MUSIC SATURDAY - DUŠEK

“When you play, never mind who listens to you.” – Robert Schumann 

František Xaver Dušek (German: Franz Xaver Duschek or Dussek); baptised 8 December 1731 – 12 February 1799) was a Czech composer and one of the most important harpsichordists and pianists of his time.

Dušek was born at Chotěborky, near Jaroměř. He was taught the harpsichord in Vienna by Georg Christoph Wagenseil and established himself around 1770 in Prague as a successful keyboard teacher. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was probably his guest in his Villa Bertramka in Košíře, just outside Prague, although no documentation exists to support claims originating in nineteenth-century literature that he stayed there frequently.

Mozart himself never reported staying there and no contemporary witness ever reported seeing him there. The best evidence that he ever stayed there comes from a reminiscence of Mozart’s son Karl Thomas Mozart that dates from 1856 and indicates that he was at the Bertramka during his second visit to Prague (during October and November 1787). Karl Thomas was not himself a witness to the incident reported, rather he only heard about it from friends of Mozart whom he met as a child in Prague during the 1790s. Furthermore, there is no documentation to support widespread claims that Mozart completed the operas “Don Giovanni” and “La clemenza di Tito” at the Bertramka, or indeed that he even worked on them there.

Dušek died in Prague. He was a teacher of Mozart’s son Karl Thomas, who became a gifted pianist, although he did not pursue a career in music. Dušek’s wife Josepha Hambacher (7 March 1753 – 8 January 1824) had been taught by him and was a famous pianist and soprano. She sang important soprano roles in Mozart operas in early performances, and Mozart's concert aria “Bella mia fiamma” (catalogued as K. 528) was written for her. Dušek composed sonatas, variations and concertos for harpsichord and piano and several symphonies and string quartets. Much of his music is in the galant style of the early Classical period.

Here are three concertos for piano by Dušek, performed by Karel Košárek (Piano) and the  Prague Chamber Orchestra:
1. Concerto for Piano in D major
2. Concerto for Piano in E flat major
3. Concerto for Piano in C major

MUSIC SATURDAY - JOSEPH LEOPOLD EYBLER

“The clarinet is an incredible instrument. It’s a great, expressive instrument.” - Anat Cohen 

Joseph Leopold Eybler (February 8, 1765 – July 24, 1846) was an Austrian composer and contemporary of Mozart. Eybler was born into a musical family in Schwechat near Vienna. His father was a teacher, choir director and friend of the Haydn family. Joseph Eybler studied music with his father before attending Stephansdom (the cathedral school of St. Stephen’s Boys College) in Vienna. He studied composition under Johann Georg Albrechtsberger, who declared him to be the greatest musical genius in Vienna apart from Mozart. He also received praise from Haydn who was his friend, distant cousin and patron.

In 1792 he became choir director at the Karmeliterkirche (Carmelite Church) in Vienna. Two years later he moved to the Schottenkloster, where he remained for the next thirty years (1794-1824). Eybler also held court posts, including that of court Kapellmeister (chapel master - 1824–33). The Empress Marie Therese commissioned many works from him, including the Requiem in C minor (1803).

Through Joseph Haydn, Eybler met Mozart, who gave him some lessons and entrusted him with the rehearsal of his opera Così Fan Tutte. Eybler also conducted some performances of Così Fan Tutte. On May 30, 1790 Mozart wrote a testimonial for the young Eybler: “I, the undersigned, attest herewith that I have found the bearer of this, Herr Joseph Eybler, to be a worthy pupil of his famous master Albrechtsberger, a well-grounded composer, equally skilled at chamber music and the church style, fully experienced in the art of the song, also an accomplished organ and clavier player; in short a young musician such, one can only regret, as so seldom has his equal.”

Mozart and Eybler remained friends to the end. As Eybler wrote: “I had the good fortune to keep his friendship without reservation until he died, and carried him, put him to bed and helped to nurse him during his last painful illness.” After Mozart’s death, Constanze Mozart asked Eybler to complete her husband’s Requiem. Eybler tried but could not complete the commission perhaps, it is thought, because of his great respect for the music of his friend Mozart. Franz Xaver Süßmayr completed the task.

In 1833 Eybler had a stroke while conducting Mozart’s Requiem and thereafter could not fulfil his duties at the Court. For his service to the Court, Eybler was raised to the nobility in 1835 and was known henceforth as Joseph Leopold, Edler von Eybler. He died in Vienna on 24 July 1846.

