Brian Ferneyhough 'shadowtime' broadcast TONIGHT

If you played this to anyone who didn't know anything about it you'd struggle to think it was about anything concrete, though you'd know it was about Walter Benjamin because his name is mentioned as he's about to enter into...another dimension? heaven? The so-called "ideas" (and I think they are there) all fluidly run in and out through the course of the two hours, but what they are is another matter. The other thing is that a record of this wd be completely fine; the music was kinda magical. It was recorded at the ENO - which I've been to, seen a cpl of operas there and ws going to see this but couldn't go in the end - and apparently it was piano, singers, instruments NO stage action. Actually I don't think there is any of that anyway...

I've read some of Ferneyhough's description of the work, and I've seen parts of the score. Since I'm not a big opera fan, I'm not bothered by the lack of elaborate staging. If there's a recording on the horizon, that will suit me fine.

Even though I've been immersing myself in opera a bit more this year its been only with composers whose chamber/orchestral works i've enjoyed, but otherwise its not something I go to often. In my head I have this notion that a composer will, even if there is a story/set of ideas to communicate (and that this may get in the way), write something that's maybe even more fleshed out, like taking everything learned from writing smaller scores and stringing them together, is something that excites, which is why I opened that thread on Kaija Saariaho w/ a qn on "L'amour de Loin".

The parts of the Shadowtime score I've seen are just piano and spoken word, and they look relatively sparse compared to Ferneyhough's most over-notated stuff (e.g. Unity Capsule, Transit). But there's always been some range to this, and his piano music, while dense and complex, has always been relatively tame on the page (in part because there's no payoff for separating different parts of the performance machinery, the Ferneyhough does with, say breathing or bowing versus fingering).

Here's Unity Capsule, btw:

http://www.humboldt-forum-recht.de/9-1999/bsp1.gif
(maybe too big to display in the thread?)

(its 40 megs so I ws reluctant to put up quite a big file but there you go, enjoy if you can d/l)

Beardless "hyper modernists" (ditto): Michael Finnissy, Chris Dench, Richard Barrett, James Dillon

Ferneyhough's beard isn't exactly "heavy". It's a good look for him.

Dillon, while beardless, has FABULOUS HAIR.

http://images-eu.amazon.com/images/P/B000025UF8.02.LZZZZZZZ.jpg

(James! Thought you'd disappeared!)

http://www.fseitse.ee/fotod/arvo_part.jpg

http://www.metroactive.com/papers/sonoma/03.02.05/gifs/adams-0509.jpg

*as in STOOD OUTSIDE w.a placard telling ppl not to go in!!
**i must try out the beard theory on him

and yes, otm re: dillon's freakoid head of hair.

sorry all for coming on in such a cryptic way out of nowhere.

paul: you're right about ferneyhough's beard. i still think it means business if not especially heavy.

"archaic modernism" = high european modernism from about 1945-(arbitrarily)1968 (the stuff your grandparents listened to)

"hyper modernism" (neo-modernism, cartoon-modernism, bearded-modernism) = post-1975.

i've heard much more of the boulez type of thing than the lachenmann type of thing but i think some distinction can be drawn between these two eras in terms of "style". . i tend to understand this difference in vague terms of some perceived quality of beardedness.

Which is about as clear as listening to the third scene of Shadowtime
without a text. . .

Forget about beards. I have a limited exposure to innovative high modernist music past maybe Mantra or so. What's interesting to ME is that Ferneyhough is talking about style which in the context of avant-garde music seems to me to have been kind of a non-issue.

It may have been ignorant of me to lump Ferneyhough with Lachenmann who may have very different concerns.

Does Ferneyhough have a style? Does, say, Stockhausen? What characterizes it?

like john zorn?

would kagel be older cartoon modernism?

Kaija Saariaho, who did study w/Ferneyhough for a while, does not have a lady-beard. Her music doesn't sound too similar to BF's either, but I don't think I've heard anywhere near enough to judge.

I came across the wiki page on 'new complexity' recently, and it came up w/the following: Though it is not relevant to the style of the music, New Complexity composers tend also to have very clear musical handwriting, this might hold even more than the beard theory..

Since this thread ws posted i've heard more of that list: Liza Lim 'heart's ear' matches the style but i'd like to hear other things from her. Emsley's disc on metier is a classic and 'Juniper Tree', especially, is one wild ride. Hubler 'Sonetto' for bass flute packs lots of notes in, and you almost feel sorry for the performer, but you shouldn't simply bcz the lots of notes = lots of heat thing holds v well. Eckhardt's 'out of chaos' is another good 'un.

Other composers that could be on that list list => Rebecca Saunders and Chaya Czernowin and the only one i've not liked much so far => James Clarke. Also I'm not sure abt wiki's claims of a link w/spectral music. My ears don't feel Grisey, Murail and i'm very up and down as far as Saariaho goes. I'm good w/Vivier and like to track down Reves d'Un Marco Polo someday.

Oh no I hope this doesn't start up again. I wish I never posted my stupid beard thing. .

I haven't heard the opera but I'm curious where you found the Hubler piece (I'm assuming you meant Hubler and not Huber). Not very much seems to be available on recording aside from this.

Also I'm not sure abt wiki's claims of a link w/spectral music.

I think the connection is a general one in terms of methodology. Computer-aided composition can factor into both. It wouldn't seem to me that spectralism made a big impact on the "complexity music" as it suggests on the wiki. Ferneyhough actually taught Saariaho and they both probably worked at IRCAM at around the same time. Many of these composers use the same tools (PatchWork and things like that) and (presumably) similar techniques. They seem like two sides of the same thing.

Yeah Hubler (or Huebler). By 'Sonetto' I meant "Sonetto LXXXIII del Michelangelo" but that's for piano which is from that CD and also excellent. The one for bass flute is "palimpsest" - its (probably) a radio recording that i found on mp3.