Henning's Headquarters

[TheGSMoeller]

First listen:

Henning

Jazz for Nostalgic Squirrels, Op. 117

Brilliant piece, Karl!!    I enjoyed that one a lot.  I hear 'dem squirrels. 

This piece plays it cool, in an off-centered but smooth way, I immediately had a vision of Jean-Paul Belmondo walking down a street in Paris with an unfiltered cigarette hanging from his mouth. I love how the guitar keeps everything grounded. Great piece, Karl.

[Karl Henning]

Thanks, Greg. And happy Friday!

[Karl Henning]

Well, now . . . .

[Karl Henning]

The flutist for whom I drew up the Airy Distillates, Meerenai Shim, wrote to say that she hopes to play the piece this year.  Knowing that she has formed the A/B Duo with percussionist Chris Jones, and with an eye to the next component of the Op.114 pieces, I asked her if she would be interested in a piece for flute and marimba.  Not at present, but mostly because of portability.


Shortly after this e-mail exchange, I saw posted on Facebook a call for scores for A/B Duo.  Partly because I have just been working with the Whimsies, and partly because (even before the quartet 'expansion') I had turned over mentally the idea of adapting the piece for Peter H. Bloom's use, last night I burned rubber re-shaping about half of the Whimsies for bass flute and vibraphone.


Now, I shan't call that effort futile, but I might have used the time otherwise if I had had the sense to check out the video demo which Meerenai furnished on the Call page.  The character of even the "modular reduction" of the Whimsies which I chopped out last night is simply unsuited to their purpose.


[ I attach that Whimsi-cal adaptation here . . . I intend to adapt it further, to suit Peter and Mary Jane particularly, which is why it reads bass flute & piano, even though the second instrument in the score is actually vibraphone ]


For the A/B Duo's Happy Hour project/call, I shall in fact go back to Plan A:  I shall write up the Op.114 № 3 for them.  But instead of marimba, I shall use vibraphone.  [ And so, for the 'full trio' piece which will be the Op.114 № 4, the percussionist will alternate between marimba and vibraphone. ]

[Karl Henning]

Wow!  E-mail has just come in from Nana Tchikhinashvili in the Netherlands, who had her choir sing my Magnificat back when . . . she's bringing it back into her choir's repertory for concerts this spring, and for an event in Rome in October.  Europe has not forgotten Henningmusick!

More good news:  Nana wants a look at the Kyrie.

[mn dave]

 

[Karl Henning]

The flutist for whom I drew up the Airy Distillates, Meerenai Shim, wrote to say that she hopes to play the piece this year.  Knowing that she has formed the A/B Duo with percussionist Chris Jones, and with an eye to the next component of the Op.114 pieces, I asked her if she would be interested in a piece for flute and marimba.  Not at present, but mostly because of portability.


Shortly after this e-mail exchange, I saw posted on Facebook a call for scores for A/B Duo.  Partly because I have just been working with the Whimsies, and partly because (even before the quartet 'expansion') I had turned over mentally the idea of adapting the piece for Peter H. Bloom's use, last night I burned rubber re-shaping about half of the Whimsies for bass flute and vibraphone.


Now, I shan't call that effort futile, but I might have used the time otherwise if I had had the sense to check out the video demo which Meerenai furnished on the Call page.  The character of even the "modular reduction" of the Whimsies which I chopped out last night is simply unsuited to their purpose.


[ I attach that Whimsi-cal adaptation here . . . I intend to adapt it further, to suit Peter and Mary Jane particularly, which is why it reads bass flute & piano, even though the second instrument in the score is actually vibraphone ]


For the A/B Duo's Happy Hour project/call, I shall in fact go back to Plan A:  I shall write up the Op.114 № 3 for them.  But instead of marimba, I shall use vibraphone.  [ And so, for the 'full trio' piece which will be the Op.114 № 4, the percussionist will alternate between marimba and vibraphone. ]

I'll bet I attached the wrong file, too!