Eybler’s main compositions were sacred music, including oratorios, masses, cantatas, offertories, graduals, and his requiem. His other works include an opera, instrumental music (especially his string quintets), and songs. Of special note is the Clarinet Concerto in B flat (HV160) he wrote most probably for “Mozart’s clarinetist” Anton Stadler. Here is this concerto with soloist Dieter Klöcker and the English Chamber Orchestra.
Mov.I: Allegro maestoso 00:00
Mov.II: Adagio 11:22
Mov.III: Rondo alla turca: Allegro 17:04

MUSIC SATURDAY - MOZART VIOLIN CONCERTO No5

“Neither a lofty degree of intelligence nor imagination nor both together go to the making of genius. Love, love, love, that is the soul of genius.” - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791), baptised as Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart,[ was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical era. Born in Salzburg, Mozart showed prodigious ability from his earliest childhood. Already competent on keyboard and violin, he composed from the age of five and performed before European royalty.

At 17, Mozart was engaged as a musician at the Salzburg court, but grew restless and travelled in search of a better position. While visiting Vienna in 1781, he was dismissed from his Salzburg position. He chose to stay in the capital, where he achieved fame but little financial security. During his final years in Vienna, he composed many of his best-known symphonies, concertos, and operas, and portions of the Requiem, which was largely unfinished at the time of his death. The circumstances of his early death have been much mythologised. He was survived by his wife Constanze and two sons.

He composed over 600 works, many acknowledged as pinnacles of symphonic, concertante, chamber, operatic, and choral music. He is among the most enduringly popular of classical composers, and his influence on subsequent Western art music is profound. Ludwig van Beethoven composed his own early works in the shadow of Mozart, and Joseph Haydn wrote that “posterity will not see such a talent again in 100 years”.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart wrote at least five violin concertos between 1773 and 1776 in Salzburg, Austria, most likely for his own use as concertmaster of the Archbishop of Salzburg’s orchestra. The Violin Concerto No. 5 in A major, K. 219, often referred to by the nickname The Turkish, was written in 1775, premiering during the holiday season that year in Salzburg. It follows the typical fast-slow-fast musical structure.

The concerto is scored for two oboes, two horns and strings. The movements are as follows:

Allegro aperto – Adagio – Allegro aperto

Adagio

Rondeau – Tempo di minuetto

The rondo Finale is based on a Minuet theme, which recurs several times. In the middle of the movement the metre changes from 3/4 to 2/4 and a section of “Turkish music” is played. This is characterised by the shift to A minor (from the original A major), and by the use of grotesque elements, such as unison chromatic crescendos, repetition of very short musical elements and col legno playing in the cellos and double basses. This is the section that gave the concerto the nickname “The Turkish Concerto”. The famous Rondo alla Turca from Mozart's piano sonata in A major features the same key and similar elements.

Here is Anne Sophie-Mutter performing Mozart’s 5th violin concerto in A major, K.219, accompanied by the Camerata Salzburg.

MUSIC SATURDAY - THE BLACK MOZART

“Music is nothing else but wild sounds civilised into time and tune.” - Thomas Fuller

For Music Saturday, some of the violin concertos of a remarkable musician whom I heard of first only recently, Joseph Boulogne (1745-1799). Joseph Boulogne “Chevalier de Saint-Georges” was born on Christmas Day, 1745. He was an African-French classical music conductor, composer, musician, and military officer. Boulogne was born on the West Indies island of Guadeloupe, where his mother Nanon was a slave. Boulogne’s father was a Frenchman, George de Boulogne Saint-Georges. He owned the plantation on which Joseph spent his early childhood.

The word “Chevalier” means Knight in French. It was a title of nobility in the Kingdom of France. Joseph could not inherit his father’s status as a member of the nobility because his mother was an African slave. Even so, he was called “Chevalier de Saint-Georges” from a young age. At age 10, Saint-Georges moved to France with his parents. There he continued his studies in classical music. He was tutored in violin by Jean-Marie Leclair, and studied composition with François-Joseph Gossec.

Saint-Georges also spent six years at the boarding school of Texier de La Boessiere, a master of arms. Athletics and fencing brought him a reputation at an early age. He swam across the River Seine in winter with one arm tied behind his back. Saint-Georges’ military career began in 1761 as an officer in the King’s Guard. In his music career, the conductor of the prestigious Le Concert des Amateurs orchestra chose Saint-Georges as First Violin in 1769.

