Seven Choral Settings to Poems by Emily Dickinson; For Unaccompanied Mixed Voices (SATB)by Donald Grantham; Emily DickinsonReview by: Marshall BialoskyNotes, Second Series, Vol. 40, No. 4 (Jun., 1984), pp. 897-898Published by: Music Library AssociationStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/940740 .

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Music Reviews Music Reviews

variety of short melodic fragments of either a pentatonic, chromatic, or diatonic na- ture. The result is a shimmering kaleido- scope of aural effects which is a delight.

The notation is spatial and includes in- dications of approximate duration of events in seconds and clear downbeat cues for the conductor. As with Schafer's previous pub- lications, the eminently legible hand-writ- ten score is a joy to behold.

Peter Maxwell Davies's elegant new cho- ral work, Solstice of Light, for mixed chorus, tenor solo, and organ, was written for the 1979 St. Magnus Festival and received its premiere in St. Magnus Cathedral, Kirk- wall, the Orkney Islands. It is a work that conveys the mystery of the Orkney Islands in much the same way that Mendelssohn's famous overture evokes the Hebrides. Like much of Davies's music for voices written since 1971, Solstice is a setting of original poetry by the contemporary Orcadian poet, John Mackay Brown. His searing verse, which describes the barren, wind-swept rocky islands, has inspired Davies to one of his most expressive and beautiful choral works. The nine poems describe the his- tory of the Orkney Islands: from early set- tlement by the Picts, through savage inva- sions by the Norsemen, to current anxieties over ecological harm to the area from in- dustrial development.

The fifty-minute work is divided into fourteen connected movements alternating music for chorus, solo tenor, and solo or- gan. The choruses range from the slow, somber, chorale-like opening, "We are the new hills and lochs and shores," to the fast, rollicking scherzo, "We have long put off our drab coats," which celebrates the ar- rival of summer harvesting with jubilant dancing. Unlike his 1977 Westerlings which requires a professional chorus of prodi- gious skill, Davies has carefully crafted vo- cal parts for a good amateur chorus, helped along by the organ which doubles the cho- ral parts. The homophonic textures, the isorhythmic melodic lines with rhythmic patterns repeated from phrase to phrase, and the conjunct lines all combine to ease the task of the chorister. The homogene- ous harmonic style of the piece is the result of the frequent use of the tritone and ma- jor second in various combinations, pro- ducing a variety of sonorities derived from the dominant seventh.

As in his 1960 0 Magnum Mysterium,

variety of short melodic fragments of either a pentatonic, chromatic, or diatonic na- ture. The result is a shimmering kaleido- scope of aural effects which is a delight.

The notation is spatial and includes in- dications of approximate duration of events in seconds and clear downbeat cues for the conductor. As with Schafer's previous pub- lications, the eminently legible hand-writ- ten score is a joy to behold.

Peter Maxwell Davies's elegant new cho- ral work, Solstice of Light, for mixed chorus, tenor solo, and organ, was written for the 1979 St. Magnus Festival and received its premiere in St. Magnus Cathedral, Kirk- wall, the Orkney Islands. It is a work that conveys the mystery of the Orkney Islands in much the same way that Mendelssohn's famous overture evokes the Hebrides. Like much of Davies's music for voices written since 1971, Solstice is a setting of original poetry by the contemporary Orcadian poet, John Mackay Brown. His searing verse, which describes the barren, wind-swept rocky islands, has inspired Davies to one of his most expressive and beautiful choral works. The nine poems describe the his- tory of the Orkney Islands: from early set- tlement by the Picts, through savage inva- sions by the Norsemen, to current anxieties over ecological harm to the area from in- dustrial development.

The fifty-minute work is divided into fourteen connected movements alternating music for chorus, solo tenor, and solo or- gan. The choruses range from the slow, somber, chorale-like opening, "We are the new hills and lochs and shores," to the fast, rollicking scherzo, "We have long put off our drab coats," which celebrates the ar- rival of summer harvesting with jubilant dancing. Unlike his 1977 Westerlings which requires a professional chorus of prodi- gious skill, Davies has carefully crafted vo- cal parts for a good amateur chorus, helped along by the organ which doubles the cho- ral parts. The homophonic textures, the isorhythmic melodic lines with rhythmic patterns repeated from phrase to phrase, and the conjunct lines all combine to ease the task of the chorister. The homogene- ous harmonic style of the piece is the result of the frequent use of the tritone and ma- jor second in various combinations, pro- ducing a variety of sonorities derived from the dominant seventh.

