The Book of Genesis The creation of the world in music
Gimnazjum im. Mikołaja Siemiona w Krzczonowie
The Creation of the World by Hector Perez
„The Creation of the World” is an instrumental piece of music composed by Hector Perez. The composer makes an attempt to create a musical interpretation of the world creation and, within four minutes, provides us with a vivid summary of the act of creation. Even the digit “four” itself is meaningful in our analysis. It clearly relates to the earth. There are four seasons (winter, spring, summer and autumn) and four primary directions (north, south, east and west). The correspondence between the number “four” and the earth is reflected in the title “The Creation of the World”. It is clearly based on the Bible, and the Book of Genesis to be precise. The work by Hector Perez can be also divided into several parts as it is in the Book of Genesis. In the very first seconds of the composition, the twinkling sound is barely audible. The calm, almost silent mood represents the depths and vastness of motionless void. There is nothing – emptiness. All is surrounded by darkness and suspense. Suddenly the peaceful music transforms itself in a mysterious, enigmatic vibration which is getting louder by the second. It makes an impression as if something is going to emerge out of all-embracing abyss. This part of the work is closely connected with the first lines of the Book of Genesis. In the beginning, when God created the heavens and the earth, the earth was a formless wasteland, and darkness covered the abyss, while a mighty wind swept over the waters. Now we can hear a sequence of two dominating musical instruments – the violin and cello. The murky, low-pitched sound of cello clashes with high, clear tones of the violin. Those two instruments obviously stand for two opposing powers – darkness and light which shall destroy the other. The pace of music is getting faster. The suspense is palpable. Then God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. God saw how good the light was. God then separated the light from the darkness. God called the light "day," and the darkness he called "night." Then there is an impression as if everything is exploding and “whirling” and after that it starts to get a specific form. The darkness is being separated from the light. Suddenly, the first rays of sun penetrate through the emptiness and darkness. The soft tones disappear, stepping aside
to more explicit tones – bearing resemblance to a big explosion. This explosion marks the moment of something new that has appeared in the world. Those mutually exclusive forces struggling for supremacy suddenly are united in a harmonious synthesis. Then, melody is rhythmic and steady. All the above really helps us to imagine the world creation – first the darkness, then the sun coming through it and the rest of divine plan of creation. Approximately after forty seconds of the tune, we can distinguish stronger sounds. It is a reference to the other part of the description of the world creation in the Holy Bible. God decides to create and shape his “home” – Heaven. The pace of sounds is rising. It indicates the following steps of the act of creation. Music emphasizes the prominence of this moment. The listener is aware of the fact that he/she is the witness of something important going on. The sounds are mixing, almost fighting among themselves to prove which is louder and more vital. The “sound fight” bears resemblance to a fight between dark and light or water and fire. Then God said, "Let there be a dome in the middle of the waters, to separate one body of water from the other." And so it happened: God made the dome, and it separated the water above the dome from the water below it. God called the dome "the sky." The following part is relatively extended in time. We can hear lots of similar sounds. The most obvious conclusion is that God is engaged in doing something ideal and unique in its nature. However almighty, even God needs some amount of time to divide water from the land – to make the division “fair” and perfect. Then God said, "Let the water under the sky be gathered into a single basin, so that the dry land may appear." And so it happened: the water under the sky was gathered into its basin, and the dry land appeared. God called the dry land "the earth," and the basin of the water he called "the sea." God saw how good it was. After a few seconds of seemingly disordered tones, the sounds begin to interwine and merge. They altogether create one ideal whole. The composer “paints” with sounds the first moments of world with land and the sky above it. Then the music becomes peaceful and soft. There is some evidence of peace and harmony which start to “prevail” over the Earth. God is ready for the next “step” – for the creation of life. After two minutes and twenty seconds, there is a visible change in the pace. There is a choir singing and repeating sharp and high tones. This is the proper introduction for the phase of life creation or awakening living creatures and showing them their place on our planet.