Saint-Georges made his public debut as a violin soloist during the 1772-73 concert season, performing his own violin concertos. Many say that Saint-Georges demonstrated the influence of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. He has even been called “Le Mozart Noir” or The Black Mozart. History shows that Mozart came to Paris in 1778 to study the “Paris School” of composition while Saint-Georges was active there.

In 1775, Queen Marie-Antoinette appointed Saint-Georges as her music director, and King Louis XVI named him director of the Paris Opera. Saint-Georges was also the first person of African descent to join a Masonic Lodge in France. He was initiated in Paris to “Les 9 Soeurs”, a Lodge belonging to the Grand Orient of France. As a conductor, he later traveled to Vienna and commissioned Franz Joseph Haydn to compose the Paris Symphonies, Nos. 82-87, which premiered in 1787. No. 85, called "The Queen", was a favourite of Marie-Antoinette.

Saint-Georges joined the pro-Revolution National Guard in 1789. That same year the Declaration of the Rights of Man was issued by the National Assembly. On Sept. 7, 1792, a delegation of men of colour asked the National Assembly to allow them to fight in defence of the Revolution and its egalitarian ideals. On the next day the Assembly, authorised the Légion des Hussards Américains [Legion of American Soldiers], which had 1,000 volunteers of colour, with Saint-Georges as their colonel. One of its squadron leaders was Alexandre Dumas Davy de La Pailleterie (1762-1806). Like his colonel, he was the son of a French aristocrat and an African slave. He later had a son, Alexander Dumas, who wrote “The Three Musketeers.”

On September 25, 1793, Saint-Georges lost his command due to false charges of misusing public funds. He spent 18 months in the house of detention at Houdainville before being acquitted. After his release Saint-Georges took part in the Haitian Revolution. Saint-Georges produced 14 violin concertos and 9 symphonies between 1773 and 1785. He wrote 2 solo violin sonatas, 2 symphonies, 3 sonatas for violin and harpsichord, and 18 string quartets divided into 3 collections of 6 quartets in each. Saint-Georges also composed several operas for the Comedie-Italienne, beginning in 1777. Saint-Georges lived alone in a small apartment in Paris during the final two years of his life. He died of gangrene in a leg wound on June 12, 1799.

Here is Jean-Jacques Kantorow and the Orchestre de Chambre Bernard Thomas playing four of Joseph Boulogne’s violin concertos.

MUSIC SATURDAY - MOZART'S REQUIEM

“Our dead are never dead to us, until we have forgotten them.” - George Eliot 

For Music Saturday, the renowned W. A. Mozart, “Requiem” KV 626 performed by the Vienna Philharmonic under the direction of Herbert von Karajan. Singers: Anna Tomowa-Sintow (Soprano); Helga Müller-Molinari (Alto); Vinson Cole (Tenor); Paata Burchuladze (Bass).
 

The Requiem Mass in D minor (K. 626) by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was composed in Vienna in 1791 and left unfinished at the composer’s death on December 5. A completion by Franz Xaver Süssmayr was delivered to Count Franz von Walsegg, who had anonymously commissioned the piece for a requiem Mass to commemorate the February 14 anniversary of his wife’s death.
 

It is one of the most enigmatic pieces of music ever composed, mostly because of the myths and controversies surrounding it, especially around how much of the piece was completed by Mozart before his death. The autograph manuscript shows the finished and orchestrated introit in Mozart’s hand, as well as detailed drafts of the Kyrie and the sequence Dies Irae as far as the first nine bars of “Lacrimosa”, and the offertory.
 

It cannot be shown to what extent Süssmayr may have depended on now lost “scraps of paper” for the remainder; he later claimed the Sanctus and Agnus Dei as his own. Walsegg probably intended to pass the Requiem off as his own composition, as he is known to have done with other works. This plan was frustrated by a public benefit performance for Mozart’s widow Constanze. A modern contribution to the mythology is Peter Shaffer’s 1979 play Amadeus, in which the mysterious messenger with the commission is the masked Antonio Salieri who intends to claim authorship for himself.
 

The Requiem is scored for 2 basset horns in F, 2 bassoons, 2 trumpets in D, 3 trombones (alto, tenor & bass), timpani (2 drums), violins, viola and basso continuo (cello, double bass, and organ). The vocal forces include soprano, contralto, tenor, and bass soloists and a SATB mixed choir.

