Pierre Boulez (1925-2016)

[Mirror Image]

Nobody has seen the documentary I posted a cover of above?

[vers la flamme]

Nobody has seen the documentary I posted a cover of above?

I haven't, but I see it's on youtube. Will have to check it out.

[Mirror Image]

I haven't, but I see it's on youtube. Will have to check it out.

Very cool. I didn't even realize it was on YouTube, but I'm glad I bought the DVD. Still need to get around to those Juxtaposition documentaries.

[petrarch]

Nobody has seen the documentary I posted a cover of above?

I have it and it is worthwhile watching for the infectious enthusiasm he clearly has for music, particularly the warm thoughtfulness towards students and musicians.

The most comprehensive set of documentaries is the Boulez XXe siècle 6-episode series, details of which you can find at https://medias.ircam.fr/x338e91 (a couple of episodes are on YT, but they appear to have been captured from Spanish TV). I saw them when they were originally broadcast and some years ago that page @ IRCAM actually allowed streaming, and I dutifully downloaded them all (happy to upload them somewhere if you are interested).

[Mirror Image]

I have it and it is worthwhile watching for the infectious enthusiasm he clearly has for music, particularly the warm thoughtfulness towards students and musicians.

One thing I've noticed about Boulez and the musicians he has worked through years is their positive experience with him. Rattle said he was amongst the most humble and kindest of musicians he's ever known --- he mentioned that he spent an hour and half going through a piece with him (I believe the work in question was Le Marteau sans maître). Kind of a fitting for someone who was deemed an 'enfant terrible' early on. I've come to the conclusion that Boulez had a right to his own opinions (even if not all of them I agreed with), but, make no mistake, he knew music inside out and consistently demonstrated this throughout his entire career. I'd love to read some of the books analyzing his own music (and there are some good ones out there), but I'm afraid my little pea brain couldn't even fathom what is being taught.

[petrarch]

One thing I've noticed about Boulez and the musicians he has worked through years is their positive experience with him. Rattle said he was amongst the most humble and kindest of musicians he's ever known --- he mentioned that he spent an hour and half going through a piece with him. Kind of a fitting for someone who was deemed an 'enfant terrible' early on. I've come to conclusion that Boulez had a right to his own opinions (even if not all of them I agreed with), but, make no mistake, he knew inside out and consistently demonstrated this throughout his entire career. I'd love to read some of the books analyzing his own music (and there are some good ones out there), but I'm afraid my little pea brain couldn't even fathom what is being taught.

Indeed, there is plenty of anecdotal evidence of students and professionals with very warm and positive memories of Boulez. Here's one I preserved:

On Jan 6, 2016, at 7:22 PM, Clovis Lark <Clovis@usuo.org> wrote:

Pierre Boulez "Mémoriale"

I first met Pierre Boulez in 1976.  Although I had read of this man as being aloof, icy and difficult, I was immediately aware of someone quite different: warm, genuinely caring and always willing to lend his help when asked. In 1986, there was his offering of an IRCAM job to a computer programming friend of mine in need, who approached him after a concert of Répons in New York. Later, when I found myself without enough clout on my resume, he sent a handwritten letter of "to whom...", accompanied by another letter of apology for having allowed 3 weeks to pass before responding.  He loved hearing from old acquaintances, curious to know of their lives and quick to offer his hospitality should they be able to visit him, whether in Salzburg, Chicago or Cleveland. I have a note offering to show me around Lucerne and his Academy which, sadly, I was unable to accommodate. Similarly, he excitedly offered to show me all the antiquated stage machinery in Bayreuth, should I be there during his residency.  Whenever our paths crossed in Cleveland, New York or Chicago, he always carved out time to visit and share ideas.

While many aspects of Boulez's life were quite private, his persona never appeared standoffish.  Rehearsals were always open, and he made himself readily available during breaks to both players and guests. The aura of austere detachment cultivated by critics and audiences in their observations of his concert demeanor, was contradicted by the good nature and respect for players exhibited in rehearsal where he was quick to break potential tension with a short quip.  At break he would stand at the podium until all players who might have questions had an opportunity to consult with him. Often, he was the last off the stage. Once in his dressing room, the topics could range as far as the appropriateness of "préservatif" commercials on French prime time news to discussions of minutiae in the next week's program. And always his mind was alert and ready to discuss any piece of music, just as long as it wasn't Shostakovich!

