 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Liquorice
Date: 2005-03-11 21:15
Stravinsky wrote Epitaphium in 1959 for flute, clarient and harp. In 1971, the year of Stravinsky's death, Berio and Denissow both wrote trios for the same combination of instruments and dedicated them to Stravinsky. Does anybody know the background to this?
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Author: GBK
Date: 2005-03-11 23:23
The Stravinsky Epitaphium is a short serial work that was written for Prince Max Egon zu Fürstenberg, after the Prince died in 1959. Stravinsky had been his guest during the 1957 and 1958 music festivals of which the Prince was the patron.
Stravinsky originally conceived the Epitaphium for 2 flutes and harp, but substituted the clarinet for the 2nd flute when he was told the work would be performed on a concert with other flute/clarinet works...GBK
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Author: Liquorice
Date: 2005-03-12 06:45
Thanks GBK. Do you know anything about why Berio and Denissow wrote trios for the same combination in memory of Stravinsky? Was it a coincidence, or were they also written for some specific occasion?
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Author: GBK
Date: 2005-03-12 07:50
There have been at least 3 works written in memory of Stravinsky.
The Berio Autre Fois and the Denisov trio both have the same instrumentation.
There was also (I believe) a string work by Schnittke in memory of Stravinsky.
As Stravinsky was respected and revered by so many contemporary composers, works written in his memory were not uncommon...GBK
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Author: RodRubber
Date: 2005-03-14 05:52
The work in question here is "Canon in memorium Igor Stravinsky" by Schnittke, for string ensemble possibly quartet.
Schnittke is a very unique composer.
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Author: Liquorice
Date: 2005-03-14 08:18
So we have:
-autre fois (berceuse canonique pour igor stravinsky) by Berio
-Canon en Memoire d'Igor Stravinsky by Denissow
-Canon in memorium Igor Stravinsky by Schnittke
Surely there is some connection between these works? Were they all written for the same memorial concert or something?
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Author: clarinetist04
Date: 2005-03-14 18:12
Copland also wrote a piece in memory of Igor Stravinsky:
"Threnody No. 1: Igor Stravinsky in Memoriam" (1971)
Alexander Tansman wrote "Stele in memoriam Igor Stravinsky" (1972)
Yvar Mikhashoff: "In Memoriam Igor Stravinsky" (1971)
Roger Sessions: "Canons To the Memory of Stravinsky" (1971)
Harrison Birtwhistle: "Tombeau in memoriam Igor Stravinsky" (1971)
William Kraft: "In Memoriam Igor Stravisnky" (1972)
I'm sure there are others. As far as I can tell, they are not related nor are the ones you mentioned. I don't think they were written for a specific concert given the searching that I've done.
Post Edited (2005-03-14 18:22)
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Author: GBK
Date: 2005-03-14 18:56
Nice list...
As I previously wrote:
"...As Stravinsky was respected and revered by so many contemporary composers, works written in his memory were not uncommon...."
Stravinsky died on April 6, 1971.
It seems that all the memorial pieces dedicated to Stravinsky were written in approximately 1971 or 1972.
Why are we finding this so unusual? ...GBK
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Author: Liquorice
Date: 2005-03-14 20:54
Thanks for all your input. I agree that "...As Stravinsky was respected and revered by so many contemporary composers, works written in his memory were not uncommon...."
I just found it quite coincidental that both the works that I mentioned (Berio and Denissow) were written for the same rather unusual combination of instruments, and both are canons of some kind. Made me wonder whether there was some specific occasion, or if the composers had communicated with each other over these pieces.
Perhaps it was just a coincidence. But I am suprised to see how many canons were written- Sessions, Schnittke, Berio, Denissow. It's not as if Stravinsky was famous specifically for his canonic writing!
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Author: clarinetist04
Date: 2005-03-14 23:47
Indeed! He was an amazing composer, no doubt about it. It's very unfortunate that he isn't still living...but maybe that's just me being selfish!
Our symphony orchestra is performing his Rite of Spring and the Schoenberg Five Orchestral Pieces next month...I'm really excited...too bad I'm not playing in it. Our concert is Wednesday, with Concerto for Wind Orchestra by Lopatnikoff and others by Balada, Moe, and Mozart.
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Author: Tony Pay ★2017
Date: 2005-06-13 15:42
In fact, there was a Memorial Concert in St John's Smith Square London in 1971 or 1972 given by the London Sinfonietta for which many of these works were written, and at which they received their first public performance. I played the clarinet in those works that included one.
The first performances we played included:
Berio Autre Fois (Berceuse Canonique IMIS)
Berkeley Canon IMIS
Birtwistle Tombeau IMIS
Boulez Explosante Fixe (first version, fl/cl/tpt)
Copland Threnody IMIS
Denisov Canon IMIS
Goehr Chorale IMIS
Lutyens Requiescat IMIS
Maw Epitaph-Canon IMIS
Maxwell Davies Canon IMIS
Schnittke Canon IMIS
Sessions Canons IMIS
Wood Canon IMIS
Unfortunately, I don't now have a programme, so I can't give you the accurate date or the complete programme until I do a bit more research.
I have two anecdotes, though.
Facsimiles of the scores were published in the souvenir programme, and most of them took up just a page. However, Boulez's contribution, called Explosante-Fixe, turned out to be a blueprint for a composition rather than an actual composition, and ran to a couple of pages, perhaps more, of his miniscule handwriting -- so, quite substantial.
When Berio saw this, he grabbed the programme with a "Sheet! He's written a masterpiece!" and disappeared into a corner with it.
The other thing was that Boulez produced in addition a through-composed version of the piece for us, following his blueprint -- but only in the afternoon of the concert! It consisted of three separate parts, for flute, clarinet and trumpet, which we were to play independently from different corners of the (quite resonant) hall. There was no time to rehearse, or even to practise, so we pretty much sight-read it.
Apparently it was reasonably effective (I was in no position to judge) -- but one of the more amusing features was Elgar Howarth, playing the trumpet, being continually handed different mutes from his big leather mute bag by Jenny Ward-Clarke, the 'cellist.
Of course, the piece subsequently grew, and now probably bears little resemblance to its first incarnation.
Tony
Post Edited (2005-06-14 00:53)
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Author: Liquorice
Date: 2005-06-14 18:17
Thanks for telling us about that Mr Pay. What a wonderful historic event to have taken part in!
Do you have any idea why most of the pieces written were canons?
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Author: Tony Pay ★2017
Date: 2005-06-16 18:36
I haven't had much luck tracking down a programme for the concert, but I spoke to Harrison Birtwistle today -- we're rehearsing a new piece of his (four flutes, four clarinets, percussion (including a big marimba part), cimbalom, harp and chamber choir after Neruda) for the Aldeburgh Festival -- and he thought the concert was organised by David Drew for the magazine Tempo.
Harry didn't think there was any special reason why a lot of them were canons, except that Stravinsky wrote some, and they're a very compact, short form, ideal for the circumstances. In fact, Harry's piece was for flute, clarinet, harp and string quartet, and he says that he specially wrote it so that the instrumental groups *didn't* play together, precisely because that's what happens in Stravinsky's Epitaphium, where the fl/cl music is disjunct from the harp music.
If I find out any more I'll let you know.
Tony
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