MOZART FOR SATURDAY

“What is classical music if not the epitome of sensuality, passion, and understated erotica that popular music, even with all of its energy and life, cannot even begin to touch?” - Lara St. John Read
 
Another hot day, the sixth in a row above 30˚C and the forecast says this will be maintained over the next few days. Quite unusual for Melbourne, where a few days of heat are succeeded by a pleasant cool change, even in Summer. Now with Autumn officially begun, it looks as though we may have quite a few weeks to wait for the cooler weather – at least that is what the long-range weather prediction says…
 
We had a pleasant Saturday, despite the heat, with breakfast in the garden, some music playing in the background and the smell of jasmine, roses and flowering herbs in the warm air. We then went out for some shopping and visited the library before returning to the coolness of the house (thank goodness for air conditioners!).
 
In the evening the return to pleasant routine… Here is the Mozart Clarinet concerto in A major, K622. This was written in 1791 for the clarinettist Anton Stadler. It consists of the usual three movements, in a fast-slow-fast form: 1. Allegro 2. Adagio, and, 3. Rondo: Allegro. It was also one of Mozart’s final completed works, and his final purely instrumental work (he died in the December following its completion). The concerto is notable for its delicate interplay between soloist and orchestra, and for the lack of overly extroverted display on the part of the soloist (no cadenzas are written out in the solo part). It is a great favourite of mine, but also it seems of many other Australians as it was voted the most enjoyable classical work of all some years ago in an ABC Classic FM radio survey.
 

AUTUMN SATURDAY SERENITY

“Every man has his secret sorrows which the world knows not; and often times we call a man cold when he is only sad.” - Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
 

Another cool, gray Autumn day today. We went to the City this morning, but the rain came, fell and kept falling, finally defeating us so we came back home early. It was good to turn the heater on, have lunch and watch a movie.

Here is some Saturday Serenity with Alicia de Larrocha, piano and the English Chamber Orchestra London conducted by Sir Colin Davis playing one of the most sublime slow movements from Mozart’s piano concertos. This is the Adagio from Piano Concerto No.23 in A major K.488.

SATURDAY RESPITE

“If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.” - Mother Teresa

A lovely day, full of the little pleasures of routine and rest. No better way to end it than the Larghetto from Mozart’s Clarinet Quintet in A Major, K 581.

MOZART FOR SOME SATURDAY SERENITY

“Music, even in situations of the greatest horror, should never be painful to the ear but should flatter and charm it, and thereby always remain music.” - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Yesterday was Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s birthday, so for Song Saturday and Saturday Sareenity, what better than a beautiful Mozart adagio? Here is W. A. Mozart’s (1756-1791). Adagio for Violin and Orchestra in E major K261. Andrew Manze is playing baroque violin and conducting The English Concert on authentic instruments.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was no doubt the greatest child star that ever lived. He was traveling all over Europe playing music by the time he was six. Because of his constant travels, Mozart eventually learned to speak fifteen different languages.   He wrote his first sonata for the piano when he was four and composed his first opera when he was twelve. Mozart could compose anywhere - at meals (he loved liver dumplings and sauerkraut), while talking to friends, while playing pool and even while his wife was having a baby.

During his lifetime, Mozart was very well-known but unfortunately, spent money faster than he could earn it. He was poor and in debt when he died of kidney failure at the age of 35 and was buried in an unmarked grave. Mozart is considered by some to be the greatest composer who ever lived. While most composers specialise in certain genres of music, Mozart created masterful works for almost every category of music - vocal music, concertos, chamber music, symphonies, sonatas, and opera.

He composed very quickly and wrote huge amounts of music. It would take over 8 days to play all of his music, one piece after the next, without stopping. He wrote over 600 works during his lifetime, including 41 symphonies, Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, and 27 piano concertos. Three of his most famous operas include “The Marriage of Figaro”, “The Magic Flute” and “Don Giovanni”. He is also famous for the last piece he ever wrote, his Requiem mass, which he left incomplete.

A MUSICAL CARAMEL

“Some people walk in the rain, others just get wet.” - Roger Miller

Last night we had quite storm – rain lashing down, at some stage hail and then even more rain. It was nice to lie in bed and hear it all happening just outside the window, happy to have a roof over one’s head and a nice warm bed…

Today the weather was erratic and unstable. Sunny and smiling one minute, sullen and weeping the next. Nevertheless we did our shopping, went to the library and then this evening time for rest and relaxation. And what best to do this to than with this piece of Mozart that is pure delight and pleasure? Here is the caramel-like Quintet for Clarinet and Strings, K. 581, which was written in 1789 for the clarinetist Anton Stadler. The work was finished on 29th  September 1789 and Mozart described it as the “Stadler Quintet” in a letter of April 1790. Delicious!

