U-turn / Music
December 2, 2006
Voices, Noices, Choices
With a workgroup consisting of members of Componisten 96, Geneco en BIM we organized a composers forum in the Muziekgebouw.
Forum Noises, Voices, Choices (1) (Dutch)A forum itself is nothing special, but that people of Componisten 96 and Geneco were collaborating in it was.
People who attended the meeting were from various backgrounds. It is very encouraging that also representatives of several ensembles, publishers and theatre programmers joined in like Willem Heering (Asko Ensemble), Henk Heuvelmans (Gaudeamus), Theo van Dooremalen (annual festival November Music) and Mirjan Zegers (Donemus). And naturally the bulk of attendencees were composers.
In the forum we had composers from different backgrounds, like:
Samuel Vriezen
Guus Janssen
Klaas ten Holt
Richard Veenstra
Anne LaBerge
Peter Zegveld
Rene Uilenhoet
Forum Noises, Voices, Choices (2) (Dutch)Question on the roll were:
Are we mere grant junkies who don't bother about our audience?
Are we grounded in society and how does it show?
Do we reach our intended audience?
The most important issue that came up is the extremely poor quality of general music education in the Netherlands. This should be improved. (I know organizations like De Kamervraag and Gaudeamus are already working on plans to improve this.)
The meeting emphasized the need to merge the three (and in time more) organizations in a Unie van Componisten (Composers Union), so we can lobby for high quality art-music for everyone who is interested.
And it should be our concern and our aim that enough people in the public are interested. And apart from lobbying and raising money and work out papers etc. etc. we should compose the best music we can to attract audience to our concerts.
Posted by Renske at 20:09 UTC | permanent link
October 14, 2006
The art of engraving music
Scanning through the Sibelius forums I ran into this link about music engraving. As a mere mortal using software for musicnotation, I take a bow in deep respect for the skills shown in this 7 minute film clip.
Posted by Renske at 14:12 UTC | permanent link
September 20, 2006
Tierkreis
On average I am not a fan of Karlheinz Stockhausen's music, since his brainpower has a habit of getting in the way. One of his compositions where brainpower and musical thinking seems to be well in balance is Tierkreis.
Last year I heard a performance of this composition by Calefax which was very impressive, and since today there is a version online for organ on orgelconcerten.ncrv.nl, that is great to listen to as well. Performance is by Klaas Hoek.
Posted by Renske at 14:27 UTC | permanent link
September 14, 2006
Walking distance
Bach statue (Photo RV) Apart from being a great talent himself, Felix Mendelssohn made himself a name by starting a tradition with the Mattheus Passion. What I never realized is the geographical and historical situation that made him the ideal man for the job.
His teacher was one of Bach sons and he lived only a five minute walk from the famous Thomas Kirche where Bach worked the larger part of his career.
Posted by Renske at 14:04 UTC | permanent link
June 25, 2006
Logic tuning
As I described earlier, composing for carillon creates a whole range of tuning opportunities. Since the carillon Frans plays on weekly is a meantone instrument with the A tuned at 415 kHz, my original score and soundtrack can't be played without hurting our ears.
But here comes Apple's Logic to the rescue. Somewhere hidden in the menus is the command 'tuning'.
After slecting it I can not only choose meantone, but also specify which meantone tuning. Fantastic! Werckmeister III: it is a standard within Logic. Some other exotic one probably as well. And if it isn't, Logic gives me the opportunity to create my own ones.
Brilliant!
Posted by Renske at 21:19 UTC | permanent link
June 19, 2006
Saved by the bell
Last night I spoke to Frans, who will perform Square Prayer in Gdansk. He told me only the roof of St. Catherine's Church was burned (bad enough) and that the carillon was saved by the solid construction of the tower. The bells were inspected last week and didn't seem to be damaged or detuned by the heat.
Only the carillon keyboard was severely damaged by the fire (or firefighting) and it will be replaced by a new one that is currently being built.
Posted by Renske at 20:17 UTC | permanent link
June 11, 2006
Out of the loop
Last night I ran into one of my radio colleagues, who also is a student at the Nederlandse Beiaardschool. And he told me a couple of weeks ago St. Catherine's Church was destroyed by a fire. But he told me the tower and the carillon are still in tact.
Today I looked up some news. On the "Belgian Chocolate" blog, carillon student Tiffany writes about the fire, with some pictures.
And the Sunday Mail has a picture of the fire as well.
A tragedy for the people who take care of the church and a shock for the organization committee of the Carillon Congress
Posted by Renske at 22:08 UTC | permanent link
May 30, 2006
Bummer
Marin AlsopNext week conductor Marin Alsop visits Holland for a concert with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra (RCO). I had so much anticipated to go there, that it is a real disappointment to find one of my own premieres takes place on the same date and time.
Yes, I look forward (A LOT) to the premiere of Fiddlers by the Matangi String Quartet. But the prospect of Alsop visiting my hometown for a performance with the RCO, is something I had been keen on to visit as well.
