Philip Glass: An Evening Of Chamber Music
featuring: Philip Glass, Tim Fain, Lavinia Meijer and Feico Deutekom
Melkweg (Rabozaal)
Amsterdam
The Netherlands
28th April 2012 (2012-04-28)
REDISTRIBUTION:
At the time of writing (2012-04-29), Philip Glass is on DIME's NAB list as a
performer. For this recording to be seeded there, the pieces performed by
Glass himself would first have to be excised.
Given that this was an evening of the music of Philip Glass, that would be
both ironic and hugely dissatisfying. I have therefore elected not to
distribute the recording there in abridged form and would ask that you do the
same.
Otherwise, please feel free to redistribute this recording far and wide, so
that as many people as possible may enjoy it.
RECORDING:
Type: Audience master, recorded from seated position, 10 metres back from the
left, ceiling-mounted PA stack.
Source: 2 x matched DPA 4060 mics ->
DPA MMA6000 amplifier (100 Hz low-cut filter) ->
Edirol R-09HR recorder (44.1 kHz/16 bit WAV)
Lineage: Audacity 2.0.0 (tracks split, fades added, minor equalisation to
reduce bass) -> FLAC (compression level 8) [libFLAC 1.2.1 20070917]
Taper: Ian Macdonald (ianmacd)
SET LIST:
Performer: Philip Glass
01. [00:31] [introduction by Philip Glass]
02. [14:46] Mad Rush
--
Performer: Tim Fain
03. [01:08] [introduction by Philip Glass]
04. [03:37] Partita: I. Prelude
05. [03:50] Partita: II. Morning Song
06. [02:13] Partita: III. Dance 1
07. [05:49] Partita: IV. Chaconne, Part 1
08. [02:40] Partita: V. Evening Song
09. [07:03] Partita: VI. Dance 2
10. [08:19] Partita: VII. Chaconne, Part 2
--
Performers: Lavinia Meijer & Feico Deutekom
11. [02:25] [introduction by Philip Glass]
12. [13:48] Music In Similar Motion
--
Performers: Philip Glass & Tim Fain
13. [01:47] [introduction by Philip Glass]
14. [02:07] The Screens: France
15. [05:13] The Screens: The Orchard
16. [03:02] The Screens: The French Lieutenant
17. [00:26] [introduction by Philip Glass]
18. [07:24] Pendulum
--
Performers: Lavinia Meijer & Feico Deutekom
19. [01:57] [introduction by Philip Glass]
20. [04:19] Monsters Of Grace: Boy On Fire
--
Performer: Philip Glass
21. [04:13] Glassworks: Opening
--
Performer: Tim Fain
22. [05:00] Einstein On The Beach: Knee 2
--
23. [02:07] [curtain call]
Total running time: 103:45
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NOTES:
I'd been looking forward to this, the first of two nights in the company of
Philip Glass and three other musicians, performing in the Melkweg's excellent,
but underutilised Rabozaal.
Unassigned seating was the modus operandi this evening, making punctuality the
deciding factor in securing anything from the best seat in the house to the
worst. And so it was, that I found myself standing outside the Melkweg on an
unseasonally cold April evening, waiting for the doors to open.
When those doors eventually do open, we ascend the long, zigzagging staircase
to the Rabozaal, where we find the doors to the concert hall closed and
guarded. Apparently, the musicians inside haven't finished the soundcheck.
We're politely asked to retire to the upstairs bar, but no-one's going
anywhere. We haven't stood outside in the cold, just to see our prime
recording location snatched from under our nose by some young whippersnapper
with the brazen cheek to think he can turn up ten minutes after doors and sit
anywhere but way up in the gods. Hmm, perhaps I'm speaking only for myself
here.
So, we stand our ground for the fifteen or so minutes it takes to receive the
all-clear and for the doors to open.
It takes some deliberation to settle on a spot to record the gig, during which
time the seats around me are rapidly being claimed by other middle-aged
buttocks.
The PA is slung high this evening and I don't want to sit under it, but nor do
I want to sit so far back that reverberation becomes an issue. I'd also rather
not entirely sacrifice the visual element, which, let's face it, is part of
the point of attending a live concert.
So, like a cat settling down for forty winks, I turn around a few times and
switch spots once or twice before finally bedding down for the evening.
I'm already on the eighth paragraph and the music hasn't even started yet. I
wish I were being paid by the word, but self-indulgence will have to be its
own reward.
Alright, then. You've been patient. Let's talk about the music.
