MM 2385418 – Mason, Zwischen den Sternen

Christian Mason

Zwischen den Sternen

für Ensemble for Ensemble

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Christian Mason

Zwischen den Sternen

Nur das Mikrofon einschalten reicht nicht – Just turning on your microphone is not enough.

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Auftragswerk des ensemble recherche, finanziert durch die Ernst von Siemens Musikstiftung

dedicated to Ensemble Recherche (past, present and future) with love

I Between the stars, how far...

II ...and yet, by how much still farther, what we learn from the here and now

Interlude I

III o how incredibly distant

Interlude II

IV Everything is far... 24

V ...and nowhere does the circle close 38

VI But is there not perhaps a place, where what would be the fishes’ language is spoken without them? 43

Rainer Maria Rilke

Zwischen den Sternen, wie weit; und doch, um wievieles noch weiter, was man am Hiesigen lernt. Einer, zum Beispiel, ein Kind ... und ein Nächster, ein Zweiter–, o wie unfasslich entfernt.

Schicksal, es misst uns vielleicht mit des Seienden Spanne, dass es uns fremd erscheint.; denk, wieviel Spannen allein vom Mädchen zum Manne, wenn es ihn meidet und meint.

Alles ist weit –, und nirgends schließt sich der Kreis. Sieh in der Schüssel, auf heiter bereitetem Tische, seltsam der Fische Gesicht.

Fische sind stumm ..., meinte man einmal. Wer weiß? Aber ist nicht am Ende ein Ort, wo man das, was der Fische Sprache wäre, ohne sie spricht?

Between the stars, how far; and yet, by how much still farther, what we learn from the here and now. Someone a child, for example ... and one next him, a second –, o how incredibly distant.

Fate, it measures us perhaps with being‘s span, that it seems strange to us; think, how many spans merely from a maid to a man, when she avoids him and has him in mind.

Everything is far–, and nowhere does the circle close. See in the dish, on a gaily laid table, how odd the faces of fishes.

Fishes are dumb ..., one used to think. Who knows? But is there not perhaps a place, where what would be the fishes’ language is spoken without them?

aus | from: Sonette an Orpheus (Translation: Mary D. Herter Norton)

Instrumentation

Bass Flute (doubling Flute)

Bass Oboe

Bass Clarinet in Bb (doubling Contrabass Clarinet in Bb)

Percussion

crotales, soprano steel drum, 3 suspended cymbals (small, medium, large), 3 small pieces of metal with idefinite pitch, “invented kit” (= 1 tibetan-cymbal-on-snare drum [snare off], 1 oil tin, 2 bougarabu (Senegalese drums), 2 large kring (African slit drums), 1 tom-tom, 1 pedal bass drum, 1 large crystal bowl (optionally to be surrounded by resonator snare drums), handkerchief harmonica

Scordatura Piano (doubling handkerchief harmonica)

Violin (doubling Scordatura Violin)

Viola (doubling Scordatura Viola)

Violoncello (doubling Scordatura Violoncello)

Note on scordatura instruments

– The piano requires 6 notes to be re-tuned to correspond to partials 7, 11, 13, 14, 21 and 23 of a low C-spectrum:

Note on stage layout, spatial disposition, exit procession

– The string trio players all double on re-strung scordatura instruments which match the “natural” tuning of the piano and are generally intended to function as a single macroinstrument comprising three players sharing a single musical line/layer:

Open Strings and Natural Harmonics

– Only the piano, percussion and cello are on-stage throughout the piece.

– Cello has two playing positions (1. centre-stage, between piano and percussion; 2. as part of the scordatura string trio).

– All other have multiple off-stage (out- and in-side the auditorium) and on-stage playing positions as detailted in the GLOBAL PLAYING POSITIONS diagram.

For POSITION 1 Group B (B.Cl. + Vla.) and Group C (B.Fl. + B.Ob. + Vln.) are required to play outside the auditorium. The exact location will depend on the limitations of the venue, but what matters is to achieve a balance where the parts are clearly audible but with a distinct sense of distance, such that maybe when they first enter they could be mistaken for the piano resonance, or emanations of the cello sound.

– At the end of the piece only the cello remains on-stage, all others participate in a quasi-ritualistic exit procession. There should be a sense of formality to the manner of walking during this (and all other position changes).

– Stewards may need to help with opening and closing doors for the musicians.

– The material of the scordatura strings comprimes (almost entirely) open strings and harmonics. Parts are notated on two staves, the lower indicating the “fingered” notes as if on a normal instrument, the upper indicating the sounding notes. Only the sounding stave is included in the full score.

– The scordatura instruments will need to be re-strung and re-tuned several days in advance of the concert to allow for the tuning to settle.

– The scordatura string instruments should be waiting on-stage in visually noticeable positions during the first three movement of the piece.

– The sonic effect of the exit procession from the audience (and cellists) perspective should mimic a studio ‘fade-out’. As such, in an ideal performance these players will only stop playing when they reach a location inaudible from within the auditorium.

Notes on steel drum, crystal bowl and optional surrounding snare drums

– The steel drum part was composed on/for a specific steel drum (property of Christian Dierstein). Since these instruments are not standardised the part may appear extremely difficult or near-impossible on some instruments. In the worst case it may be acceptable to substitute the steel drum for a vibraphone, but this is not ideal.