This is a part of the work where we can hear how God decorates the sky with shining stars and other celestial bodies. The Sun, the ruler of the day, starts to shine on the firmament – we can distinguish quite high tones here which reach us like rays of sun. In the background, there is the Moon which spreads soft glow in the night. New, lower tones, can be heard. It sounds cheerful but at the same it seems to hide some mystery behind. The whole universe is whirling and spinning around and becoming slowly one whole structure. The tones of music are faster and faster. Instruments are louder and more distinct. It makes this part of the tune more eminent and exciting. It stimulates our imagination – we can see trees growing out of the soil, other prime plants or bushy grasses winnowed by a mischievous wind. The tones are softer but still keeping us in suspense. There is a choir again that is trying to call: Then God said, "Let the earth bring forth vegetation: every kind of plant that bears seed and every kind of fruit tree on earth that bears fruit with its seed in it." And so it happened: the earth brought forth every kind of plant that bears seed and every kind of fruit tree on earth that bears fruit with its seed in it. God saw how good it was. Suddenly, loud and restless tones respond through the air. There are first birds gliding in the sky over the first tops of mountains. Softer sounds are like white clouds floating slowly in the sky. The listener may easily discern the sounds of violin that are faster and faster. They resemble huge sea waves battering the coast aggressively and taking the sand away. The tones are joyful and fast. The image of world creation is clearly conveyed by the music. We can observe everything from the above – like a bird which was sent by God to check and appraise his own work. The sounds are more and more shrilling. These are the sounds of animals which are scattering to all possible locations: forests, meadows, fields, mountains or savannas. They are happy and they praise God for being given both lives and new beautiful homes. Then God said, "Let the earth bring forth all kinds of living creatures: cattle, creeping things, and wild animals of all kinds." And so it happened: God made all kinds of wild animals, all kinds of cattle, and all kinds of creeping things of the earth. God saw how good it was. Then God said: "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. Let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and the cattle, and over all the wild animals and all the creatures that crawl on the ground."
Loud and eminent tones indicate that this part of the creation process is finished. There are plants and animals. There is a short, one-second break, which is followed by more majestic tones. This is the time when God decides to create the man. God created man in his image; in the divine image he created him; male and female he created them. God blessed them, saying: "Be fertile and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it. Have dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and all the living things that move on the earth." God also said: "See, I give you every seed-bearing plant all over the earth and every tree that has seed-bearing fruit on it to be your food; and to all the animals of the land, all the birds of the air, and all the living creatures that crawl on the ground, I give all the green plants for food." And so it happened. After about three minutes, the music becomes more quiet and peaceful. It is followed by the sounds of the piano and other soft and joyful tones. All these indicate that the whole work has been successfully finished. God looked at everything he had made, and he found it very good. The Creator decides to rest after the whole creation week. It was a great effort. Is the Earth ready to exist on its own? New plants appeared out of the soil. Animals are freely moving around the trees. Trees are gently moved by wind blows. The tones are more distinct. This means that the man, the final God’s achievement appears in the scene. When everything is ready and the process of world creation is finished, peace, harmony and beauty rule over the Earth. The tones of the tune are the same – they are getting more quiet to announce us that our World is ready‌ Thus the heavens and the earth and all their array were completed. Since on the seventh day God was finished with the work he had been doing, he rested on the seventh day from all the work he had undertaken. So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work he had done in creation.
Engines of Creation by Future World Music
The beginning of the “Engines of Creation”, lasting more or less for the first eleven seconds, prepares the listener for the story which is soon going to happen. God The Creator like an architect gets his plans or blueprints and begins to give orders to all the forms which are swirling in the chaotic space. The title, “Engines of Creation” may suggest that God is the main architect or engineer in a gigantic space factory called “The Heavens”. The big company has just received an important contract – to create a new world, a new life in the space. All the machines and all the engines are started, the army of divine workers, angels are employed to fulfill all the God’s orders. Omnipresent chaos begins to surrender to God’s will. That is why there are sounds of uncertainty, fear and anxiety in the first tones of the music. It is the fear against the effects of the new enterprise. Maybe God itself has some doubts if his work will be perfect enough not to turn against Him in future. Some elegiac and strong tones mark the moments when: In the beginning, when God created the heavens and the earth the earth was a formless wasteland, and darkness covered the abyss, while a mighty wind swept over the waters. The first “products” from the heavenly plant are ready. The heavens and the earth have left the God’s factory. This is the moment when the main and key stages of the creation process can be started. During the next twenty seconds of the tune there is some breakthrough in the pace of music. It becomes faster and more energetic. We feel some suspense increased by the music. All the mechanisms of all engines are already working with full power and they cannot be stopped now. The final effects are really hard to predict. The workers of the divine factory do not know if they should be afraid of their new products. They are just aware of one fact: they can and they have to trust in their God’s orders and will. They face a new difficult task to fulfill – the head engineer has issued his orders. The light must appear in the earth and stop the darkness from ruling over the newly created world.
