Henning's Headquarters

[ComposerOfAvantGarde]

First fresh work-in-progress on the ballet in more than a decade.

There is no denying that the composer means business.

Very cool!

I wonder though, will the quotation be 100% Rossini in the foreground or do you think there could be some background Henningmusick, to create the atmosphere of the scene. I think that way you'd be placing the characters in an opera house rather than the audience in one.........

I am just assuming that is what you intend with the staging though, I have no idea.

One way in which I feel a composer can create a real sense of a scene within a piece of music, a real atmosphere, in this way is through combining two different styles and varying how much of them is in the foreground or the background.

Case study: the final few minutes from Brett Dean's trumpet concerto, the third movement titled 'the accidental revolutionary' inspired by Charlie Chaplin's character in Modern Times where he, quite by accident, leads a workers' march. The march music combined with the typically busy hustle and bustle of Dean's orchestral writing places the march music in an entirely new context that would not have been possible to evoke without both of these elements.

Beginning at 27:48 and goes through to the end

https://www.youtube.com/v/wPDGmyJMtaI




This is just my 2 cents though............creating a different polystylistic context for musical quotations/styles to exist in simultaneously.

[ComposerOfAvantGarde]

You probably already know all of that anyway and have your own way of doing things I guess

[Karl Henning]

Those are all good considerations. I may be trying Something Else.

My idea at present (subject to modification, or abandonment, as artistically needed) is to try 100% Rossini, in the sense that my contribution involves the use not of a pen, but of razor blade and adhesive tape.

Another day or two of work within this concept, and I'll know whether I can make it work to my liking, or I should regroup.  At this point, I'm content with the risk.

I do find this a stricter mission than I had in view in 2014, which seems to be when I assembled the Maestoso introduction, which is more smear-blurry (and more nearly Henningmusickal) than my present method. But I think I am content to let it stand ... it may be that the core of the scene is 100% Rossini, bookended by smear-blurry transitions.

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

[ComposerOfAvantGarde]

Well I think your final decision will be the best decision.

[Karl Henning]

Working on it! 

[Karl Henning]

This morning, revisiting both the last movement of the Clarinet Sonata, and the fl/pf adaptation of the 3^rd & 4^th movements (dubbed Denial of Symmetry).

[Karl Henning]

Well, and Nun of the Above, too, which I think is good fun, still.

[Karl Henning]

Okay, I have at last updated these pages on karlhenning.com:

http://www.karlhenning.com/op140.htm

http://www.karlhenning.com/op150.htm

I still need to redesign the front page so that there is something for the visitor to listen to without needing to drill in . . . .

[Karl Henning]

This morning, Peter's office    made a request for this list.  It did not take me very long to create the list.  Or, the fact that it took a while to create the list underscores my cause for ongoing gratitude to Peter for his active support.

List of Henning compositions in whose premières Peter H. Bloom participated

Op.59 — Radiant Maples (2001) Flute, clarinet, harp, piano. Duration: 5'. First performance: First Church, Woburn, Massachusetts (24 June 2009).

Op.64a — Fragments of « Morning Has Broken ». (2002) Arrangement for flute, clarinet, piano. Commissioned for the First Congregational Church in Woburn (William Goodwin, music director). Duration: 4'00.
Lux Nova Press — Catalogue № LNP-0287. First performance: Cathedral Church of St Paul, Boston, Massachusetts (12 May 2010).

Op.94a — The Angel Who Bears a Flaming Sword. (2008) Alto flute unaccompanied. Adapted for Peter H. Bloom. Duration: 12'. First performance: First Church, Woburn, Massachusetts (24 June 2009). Lux Nova Press — Catalogue № LNP-0215

Opus 95 — stars & guitars. (2009) Bass flute & harp. For Duo 2: Mary Jane Rupert & Peter H. Bloom. Duration: 20'. First performance: First Church, Woburn, Massachusetts (24 June 2009).

Op.97 № 1 — Heedless Watermelon (2009) Flute & clarinet. For Peter H. Bloom. Duration: 6'30. First performance: Peter H. Bloom & the composer, Boston Public Library, West End branch, Boston (28 July 2009). Lux Nova Press — Catalogue № LNP-0232

Op.97 № 3 — Swivels & Bops (2010). Duration: 3'00. First performance: Peter H. Bloom & the composer, Cathedral Church of St Paul, Boston (12 May 2010). Lux Nova Press — Catalogue № LNP-0234

Op.101 — Here You Go / Hear You Go. (2010) Flute & clarinet. Duration: 6'. First performance: Peter H. Bloom & the composer, King's Chapel, Boston (18 May 2010).