MOZART CLARINET QUINTET

“Musical compositions, it should be remembered, do not inhabit certain countries, certain museums, like paintings and statues. The Mozart Quintet is not shut up in Salzburg: I have it in my pocket.” - Henri Rabaud

For Music Saturday, a beautifully perfect piece of music by Mozart. The divine Clarinet Quintet by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart K. 581, written in 1789 for the clarinetist Anton Stadler. Although originally written for basset clarinet, today it is almost always played on a clarinet in A or B-flat. It was Mozart's only completed clarinet quintet, and is one of the earliest and best-known works written especially for the instrument.

Here is the Allegro movement played by Clarinetist Bruce Nolan and the Sierra String Quartet.

MOZART ON SATURDAY NIGHT...

“Our sweetest songs are those that tell of saddest thoughts.” -Percy Bysshe Shelley

And in this case, it is Vladimir Davidovich Ashkenazy, playing the adagio from the Piano Concerto No.23 in A major K 488 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart…

MOZART vs SALIERI

“As iron is eaten by rust, so are the envious consumed by envy.” - Antisthenes

Today is the birthday of:
Virginia Dare, first American-born child of English parents (1587);
Brook Taylor, mathematician (1685);
Antonio Salieri, Italian composer (1750);
Meriwether Lewis, American explorer (1774);
Fabian Gottlieb von Bellinghausen, Antarctica circumnavigator (1778);
John Russell, British Prime Minister (1792);
Max Factor, cosmetics empire builder (1904);
Shelley Winters (Shirley Schrift), actress (1922);
Rosalynn Smith, former American first lady (1927);
Roman Polanski, director (1933);
Robert Redford, US actor (1937);
Martin Mull, actor (1943);
Patrick Swayze, actor (1952);

Vinca major, the blue periwinkle is the birthday flower for today. It symbolises early friendship. Astrologically, the plant is ruled by Venus.

Antonio Salieri (1750-1825) was Mozart’s contemporary and during their lifetimes, Salieri was infinitely more popular and more successful than Mozart. His music nowadays sounds curiously simplistic and devoid of expression of feeling, although technically competent and satisfying in form. He appreciated Mozart’s genius and may have even helped the younger composer. But was he also envious of him? Did he, as one playwright would have us believe, have a hand in Mozart’s untimely death? Peter Schaeffer’s “Amadeus” may have done irreparable harm to Salieri’s reputation and unfortunately it may all be groundless slander! Who knows for certain? He wrote over 40 operas, none of which have been revived and his instrumental output although smaller is the only part of his oeuvre that is nowadays available. Some of his works that are entertaining and possibly an illustration of “classical muzak” are his concerti: Concerto for Fortepiano and Orchestra (1773) and Concerto for Flute, Oboe and Orchestra (1774). They are rather light and have no pretensions of being deep and emotionally challenging…

Just by way of comparison, here are the first movements of piano concertos by Salieri (Concerto for fortepiano in B flat-major, composed around 1773 when Salieri was 23 years old) and by Mozart (Piano Concerto No. 9 in E flat major, K271, composed in 1777 when Mozart was 21 years old).



Now compare this to Mozart’s effort in the same genre:

LOVELY EVENING

“There is no surprise more magical than the surprise of being loved. It is God's finger on man’s shoulder.” - Charles Morgan

Imagine yourself in the arms of your lover after a wonderful day (and evening!) that you have spent together. Heart and body are replete with the joy of being together and enjoying each other’s company. A caress on naked flesh, a tender kiss and the comfortable feeling of being together and watching the stars outside the window winking at you as the winds blow wildly. Inside it is warm, quiet and a sweet repose is making your limbs relaxed and heavy on each others body. You smile contentedly and the mad world outside seems far away and insignificant. Did I mention that sweet music is playing? Yes, it is, and it is this:
The Mozart Serenade No 10 In B Flat Major K 361, 3rd movement, Adagio…

Have a wonderful weekend!

MOZART, NICOTIANA & CLIMATE CHANGE

“The prudence of the best heads is often defeated by the tenderness of the best hearts” – Henry Fielding

Today marks the anniversary of the birth of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791) the Austrian composer whose works represent one of the greatest peaks of Western music. His works, written in every one of the possible forms, combine beauty of melody, harmony and orchestration with classical grace and technical perfection. Mozart learned to play the harpsichord, violin, and organ from his father, Leopold Mozart, (1719–1787), also a composer and violinist. A remarkable prodigy, the young Mozart was composing by the age of five and presenting concerts throughout Europe as a child.