Then God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. God saw how good the light was. God then separated the light from the darkness. God called the light "day," and the darkness he called "night." God made the two great lights, the greater one to govern the day, and the lesser one to govern the night; and he made the stars. God set them in the dome of the sky, to shed light upon the earth, to govern the day and the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. The earth is filled with the light. It means that divine power plants work properly. The earth is longer an unsafe, sad and dark area. The following twenty minutes are characterized by a visible slowdown in the pace. It is probably a short time break in the hard process of world creation. It is possible that even divine workers, the angels, need some rest. Or are there some moments of consideration over the present work effects and some reflection over the next stages of the creation? It also could be the time for a short quality inspection of the products executed by the head engineer. This moment goes by and the pace is faster again. God saw how good it was. It may mean that the quality control has been successful. It may also suggest that the workers are allowed to bring new ideas into action and enthusiastically carry out the divine plan of creation. The steady, but fast at the same time, pace of this part of the tune indicates clearly that the next steps of plan are realized by the infallable groups of specialist workers in the heavenly plants. The divine geologists and geodecists are ordered to divide water from the land‌ Then God said, "Let the water under the sky be gathered into a single basin, so that the dry land may appear." And so it happened: the water under the sky was gathered into its basin, and the dry land appeared. God called the dry land "the earth," and the basin of the water he called "the sea." The heavenly geneticists, biologists and chemists are working on types of seeds. And, soon, first plant seeds appear on the production conveyor belts. God orders to spread them all around the world. The first green plants start to grow up in the direction of the lifegiving sunlight.
Then God said, "Let the earth bring forth vegetation: every kind of plant that bear
all
seed and every kind of fruit tree on earth that bears fruit with its seed in it." And so it happened: the earth brought forth every kind of plant that bears seed and every kind of fruit tree on earth that bears fruit with its seed in it. The next groups of heavenly scientists are just finishing their research on the earth’s fauna. They create new species of animals which are to appear in the world and give them their place to live, according to God’s orders. Each of them rushes to its habitat: to forests, meadows, mountains and some of them find their shelter in the seas and rivers. God is aware of the fact that there could be some faults or mistakes in their “construction”. However, the natural selection will improve their structure and eliminate these species which are less successful. Then God said, "Let the water teem with an abundance of living creatures, and on the earth let birds fly beneath the dome of the sky." And so it happened. God created the great sea monsters and all kinds of swimming creatures with which the water teems, and all kinds of winged birds. [..] Then God said, "Let the earth bring forth all kinds of living creatures: cattle, creeping things, and wild animals of all kinds." And so it happened: God made all kinds of wild animals, all kinds of cattle, and all kinds of creeping things of the earth. It is high time for the final divine work – the man. God orders to create a man in his image. It may mean that he would like to appoint him as His “deputy” on the Earth. The deputy will rule over the plants and living creatures already present on the planet. God knows that He undertakes a high risk to give his deputy a free will… At the end of the “Engines of Creation”, after about the first minute and fifteen seconds, it can be observed that the process of world creation is almost finished. It gives an impression that our planet is ready and the whole process is irreversible. What has been created, it cannot be changed any more. It could be said that both God and humans are “sentenced” to spend infinite years on the earth. We do not know what will happen in future or what will startle or scare us in future… Or we can just surprise ourselves. After all we have been given a free will and God passed us some of His rights to rule over the world and to shape it… Then God said: "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. Let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and the cattle, and over all the wild animals and all the creatures that crawl on the ground." God created man in his image; in the divine image he created him; male and female he created them.