Op.103 — How to Tell (Chasing the Tail of Nothing). (2011) Alto flute, clarinet & frame drum. Duration: 10'. First performance: The k a rl h e nn i ng Ensemble, King's Chapel, Boston (19 May 2011).

Op.113 № 2 — Après-mystère. (2014) Flute (or piccolo) and clarinet in A. Duration: 5'. First performed by Peter H. Bloom and the composer, King's Chapel, Boston (7 Oct 2014).

Op.114 № 2 — Zen on the Wing. (2013) Flute and clarinet in A. Duration: 5'. First performed by Peter H. Bloom and the composer, King's Chapel, Boston (8 Oct 2013).

Op.117 — Jazz for Nostalgic Squirrels. (2013-14). Flute, clarinet, guitar & double-bass.  First performed by The 9th Ear, Clarendon Hill Presbyterian Church, Somerville, Mass. (1 Feb 2014).

Op.119 № 1 — The Crystalline Ship. (2014) Mezzo-soprano & baritone saxophone. For D'Anna Fortunato. Text by Leo Shulte. First performed by D'Anna Fortunato & Peter H. Bloom, Church of the Advent, Boston (14 March 2014).

Opus 120 — I see people walking around like trees. (2014) Flute, clarinet, double-bass & frame drum. Duration: 5'30. First performance by The k a rl h e nn i ng Ensemble, King's Chapel, Boston (15 April 2014).

Opus 122a — Le tombeau de W.A.G. (2014). Arrangement for alto flute, clarinet, double-bass & frame drum. First performed by The k a rl h e nn i ng Ensemble, Clarendon Hill Presbyterian Church, Somerville, Mass. (6 June 2014).

Op.126 № 7 — Gabriel's Message (Basque Carol). (2015) Flute, violin, two baritone voices, and small women's chorus unison. First performed by Peter H. Bloom, Rachel Wimmer, and members of the choir of Holy Trinity United Methodist Church, Danvers, Mass. (13 Dec 2015).

Op.126 № 3a — Variations on a Basque Carol. (2014) Arrangement for C flute unaccompanied. First performed by Peter H. Bloom, Holy Trinity United Methodist Church, Danvers, Mass. (13 Dec 2015).

Opus 129 — From the Pit of a Cave in the Cloud. (2015) Soprano, flute, bass flute (doubling on piccolo), tenor recorder (doubling on soprano recorder) & horn. Duration: 14'00. Text by Leo Shulte. First performed by Barbara Hill-Meyers and The k a rl h e nn i ng Ensemble, at King's Chapel in Boston (27 Oct 2015).

Opus 138 — Oxygen Footprint. (2016). Fl, va, hp. Duration: 7'00. For Ensemble Aubade.  First performed by Ensemble Aubade, Stamford, NY (20 Nov 2016)

Opus 138a — Oxygen Footprint. (2016). Arrangement for fl, va, pf. Duration: 7'00. For Ensemble Aubade.  First performed by Ensemble Aubade, [place?] (date?)

Opus 140 — Sound & Sight: Music to Paint By. (2016) 2 flutes, clarinet, horn & fixed media. Duration: 25'.
1. The Conquest of Emptiness
2a. Avant-subterfuge (Before the Tape)
2b. Sonic Dissemblage (Sex Tape)
3. Contemplating the Irrepressible (Happy Birthday, Carl Nielsen!)
Première performance of Sound & Sight, Maria Bablyak, Irina Pisarenko, & The k a rl h e nn i ng Ensemble, King's Chapel (21 June 2016).

Opus 141a — Mistaken for the Sacred. (2017) 2 flutes, horn and fixed media.  First performed by The k a rl h e nn i ng Ensemble, Clarendon Hill Presbyterian Church, Somerville, Mass. (24 Mar 2017).

[Karl Henning]

I mean, What a List.

[Cato]

I mean, What a List.

Amen!

Let me express my thanks for allowing me to tag along with your oeuvre as the writer of the texts for a few of the works.

