Behind the Music

Why does Mozart keep talking about Abraham?

January 5, 2021April 11, 2016 by debisimons

Abraham, Hagar, Ishmael, Sarah, and Isaac The meaning of the Requiem text, part two:

Before I even get to David, Abraham, and the Sybils, I should probably mention the references in the very first section of the Requiem to Zion and Jerusalem: “You are praised, God, in Zion, and homage will be paid you in Jerusalem.” This line echoes the ideas in the New Testament book of Hebrews, “But you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly” (Hebrews 12:22 NIV). You can see that the words “Zion” and “Jerusalem” in these verses refer to literal places but have a deeper, spiritual meaning. The same can be said of the Requiem text.

The Meaning of the Requiem Text, Part One

January 27, 2019April 4, 2016 by debisimons

Yellow and orange star I wrote last week about the constraints Mozart worked with as he composed the Requiem. Starting with this post I’ll look at the text of the various sections, as many as I can squeeze in, and perhaps an attempt at times to draw a connection between the words and the music.

What does the title itself mean? “Rest.” The funeral mass as a whole is named for its first word, from the Latin “requies.”

How Does a Composer Compose?

January 27, 2019March 26, 2016 by debisimons

There’s a famous essay by Edgar Allan Poe titled “The Philosophy of Composition,” in which the poet and storyteller outlines what he says to be the method used in writing his famous poem, “The Raven.” I rather blush to say that I have taught about this piece in a high-school English class (hey, it was in the anthology) and taken it seriously, as indeed a quick Google search will show that most reviewers do.

The Requiem’s Mysterious Origin

January 27, 2019March 21, 2016 by debisimons

Who really commissioned Mozart’s Requiem, and who actually wrote it?

What a fantastically complicated story lies behind these two simple questions! All sorts of theories have been suggested: that Mozart thought the commission had come from the Underworld and that he was writing his own funeral music, that Antonio Salieri, Mozart’s musical rival, was behind the commission (and also behind Mozart’s death), and so on. We do have an actual anecdote, mentioned in several reputable Mozart biographies, that Mozart told his wife, Constanze, that he was thinking of death and didn’t believe he had much longer to live, that he felt that he was writing the requiem for himself, and that he was sure he had been poisoned. So Constanze took the score away from him for awhile until his spirits lifted. We have no concrete evidence that a) Mozart actually said this or b) he was actually being poisoned. Indeed, while there have been over 100 theories proposed as to the cause of his death, the most credible idea is that he died of a recurrence of rheumatic fever, a disease he had first contracted as a child.

A Charming Fable that Deserves More Fame

December 11, 2020March 16, 2016 by debisimons

Statue of Apollo

The secular cantata A God in Disguise by the Swedish composer Lars-Erik Larsson with lyrics by the poet Hjalmar Gullberg is a fabulous work that is far too little known here in America. There are two ideas about its background that I’d like to discuss in this post: the actual story behind the lyrics and world events that were unfolding at the time of its composition.

“A Parting Glass” Is Offered to Those Who Stay Behind

December 11, 2020March 7, 2016 by debisimons

I wrote this post originally about my choir’s Celtic concert in March 2016

There’s so much more that could be said about the music in our concert, but alas, we have reached concert week. So let’s take a look at our closing song, “The Parting Glass.” I was pleased to find out that it meant pretty much what I thought, which was a farewell song after an evening of drinking. The words will actually make more sense to you if you imagine the speaker and his listeners all being a little tipsy.

There are many versions of the song, with varying words and melodies. I’ve tried to distill the various ideas down into something digestible, always keeping in mind that it’s a folk song and its origins are therefore murky. The initial inspiration may have come from a farewell letter written by Scotsman Thomas Armstrong on the eve of his execution in 1605 for border raiding. Here’s what he wrote:

This night is my departing night, For here nae langer must I stay;
There’s neither friend nor foe o’ mine, But wishes me away.
What I have done thro’ lack of wit, I never, never, can recall;
I hope ye’re a’ my friends as yet; Goodnight and joy be with you all!

How Is the Song “Men of Harlech” Connected to 9/11?

December 11, 2020February 29, 2016 by debisimons

First a little background on the song itself. Harlech Castle was built in northern Wales by Edward I of England in the late 1200’s after he put down a Welsh rebellion against his rule. Harlech then became embroiled in the Wars of the Roses that raged between the houses of Lancaster and York in the 1400’s. From 1461 to 1468 the Lancastrians managed to hold onto the castle even as other strongholds fell to the Yorkists. Edward IV finally got fed up and ordered a huge army to besiege the castle, which surrendered after a month. This siege is often described as lasting for seven years, which is, we will charitably say, a slight exaggeration. The song originates from these events, but there are several versions and none of them was written before the 1800’s. It’s interesting to note that this stirring paean to freedom and bravery is actually about a civil war. One version includes the words “Now the Saxon flees before us . . . Britain wins the field!” So the Yorkists were seen as equivalent to the Saxon invaders of centuries before, but it’s fair to point out that the Lancastrians were being helped out by the French. Hmmm. Anyway, howe’er it was, the song itself is stirring and dramatic, and it’s very popular as a regimental march and is used in an adapted form by several Welsh football (er, rugby) teams.

Are the Welsh really allergic to vowels?

April 2, 2018February 22, 2016 by debisimons

The second-longest known place name in the world refers to a location in Wales:
Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysilio-gogogoch
What does it mean? “Saint Mary’s Church in a hollow of white hazel near the swirling whirlpool of the church of Saint Tysilio with a red cave.” (Honesty forces me to admit that there are shorter forms of this name; the long version was invented in 1860 as a promotional tool.) How is it pronounced?

Why on earth is the Chorale singing the theme from the 1964 James Bond movie “Goldfinger”?

December 11, 2020February 15, 2016 by debisimons

Well, I can’t say that I have any special insight into the sensibilities of the artistic committee; all I can do is repeat the words of our conductor: “Well, this is a Welsh concert, and Shirley Bassey is Welsh, so . . . “

I could go several directions in this post. One possibility is to give you the plot of the movie, but I’ve read a couple of versions and find them all pretty much incomprehensible. Another is to take you line by line through the lyrics of the song, but even my obsessive English-teacher tendencies don’t stretch that far. So we’re left with a third subject, actually the most intriguing: Shirley Bassey herself. Her life in and of itself could be made into a very interesting film.

Is Wales Known for its Ash Groves?

January 23, 2023February 8, 2016 by debisimons

When the choir to which I belong first started rehearsing “The Ash Grove” for a Celtic-themed concert in the spring of 2016, I thought, ‘Wait a minute–that tune is familiar. I’ve played it for church services.’ Turns out I was remembering “The Master Hath Come,” but two other hymns use the same tune, “Let All Things Now Living” and “Sent Forth by God’s Blessing.” Folk tunes are often used with varying lyrics; it’s a little ironic that this particular one made its way into the Christian hymnal, since the words most associated with it have pagan roots.

The original lyrics have to do with what’s usually called “a sense of place.” As a certain site builds up associations because of events that have happened there, the place itself becomes suffused with meaning. So the speaker says that he sees “a host of kind faces” looking down on him whenever the wind rustles the branches. First are his childhood friends, but they are just a memory. He often roves pensively in the lonely ash grove, at twilight or in the moonlight. Then he meets “the joy of my life,” and builds his home there, while blackbirds and bluebells add to the happy scene.