What Are You Writing Now?

You would think a composer is one who composes music all the time, right? 

My experience at university, the place where composers go to teach because they want to write music but still have to make a living, taught me that this is not always the case. In fact, it seemed to me that most of my composition professors would have enjoyed having more time to compose. And less time having to check music theory homework for parallel fifths and octaves. 

Unfortunately for those who would like to, it isn't easy or simple to make a living from one's composing these days. But if you're one of those folks doing so, please share your success story for others in the comments below! (You can also voice your anger if I offended you with the above paragraph, but hey, that was once my plan, too). 

Over the past few years I have been preoccupied with matters other than composing. A few arrangements are all the these years have produced, which you could call Gebrauchsmusik and I wouldn't be offended. And the preoccupation is OK with me, for I am preparing for another line of work. 

Still, the composing continues, albeit at a much slower pace than it might otherwise. And so, my update is that I am currently working on a several new choral anthems, about which I hope to share more with you, real soon. 

Howard Hanson, A Brief Biography

The Composer's Childhood 

On 28 December 1896, Howard Hanson was born in Wahoo, Nebraska.[1] There he grew up without siblings.[2] His parents, Hans and Hilma, were Lutherans from Skåne, Sweden.[3] Allen Cohen, musicologist and assistant professor of music at Fairleigh Dickson University in New York,[4] noted in his Hanson biography: “As a boy Hanson considered a career in the Lutheran ministry. . . . Religious ideals and images are prominent in his writings and speeches, as well as in his compositions.”[5] Recalling his childhood, Hanson once said, “The music of the [Lutheran] chorales is pretty serious material, and this impressed me very greatly.”[6]  As a child, Hanson was first taught to play the piano and cello by his mother and later played cello in the high school orchestra, which he occasionally conducted.[7]  He later took lessons at Wahoo’s Luther College with A. O. Peterson who taught him music theory in addition to cello and piano performance.[8]

An Ambitious Student

A diligent student, Hanson once confessed, “I didn’t want to be second or third in the class—I wanted to be the first in the class, and I always was.  I wanted to be the best pianist around [Luther College], not the next best.  That was a kind of an ambition that probably helped me in professional life later on—that I was driving myself a little bit, probably, all my life.”[9]  Hanson’s drive to perform better than his peers helped him to graduate at the top of his high school class.[10]

Olivier Messiaen's Quartet for the End of Time, Part 10

We now turn our attention to the “Danse de la fureur, pour les sept trompettes.” This movement features the quartet playing in unison with tessituras (the range of pitch content) that fall mostly in the staff. The movement uses a binary formal structure. And the double barline at Reh. I indicates the division between the exposition and development sections. 

Elastic Phrases and Additive Rhythms

Elastic phrase duration and rhythmic complexity characterize the opening theme of this movement. Phrases are “elastic” because Messiaen varies the number of rhythmic values in each phrase. These are known as “additive rhythms.” No meter given, so barlines are merely used to mark the end of phrases. Notice how the number of shorter rhythmic values leading up to a quarter note or half note differs from phrase to phrase in the example below.

Example: Theme of Movement VI at Rehearsal A. Brackets indicate rhythmic palindromes.

Olivier Messiaen's Quartet for the End of Time, Part 9

Overview of the fifth movement

The fifth movement is the first of two movements written in the key of E.  Reflecting the concept of eternity in its title, the duration of “Louange à l’Èternité de Jésus” is one of the longest movements in Quatuor resulting in part from a unchanging and very slow tempo. Irregular phrase durations also characterize the movement. This irregularity results from Messiaen’s un-balancing of phrases with the addition or subtraction of a sixteenth note that create rhythmically asymmetrical measures. The fifth movement is therefore dynamic in terms of phrase duration as well as melodic contour and gradual contrasts of expression.  

The Melody of the fifth movement

Messiaen places the cello melody, characterized by lyricism and gradual contrasts of expression, in a high tessitura that never strays below B3.  As with the third and fourth movements, the melody of the fifth movement uses Messiaen’s Mode 2 for pitch content.

The Accompaniment

The piano accompaniment of the fifth movement initially appears to be rather simple:  Three-voice chords, which gain a fourth voice after Reh. D, sustain harmonies by repeating the chords in sixteenth notes.  The accompaniment is dynamic, however, in that it contains a harmonic progression that ascends into a higher register before returning to the register in which it began. 

Olivier Messiaen's Quartet for the End of Time, Part 8

Messiaen, Confusing Our Perception of Time

In “Intermède,” the fourth movement of Quatuor Pour La Fin Du Temps, Messiaen uses a conventional simple duple meter, barlines, and dynamic elements (things that change, not expression) to confuse the listener’s perception of time. The playful, clear rhythmic pulse disguises Messiaen’s technique, making the whole movement sound rather... conventional... or perhaps straight forward, yet it is not.  

How Does He Do It? Stretching!