[ComposerOfAvantGarde]

Certainly an impressive list are most live performances also recorded?

[Karl Henning]

Most, probably  0:)

[Karl Henning]

Today is the choir's, and the handbell ringers', last Sunday of the season.  I had not consciously intended it as an all-Henningmusick service . . . just worked out that way.  We're reprising my handbell arrangement of America the Beautiful;  singing the première of the new, "torch song" arrangement of I Want Jesus to Walk With Me;  and ringing the (easy) new piece I wrote less than two weeks ago.

[Rons_talking]

Karl, I've been listening to your recordings on Soundcloud from the top-down. I've left a few short comments and would be happy to listen to and comment upon anything you recommend. It's great that you have so many live recordings. You have a lot of stylistic variety and it's been interesting to listen...

[Karl Henning]

Thank you!

[Karl Henning]

The idea is, when (and only when) White Nights is wrapped up, to write a one-act opera (well, short, anyway), and therefore probably not getting started until 1Q18.

Several of the singers, and one fellow composer, in my close (or close-ish) acquaintance have experience in small-company opera performances here in Boston (including Fidelio, very recently, in Faneuil Hall . . . which, if you were wondering, is not an especially good opera venue, no) and I have meant to sound them out.  Not surprisingly, the composer has the most pertinent intelligence to impart.  He summed up thus:

Remember, there are new music groups with musicians who enjoy performing new music.

There are NOT new opera groups with opera singers who enjoy performing new operas.  There are places that say they do, but they are lying. They really want traditional operas that they can tell people they are premiering.

They mean well and their hearts are absolutely in the right places, but...it's something to keep in mind. Remember the most important American opera composers of the 20^th century are probably Carlisle Floyd and Gian-Carlo Menotti. Not sure anyone would consider them in the top one hundred of American "composer" composers.

I replied, "You have confirmed my darkest intuitions."

One of his especially practical remarks before this summation was:  to compose it with piano and only piano accompaniment, planning to orchestrate it later for whatever instrumentation the company has available.  (This is the meat-&-potatoes version of what I had gleaned in a yet earlier exchange with one of the singers, the orchestras in various productions in which he has sung having been some intersection of ad hoc and threadbare.)  That, in other words, any score with already-specific instrumentation which does/may not suit the company's resources, is just inviting an immediate rejection.

All of this does not discourage me—not in addition to the general discouragement inherent to my enterprise, that is.  It is well understood that pitching a new opera, anywhere, is going to be a long and an uphill undertaking.  (Not differing in kind from the challenges still faced by my First Symphony.)  And I am grateful to be the beneficiary of the experience of my fellow musical Bostonians.

Meanwhile, I guess I shall simply focus on Scene 8 of the ballet . . . .

[Karl Henning]

It's that time again . . . Re-post & refresh:

Variations on Wie lieblich est, S.10 (oboe & organ)

Time Was, Op.4 (pf solo)
№ 1: Prelude (Charlottesville)
№ 2: Dance (Barefoot Amid Dandelions)
№ 3: The Myth of Motion II:  Toccatina (on the Ekaterininsky Canal)

Pictures Only I Can See, Op.11 (pf solo)
№ 1: Spring in Her Step
№ 2: The Bronze Girl's Spilt Milk
№ 3: The Myth of Motion I:  Chorale
№ 4: The Sleep-Pavane at the Foot of Frozen Niagara
№ 5: Petersburg Nocturne || MIDI on YT

Little Towns, Low Countries, Op.18 (pf solo)
№ 1: Invention (Mt Hope Avenue, Rochester)
№ 2: Aubade (Lake Canandaigua)
№ 3: Gigue (Glasgow Street, Cornhill)

Night of the Weeping Crocodiles, Op.16 (cl/vn/pf)

Night of the Weeping Crocodiles, Op.16a (cl/pf/prc)

To Melt From a Distance, Op.21 (pf solo)

Gaze Transfixt, Op.23 (pf solo)

Lutosławski's Lullaby, Op.25a (organ solo)

Lutosławski's Lullaby, Op.25 (pf solo)

Fancy on Psalm 80 from the Scottish Psalter, Op.34 № 3, performed by Carson Cooman, on YouTube.

O Beauteous Heavenly Light, Op.34 № 2, performed by Carson Cooman, on YouTube.

