Luke 1:54

 

Here, Bach shows his mastery of composing just the right amount of orchestration -- this is a trio for the two soprani and alto, accompanied only by an oboe and a continuo of only cello.

What is of primary interest here is the oboe part, which is a cantus firmus of Luther's German translation of the Magnificat: Meine Seele erhebt den Herren (My soul exalts the Lord) -- from the original plainchant in the Aeolian mode (today's minor scale). Note how the chant starts on F-Sharp (dominant) and ends on B (tonic):

 

11. Sicut locutus est ad patres nostros Abraham et semini ejus in saecula
Luke 1:55

 

All five voices enter in a fugato from bottom to top. The complex part-writing is typical of Bach's genius in weaving the main motif in and out of a flowing accompaniment that is musical perfection.

 

12. Gloria Patri, et Filio et Spiritui Sancto. Sicut erat in principio, et nunc, et semper et in saecula saeculorum. Amen.
Doxology

 

The complete ensemble concludes the work with a glorious fugato and then -- changing to a 3/4 meter, the second part of the text (Sicut erat ...) repeats material from the opening movement.

Jacob Collier [by Lewis Saul]

On August 2 1994, in North London, Suzie Collier -- a violinist, conductor, and professor at the Royal Academy of Music -- gave birth to a boy, Jacob.

To compare this genius of the 21st century to Bach or Beethoven might seem like a fanboy exaggeration or even blasphemy -- but I do so without hesitation.

Suzie gave her son a room in their home, where he was given free rein to develop his talent. In 2011 -- aged 16 -- Jacob recorded himself in multiples, doing a cover of Pure Imagination from Willy Wonka:

 

Two years later came this cover of Stevie Wonder's Don't You Worry 'Bout a Thing:

 

 

Here you can see that this teenager has taught himself to play many different instruments with astonishing fluency.

In 2016, he released his debut album, In My Room. Here's the Flintstones:

 

In an imaginative idea, JC encouraged fans to send in short clips of them singing something -- which he then would harmonize/orchestrate. This is Volume I (20 songs) of his "IHarmU" series ...

In 2018, JC announced a sprawling project of 50 new songs, divided into four volumes, titled Djesse. To date, he has completed three volumes:

Djesse Vol. 1 -- a Lionel Richie cover All Night Long:

 

 

Djesse Vol. 2 -- Lua. Look for his mother, playing second violin!

 

And Moon River.

The video begins with JC admirers (did you spot David Crosby?) singing notes which form an F dominant seventh chord, which will finally resolve to the opening key of B-Flat Major.

Notice there are no instruments other than Jacob's voice (look for a JC holding a guitar, but putting it aside) ...

There is a good reason for this -- Jacob is using microtonal harmonies and just intonation throughout.

 

 

This transcription by June Lee, shows where he modulates to microtonal keys.

 

 

And this guy explains it to you:

 

 

Finally, from Djesse Vol. 3 -- Sleeping On My Dreams:

Czeching 1, 2, 3, 4 ... [by Lewis Saul]

Four Czech New Wave films

Invention for Destruction (1958)

Karel Zeman (1910-1989). A master of stop-motion animation, he based the film on the Jules Verne patriotic novel Facing the Flag. Using miniature effects and matte paintings, his real-life actors had to act in an unusual stylized manner to match the animation.

Loves of a Blonde (1965)

You probably know Miloš Forman (1932-2018) from his Hollywood work, including One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and Amadeus.

This is his second major film [after Black Peter (1964)]. The Communists were not pleased, but since it won a top prize at a film festival, they allowed him more freedom, and this film explores subject matter that must have made a few heads explode (the Communists don't come off well) ...

 

Closely Watched Trains (1966)

Jiří Menzel (1938-2020) had the gift of portraying startling humanism with a bit of satire and cutting-edge cinematography. This film is funny and sad, beautiful and dark -- but always keeps your attention. The Hollywood Code wouldn't have permitted the medical problem of the male lead, Milos (Václav Neckár) whose object of desire is the beautiful Mása (Jitka Skoffin).