– The tone rows below indicate the principal source of melodic material to be found in the steel drum part and may provide a useful practice-aid:

– In other cases (c.f. movement. III Letter Q) there is rallentando of irregular L.H. trem. within slurred bowing:

– The large crystal bowl for which this piece was conceived (property of Christian Dierstein) is struck just four times (at what could be considered the “climax” of the piece) and functions equally as a visual object and a sonic object. The visual intention is that its very presence raises the question of when (and how) it will be played, hence the vital importance that it is placed centre stage in clear view of the audience.

– The crystal bowl can optionally be surrounded by a number of snare drums (resting on their sides, skins facing the crystal bowl, with snares on) which act as resonators, the snares vibrating in sympathy with the resonance of the crystal bowl. I suggest using at least two snare drums, but more or less will be equally acceptable. This effect should be audible in the long pause at the end of movement IV. As with the crystal bowl, the visual effect is equally important.

– For the record, I owe this idea entirely to a demonstration by Christian Dierstein during a workshop session in 2017. Many thanks to him for sharing it!

Notes on interpretation for invented kit

The notation for the invented kit part (during movement V) allows for some flexibilty of interpretation regarding which part of the kit is used for any given note. The general intention is that a wide variety of colours should be explored. Please observe the following general principles when playing the part:

– Pauses are indicated as “short”, “medium” or “long”:

– During the interludes some players are asked to “hum as if to yourself”; this humming should nevertheless be audible to the audience. Humming should ideally be at the written pitch (which may require falsetto), if this is not possible an octave lower is also acceptable.

– All other technical and notational issues are explained as and when they appear in the score.

Note on interpretation of microtones

– Most non-tempered notes in the piece are played on especially re-tuned instruments, however in some cases normal instruments are asked to tune to the microtonal notes. The microtonal notes which appear, and the accidentals used, are as follows:

– In cases where the tuning is problematic (for example, due to the speed of the scalar runs, as in movement II) it is acceptable to approximate to the nearest quarter- or semitone, but in slow moving passages it is important to tune-in to the global harmony.

Note on interpretation and improvisation

– The piece was conceived in an improvisatory spirit. Some sections were “composed” by transcribing and editing recorded improvisations. Other sections, such as Letter X of movement IV, require a significant amount of improvisation by the string trio in every performance. As such, the goal of interpretation should be to create an impression of spontaneity.

1. = pedal bass drum

2. = choose between tom-tom/bougarabu/kring (but with preference for kring)

3. = choose between tom-tom/bougarabu/kring (but preference for bougarabu)

4. = cymbal-on-snare or oil tin

So when there is a figure (for example, movement V bar 4) utilising the middle spaces (2 and 3) you could play it either between the two kring, or the two bougarabu, or using a mixture of both.

General performance notes

“z” on the stem = irregular bow tremolo:

– In some cases (c.f. movement IV Letter W) there is simultaneous unsynchronised irregular trem. of the R.H. bow and the L.H. fingers:

– The scope for “improvisatory interpretation” is especially significant in Mvmnt. VI where the notation (in particular of the EXIT PROCESSION) could be seen to imply a repetitive/mechanical music, but the intention is for a constantly re-imagined and renewed surface colour, despite the essentially repetitive core structure.

– For example, from movement VI Letter F to the end, the violin and viola should aim to create a noticeably different nuance to every recurrence of the high nat. harm. gesture (even allowing for rhythmic diversion from the notation). Similarly, the wind trio should aim for a variety of colour in their repeating material.

Note on metre

In movements III and IV the time signature is omitted and many barlines are replaced with dotted barlines, despite the music apparently being written in 2/4. The reason for this is that the actual metrical structure is composed in larger spans, with each 2/4 bar representing a single beat of a longer bar, too long to reasonably notate as a single unit. Therefore quasi-metrical accents are indicated by the use of double barlines (strong accent or downbeat) and normal barlines (weak accent or half bar), with varying numbers of “beats” (dotted barlines) between them.

Ensemble Recherche (past, present and future) with love

Zwischen den Sternen

Zwischen den Sternen I Between the stars, how far...

for Ensemble Recherche (past, present and future) with love

Zwischen den Sternen I

Christian Mason, 2017–19

Contemplative, as if transfixed, with a sense of awe and wonder q = c.60 A B

as if transfixed, with a sense of awe and wonder

Between the stars, how far...

Between the stars, how far...

2019 by Breitkopf & Härtel, Wiesbaden Einzeichnungen sind nur mit weichem Bleistift gestattet. Andernfalls sind wir genötigt, Schadenersatz zu verlangen. Rental material, not for sale. Passing on to third parties as well as reproduction of any kind are prohibited! Alterations, cuts or markings only with pencil. Otherwise we will claim damage compensation in addition to the rental fee.

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*Improvise rhythmically irregular micro-shifts away-from and back-to unision (on string III) to create constantly varying frequency beats

*vary vib. irregularly between fast/slow and narrow/wide

*micro-flux = "Scelsi-esque" timbrally exploratory, improvised, irregular mix of...

1. variable size vibrato (wide/narrow; fast/slow; accel./rall.)

2. non-metrical accents (through exaggerated bow or breath changes)

3. quasi-baroque micro-tonal ornamentation (grace notes, trills, turns, modents) within the entire available pitch-space a semitone above/below the written note.

...and yet, by how much still farther, what we learn from the here and now

2: off-stage, inside the hall, alone, behind audience

sempre

Oboe/Clarinert duo off-stage, inside the hall, right-hand side of audience (part-way towards stage)

Violin/Viola duo off-stage, inside the hall, left-hand side of audience (part-way towards stage)

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