The Allegro grazioso from the Sinfonietta, Op.38 for brass quintet (some shaky moments)

Journey to the Dayspring, Op.40 on YouTube

'Tis Winter Now (Danby), Op.45a (mezzo-soprano, flute & organ) at Amazon

Initiation of Barefoot on the Crowded Road, the former Op.41 (now the Discreet Erasures, Op.99, below)

Danse antique, Op.44

The Wind, the Sky, & the Wheeling Stars, Op.46 for orchestra

http://www.youtube.com/v/als-l2BI0xs

O Gracious Light, Op.50c (two-part choir, piano & organ)

The original Born on Earth to Save Us, Op.52 for Bill Goodwin.

Born on Earth to Save Us, Op.52a for HTUMC.

Joseph and Mary, Op.53a for HTUMC.

Score of The Wind, the Sky, & the Wheeling Stars, Part I

Score of The Wind, the Sky, & the Wheeling Stars, Part II

Counting Sheep (or, The Dreamy Abacus of Don Quijote), Op.58a for Pierrot-plus ensemble [ score, part I ].

Counting Sheep (or, The Dreamy Abacus of Don Quijote), Op.58a for Pierrot-plus ensemble [ score, part II ].

I Look From Afar, Op.60 for choir, brass quintet, organ & optional timpani

Blue Shamrock, Op.63 for clarinet unaccompanied, at Amazon.

Three Things That Begin With "C", Op.65, clarinet & horn :: Original | Revised

Sweetest Ancient Cradle Song, Op.67 for choir, brass quintet, organ & optional timpani 1^st half | 2^nd half

Sweetest Ancient Cradle Song, Op.67 for choir, brass quintet, organ & optional timpani ::  Choral Score 1^st half | 2^nd half

14 Dec 2014 performance of Sweetest Ancient Cradle Song, Op.67

14 Dec 2014 performance of The Snow Lay on the Ground, Op.68a

Timbrel and Dance, Op.73 [ St Paul's choir plus ].

21 Nov 2015 Triad performance of Nuhro, Op.74:  https://www.youtube.com/v/ftFJdcXz7lg

23 Nov 2015 Triad performance of Nuhro, Op.74.

Scene 1 from White Nights, Op.75 № 2

Scene 2 from White Nights, Op.75 № 3

Scene 3a from White Nights, Op.75 № 4

Intermezzo I from White Nights, Op.75 № 6

Intermezzo I from White Nights, Op.75 № 6, arr. for saxophone choir

Scene 4 from White Nights, Op.75 № 7

Scene 5 from White Nights, Op.75 № 8

Before-&-after, Finale-VS.-Sibelius exhibits from the Op.75 № 8| A | B | C | D

Scene 7 from White Nights, Op.75 № 10

Scene 8 from White Nights, Op.75 № 11 | work-in-progress

Canzona, Op.77a № 1 (org solo)

Gigue, Op.77a № 2 (org solo)

26 February De profundis, Op.78 [ Jaya Lakshminarayan & friends ]

Mirage, Op.79a (alto fl, cl, pf)

God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen, Op.80 carol for choir, brass quintet, organ & timpani

Moonrise, Op.84 for brass quintet. And MIDI

Moonrise, Op.84a for flute choir in six parts. And MIDI

15 March Passion rehearsal A [ Sine Nomine ]

15 March Passion rehearsal B [ Sine Nomine ]

15 March Passion rehearsal C [ Sine Nomine ]

Conclusion of the 19 Mar 2010 performance by Sine Nomine of the St John Passion, Op.92:

http://www.youtube.com/v/8netMuAHFkI

12 May recital [ k a rl h e nn i ng Ensemble (Bloom/Henning/Cienniwa) ]

18 May recital [ Bloom/Henning ]

23 May pre-concert rehearsal [ Sine Nomine ]

22 June recital [ N. Chamberlain/B. Chamberlain/Henning ]

Love is the spirit of this church, Op.85 № 3

Nicodemus brings myrrh and aloes for the burial of the Christ, Op.85 № 4 for cello & piano | Recording on SoundCloud

For God so loved the world, after Op.87 № 9 {Would you like the Doxology with that?} Yes | No | Recording on SoundCloud

The Passion According to St John, Op.92 (on MediaFire, courtesy of Johan)

Lutosawski’s Lullaby, Op.96a № 1 (string quartet)