God blessed them, saying: "Be fertile and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it. Have dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and all the living things that move on the earth." God also said: "See, I give you every seed-bearing plant all over the earth and every tree that has seed-bearing fruit on it to be your food; and to all the animals of the land, all the birds of the air, and all the living creatures that crawl on the ground, I give all the green plants for food." At the very end of the tune, about last ten seconds, the pace is again soft, steady and static. It may suggest that this is the end of the world creation. The biggest contract in history has been successfully fulfilled, and all contract terms have been met. Everything is well-made. Every worker deserves to get some rest. The machines in “The Heavens” are stopped, the engines are switched off, the angelic workers are going to enjoy their free time. Both God and angels are proud of their work. There is a holiday in the heavens. Everyone has a chance to praise God’s masterpiece. Thus the heavens and the earth and all their array were completed. Since on the seventh day God was finished with the work he had been doing, he rested on the seventh day from all the work he had undertaken. So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work he had done in creation. However, there are some doubts deeply hidden in all divine workers: „What will be the future of our Earth?” “Does the man manage to survive and rule the Earth?” “How much of the future work will be made in fact by us?”…
The Creation of the World by Jacek Kaczmarski
„For me, God exists just as a cultural category or issue, as a stylistic figure. We do not have to call him God but also Necessity, Absolute or Destiny. I am not attached to any religious movement and I do not look for any consolation anywhere. Religion is for me just one of mechanisms used for self-consolation. I think I would feel very bad with it in this moment of my life. All references to the biblical traditions in my works are first of all games with biblical motives. “ Jacek Kaczmarski
„The Creation of the World” by Jacek Kaczmarski takes the shape of a monologue. The divine rules over the world begin with the act of the all-creation. This act is being reported by God himself. All stanzas, which reconstruct the order of the world creation known from the Book of Genesis, are begun with similar verses. In these verses, God would like to explain the idea and sense of his actions. It is worth mentioning that the first sentences of the first three stanzas refer to the act of creation: The creation of the earth does not come easy […] Whatever you do, you should be aware of the order of things […] When you create, the impatience of dreams can spoil your work […] whereas the first lines of the fourth, fifth and sixth stanza only refer to exercising power. The power is limited to increasing two factors: worshipping the Creator and feeling respect towards Him. To rule the world is to multiply the secrets […] The glamour specifies the range of the rule […] And there is no power without honour and humility […] From the beginnings, God is convinced that His work is perfect and His acts are infallible. Each stage of the process is summarized with the following words: Then I thought my work was wise Then the first [second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth] of day of my work was finished Kaczmarski accuses God himself and His divinity for being too self-confident. God is shown as someone who is absolutely convinced of His perfection.