Anyway, this is the finished bass-flute-&-piano adaptation, Whimsy brevis

[Karl Henning]

And I have exchanged e-mail with the chappie to whom I sent the saxophone choir arrangement of the Intermezzo.  (I was only discreetly enquiring.)

[kishnevi]

All this about the various forms of Whimsy  sent me looking for the coat of arms of the Dukes of Denver
(motto: As My Whimsy Takes Me)--actual images of which seem to be rarer on the Internet than one might think--but I did find this portrait of Lord Peter, fictionally dated to 1911

which is actually in possession of Balliol College,  albeit apparently not a prized possession

http://furtherupandfurtherin.johncalvinyoung.com/2010/09/29/as-my-whimsy-takes-me-lord-peters-balliol/

This is also the college where Dorothy Sayers chose to send her inimitable gentleman-detective, Lord Peter Wimsey. Upon asking the porter about a rumored statue of Lord Peter, he somewhat disdainfully told me that there was no such statue. I pressed him a little, and he admitted that "there is a cartoon or caricature of a fictional personage like that down in our Buttery!" Apparently Balliol is not very proud of their fictional son...not when they have the real history to beat nearly anyone else in Oxford.

and indeed,  the portrait in situ, from the same link.

To quote Lord Peter himself:

True, it is a youthful effort; but there are some things that even youth does not excuse

(Gaudy Night)

ETA a better image of the coat of arms, as found on the cover of a book by C.W. Scott-Giles (hence the banner with the name of Dorothy Sayers, and the somewhat different phrasing of the motto)

[Cato]

This afternoon I again enjoyed:

Jazz for Nostalgic Squirrels Opus 117
Angular Whimsies (Heavy Paint Manipulation) Opus 100a
Plotting (y is the new x) Opus 116

I listened to the MIDI realizations several times this afternoon with the scores: all excellent works!

Certainly Plotting is perhaps my favorite of the three: to be sure, the Opus 117 is right next to it!

I find the ominous, relentless Passacaglia of Plotting - and its resolution - much to my liking, although the polyphonic conversations in Squirrels are also most intriguing!

e.g.

In Plotting, one hears a forlorn, Herrmannesque (at least to my ears) foreboding in bars 84-103, and bars 137 ff.  I have mentioned earlier how the breaking of a pattern in bar 127 (with the inclusion of an extra quarter-note rest) shows how one can tickle the ear with a bit of silence!

In Squirrels (bars 61-73 if you have the score) listen to the way the lines ping-pong the attention: exquisite section!

The bass clarinet is one of my favorite instruments, and Angular Whimsies is a great showcase for it.  Its meshing with the vibraphone throughout the piece is masterly. 

Special mention: the bongos in bars 174 ff.      Yes, don't be surprised!  Look at the score or listen to the MIDI version!

[Karl Henning]

Thank you!

Met with the other composer-players earlier this afternoon; they decided that the Squirrels should conclude the concert program.

[jochanaan]

Thank you!

Met with the other composer-players earlier this afternoon; they decided that the Squirrels should conclude the concert program.

Sounds like the squirrels will eat it up!

[Karl Henning]

jo, nice to see you!  And you will get a particular kick out of this:  Charles Turner is also a shakuhachi player . . . he had most kindly given me a one-on-one demo of the instrument back in the fall.  Today, composer-guitarist Jim Dalton expressed an interest, so Charles broke out the bamboo afresh.  The renewed sonic acquaintance has set me to scheming a piece for and shakuhachi and handbell choir . . . .

[Karl Henning]

Re-post & refresh:

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 ].

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

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

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

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 ]

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 ]

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

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

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

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 Daves Shed) [Viola Sonata, mvt 2]

MIDI of Suspension Bridge (In Daves 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]

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

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

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

These Unlikely Events, Op.104 № 4

These Unlikely Events, Op.104 № 5

Kyrie, Op.106 № 1

Credo, Op.106 № 3 [ work-in-progress ]

Organ Sonata, Op.108 :: Mvt 1, Eritis sicut Deus

Organ Sonata, Op.108 :: Mvt 2, . . . scientes bonum . . .