Marginalia, Op.96a № 2 (string quartet)

Après-lullaby, Op.96a № 3 (string quartet)

Score of Fair Warning [Viola Sonata, mvt 1]

MIDI of Fair Warning [Viola Sonata, mvt 1]

Score of Suspension Bridge (In Dave's Shed) [Viola Sonata, mvt 2]

MIDI of Suspension Bridge (In Dave's Shed) [Viola Sonata, mvt 2]

Score of Tango in Boston (Dances with Shades) [Viola Sonata, mvt 3]

MIDI of Tango in Boston (Dances with Shades) [Viola Sonata, mvt 3]

Cato's analysis of the Viola Sonata

Johan's MediaFire folder, including the whole of Dana's première performance of the Viola Sonata

Discreet Erasures, Op.99 for orchestra

Angular Whimsies, Op.100a (bass clarinet, percussion [two players] & piano)

Whimsy brevis, Op.100b (bass flute & piano)

http://www.youtube.com/v/OAp3w15ISl4

How to Tell (Chasing the Tail of Nothing), Op.103 (alto flute, clarinet & frame drum); 7 June 2014 performance

These Unlikely Events, Op.104 № 4

These Unlikely Events, Op.104 № 5

Kyrie, Op.106 № 1

Gloria, Op.106 № 2

Credo, Op.106 № 3

Sanctus, Op.106 № 4

(The Sanctus, arranged for tuba quartet)

Agnus Dei, Op.106 № 5 || Première by Triad

Brothers, If They Only Knew It, saxophone quartet (after Op.106 № 5)

In the Artist's Studio, Op.107, for 17 winds & harp

http://www.youtube.com/v/hwMLLajT_jw

Organ Sonata, Op.108
Mvt 1: Eritis sicut Deus
Mvt 2: . . . scientes bonum . . .
Mvt 3: . . . et malum

Thoreau in Concord Jail, Op.109 for clarinet solo

http://www.youtube.com/v/OnLYQ748aEg

Airy Distillates, Op.110 for flute solo

Annabel Lee, Op.111 for vocal quartet

http://www.youtube.com/v/tN3aMOrzEb8

Misapprehension, Op.112 for clarinet choir

Misapprehension, Op.112a for strings

The Mystic Trumpeter, Op.113 № 1 for soprano & clarinet

Après-mystère, Op.113 № 2 for flute & clarinet And MIDI

http://www.youtube.com/v/7RhH161HhlA

just what everyone was expecting, Op.114 № 1 for clarinet & marimba

(very nearly) what everyone was expecting, Op.114 № 5 for bass clarinet & marimba

just what everyone was expecting, Op.114a for clarinet, mandocello & double bass

My Island Home, Op.115 for percussion ensemble

http://www.youtube.com/v/hlh61D6COvU

Plotting (y is the new x), Op.116 for violin & harpsichord

http://www.youtube.com/v/2vKGfppo0o8

Jazz for Nostalgic Squirrels, Op.117 (fl, cl in A, gtr & cb) [ and at Soundcloud ]

When the morning stars sang together, and the sons of God shouted for joy, Op.118 № 1 (shakuhachi, drum & handbell choir)

http://www.youtube.com/v/79tPHWpH3UI

Divinum mysterium, Op.118 № 2 (choir unison & handbells)

http://www.youtube.com/v/MPr7NhE2-Bs

Easter Stikheron, Op.118 № 3 (choir SATB & handbells)

Welcome, Happy Morning!, Op.118 № 4 (handbells)

My Lord, What a Morning, Op.118 № 5 (choir & handbells)

http://www.youtube.com/v/AJzV-RxXiIk

Hymtunes Moscow & Te Deum, Op.118 № 6 (handbells)

Musette, Op.118 № 7 (handbells)

Psalm 130, Op.118 № 8 [ I think ] (clarinet & bass voice) [work-in-progress]

The Crystalline Ship, Op.119 № 1 (mezzo-soprano & baritone saxophone)

I Saw People Walking Around Like Trees, Op.120 (flute, clarinet, double-bass & frame drum)

http://www.youtube.com/v/E0_-CTvtSS8

... illa existimans quia hortulanus esset ...., Op.121 (vc/pf)