His Idomeneo (1781) is one of the best examples of 18th century opera seria. The Abduction from the Seraglio (1782), a singspiel combining songs and German dialogue, brought some success to him. He turned to the Italian opera buffa, creating the comic masterpiece The Marriage of Figaro (1786). Don Giovanni, considered “difficult” in its day but now recognized as one of the most brilliant operas ever written, followed in 1787. Eine kleine Nachtmusik (1787) is an example of the elegant occasional music and begins with one of the most well known melodies in classical music.

In 1788 he wrote his last three symphonies, Numbers 39–41, which display his complete mastery of form and intense personal feeling. In Vienna he produced his last opera buffa, Cosi fan tutte (1790). In The Magic Flute (1791) he returned to the singspiel, bringing the form to a great height. He then worked feverishly on a Requiem commissioned by a nobleman; it proved to be Mozart's own, and the work was completed by his pupil Franz Süssmayr. The composer died at 35 in poverty and was buried in a pauper’s grave.

The birthday plant for today is the tobacco flower, Nicotiana alata. The genus (named after Jean Nicot, the 16th century French Consul to Portugal) also includes the tobacco plant. Many species contain in their leaves the deadly poison nicotine, which in small doses is addictive. The plants are native to the Americas and the Amerindians used to smoke the dried leaves of the plant before the arrival of the white conquerors. Sir Walter Raleigh introduced tobacco to Europe in the 16th century. The flower symbolises forbidden pleasures and deadly addictions for obvious reasons...

Today we had a temperature of 39˚C. The weather bureau predicts temperatures above 40˚C in the next four days with a cool change on Sunday bringing the expected maximum down to 31˚C. These temperatures on consecutive days have not been seen for decades in Melbourne. Our climate is definitely changing and we had better get used to extremes of temperature and the breaking of weather records from now on. These weather extremes are not unprecedented, they have been recorded by palaeometeorologists who have found evidence of several changes in our climate over the millions of years of earth’s existence. Several of these climate changes may have been responsible for extinctions of species and one of them nearly wiped out the human species.

This particular disaster happened 70,000 years ago and was caused by a massive volcanic eruption on the island of Sumatra, Indonesia. The volcano was Toba and where a tall mountain was in the past, now all that remains if a large lake. The eruption was a cataclysmic event which must have happened suddenly (so the geological records indicate). It spewed 2800 cubic kilometers of volcanic material into the atmosphere, making it the most violent eruption of the last two million years (The mount St Helen’s eruption, being the largest in living memory produced only one cubic kilometer of material in its 1980 eruption).

Scientists have traced Toba’s volcanic dust throughout the world, but worse over Southeast Asia, India, the Middle East, with some deposits of ash as high as 6 metres in some digs in India. The dust and ash in the atmosphere caused immediate effects on climate, with about six years of a volcanic winter. Plant life and animal life was wiped out by the billions as global temperatures fell by an average of about 12˚C. A few tropical areas in Africa with high rainfall were able to sustain life.

It has been suggested that total human population was reduced to about 10,000 individuals. This is supported by genetic data and explains why the genetic diversity of today’s human population is so narrow. For centuries, each new generation of humans could have easily been the last. We owe our survival to those few thousands of resourceful humans that managed to survive the geological disaster that nearly wiped out our species. Sobering, isn’t it? Trouble is, it’s happening all over again and this time we only have ourselves to blame…

Well to cheer you up here is some Mozart! First the virtual “Mozartkugel”, a delicious chocolate bonbon of Salzburg with a centre of pistachio marzipan, almond nougat and dark chocolate. Now made to the same recipe in several cities it is available around the world. Secondly, here is a delicious musical bonbon by the master himself, the Andante from his Piano Concerto No 21, “Elvira Madigan”.

MISERERE

“Faith certainly tells us what the senses do not, but not the contrary of what they see; it is above, not against them.” – Blaise Pascal

An absolute gem for Song Saturday today, the “Miserere” by Allegri. Allegri's masterpiece was written sometime before 1638 for the annual celebration of the matins during Holy Week (the Easter celebration). Twice during that week, on Wednesday and Friday, the service would start at 3 a.m. when 27 candles were extinguished one at a time until but one remained burning. According to reports, the pope would participate in these services. Allegri composed his setting of the Miserere for the very end of the first lesson of these Tenebrae services. At the final candle, the pope would kneel before the altar and pray while the Miserere was sung, culminating the service. It is a setting of Psalm 50 in Latin.

