August 10, 2013.Greene, Sorabji, Ibert.We have an unusual collection of composers whose anniversaries are this week.Maurice Greene, an English Baroque composer, was born on August 12, 1696 in London. As a youngster he was a choirboy at St Paul Cathedral (the new cathedral, designed by Christopher Wren, was consecrated when Greene was one year old).He studied there under Jeremiah Clarke and eventually became the organist of the cathedral.In 1735 he was appointed to the very prestigious position of Master of the King’s Music.Unfortunately for Greene, his active period coincided with the musical reign of George Frideric Handel.Greene’s talent was of a much smaller caliber, but he could be considered the “second composer” of the period, not a small achievement in itself.Greene composed a number of "anthems," a form of Anglican church music.Many of these anthems are still in use today.Here’s is one of his most famous, Hearken Unto Me, Ye Holy Children, composed in 1728.It’s performed by The King's Consort, Robert King conducting.
A very different English composer, Kaikhosru Shapurji Sorabji was born on August 14, 1892 asLeon Dudley Sorabji into a Parsi family in London (he later changed his name to emphasize his Parsi origins).The difference between the two is not just 300 years;a large part of the history ofEuropean music that separates them.Maurice Greene, with all his talents, was quite a conventional composer.There was nothing conventional about Sorabji.He wrote music that lasted for hours, sometimes so technically difficult that it waspractically unplayable (his Opus clavicembalisticum (1930), which lasts about four hours, was at that time the longest piece ever written).Largely self-taught, he didn’t follow any discernable musical tradition.He was also a pianist, and much of his music is written for this instrument.Between 1940 and 1944 Sorabji wrote 100 Transcendental Etudes (each individual etude being mercifully short, about three to four minutes).Here’s Etude no. 32, performed by the Swedish pianist Fredrik Ullén.It may not be a remarkable piece but it does demonstrate Sorabji’s skill in sound coloration.Sorabji lived a long life: he died in 1988 at the age of 96.
The French composer Jacques Ibert was a contemporary of Sorabji, but that’s probably the only thing that they have in common.Whereas “ponderous” may be the word applied to much of Sorabji’s opus, "lighthearted" is how Ibert’s music is describedbest.Ibert was born in Paris on August 15, 1890.He started taking piano and violin lessons at the age of four.He went to study at the Paris Conservatory, but World War I put a temporary end to his studies.After the War, in which Ibert served as a naval officer, he returned to the studies and won the prestigious Prix de Rome (some years later Ibert became the director ofAcadémie de Franceat theVilla Mediciin Rome).Ibert didn’t belong to any particular music school.He wrote operas (most of them quite short), a ballet, a number of orchestral pieces, a lot of piano and chamber music and wonderful songs.He also wrote music for movies and theater.Here is Ibert’s Divertissement for chamber orchestra, written in 1929-1930.It’s performed by Orchestre Des Concert Lamoureux,Yutaka Sado conducting.
Greene, Sorabji, Ibert 2013
August 10, 2013. Greene, Sorabji, Ibert. We have an unusual collection of composers whose anniversaries are this week. Maurice Greene, an English Baroque composer, was born on August 12, 1696 in London. As a youngster he was a choirboy at St Paul Cathedral (the new cathedral, designed by Christopher Wren, was consecrated when Greene was one
year old). He studied there under Jeremiah Clarke and eventually became the organist of the cathedral. In 1735 he was appointed to the very prestigious position of Master of the King’s Music. Unfortunately for Greene, his active period coincided with the musical reign of George Frideric Handel. Greene’s talent was of a much smaller caliber, but he could be considered the “second composer” of the period, not a small achievement in itself. Greene composed a number of "anthems," a form of Anglican church music. Many of these anthems are still in use today. Here’s is one of his most famous, Hearken Unto Me, Ye Holy Children, composed in 1728. It’s performed by The King's Consort, Robert King conducting.
A very different English composer, Kaikhosru Shapurji Sorabji was born on August 14, 1892 as Leon Dudley Sorabji into a Parsi family in London (he later changed his name to emphasize his Parsi origins). The difference between the two is not just 300 years;a large part of the history of European music that separates them. Maurice Greene, with all his talents, was quite a conventional composer. There was nothing conventional about Sorabji. He wrote music that lasted for hours, sometimes so technically difficult that it was practically unplayable (his Opus clavicembalisticum (1930), which lasts about four hours, was at that time the longest piece ever written). Largely self-taught, he didn’t follow any discernable musical tradition. He was also a pianist, and much of his music is written for this instrument. Between 1940 and 1944 Sorabji wrote 100 Transcendental Etudes (each individual etude being mercifully short, about three to four minutes). Here’s Etude no. 32, performed by the Swedish pianist Fredrik Ullén. It may not be a remarkable piece but it does demonstrate Sorabji’s skill in sound coloration. Sorabji lived a long life: he died in 1988 at the age of 96.
The French composer Jacques Ibert was a contemporary of Sorabji, but that’s probably the only thing that they have in common. Whereas “ponderous” may be the word applied to much of Sorabji’s opus, "lighthearted" is how Ibert’s music is described best. Ibert was born in Paris on August 15, 1890. He started taking piano and violin lessons at the age of four. He went to study at the Paris Conservatory, but World War I put a temporary end to his studies. After the War, in which Ibert served as a naval officer, he returned to the studies and won the prestigious Prix de Rome (some years later Ibert became the director of Académie de France at the Villa Medici in Rome). Ibert didn’t belong to any particular music school. He wrote operas (most of them quite short), a ballet, a number of orchestral pieces, a lot of piano and chamber music and wonderful songs. He also wrote music for movies and theater. Here is Ibert’s Divertissement for chamber orchestra, written in 1929-1930. It’s performed by Orchestre Des Concert Lamoureux, Yutaka Sado conducting.