Messiaen achieves confusion of our accurate perception of time, despite using a clear rhythmic pulse throughout much of the movement, by progressively stretching musical phrases. The phrases of the A section, extending from Reh. A (“rehearsal marker A”) to Reh. B, begin with brief gestures one beat in duration that consist of two sixteenth notes followed by an eighth note (♬ + ♪). In the second measure, Messiaen extends phrase duration to fill the whole measure with six sixteenth notes preceding the eighth note marking the end of the phrase, which creates a moment of relative repose. Messiaen stretches this phrase to cover the next two measures, followed by an even greater phrase-stretch spanning four measures and coming to rest on the quarter note in the measure preceding Reh. B. 

Quantifying Phrases by Beats

The stretched phrases may be quantified by the number of beats involved, resulting in the series: 1, 1, 2, 4, and 8.  Thus, the dynamic nature of phrase durations eliminates the possibility of perceptible hypermeter (another cool, big word that should be added to the Jargon glossary), which depends on the regularity of hypermetric beat duration. (Note: Hypermeter is so much fun). Messiaen also momentarily suspends time at Reh. C with a quotation of birdsong in the clarinet lacking a clear rhythmic pulse, that spans two measures, shown in the example below.

Example: Birdsong in clarinet at Reh. C of Movement IV first used in Movement II at Reh A+1

Bridging Connections to Other Movements

Helping to connect this movement to other movements of Quatuor includes the use of Messiaen's "Mode 2" in the melody, quotations of birdsong, and the foreshadowing of the melody in Movement VI at Reh. F of Movement IV.  

For the next post in this series, click here.

Olivier Messiaen's Quartet for the End of Time, Part 7

In this post we again return to a discussion of how Messiaen creates the “end of time” by confusing our ability to clearly perceive the passage of time as we listen to his Quatuor pour la fin du Temps.

Using Barlines

In the third movement of Quatuor, Messiaen uses barlines to delimit segments and neutralize accidentals rather than indicate meter.[1]  Sections of the clarinet solo, “Abime des oiseaux,” may be generalized as belonging to either the slow and melancholy or birdsong material. 

The Suspension of Time

The formal structure of this movement may be described as a ternary form with codetta.  Messiaen’s asymmetrical additive rhythms combined with an extremely slow tempo in the A sections help to create a sense of the suspension of time by eliminating the possibility of perceiving a clear rhythmic pulse by which we would gauge how much time has passed. 

Structural Anchors

Yet despite this suspension of time, three instances of a sustained crescendo on the sounding pitch E5 serve as structural anchors. These occur at the beginning of the B section in measure 13, in the middle of the B section at measure 20, and initiating the codetta in measure 41.  Each occurrence of this prolonged crescendo precedes a sudden tempo change to a significantly faster tempo and the return to birdsong material.  Melodic pitch content may be classified as belonging to Messiaen's Mode 2. 

To read the next post in this series, click here.

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[1] Clara Huston Bell, Olivier Messiaen (Boston: Twayne Publishers, 1984), 27.

How to Compose a Choral Anthem for Church

Want to learn how to compose a choral anthem suitable for church? In “traditional” Protestant liturgy (to use a significant generalization) this anthem would probably serve for special music or music during the offertory and may or may not include congregational singing...

Olivier Messiaen's Quartet for the End of Time, Part 5

by David Doty

What is a Palindrome?

What is a palindrome, you ask? Something political, perhaps (i.e. Palin+drome) ? 

A palindrome is a favorite compositional device of Olivier Messiaen, of course! When we look closely at Messiaen’s Quatuor pour la fin du Temps (1941) we can find palindromes all over the place. For example, consider part of the second movement.

First, a little context. Messiaen composes the B section of the second movement beginning at Reh. D using simple triple meter and syncopation. In this section, the cello doubles the melody two octaves below the violin using Messiaen’s “Mode 7” for pitch material. The melody climaxes at Reh. F with a crescendo into its highest register. 

In Example 1 below, brackets indicate several instances of rhythmic palindromes formed by the melody of the B section at Reh. D. 

Example 1. Theme from Movement II in the violin at Reh. D. Brackets indicate rhythmic palindromes. 

So, what is a palindrome? A rhythmic palindrome is simply a series or pattern of rhythmic values that reads the same forwards or backwards. A melodic palindrome would be a series of pitches that likewise reads the same forwards or backwards. Messiaen adds complexity by nesting rhythmic palindromes in one another, or, in other words, by starting a new one before the preceding palindrome has finished. This, by the way, is a really (really? yes really) fun way to compose complex rhythms. But you don't have to take my word for it.   

To read the next post in this series, click here.

Olivier Messiaen's Quartet for the End of Time, Part 4

by David Doty

Dynamic Or Static? 

In this post we return to Olivier Messiaen’s Quator pour le fin du Temps (1941) and consider some of the dynamic and static elements of the second movement.