14 Dec 2014 performance of Le tombeau de W.A.G., Op.122

Le tombeau de W.A.G., Op.122a (flute, clarinet, double-bass & frame drum) Audio

A Song of Remembrance, Op.123 (mixed chorus SAB & pf)

http://www.youtube.com/v/kU682jFNG4w

The Mysterious Fruit, Op.124 (mezzo-soprano & marimba)

The Mysterious Fruit, Op.124a (mezzo-soprano & pf)

Tiny Wild Avocadoes, Op.125 (2 vn/va)
№ 1 "Children's Song"
№ 2 "Autumn Leaves (Wind Effect)"
№ 3 "Scampering Squirrels"
№ 4 "Pond at Twilight"
№ 5 "The Gnomes (Paul's Garden)"
№ 6 "Cheerful Song on the Wing"
№ 7 "The Avocado in Winter"

In the shadow of the kindly Star, Op.126 № 1 (violin solo and handbell choir)

I Want Jesus to Walk With Me, Op.126 № 2 (choir SATB unaccompanied) NEW & IMPROVED !! [ Version for brass quintet ]

Variations on a Basque Carol, Op.126 № 3 (clarinet unaccompanied)

Variations on a Basque Carol, Op.126 № 3 (flute unaccompanied)

Beach Balls (Red) , Op.126 № 5 (org solo)

Pat-A-Pan, Op.126 № 6 (handbell choir)

Gabriel's Message (Basque Carol), Op.126 № 7

Little Suite, Op.127 (vc & pf)
№ 1 "Summer Song"
№ 2 "Valentine"
№ 3 "Sparrows Hopping on the Wet Sidewalk" || MIDI on YT

Notebook for Elaina & Anna, Op.128 № 1 "Out for a Walk" (fl/a sx)

From the Pit of a Cave in the Cloud, Op.129, soprano & chamber group

http://www.youtube.com/v/H1GX6gAmom8

The Young Lady Holding a Phone in Her Teeth, Op.130 (double wind quintet) || The première on SoundCloud

Visions fugitives de nouveau, Op.131 (pf solo)
№ 1: One Leaf
№ 2: Versuch eines Milonga
№ 3: Beneath the Clear Sky
№ 4: That Tickles!
№ 5: Stephen Goes to California
№ 6: Kay's Blue Crabs
№ 7: Questionable Insistence
№ 8: Morning Prayer

https://www.youtube.com/v/FfL_20Sksc8

№ 9: Bunny Keeping Still
№ 10: Gamboling Squirrels
№ 11: The Street Musician
№ 12: The Shade of an Oak
№ 13: "Could you change one more thing?"
№ 14: Waiting
№ 15: Bicycling in Boston Common
№ 16: Mist on the Harbor
№ 17: Peter Moves to Montréal
№ 18: Seeing a Long-Since-Cancelled Stamp
№ 19: ... but his mind is elsewhere
№ 20: Starless Summer Night || MIDI on YT

Neither do I condemn thee, Op.132 for flute duet

A whimsical Canon:

http://www.youtube.com/v/B6xeqrcavUQ

Saltmarsh Stomp, Op.134 for clarinet choir in 15 parts

http://www.youtube.com/v/7DCc2sD2KAk

Ear Buds (The dream of a young man in the woods, listening), Op.135 for symphonic band

http://www.youtube.com/v/ZSMo90L5xJA

Darkest Doings {work-in-progress} ... or not

Clarinet Sonata, Op.136, movement 1: Another Think Coming

Clarinet Sonata, Op.136, movement 2: « Boulez est mort » (Wounding Silence)

Clarinet Sonata, Op.136, movement 3: Unanticipated Serenity

Clarinet Sonata, Op.136, movement 4: Ambiguity and Overlap (Something or other, if not something else entirely)

Clarinet Sonata, Op.136, movement 5: After a reading of "The Mysterious Stranger"

Op.137: A Sheaf of Bliss

Things Like Bliss, version 1, Op.137 № 1a

Things Like Bliss, version 2, Op.137 № 1b

Considering My Bliss Options, Op.137 № 2 (clarinet & horn in F) work-in-progress

Liv Plays Scrabble, Op.137 № 3 (shakuhachi & toy piano)

Out From the Unattended Baggage, Op.137 № 4 (flute, clarinet & bassoon)

sand dance, Op.137 № 5 (flute  & harp)

Oxygen Footprint, Op.138 (flute, viola & harp)