He took the ups and downs in life with good humor as well. Arrested in Basel as a terrorist to the outrage of his secretaries, he recounted the incident with humor and laughter. Similarly, when his tiny pen knife was confiscated in O'Hare, his annoyance was tinged with a twinkle in his eye as he imagined their shock when he returned and demanded it back (he never did get its return).  In Ojai, he and his valet, Hans, stood for several minutes watching a crow perched atop a portable toilet, talking animatedly. Hans said the discussion was a about a bird they had once seen at the seaside, taking clams in its beak and dropping them from on high to break the shells.

There was an aura, one he clearly cultivated for a time, of a lack of respect for the past.  But, in reality, nothing could be further from the truth.  For Boulez, history was incredibly important.  It was tradition that he couldn't stand.  He called it a "bad game of 'Telephone'" where a past reality is progressively distorted through various incarnations until it is so mangled as to be unrecognizable.  But history was another matter.  After the composer Arnold Schoenberg died, Boulez notoriously wrote "Schoenberg is Dead". While the essay clearly does not skimp on Boulez's impatience for some of Schoenberg's compositional habits, it is clearly written out of a deep respect for Schoenberg's achievements which Boulez followed with a lifetime of beautifully crafted performances.  When UCLA decided to rename Schoenberg Hall for Moe Austin (honoring a large donation), Boulez was one of the first people I contacted to help in the successful fight to retain Schoenberg's name.  He even retracted his article's title when he was asked in New York after a presentation of Schoenberg's Op. 29 Suite whether he thought "Schoenberg was still dead?"  "No. But he needs strong medicine!"

Where Boulez was clearly and authentically dismissive was with regard to the future, especially when asked about his legacy and what future music would be like.  He was resolute in letting others learn and perform his music without his interference.  Regarding the future, he mentioned futuristic picture postcards that were for sale in Paris around 1900.  In them, all the buildings had hot air balloons tethered to the roofs, as that was what people imagined the future would bring.  Nobody had any concept of something like an airplane!  The vision of the future was entirely based upon the present and past experience.

This is the Pierre Boulez I knew. He was a formidable composer, with a formidable firmness of mind, and also a formidable conductor, "out of necessity", as he told me (circumstances forcing him to learn the trade to get Le Marteau sans maître performed). But without the character I knew, all that achievement would have been hollow.

Sent from my iPhone

[ritter]

Very nice memories of Boulez those by Clovis Lark you posted, petrach. 

John, that Lucerne documentary is certainly worthwhile. I very much enjoyed it when it first came out on DVD.

[Mirror Image]

Thanks for the post, petrach.

Very nice memories of Boulez those by Clovis Lark you posted, petrach. 

John, that Lucerne documentary is certainly worthwhile. I very much enjoyed it when it first came out on DVD.

Very good to read, Rafael and good day to you, good sir.

[petrarch]

Here's another message from later in that thread:

Some Boulez banter courtesy of my friend Clovis Lark!...
"Here it is:

This happened in May of 2001 (Donatoni had died the previous August).

Boulez was rehearsing the Chicago Chamber Musicians in Franco Donatoni's Tema.  The piece is an incredibly fluid series of variations, rhythmically complex, BUT completely composed in 5/4 meter.  Meaning that there are all sort of ties and phrasings that cross over the barlines, making it a nightmare for performers to read while learning the piece.

John Yeh, Assistant Principal Clarinet for the Chicago Symphony and a superb musician is sitting in shorts, his bicycle helmet under his chair.  They come to a certain passage and he's off.  Boulez stops, waits, makes no comment, then says they will start at a point just prior.  They play, and again Yeh is off, Boulez stops, again says nothing.  John Yeh says, "Don't worry, it will be right tomorrow."  Boulez nods and simply proceeds.  They come to another place in the piece and have to stop again for ensemble.  Silence.

John Yeh asks, "Is this guy dead?"
Boulez responds, "Oh yes, he died just recently."
Yeh, "Good.  Because if was alive, I'd have to kill him!"  Absolute silence...
Yeh, quietly, " Did you know him?"
Boulez, "Yes.  He was my friend.  He wrote this for me and the Ensemble." Absolutely silence...
Yeh, very apologetically, "Oh. Sorry maestro. I didn't know."
Boulez, very energetically laughs, "But of course! This is a disaster.  Everything in 5/4. It's impossible to read.  I am hoping to rebar it someday for republication." 