The Second Movement

The second movement, “Vocalise, pour l’Ange qui annonce la fin du Temps,” consists of a ternary (three part) formal structure comprised of A, B, and A-prime sections.  The contrast of styles between the A and B sections suggests that the formal structure in this movement acts as a dynamic element (by providing appreciable change over time relative to the first movement’s single section through-composed formal structure). The fragmentary A and A-prime sections of the second movement, functioning as introduction and coda, share a number of similarities including the use of sudden tempo changes and great contrasts of expression. 

A Note on the Formal Structure

Neither the duration of the A nor A-prime section is very long relative to the middle B section, although the introduction contains more measures and material than the coda.  The A section spans from Reh. A to Reh. D, while Reh. D to Reh. H (rehearsal markers in the score) to the comprise the B section, and the coda or A-prime section follows at Reh. H to the conclusion of the movement.    

Proof of Dynamism

Among the similarities of the A and A-prime sections are segments with inverted melodic contours.  Corresponding melodic identities in the A and A-prime sections are identified by comparing rhythm, contour, and instrumentation.  The variety of melodic identities in these sections suggests that they should be considered dynamic in nature.  This is evidenced at Reh. C of the A section in which the violin and cello ascend in unison sixteenth notes for two measures before a sudden tempo change brings sustained trills in the violin, clarinet, and cello with staggered entrances.  This scalar ascent mirrors two measures of descending sixteenth notes in the violin and cello at Reh. H of the A-prime section that also precedes sustained trills with staggered entrances.  In both the A and A-prime sections, these trills are joined by thirty-second notes in the piano.  The ascending thirty-second notes layered over the trills of the A section are mirrored by descending thirty-second notes in the piano at Reh. H+4 of the A-prime section. 

A Concluding Thought

The final two measures of the A and A-prime sections likewise contain similar gestures in the piano: four descending chords at fortississimo (wow, so loud!) in the A section are echoed by four ascending chords at fortississimo in the A-prime section. What could be called a “tag” or “button,” such as those commonly found at the end of marches, follows each of these.  In the context of this movement, the button consists of a forceful piano chord coinciding with a thirty-second note triplet in the clarinet. Considering the B section solely as a structural unit for the time being, enclosed by the A and A-prime sections that are unified by corresponding gestures of inverted contours, these sections create a structural and melodic palindrome similar to the non-retrogradable rhythms that Messiaen scatters throughout Quatuor.   

For the next post in this series, click here.

Morten Lauridsen’s O Magnum Mysterium

We were exhausted.

But did we get a break? Or a nap? Of course not. We had come to sing.

This particular concert came during our second week of jet-lag as my college choir and I toured eastern Europe. We sang in a Roman Catholic cathedral in Moscow. I do not now remember our entire program, but I will never forget the magic we felt that night singing Morten Lauridsen’s O Magnum Mysterium. 

Listen to the recording (not my college choir) and follow the score below:

Though his choral work sounds somewhat medieval (Latin text, a cappella) Lauridsen is actually a contemporary composer living and teaching at the University of Southern California (at time of writing). You can read more about Lauridsen and his music on his website by clicking here or visiting the Links page of this blog.

O Magnum Mysterium reflects on the incarnation of Christ the Lord, celebrated at Christmas. The text (in English) reads: “O great mystery and wonderful sacrament, that animals should see the new-born Lord lying in a manager. Blessed is the Virgin whose womb was worthy to bear Christ the Lord. Allelujah!”[1]

Lauridsen’s setting of the text takes on a four part structure with sections A, A-prime (1:46) B (3:13), and A-double prime (4:05-end).

Besides the text, the piece features a few distinctive elements including close harmonies, suspensions and their resolutions, and polyphony. (To learn about polyphony, homophony, et al, click here). 

Close harmonies, specifically seconds, appear all over the place, even in first measure of the tenors (T). Particular chord voicings also create Lauridsen’s unique sound in this piece.

Listen again to “Beata Virgo” (beginning around 3:13) for a stellar example of tension, created by dissonance, resolving to consonance. In “Virgo” Lauridsen moves from the chord G(add 2), the sub-dominant, to tonicize F-sharp minor (the mediant) via a G-sharp in the altos (3:23). Beautiful!

Lauridsen’s work shows us that in setting text to music, we do not have to use text exactly as written. What do I mean? Lauridsen’s piece might have been brief had he set the original text with its original structure. But instead, Lauridsen edits the text and repeats phrases (e.g. “O magnum mysterium”) and even single words (e.g. sacramentum).

Ever since that concert in Moscow, Lauridsen’s O Magnum Mysterium has continued to be one of my favorite choral works. It is a composition of lyrical melody, gorgeous harmonies and... great mystery.

What are your favorite choral works? Share something about them and/or your thought’s on Lauridsen’s O Magnum Mysterium with a comment below.

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[1]  Click here to go to the article “O Magnum Mysterium," Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/O_Magnum_Mysterium.