 

Marketa Lazarová (1967)

František Vláčil (1924-1999) spent six years making Marketa. Set in the 13th century, the outer framework of the film concerns the friction between paganism and Christianity. The plot is extremely difficult to grasp in one viewing, and therefore repeating viewings are satisfying (Marketa was voted the best Czech film of all time in a 1998 poll).

Magda Vásáryová is extraordinary in a severely demanding role. This film will confuse you, which is a good thing.

 

P.S. American, but so Czech-related:

I Am Trying to Understand -- by Lynn Saul

 

2017

 

My big sister, Lynn, passed away in 2019. I think about her every day.

She was a lawyer, but gave it up to become a poet. This one's about our great-aunt, Annie.

I Am Trying to Understand (1997)

 

I am trying to understand a woman
who chose handmade lingerie
over America
who returned to her husband
to a place where their son
would be shot

Whose hand sewed the yellow star
onto her coat?

I am trying to understand how, four years after
they returned from the camp
a man and a woman are smiling at the lake
they are there with her cousin and their friends
Seven people
enjoying their vacation

What have the healing waters at Héviz
been able to wash away?

I am trying to understand
what a woman who has lost her son can think
when she plants four-o-clocks and daisies
in her garden
where they once sat, reading

I am trying to understand how a woman like that
can plant any garden at all
how she could tend her grapevines

The Communists allowed them one room in their house
that had been a wedding present from their father
the house confiscated in 1944
"Jewish owner: title cleared"
Which room did they receive?
Had anyone kept
the lace cloths, the crocheted bedspread?
I am trying to understand --
Did she want them back?

I am trying to understand
how they told her that her son was dead
Did it happen at his school?
Were they taken to the camps the same day,
or the next?

I am trying to understand
why I am standing in Annie's courtyard
Why I bend down to smell the tarragon
and chervil growing among rocks
Why I photograph bunches of fat grapes
Why I think this could be mine

 

-- Lynn Saul

MACKENDRICK: Sweet Smell of Success (1957) [by Lewis Saul]

 

Alexander Mackendrick

Sidney Falco (Tony Curtis), a press agent, is pissed. J. J. Hunsecker (Burt Lancaster) has been shutting his gossip out of his famous newspaper column for days now — all because Falco has somehow failed to break up a relationship between Hunsecker’s sister, Susan (Susan Harrison) and a guitar player in Chico Hamilton’s quintet, Steve Dallas (Martin Milner).

 

Falco’s secretary, Sally (Jeff Donnell) is trying to be sympathetic to her boss’s problems:

 

SALLY

 

Why does Mr. Hunsecker want to squeeze your livelihood away? What do you stand for that kind of treatment for?

 

SIDNEY

 

He’s punishing me. His kid sister’s having a romance with some guitar player. He asked me to break it up. I thought I did, but maybe I didn’t. Now I gotta go find out. And Hunsecker’s the golden ladder to the places I wanna get.

 

SALLY

 

Sidney, you make a living. Where do you want to get?

 

SIDNEY

 

Way up high, Sam, where it’s always balmy. Where no one snaps his fingers and says, “Hey, shrimp, rack the balls” ... or “Hey, mouse, go out and buy me a pack of butts.” I don’t want tips from the kitty. I’m in the big game with the big players. My experience I can give you in a nutshell ... and I didn’t dream it in a dream either: Dog eat dog. In brief, from now on the best of everything is good enough for me.

 

This early example of the film’s crackling dialogue is typical. Later, Falco and Hunsecker have a conversation after things have turned upside down with the saga of Susie and Steve:

 

SIDNEY

 

I got that boy coming over here today.

 

J. J.

 

If I can trust my eyes — and I think I can — Susie knows all about your dirty work.