As in his 1960 0 Magnum Mysterium,

Davies reserves his most complex music for the solo organ. Interspersed among the choral movements are five breathtaking organ "tone poems," each with a descrip- tive title taken from one of the poems. These rhapsodic movements, employing a most sophisticated rhythmic, metrical, and harmonic vocabulary, illustrate in a very romantic way the desolate Orkney land- scape. The technical requirements are enormous.

WILLIAM B. WELLS Carleton College

Donald Grantham. Seven Choral Set- tings to Poems by Emily Dickinson; for unaccompanied mixed voices (SATB). Boston: E. C. Schirmer, 1983. With- out a smile [5 p.; $.65]; For each ec- static instant [6 p.; $.65]; A spider sewed at night [7 p.; $.75]; One need not be a chamber to be haunted [7 p.; $.75]; The spider as an Artist [7 p.; $.75]; Father, I bring thee [7 p.; $.75]; This is my letter [6 p.; $.65]

Donald Grantham's Seven Choral Settings of Poems by Emily Dickinson seems to me to be one of the better choral suites to have come along in recent years. In a field where the bad threatens to drive out the good, the pristine clarity of these pieces is a welcome relief. Interesting prosody constantly keeps the textures alive. The shifts between pure counterpoint and homophony are very convincing, and the whole set has a real choral sound, without being too familiar or hackneyed. This music is very much a part of what I sense is an emerging American choral style, characterized by clean, thin textures; highly syncopated prosody placed in the context of changing meters; a good feel for singable, vocal words; and a strong sense of propulsion.

In the notes to a recording of the work, the composer claims the seven pieces are in an arch form, with movements one and seven, two and six, three and five related, with four as the centerpiece. This scheme, in my opinion, works better with pieces of greater duration than these, since it is very hard to feel the form happening when the individual members of the arch are this small.

Davies reserves his most complex music for the solo organ. Interspersed among the choral movements are five breathtaking organ "tone poems," each with a descrip- tive title taken from one of the poems. These rhapsodic movements, employing a most sophisticated rhythmic, metrical, and harmonic vocabulary, illustrate in a very romantic way the desolate Orkney land- scape. The technical requirements are enormous.

WILLIAM B. WELLS Carleton College

Donald Grantham. Seven Choral Set- tings to Poems by Emily Dickinson; for unaccompanied mixed voices (SATB). Boston: E. C. Schirmer, 1983. With- out a smile [5 p.; $.65]; For each ec- static instant [6 p.; $.65]; A spider sewed at night [7 p.; $.75]; One need not be a chamber to be haunted [7 p.; $.75]; The spider as an Artist [7 p.; $.75]; Father, I bring thee [7 p.; $.75]; This is my letter [6 p.; $.65]

Donald Grantham's Seven Choral Settings of Poems by Emily Dickinson seems to me to be one of the better choral suites to have come along in recent years. In a field where the bad threatens to drive out the good, the pristine clarity of these pieces is a welcome relief. Interesting prosody constantly keeps the textures alive. The shifts between pure counterpoint and homophony are very convincing, and the whole set has a real choral sound, without being too familiar or hackneyed. This music is very much a part of what I sense is an emerging American choral style, characterized by clean, thin textures; highly syncopated prosody placed in the context of changing meters; a good feel for singable, vocal words; and a strong sense of propulsion.

In the notes to a recording of the work, the composer claims the seven pieces are in an arch form, with movements one and seven, two and six, three and five related, with four as the centerpiece. This scheme, in my opinion, works better with pieces of greater duration than these, since it is very hard to feel the form happening when the individual members of the arch are this small.

897 897

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MLA Notes, June 1984

However, that does not interfere with the enjoyment of the work, and I recommend it highly to those few choral directors un- afraid of a less familiar name, or un- daunted by the fact that one hundred other conductors may not have yet directed this work. It is not an easy piece, but it is also not impossibly difficult, and it will reward the courageous conductor who can find the

many clues the composer has planted along the way to help the performers. The work has been recorded in an excellent perfor- mance by the University of Texas Cham- ber Singers under the direction of Morris J. Beachy on CRI (SD 458).

MARSHALL BIALOSKY

California State University, Dominguez Hills

898

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