Inside this moment is something very precious about Boulez, his trust of the ability of those around him.  Yeh failing to get through a passage twice and stopping the ensemble each time might cause most conductors to focus on him and make him play it correctly before moving on.  Boulez understood and trusted Yeh.  If Yeh said that it would be correct, that was enough! And Yeh didn't make any mistakes the following day! And Boulez never rebarred the piece.

[vers la flamme]

Wow, these stories are great, Petrarch. What a great guy, he seems like someone who'd be great to work with. It's too bad I never got the chance to see him in performance in his lifetime.

[vers la flamme]

Favorite recordings of Boulez sans Boulez? I have this one:

[asin]B006CC9GW8[/asin]

... and it's great. I posted an Amazon link as there are cheap copies for sale in the marketplace, I hope someone here gets one! Anyway, the Mémoriale for solo flute and ensemble is very good, as is the Dérive 1—Dérive 2, which I listened to yesterday, is a monster of a work. I cannot even begin to wrap my head around it. Very good, but it is just massive and twisted in so many ways.

What are some more good ones? I am interested in the Pascal Gallois with Le Marteau sans maître:

[asin]B01MTTJ40B[/asin]

... and I see Daniel Kawka will be conducting that work on an upcoming CD as well:

[asin]B083XV7L3L[/asin]

Le Marteau is a challenging work. I say the more recordings, the more varying interpretations, the better.

[Mirror Image]

Favorite recordings of Boulez sans Boulez? I have this one:

[asin]B006CC9GW8[/asin]

... and it's great. I posted an Amazon link as there are cheap copies for sale in the marketplace, I hope someone here gets one! Anyway, the Mémoriale for solo flute and ensemble is very good, as is the Dérive 1—Dérive 2, which I listened to yesterday, is a monster of a work. I cannot even begin to wrap my head around it. Very good, but it is just massive and twisted in so many ways.

What are some more good ones? I am interested in the Pascal Gallois with Le Marteau sans maître:

[asin]B01MTTJ40B[/asin]

... and I see Daniel Kawka will be conducting that work on an upcoming CD as well:

[asin]B083XV7L3L[/asin]

Le Marteau is a challenging work. I say the more recordings, the more varying interpretations, the better.

This seems like an excellent question for a resident Boulezian, Rafael (ritter).

[petrarch]

Favorite recordings of Boulez sans Boulez? I have this one:

[asin]B006CC9GW8[/asin]

... and it's great. I posted an Amazon link as there are cheap copies for sale in the marketplace, I hope someone here gets one! Anyway, the Mémoriale for solo flute and ensemble is very good, as is the Dérive 1—Dérive 2, which I listened to yesterday, is a monster of a work. I cannot even begin to wrap my head around it. Very good, but it is just massive and twisted in so many ways.

What are some more good ones? I am interested in the Pascal Gallois with Le Marteau sans maître:

[asin]B01MTTJ40B[/asin]

... and I see Daniel Kawka will be conducting that work on an upcoming CD as well:

[asin]B083XV7L3L[/asin]

Le Marteau is a challenging work. I say the more recordings, the more varying interpretations, the better.

They're all interesting in one way or another, but then Boulez is one of those few composers from whom I get whatever gets released without hesitation .

[Mirror Image]

What does everyone think of this documentary?



Well, I already bought it. Looking forward to it even if it is mostly 'fluff'.

I finished watching this moments ago and I rather enjoyed it. It's nice seeing younger people so enthusiastic about not only 20th and 21st Century music, but Boulez's own music. It gave a nice insight into Boulez's conducting --- not really his own compositions of course, but hearing snippets of Répons and Notations I-IV was really wonderful. Also, seeing Pablo Heras-Casado was fantastic and especially getting conducting pointers from Boulez.

[Mirror Image]

Even though I'm basically a Boulez newbie, I felt compelled to write a short review on the DG box set via Amazon:

Pierre Boulez (1925-2016) is considered by many to be one of the most important musicians of the 20th Century. Not only did he have an incredible career as a composer, but his career as a conductor was equally as impressive (and many will remember him probably the most as a conductor). The irony here is Boulez didn't really want to be a conductor initially and when he did turn to conducting, he had no training whatsoever, which is even more impressive. As a composer, he was quite ahead of the curve and while he could be lumped in with the avant-garde of his generation like Stockhause, Ligeti, Berio, etc., it should be noted that as he aged, his music began to take on many other shapes and forms and while he was a Serialist early on, I would say that his particular compositional style, especially in his ensemble work like "Le Marteau sans maître", "Sur Incises", or "Pli selon pli", demonstrates that Debussy had an influence on him as well. For this listener, he's like a cross between the Second Viennese School (especially Webern), Stravinsky, and Debussy, but filter through his own unique and unmistakeable aesthetic.