Brightest and Best, Op.139 № 1 (mixed choir)

Precious Lord, Op.139 № 4 (mixed choir and organ)

Paschal Carillon, Op.139 № 5 (handbell choir)

What Wondrous Love, Op.139 № 6 (mixed choir and handbells)

http://www.youtube.com/v/dXMra6BvZew

Mistaken for the Sacred, Op.141 (percussion solo & fixed media)

http://www.youtube.com/v/dcofMh91_7M

In dulci jubilo, Op.142 № 1 (fl, hn, handbell choir, youth and adult choirs, organ)

In dulci jubilo, Op.142 № 1a (2 fl, ob, cl, hn, ta, handbells, glock, strings, youth and adult choirs)

New Year's Carol, Op.142 № 2 (unison choir & organ)

O Traurigkeit, Op.142 № 7 (clarinet, choir SATB & organ)

Song of the Empty Tomb, Op.142 № 8 (flute & handbell choir)

I Want Jesus to Walk With Me, Op.142 № 9 (unison choir, pf, optional fl or vn obblig.)

Pavane (Memories of Packanack Lake), Op.142 № 10 (handbell choir)

Symphony № 1 (mercy!), Op.143

i. Allegro molto

http://www.youtube.com/v/-WCZ77mt2aE

ii. Larghetto

http://www.youtube.com/v/JpI9Zr8rqW4

iii. Vivo assai

Nun of the Above, Op.144 (cl/gtr/db)

8 Oct 2013 recital at King's Chapel

Henningmusick at ReverbNation.

Henningmusick at Instant Encore.

About an hour's worth of Henningmusick, too, at SoundCloud

The 9^th Ear at SoundCloud.

And: Maria appears on the evening news in DC.

Maria's harpsichord

[kishnevi]

The idea is, when (and only when) White Nights is wrapped up, to write a one-act opera (well, short, anyway), and therefore probably not getting started until 1Q18.

Several of the singers, and one fellow composer, in my close (or close-ish) acquaintance have experience in small-company opera performances here in Boston (including Fidelio, very recently, in Faneuil Hall . . . which, if you were wondering, is not an especially good opera venue, no) and I have meant to sound them out.  Not surprisingly, the composer has the most pertinent intelligence to impart.  He summed up thus:

Remember, there are new music groups with musicians who enjoy performing new music.

There are NOT new opera groups with opera singers who enjoy performing new operas.  There are places that say they do, but they are lying. They really want traditional operas that they can tell people they are premiering.

They mean well and their hearts are absolutely in the right places, but...it's something to keep in mind. Remember the most important American opera composers of the 20^th century are probably Carlisle Floyd and Gian-Carlo Menotti. Not sure anyone would consider them in the top one hundred of American "composer" composers.

I replied, "You have confirmed my darkest intuitions."

One of his especially practical remarks before this summation was:  to compose it with piano and only piano accompaniment, planning to orchestrate it later for whatever instrumentation the company has available.  (This is the meat-&-potatoes version of what I had gleaned in a yet earlier exchange with one of the singers, the orchestras in various productions in which he has sung having been some intersection of ad hoc and threadbare.)  That, in other words, any score with already-specific instrumentation which does/may not suit the company's resources, is just inviting an immediate rejection.

All of this does not discourage me—not in addition to the general discouragement inherent to my enterprise, that is.  It is well understood that pitching a new opera, anywhere, is going to be a long and an uphill undertaking.  (Not differing in kind from the challenges still faced by my First Symphony.)  And I am grateful to be the beneficiary of the experience of my fellow musical Bostonians.

Meanwhile, I guess I shall simply focus on Scene 8 of the ballet . . . .

Does New England have something similar to this?
http://www.clevelandoperatheater.org/new-scenes
(As I understand it, this was limited to members of the CCG, so it's not an open competition.)

You might try shopping such an opera to an opera company with a young artists program, especially if it's a children's opera and can be done with little or no staging (and therefore useable when they do those opera-in-public-school programs).

And what are you doing about a libretto?

[Karl Henning]

And what are you doing about a libretto?

I've received one which I will enjoy setting.

Shopping an opera around will be a challenge.

Separately:  This is the piece I have wanted to shape, since the end of yesterday's service.

https://soundcloud.com/karl-henning-756715731/memories-of-packanack-lake