I.
Miserere mei, Deus, secundum magnam misericordiam tuam.
Et secundum multitudinem miserationum tuarum, dele iniquiatatem meam.
Amplius lava me ab iniquitate mea: et peccatto meo munda me.
Quoniam iniquitatem meam ego cognosco: et peccatum meum contra me est semper.
Tibi soli peccavi, et malum coram te feci: ut justificeris in sermonibus tuis, et vincas cum judicaris.
Ecce enim in inquitatibus conceptus sum: et in peccatis concepit me mater mea.
Ecce enim veritatem dilexisti: incerta et occulta sapientiae tuae manifesti mihi.
Asperges me, Domine, hyssopo, et mundabor: lavabis me, et super nivem dealbabor.

II.
Auditui meo dabis gaudium st laetitiam: et exsultabunt ossa humiliata.
Averte faciem tuam a peccatis meis: et omnes iniquitates meas dele.
Cor mundum crea in me, Deus: et spiritum rectum innova in visceribus meis.
Ne projicias me a facie tua: et spiritum sanctum tuum ne auferas a me.
Redde mihi laetitiam salutaris tui: et spiritu principali confirma me.
Docebo iniquos vias tuas: et implii ad te convertentur.
Libera me de sanguinibus, Deus, Deus salutis meae: et exsultabit lingua mea justitiam tuam.

I.
Have mercy upon me, O God: according to your great mercy.
Wash my sin completely from me: and cleanse me of my wickedness.
And according to the number of your mercies: wipe out my sin.
Since I know my iniquity: and my sin is always before me.
Against you only have I sinned and I have done wrong before you: that you may be
justified in your charge and be right in your judgment.
For behold I was conceived in wickedness: in sin my mother conceived me.
For behold, you loved the truth: and you made clear to me the hidden secrets of your wisdom.
You will purge me with hyssop and I will be clean: you will wash me and I will be whiter than snow.

II.
Make me hear joy and gladness: and the bones you have cast down will rejoice.
Turn your face from my sins: and wipe out all my iniquities.
Make a clean heart in me, O God: and renew an upright spirit in me.
Do not send me from your face: and do not remove your holy spirit from me.
Give back to me the joy of your salvation: and strengthen your spirit in me.
I will teach the wicked your way: and the sinners will turn to you.
Free me from bloodshed O God, the God of my salvation: and my tongue will acclaim your justice.



Ruth Holton (Soprano).
Susan Hamilton (Soprano).
Jean Louis Comoretto (Countertenor).
Raoul le Chenadec (Countertenor).
Thierry Brehu (Tenor).
Jean François Chiama (Tenor).
Edmond Hurtrait (Tenor).
James Gowings (Baritone).
Bernard Fabre Garrus (Bass).

Director: Bernard Fabre Garrus.

It was not long before Allegri's Miserere was the only such work sung at these services. With its soaring soprano parts (sung for centuries by castrati) and compelling melodic style, the work enjoyed almost immediate popularity. So impressed was some subsequent pope that the work thereafter was protected and a prohibition was placed on its use outside the Sistine Chapel at the appointed time. Chapel regulations forbid its transcription; indeed, the prohibition called for excommunication for anyone who sought to copy the work.

Leopold Mozart, visiting Rome with his 12-year-old son heard the work. The young Mozart heard the piece and wrote it down form memory. Leopold told of Wolfgang's accomplishment in a letter to his wife dated April 14, 1770 (Rome):

"…You have often heard of the famous Miserere in Rome, which is so greatly prized that the performers are forbidden on pain of excommunication to take away a single part of it, copy it or to give it to anyone. But we have it already. Wolfgang has written it down and we would have sent it to Salzburg in this letter, if it were not necessary for us to be there to perform it. But the manner of performance contributes more to its effect than the composition itself. Moreover, as it is one of the secrets of Rome, we do not wish to let it fall into other hands…"

LACRIMOSA

“The soul would have no rainbow had the eyes no tears.” - John Vance Cheney

Artists are a closely knit group and as such develop symbiotic relationships with one another. Birds of a feather flock together and one artist will attract another, not necessarily just physically and in space, but often, also through time and spiritually, through their art. Art is very much a derivative pursuit and an artist may be inspired through contemplation of another artist’s art. The world becomes richer through this approximation, which although derivative is no plagiarism for a new art piece is created, fresh and different.