Organ Sonata, Op.108 :: Mvt 3, . . . et malum

In the Artist's Studio, work-in-progress

Thoreau in Concord Jail, Op.109 for clarinet solo

http://www.youtube.com/v/iDY7Dc41vL0

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

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

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

just what everyone was expecting, Op.114 for clarinet & marimba

My Island Home, Op.115 for percussion ensemble

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

Jazz for Nostalgic Squirrels, Op.117 (fl, cl in A, gtr & cb)

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.

[Karl Henning]

My friend in Nashville wrote yesterday to say that she is reading through the Cello Sonatina with a pianist next week, "(and hopefully making an iPhone recording of [it])."

I may adapt this for (wait for it) . . . mando-cello . . . .

[Cato]

An excellent list for my "No-Snow Day" away from school!   

It is difficult to choose what to hear first: let me push the Organ Sonata, the Viola Sonata, Annabel Lee, De Profundis, and the Intermezzo from White Nights.

Not to be forgotten, two of Karl's best from earlier years: Nuhro and Out in the Sun.

Eventually you must give everything a shot! 

I may adapt this for (wait for it) . . . mando-cello . . . .

Who has such a beast?   0:)

[Cato]

YouTube has everything!

http://www.youtube.com/v/Zja4o2S_q7I

[Karl Henning]

Jim Dalton (the composer-guitarist in our concert project) also plays mandolin, and has a mando-cello.

Say!  What woud be a good name for a group of four composer-performers?  For the publicity, we should need a label;  really I wanted to have that settled when our organizational meeting yesterday got out . . . but it remains a question mark.

What do you think?

[Karl Henning]

Après-mystère  ::  Much of the summer of 2013 I spent composing a setting of Walt Whitman's "The Mystic Trumpeter" for soprano and clarinet.  The original intent was for performance at King's Chapel, where the weekly program requires about a half-hour of music.  Partly because my Mystic Trumpeter on its own would have made for too short a program, and partly because I am all for giving the public what they want (provided what they want is more Henningmusick), I composed Après-mystère as a sort of epilogue.  I originally wrote it thinking regular flute;  the substitution of the piccolo flute was Peter's suggestion.

Zen on the Wing  ::  The idea of the Opus 114 pieces is, three instruments (flute, clarinet, mallet percussion), four pieces:  one piece with the entire trio, one piece for each constituent pairing.  Each of the duos which include the percussion – just what everyone was expecting, clarinet & marimba;  Feel the Burn (Bicycling into the Sun), flute & vibraphone – is rather energetically rhythmic.  So I decided that Zen on the Wing would be a serene, sostenuto contrast.

Swivels & Bops  ::  Once I had written not only Heedless Watermelon, but also All the Birds in Mondrian's Cage for Peter H. Bloom and myself to play together, I knew I should soon write a third piece to round out the Opus 97 set.  Swivels & Bops is dance-music for turtle-doves.  Every Christmas, I used to wonder what the two turtle-doves would like to dance to.

Jazz for Nostalgic Squirrels  ::  In Russian folklore, the squirrel is a symbol of joy;  this is fair enough, but just because the squirrel is a small creature does not mean she is all that simple.  The world needed (I felt) more music to reflect the opinion of many a squirrel, that the trees are not nearly so tall, nor the acorns so surpassing sweet, as in bygone days.  The squirrels are far too discreet to express their feelings in words;  the music must speak on their behalf.

[Cato]

Say!  What woud be a good name for a group of four composer-performers? For the publicity, we should need a label;  really I wanted to have that settled when our organizational meeting yesterday got out . . . but it remains a question mark.

What do you think?

For your consideration:

The Complete Musicians  (or "Compleat Musick Makers" if you want an archaick loock  0:) )

Pens, Strings, and Other Things

The Sounds of Manuscripts   

Four Talented Trees    (Music paper and some instruments are made from trees...)

And my favorite:

Middle-Aged Mutant Ninja Musicians!!!