 

SIDNEY

 

Can’t hurt.

 

J. J.

 

Can’t hurt? I had to get that boy his job back.

 

SIDNEY

 

Look, J.J. ... we can tie this off into one neat bundle; address it to the dumps, to oblivion. We’re doing great, but please do it my way. I’ve cased this kid. I know his ins and outs. He’s full of juice and vinegar, just waiting for a big shot like you to put on the squeeze. You got the boy his job back — okay. But he’s not gonna accept your favor. The manager, yeah, but not that boy.

 

J. J.

 

What has this boy got that Susie likes?

 

SIDNEY

 

Integrity. Acute, like indigestion.

 

J. J.

 

What does this mean, “integrity?”

 

SIDNEY

 

A pocketful of firecrackers waitin’ for a match. You know, it’s a new wrinkle. To tell you the truth, I never thought I’d make a killing on some guy’s integrity.

 

J. J.

 

I’d hate to take a bite out of you. You’re a cookie full of arsenic.

 

At 1:04:30, a scene between five people (Frank D’Angelo [Sam Levene], Steve, Susie, J. J. and Falco); cinematographer James Wong Howe is magnificent here; everyone is perfectly blocked and framed and at one point, Falco and J. J. move and the camera dollies to frame them perfectly.

 

In the exteriors, gritty Broadway — filmed mostly at night — never looked better.

 

Howe was one of the greats. He shot his first film, Drums of Fate (1923) at age 24 and his last, Funny Lady (1975) at age 76.

**

Chico Hamilton's jazzy score is the spice that makes Mackendrick's mise-en-scène that much tastier.

The producers actually followed Chico's band around for weeks, making sure no one was smoking marijuana. They weren't taking any chances.

 

**

 

Near the end of the film, Falco is toasting his success:

 

SIDNEY

 

Gentlemen, I’m toasting my favorite new perfume. Success.

 

What’s that we’re smelling?

 

Shostakovich: Tahiti Trot [by Lewis Saul]

SHOSTAKOVICH, Dmitri (1906-1975)

Tahiti Trot (1928)
Staatsoper Berlin
Daniel Barenboim, cond.
(4:08)

Vincent Youmans composed Tea for Two for his musical No, No, Nanette in 1927.

 

Shostakovich and his friend, the conductor Nicolai Malko, recalled hearing the tune in '27 at the Meyerhold Theatre in Moscow in a play called Roar, China. In one of the scenes some Americans on a ship are dancing to the tune, which Malko recalled as being named Tahiti Trot. (It was -- of course -- Tea for Two.)

At some point before October, Malko jokingly suggested to Shostakovich that he should orchestrate Tea for Two and proposed a bet:

"If you, Mitenka, are as brilliant as they all say, then please go into the next room, write that song down from memory, orchestrate it, and I will play it. I will give you an hour to do this."

 

It only took Dmitri 45 minutes, and he dedicated the score to Malko as a "token of his best feelings."

The premiere at the Moscow Conservatory was on November 25, 1928. Then came the problems.

The Central Committee of the CPSU, People's Commissar of Education Anatol Lunacharsky said that no task was more urgent for Soviet culture than to rebuke the "aggressive, jazzy syncopations of the foxtrot."

 

"The bourgeoisie would like man to live not so much by his head as by his sexual organs. The fundamental element of the foxtrot derives from mechanization, suppressed eroticism, and a desire to deaden feeling through drugs. We do not need that kind of music."

Just-Say-No Anatol

 

By 1930, Shostakovich was furiously spinning his wheels repudiating the stupid thing. Letting Malko perform it had been a "political mistake." He had meant it as a movement for The Golden Age (1930, not likely) -- a satirical take on such music (it was censored anyways), and he kinda blamed Malko for the fiasco. [Nobody ever said Dmitri was perfect!]

The score was withdrawn and quickly forgotten until Gennady Rozhdestvensky  reconstructed it in 1984.