Quiz: Mystery scores

[Luke]

Yes, but does it modulate from C to B#.....

[Florestan]

Speaking of scores, I am reminded of a bon mot of the Spanish pianist Ricardo Viñes, an early and outspoken champion of Debussy and Ravel. Noticing that many people in the audience were listening head in score, he commented something to the effect that "These people listen not with their ears but with their noses."

[Luke]

Here's another one whose home location I visited during my travels

[BWV 1080]

Here's another one whose home location I visited during my travels

Although only the truly enlightened can hear ppppp...

[Luke]

Your edit suggests you know the answer...

[BWV 1080]

Your edit suggests you know the answer...

Yes, a little disappointed I could not find an Aliester Crowley  connection, music for dark rites at Boleskine..

[Luke]

It's not connected to Boleskine, though by coincidence that's a place I've done lots of work on. It was nearly on my itinerary for my travels but I changed my plans.

[Luke]

I mean there may be a tangential Boleskin connection but I'm not aware of it

[BWV 1080]

Here is the piece, can't say that I think much of it - other than it was ahead of it's time in sounding like wrong note noodling.

[BWV 1080]

How about this one?

[Luke]

Here is the piece, can't say that I think much of it - other than it was ahead of it's time in sounding like wrong note noodling.

Conceptually, though, it's not really a piece one can think much of or otherwise. It just happened to him, however you wish to explain it. It's empty of content, almost, and at the same time, to him, it was of huge significance. I am of the opinion (backed up documentarily) that certain other Foulds' works were born in a similar way - the Elysium of the World Requiem is one of them; the second of the Three Mantras is another. And April-England, which is a shattering and unique masterpiece IMO, is really this same piece with a more harmonically involving ground bass, all laid on the top of a psychogeographical kind of programme.

[BWV 1080]

Conceptually, though, it's not really a piece one can think much of or otherwise. It just happened to him, however you wish to explain it. It's empty of content, almost, and at the same time, to him, it was of huge significance. I am of the opinion (backed up documentarily) that certain other Foulds' works were born in a similar way - the Elysium of the World Requiem is one of them; the second of the Three Mantras is another. And April-England, which is a shattering and unique masterpiece IMO, is really this same piece with a more harmonically involving ground bass, all laid on the top of a psychogeographical kind of programme.

Will take a listen, but in terms of supposed mystical inspiration the 'garbage in garbage out' rule applies, no?   I don't have a high opinion of late 19th century occultism

[Luke]

The Ghandarva Music, though it has an opus number, was 'written' (not really the word) about ten years before it was published, and when it saw the light of day it was accompanied by pieces such as those mentioned above. In my view it was useful for him in providing a kind of prototype of a certain type of sound, but not as a piece in itself. It is utterly and blandly neutral in itself, just a bass that descends diatonically from D to A and goes back again, with more diatonic flurries above it - it might be the way the ghandarvas sing(!) but it's not really what we humans want to listen to. It's real outcome is things like the verdant growth in the central ground bass section of April-England, which is a fully-functioning piece, without occultism of the sort you suggest.

[BWV 1080]

Your Fould example (who I had not heard of, just some lucky googling) made me think of the one I posted above

[Luke]

How about this one?

It's the 30th piece from William Hamilton Bird's Oriental Miscellany

[BWV 1080]

It's the 30th piece from William Hamilton Bird's Oriental Miscellany

Yes, an Enlightenment take on Indian music from an Irish musician in Calcutta

[Luke]

Much easier one, just to keep things moving.

[Luke]

I feel these are connected...

(there's more going on in the score here)

[Luke]

I feel a connection with this one too. (Just me, I guess)

[Luke]

Should change the name on the last one, it's not actually that easy!