The lights go down and Glass comes on stage at 20:15. He introduces the first
piece of the evening, 'Mad Rush' from 1979, a beguiling fifteen minutes of
solo piano. The tone is set.
The next piece is also introduced by Glass. He'll reappear throughout the
evening, not just to introduce and perform his own work, but also to introduce
the work performed by others.
The second piece of the evening is 'Partita', a work for violin in seven
movements, performed by virtuoso violinist, Tim Fain.
Glass elaborates on the work in the programme: "I met Tim Fain during the tour
of 'The Book of Longing,' an evening based on the poetry of Leonard Cohen. In
that work, all of the instrumentalists had solo parts. Shortly after that
tour, Tim asked me to compose some solo violin music for him. I quickly
agreed. Having been very impressed by his ability and interpretation of my
work, I decided on a seven-movement piece. I thought of it as a Partita, the
name inspired by the solo clavier and solo violin music of Bach. The music of
that time included dance-like movements, often a chaconne, which represented
the compositional practice. What inspired me about these pieces was that they
allowed the composer to present a variety of music composed within an overall
structure. I set to work almost at once and began with the first three pieces.
I divided the chaconne into two parts separated by several other movements. In
this way, themes could be introduced, set aside, and reintroduced in the work.
I was looking for a structure that was both expansive and tightly knit.
The last movement was completed in the Fall 2010. The world premiere took
place in Middelburg, The Netherlands in May 2011."
Glass explains that the work will be performed as a single piece, but the
beginning and end of each movement is made fairly conspicuous by the brief
pauses introduced by Fain. I placed track markers where a new movement
appeared to start and came out with seven tracks, so I'm fairly confident that
I have correctly split this work into the individual movements.
Next up are Lavinia Meijer and Feico Deutekom, respectively harpist and
pianist.
Meijer won the Nederlandse Muziekprijs (Dutch Music Prize) in 2009 and has
performed as a soloist with orchestras worldwide.
Deutekom is the artistic leader of the Attacca Ensemble, in which he also
fulfils the role of singer.
Glass reveals his surprise at the discovery that the work to be performed by
Meijer and Deutekom, 1969's 'Music In Similar Motion', could be so readily
rendered on the harp, given that instrument's fundamental differences from the
piano keyboard, which translate into a demanding assignment for the harpist's
hand muscles.
Tim Fain rejoins Glass now for three pieces written for 'The Screens', Jean
Genet's last stage work. Collaborating with Foday Musa Suso, a Gambian kora
player, Glass composed the score from which these three pieces are drawn for a
production of Genet's work that was presented at Minneapolis's Guthrie Theatre
in 1989.
Fain remains on stage for 'Pendulum', a piece written in 2010 to celebrate the
90th anniversary of the American Civil Liberties Union. Originally composed
for violin, cello and piano, Glass worked with Fain to rearrange the piece for
just violin and piano.
Glass dispenses with the time-wasting formality of the encore and announces
without leaving the stage that there are three final pieces to come. Of a true
encore, it's not known in advance whether it will actually be played, so none
of these three pieces is listed in our programme.
The first pseudo-encore is 'Boy On Fire', a piece from Glass's multimedia
chamber opera, 'Monsters Of Grace', which premiered in 1998 and was released
on CD in 2007. It is performed by Lavinia Meijer and Feico Deutekom.
The second encore is Philip Glass solo, playing the opening to 1982's
'Glassworks'.
The third and final encore is the second 'knee play' from Glass's opera,
'Einstein On The Beach', performed by Tim Fain. It's an amazing piece of
virtuosity from the violinist and one of the evening's highlights. With its
dramatic, abruptly ending climax, it's the perfect way to end the evening.
All four musicians now eturn to the stage for a curtain call, during which
each receives a bouquet of flowers.
It's been a civilised evening of intellectual beard-scratching, a welcome
change from the rigours of stack-taping. No flying beer or stage divers
tonight.
To say that I'm satisfied with how this recording has turned out would be
quite an understatement. I have applied a smidgen of equalisation to reduce
the lower frequencies, but the change really is just a fine brush stroke. The
sound of this recording is truly outstanding.
Glass will be performing in the Rabozaal again tonight, but with a different
programme than last night's. I will be there, too.
This time, it's assigned seating and, whilst I was quick enough off the mark
to secure a front row seat, it remains to be seen how well-positioned I will
be for taping. The hall will be arranged differently tonight, with the front
row located some way back in the hall, not immediately in front of the stage
as it was last night.