Schwantner: Sparrows / Music Of Amber

Description

Joseph Schwantner (b.1943)Sparrows Soaring Distant Runes and IncantationsTwo Poems of Aguedo Pizarro Music of AmberThe American composer Joseph Schwantner, whocelebrated his sixtieth birthday on 22nd March 2003, isconsidered to be among the most successful andrespected living composers in the United States. In 1978he was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for his orchestralwork Aftertones of Infinity. Music of Amber for chamberensemble took first prize in 1981 in the prestigiousKennedy Center Friedheim Award for Excellence inChamber Composition.Joseph Schwantner's music is marked by the searchfor magic and bewitching sounds, whence the titleDelicate Sounds, eliciting from the performers unusualeffects, with the use of unusual additional instrumentssuch as glasses or crotales. The present selection ofmusic for chamber ensemble presents, with the flutepiece and two songs with piano, compositions that aresensual and occasionally tonal, indeed almostimpressionistic, demanding from the interpreters a finesense of nuance. The present portrait album wassuggested by the great success of our concert inSeptember 2000 with his Music of Amber.Joseph Schwantner was born in Chicago in 1943and received his academic education at the ChicagoConservatory and at Northwestern University, where hegraduated in 1968. Subsequently he has served as amember of the faculties of Yale, Eastman and theJuilliard School. In May 2002 he was elected to theAmerican Academy of Arts and Letters. Schwantnerwas official composer with the St Louis SymphonyOrchestra in its Meet the Composer/Orchestra ResidenciesProgram, sponsored by the Exxon Corporation, theRockefeller Foundation and the National Endowmentfor the Arts. A documentary film was made about him,under the title Soundings. His music ranges from worksfor chamber ensemble to large-scale orchestralcompositions, many of the latter regularly included in theprogrammes of the best known American orchestras.His most successful work must be his Concerto forPercussion and Orchestra, also recorded on CD by RCA.The music of Joseph Schwantner is at onceidentifiable, so unchanging is his musical language. Hehas been principally influenced by three othercomposers, George Crumb, Olivier Messiaen andDebussy. The first of these is perhaps the mostimportant. Crumb, also an American, distinguishedinternationally for his refined, delicately drawnchamber works, like Schwantner, is fond of luminoussounds and unusual effects. We also find with him thefrequent direction to hold the sustaining pedal of thepiano, to allow resonances to be heard. He also prefersmystical, symbolic poems as inspiration for his vocaland also for his instrumental works. Both composers aredistinguished by their free use of tonality and atonality.Messiaen's music is marked by its use of harmony,which is very consistent and gives unequalled attentionto sound colour within a formal section. Schwantner tooseeks a sound system that gives certain direction to hisharmonic practice, and