While I won't even bother to go through the contents of this DG set (which is now sadly out-of-print), let me say if you're scared of post-WWII music or have an ambivalence towards it, let me say that I think Boulez can help open that door for you. His music isn't 'easy' but so much of it is dependent on fascinating timbres, textures, rhythms, harmonies, and atmosphere that it makes it much more welcoming than say a composer like Xenakis who is pretty much 'in-your-face' from the first measure (I'm generalizing here really to make a point). I would say that if you find this set, then don't hesitate to buy it. If you can't find it, then there are still some single issues of recordings from this set that are still in-print and should be easier to track down. Just try to get your hands on something and please make sure Boulez is conducting. It really doesn't get any more authentic than the man himself conducting his own music, especially when he's one of the greatest conductors that ever lived, but, after listening to a wide array of works from this set, I would say that he also was one of the great composers of the 20th Century.

[Mirror Image]

Cross-posted from 'Listening' thread -

Boulez
Le Marteau sans maître
Hilary Summers (alto)
West-Eastern Divan Orchestra
Pierre Boulez



I have several problems with this particular performance: 1. I don't like the up-close audio quality --- there's no sense of space whatsoever and 2. I don't think the performance was as inspired as the one Boulez conducted earlier for DG. I'll stick with the earlier performance.

I believe vers la flamme was asking me about this recording and this pretty much sums it up. I don't like the audio quality in this set in general as it's too 'in-your-face' and the notes simply don't have enough space in them. I'll stick with Boulez's own recordings of his music. Also, I'm just not impressed with this orchestra. Someone needs to teach them about dynamics and the importance of them, especially in this music.

[vers la flamme]

Cross-posted from 'Listening' thread -

I believe vers la flamme was asking me about this recording and this pretty much sums it up. I don't like the audio quality in this set in general as it's too 'in-your-face' and the notes simply don't have enough space in them. I'll stick with Boulez's own recordings of his music. Also, I'm just not impressed with this orchestra. Someone needs to teach them about dynamics and the importance of them, especially in this music.

Noted. Hmm, that's too bad. I had high expectations of this recording. I'll still likely check it out at some point if I can find it for streaming.

[ritter]

Cross-posted from 'Listening' thread -

I believe vers la flamme was asking me about this recording and this pretty much sums it up. I don't like the audio quality in this set in general as it's too 'in-your-face' and the notes simply don't have enough space in them. I'll stick with Boulez's own recordings of his music. Also, I'm just not impressed with this orchestra. Someone needs to teach them about dynamics and the importance of them, especially in this music.

Noted. Hmm, that's too bad. I had high expectations of this recording. I'll still likely check it out at some point if I can find it for streaming.

I'd share John's view regrading the live Le marteau... under the composer inlcuded in this set (it really does not supersede the studio recording with Hillary Summers of several years earlier). But, the Dérive II included (under Barenboim) is a quite arresting performance IMHO. FWIW, Barenboim and his West-Eastern Divan had been playing the work on tour (including Madrid, a concert I unfortunately missed) at around the time the recording was made, and do a spelndid job in it.

[Mirror Image]

I'd share John's view regrading the live Le marteau... under the composer inlcuded in this set (it really does not supersede the studio recording with Hillary Summers of several years earlier). But, the Dérive II included (under Barenboim) is a quite arresting performance IMHO. FWIW, Barenboim and his West-Eastern Divan had been playing the work on tour (including Madrid, a concert I unfortunately missed) at around the time the recording was made, and do a spelndid job in it.

Good day to you, Rafael. I didn't even listen to the Barenboim recording of Dérive II simply because I haven't heard Boulez's performance (yet). I must get around to this at some point, but not before the orchestrated, Notations, which have been hanging around in my mind since watching that Boulez documentary, Inheriting the Future of Music.

[staxomega]

Heard Sur Incises for the first time, always nice to find a Boulez gem. It was love at first listen