Posted by Renske at 20:55 UTC | permanent link
May 26, 2006
Compensating
Die Kongresshalle (Photo RV)My composition VE-Dances is based on original footage by the American Army, advancing in Germany at the end of WWII. Although I have been in Germany a lot (it is only a 1,5 hour drive away) I hardly visited any of the relics left behind by the Third Reich. So, it was about time to visit the Zeppelinfield - where the Yankee Doodlers performed to entertain G.I.s - myself.
Last weekend we (my spouse and me) traveled to Nuremberg to visit the remains of the Reichsparteitagsgelände and its Dokumentationszentrum. The minor parts that are still there are BIG. I knew it was big, but I was still amazed about the size that dwarfs it's visitors.
Those Nazi-bonzo's must have been pathetically small ego's to cook up something like this Roman Empire inspired nuthead architecture.
Fascinating to see BTW were the 1930s reactions and cartoons in international newspapers of the time, as they were on display in the Documentation Centre.
When you are around, it is worth a visit.
Posted by Renske at 10:04 UTC | permanent link
May 18, 2006
Waldteufel
Waldteufel (Photo RV)This morning I visited percussionist Arnold Marinissen in his studio, where he showed me part of his instrument collection. Apart from all the ordinary instruments he showed me a lot of his more peculiar instruments.
The one I fell in love with right away is the lions roar or, as it is also known, waldteufel. Amazing how much sound this simple instrument makes and how much ways there are to get it to speak.
Posted by Renske at 21:23 UTC | permanent link
May 10, 2006
Fabulous Channel
The news is about two days old as I write this and for techies it is ancient history, but it is something we as freaky classical music lovers can learn from: Last monday the internet equivalent of Oscars for best websites, Webbies, were unveiled. One of the winners is Fabchannel.
This company makes video recordings of pop concerts in the mayor Dutch pop temple Paradiso. And anyone with an internet connection can go there and see and listen to those concerts. E.g. I was watching (and listening to!) a concert by the Simple Minds.
We should have something similar for classical and contemporary music concerts. Not every orchestra and ensemble making their own Fabchannel, but one for every mayor concert hall. All legal. So we could SEE that great conductor or look up this one great concert with the ASKO-Ensemble with a new composition by Klas Torstensson in the Muziekgebouw. That would be awesome.
I still don't understand how they've set up their business model and make money, because I don't pay, I don't see advertisements and they claim all rights have been dealt with legally. But it works and it is great fun.
Posted by Renske at 19:57 UTC | permanent link
May 4, 2006
Social contexts
While working on my just finished composition Square Prayer, I was reconfirmed in my conviction that music only bears its meaning in a social human context.
I can try to be innovative by composing new sounds, but especially by composing for carillon I do feel the tradition and cultural history behind it.
The obligation I felt is to pick up on the tradition and try to bring it further by using a language my contemporaries might understand. In this I can only try and hope to be part of a history that began a long time ago and I hope will go on for a very long time.
Posted by Renske at 21:54 UTC | permanent link
April 8, 2006
Carillon tower
Carillon tower, Town Hall, Hilversum
(Photo: Renske Vrolijk)When I go to work in Hilversum, each and everyday I pass a carillon encased in beautiful architecture. It is a modern 1958 instrument (equally tempered with the A @ 440kHz).
The tower, the instrument is placed in, is part of the modernist 1931 completed Town Hall (Raadhuis, see picture). Architect is Willem Dudok, who designed many modern buildings in Hilversum.
The carillon in this tower has a lot in common with the instrument I am writing for in Gdansk. Would be fun to have this new piece (I keep the title for myself, for now) performed in Hilversum as well!
Posted by Renske at 13:24 UTC | permanent link
April 2, 2006
Historic tuning hazards
I am in the process of composing the carillon piece I am commissioned for by Frans Haagen (with support of the FST). It brings me smack in the middle of history of tuning.
As with organs, carillons can be as diverse as can be. While the work I am composing right now is intended for the St Catherine's Church carillon in Gdansk, Frans Haagen usually plays on the instrument in the 17th century Nieuwe Toren (New Tower) in Kampen.
Where the Gdansk instrument has an equally tempered tuning with the A being 440kHz, his own instrument has a meantone temperament with the A tuned at 415kHz.
As a Western socialized world citizen, I have strong preference for an equally tempered tuning as far as it concerns my own music. But writing a tonal piece with a soundtrack for an instrument with the historic proportions as the carillon, I am forced to find solutions to make sure my new composition works on different instruments.
Posted by Renske at 20:39 UTC | permanent link
March 21, 2006
Unification
Amazing!
Today, representatives of both Dutch composers organizations (Geneco and Componisten 96) together with a representative of the Dutch Jazz organization BIM spoke to our State Secretary for Education, Culture and Science Medy van der Laan. (See also my entry turmoil.
Reason for this invitation by Van der Laan is that last week all three organizations issued an concept for a unification of all three organizations, thus ending a 10 year schism.
Whatever the outcome of today's talks, this is already something achieved.
Posted by Renske at 20:23 UTC | permanent link