Liner Notes
Cat. No. NWCRL405
Release Date: 2011-02-15
University of Illinois Contemporary Chamber Players; Guillermo Perich, viola; Thomas Fredrickson, bass; John Fonville, flute; Paul Martin Zonn, clarinet; Wilma Zonn, oboe; Ray Sasaki, trumpet; Jim Staley, trombone; Daniel Perantoni, tuba; Don Baker, percussion; Arthur Maddox, piano; Edwin London, Conductor; Paul Martin Zonn, Conductor
Edwin London writes:
“Psalm of These Days III is the centerpiece in a cycle of five works which deal in a variety of religious experiences. All are based on biblical Psalm texts. Each of five segments deals with a different instrumental combination and posture, as well as an assortment of vocal approaches and attitudes.
“It has been asserted that the condition most characteristic of the age is paranoia. Without the constraints traditionally imposed by institutional religion and/or the agencies of social organization, the use of guilt mechanisms to guard and guide the psyche's development has been effectively neutralized. As Brecht and Weill suggest in Mahagonny, something is missing in societies where anything goes and everything is allowed. In the absence of this something, 'voices' appear to occupy the vacuum created. These 'voices,' raging and mumbling, are the resultant of our own energies run amok in search of significance.”
Ben Johnston writes:
“The Duo for flute and string bass was written for Bertram and Nancy Turetzky in April, 1963. It is in three short movements: Prelude, Interim, and Flight. The pitch organization of all three movements is serial, being based on twelve-tone rows made up of combinatorial hexachords. The two rows used in the outer movements are both shown, during the second movement, to be derived from a simpler row composed of symmetrically arranged segments. A cadenza near the end of the last movement again interconnects the thematic material...
Paul Martin Zonn writes:
“Gemini-Fantasy is one of many compositions written to celebrate the artistry and virtuosity of oboist Wilma Zonn. Simultaneously it espouses personal musical ideas about staticity and collateral sonorities. The music divides into that which is fixed and that which is mobile or modular, although for this recording (and in any performance) the mobile material also becomes fixed. The last section of music is recapitulatory and coda-like.
Thomas Fredrickson writes:
“Triptych ( 1977), for oboe, viola, trumpet, and bass trombone, is in three movements. The musical analog of a triptych, i.e., a painting with a central panel and two flanking panels that fold over it, is achieved only in concert performance, when the second movement is played spatially with a player in each corner of the stage. An inner triptych results as the main section of the middle movement is preceded and succeeded by brief streams of eight-part harmony. The first movement concerns itself with alternating sections of free and strict time and the third with rates of motion.”
This title, originally issued on the CRI label, is now available as a burn-on-demand CD (CD-R) or download in MP3/320, FLAC or WAV formats. CD-Rs come in a protective sleeve; no print booklet or jewel case included. Liner notes are accessible via the link above.
Edwin London writes:
“Psalm of These Days III is the centerpiece in a cycle of five works which deal in a variety of religious experiences. All are based on biblical Psalm texts. Each of five segments deals with a different instrumental combination and posture, as well as an assortment of vocal approaches and attitudes.
“It has been asserted that the condition most characteristic of the age is paranoia. Without the constraints traditionally imposed by institutional religion and/or the agencies of social organization, the use of guilt mechanisms to guard and guide the psyche's development has been effectively neutralized. As Brecht and Weill suggest in Mahagonny, something is missing in societies where anything goes and everything is allowed. In the absence of this something, 'voices' appear to occupy the vacuum created. These 'voices,' raging and mumbling, are the resultant of our own energies run amok in search of significance.”
Ben Johnston writes:
“The Duo for flute and string bass was written for Bertram and Nancy Turetzky in April, 1963. It is in three short movements: Prelude, Interim, and Flight. The pitch organization of all three movements is serial, being based on twelve-tone rows made up of combinatorial hexachords. The two rows used in the outer movements are both shown, during the second movement, to be derived from a simpler row composed of symmetrically arranged segments. A cadenza near the end of the last movement again interconnects the thematic material...
Paul Martin Zonn writes:
“Gemini-Fantasy is one of many compositions written to celebrate the artistry and virtuosity of oboist Wilma Zonn. Simultaneously it espouses personal musical ideas about staticity and collateral sonorities. The music divides into that which is fixed and that which is mobile or modular, although for this recording (and in any performance) the mobile material also becomes fixed. The last section of music is recapitulatory and coda-like.
Thomas Fredrickson writes:
“Triptych ( 1977), for oboe, viola, trumpet, and bass trombone, is in three movements. The musical analog of a triptych, i.e., a painting with a central panel and two flanking panels that fold over it, is achieved only in concert performance, when the second movement is played spatially with a player in each corner of the stage. An inner triptych results as the main section of the middle movement is preceded and succeeded by brief streams of eight-part harmony. The first movement concerns itself with alternating sections of free and strict time and the third with rates of motion.”
This title, originally issued on the CRI label, is now available as a burn-on-demand CD (CD-R) or download in MP3/320, FLAC or WAV formats. CD-Rs come in a protective sleeve; no print booklet or jewel case included. Liner notes are accessible via the link above.
University of Illinois Contemporary Chamber Ensemble
Music from the University of Illinois
| MP3/320 | $13.00 | |
| FLAC | $13.00 | |
| WAV | $13.00 | |
| CD-R | $13.00 |
A *.pdf of the notes may be accessed here free of charge.
Track Listing
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Psalm of These Days III: I. "Why Do the Heathen Rage and the People Imagine a Vain Thing?"
Edwin London
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Buy
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Psalm of These Days III: II. "Let Us Break Their Band Asunder and Cast Away Their Cords from Us"
Edwin London
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Buy
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Psalm of These Days III: III. "Serve the Lord with Fear and Rejoice With Trembling"
Edwin London
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Buy
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Duo: I. Prelude
Ben Johnston
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Buy
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Duo: II. Interim
Ben Johnston
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Buy
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Duo: III. Flight
Ben Johnston
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Buy
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Gemini-Fantasy
Paul Martin Zonn
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Buy
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Triptych: I. -
Thomas Fredrickson
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Buy
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Triptych: II. -
Thomas Fredrickson
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Buy
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Triptych: III. -
Thomas Fredrickson
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Buy
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