For Song Saturday today, Austrian, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) and Dominican, Juan Luis Guerra (1957-). The former everyone knows, the latter not as many. Separated by centuries and both composers. Mozart has inspired Guerra, in at least one piece, and how different the original from the derived work! But there is that little matter of time and space that lies between them…

In any case, in both cases the mood is tearful, the music lovely and the emotions run deep.

Lacrimosa
(Juan Luis Guerra – Inspired by "Lacrimosa" from the Requiem of Mozart)

Sueño
es todo lo que queda de ti
una cruel ilusión
que marchita mi vida
Eres
un rosario que nunca rezó
un enredo fatal
que me arrastra sin camino
Canto
la amargura de mi corazón
hoy me queda un hilito de luz
y lo pierdo contigo
Santa
yo te hacía bendita, mujer
pero se equivocó mi querer
y me hundo en el olvido
Lacrimosa
un puñal es tu cariño
no me lo claves que aún vivo
curando las noches
de amor que te di
quiero beberme tus ojos
llorarlos sin fin
Lacrimosa
ni un pañuelo me has dejado
para secar el pasado
de besos mojados
que hoy suda mi piel
quiero beberme tu boca
besarte, mujer
Oh...
Quiero
me devuelvas el pacto de amor
que la luna celosa nos dio
sobre un papel de arena
Vete
si te dicen que pierdo razón
es que en mi corazón
la verdad miente de pena
Si te alejas, vida...

Nota: El último fragmento de música de la mano de Mozart son los ocho primeros compases de "Lacrimosa". La pieza, al igual que varias otras secciones del Réquiem, fue completada por su alumno Franz Xaver Süssmayr.

Lacrimosa (Teary-Eyed)
A dream –
All of you is a cruel illusion
That has withered my life.

You are:
A rosary that entangled me
And holds me back, making me lose my way

A song,
It’s the bitterness of my heart.
Today I have left only a single ray of light
I lose it and with it, you

A saint!
I blessed you, woman,
But I was mistaken,
And I need to sink into forgetfulness.

In tears,
Your love is a dagger
That stabs me, but still keeps me alive,
Curing the nights of love that I gave you.
I want to drink your eyes
To make them cry endlessly

Teary eyed,
Not even a handkerchief have you left me with
To dry the past passionate kisses
That even today make me swoon.
I want to drink your mouth,
Kissing you, woman.

Oh!
I want you to give me back the pact of love
That the jealous moon gave us,
Written on sand, as if on paper.

It’s forbidden…
If they tell you that I’m going crazy,
It’s because my heart lies about the pain.
If you go away, I’ll lose my life…

Note: The last fragment of music by the hand of Mozart in his “Requiem” is the eight first notes of the “Lacrimosa”. The piece, like several other sections of the Requiem, was completed by his student, Franz Xaver Süssmayr.

MOZART FOR SATURDAY

“Music and rhythm find their way into the secret places of the soul” – Plato

Ah, Mozart! Truly, a genius, a magician weaving spells with his notes, melodies that enter our hearts and elevate our soul!

Here is a famous aria from an opera that was never finished, “Zaide” composed in 1780. Zaide falls in love with Gomatz, a slave, which strikes up jealousy and rage in the Sultan, who happens to also admire her. After capture she chooses a free life with Gomatz rather than a good life with the Sultan. Allazim encourages the sultan to consider Gomatz as a man, not as a slave. The tender soprano air, "Ruhe sanft, mein holdes Leben" is the only number that might be called moderately familiar, but it is a masterpiece, nevertheless.

If you have never heard this before, read the lyrics and then listen to how Mozart makes each and every word live and breathe emotion with his music…
Ruhe sanft, mein holdes Leben, schlafe, bis dein Glück erwacht! da, mein Bild will ich dir geben, schau, wie freundlich es dir lacht: Ihr süßen Träume, wiegt ihn ein, und lasset seinem Wunsch am Ende die wollustreichen Gegenstände zu reifer Wirklichkeit gedeihn.

Rest peacefully, sweet love of my life,
Sleep 'till you re-awake in happiness!
Here, I give you a picture of me,
See how lovingly it smiles at you;
Oh, let those sweet dreams cradle him,
And finally let
All sensual things he desires
Come to rich fruition.



Enjoy your weekend.