He is proud of His own genius. He lets us think that the creation process is hard and difficult but at the same time the lines below suggest that this process is simple to undertake: The creation of the earth does not come easy On the first day, on the first day I only divided the light from the darkness And I make the Earth’s shape I decided on what should be good or bad And it was the beginning of all that […] There are lines which can be taken from a diary of a totalitarian leader or a despot who creates in order to have more subjects or servants praising Him and his works. The low and strong voice of the singer makes an impression as if someone is giving orders impatiently to his servants. Whatever you do, you should be aware of the order of things […] When you create, the impatience of dreams can spoil your work […] To rule the world is to multiply the secrets […] The glamour limits the range of the rule […] And there is no power without honour and humility, […] These are the first lines of the following stanzas or following parts of God’s confessions who is constructing a new perfect world. The line: And there is no power without honour and humility, […] begins the sixth day of the creation process. This stanza explains the need for the living creatures on the earth. They have been created to pay homage to their master and creator. They are just lower creatures and their role is to serve. It is no wonder that on the seventh day, God the Creator looks carefully at His world. He is convinced that the world is perfect and he saw […] the order not to be replaced. Therefore, His only duty to perform now is to admire His own masterpiece. Kaczmarski’s vision is different from what we know from the Bible. For him, God is more like us with human faults and weaknesses. After all, God created man in his image […] However, the process of creation inspires God’s greed for power. All the creatures have just appeared on the earth just to surrender His will and rule. Then God may think that the world is perfectly organized and he may start to admire his own masterpiece. It is often observed that Jacek Kaczmarski compares the divine order to the totalitarian types of government. All the totalitarian leaders try to “make their citizens happy”. They create the paradise for them:
And I make the Earth’s shape I decided on what should be good or bad […] However, the man was given free will by His creator and God must be very careful and control His “servant” who may rebel against Him one day: And a man like me has got a woman, senses and free thoughts which can escape through the mouth […] As the author himself, faced the communist reality of the 1970s and 1980s in Poland. This reference may explain the pace and rhythm of music (also composed by Kaczmarski himself). There are no sudden changes, high tones or any other unexpected motives. It suggests just a simple, and even boring, process of creation. God is perfect – He does not make mistakes and his subjects have to praise Him for everything He does. God is alone in his process of creation. He does everything on His own. The same is true for Jacek Kaczmarski. The only instrument to give the background to description of the divine acts is the piano.
Jacek Kaczmarski (1957 - 2004) a Polish singer, songwriter, poet and author. Kaczmarski was a voice of the Solidarity trade union movement in 1980's Poland, for his commitment to a free Poland, independent of Soviet rule. His songs criticized the ruling communist regime and appealed to the tradition of patriotic resistance within Poles. He remains best known for his protest songs on social and political subjects. However, he was more a poet than a political singer, and his texts have not lost their relevance with the demise of the Soviet union and its communist bloc. Kaczmarski was on tour in France when the martial law was declared in Poland in December 1981. He lived in exile until 1990. During these intervening years he gave concerts in western Europe, the United States, Canada, Australia, South Africa and Israel. From 1982 he worked as an editor and journalist with Radio Free Europe. Kaczmarski was known not only for his politically motivated lyrics but also for his characteristically dynamic — even aggressive — classical guitar playing, and expressive performance style. His deep knowledge of not only his nation's history but also of classical literature gave his songs a particularly deep and multi-layered resonance.
„Stworzenie świata” Jacek Kaczmarski Stworzenie świata nie przychodzi łatwo Pierwszego dnia pierwszego dnia Oddzieliłem tylko od ciemności światło I Ziemi nadałem kształt Zdecydowałem co złe być ma co dobre A to był całej rzeczy zaczyn Po czym uznałem dzieło swe za mądre Na tym się skończył pierwszy dzień mej pracy
Piątego dnia piątego dnia Niebo ozdabiam w klucze plemion ptasich Ożywiam morskie dna Ptak się upaja traw rozgrzanych swądem Wszelki stwór morski wśród fal się przewraca Po czym uznałem dzieło swe za mądre Na tym się skończył piąty dzień mej pracy
W działaniu trzeba poznać kolej rzeczy
I nie ma władzy bez czci i pokory Szóstego dnia szóstego dnia Poszły zwierzęta dzikie w ziemskie bory I człowiek taki jak ja Kobietę zmysły i myśli ma swobodne Które gdy trzeba ujść mogą przez usta Po czym uznałem dzieło swe za mądre Na tym się skończył pracy mej dzień szósty
Drugiego dnia drugiego dnia Dzieliłem wody tak by niebo sklepić Z jednego świata uczyniłem dwa Tak kształt materii dążył z myśli prądem Gdy z nieba w morza poszły deszczu strugi Po czym uznałem dzieło swe za mądre Na tym się skończył pracy mej dzień drugi W tworzeniu szkodzi marzeń niecierpliwość Trzeciego dnia trzeciego dnia Powoli kształty ziemskiego tworzywa Dobyłem z oceanów dna Dałem bogactwo roślin w owoc płodne Co bezmiar życia na ziemi roznieci Po czym uznałem dzieło swe za mądre Na tym się skończył pracy mej dzień trzeci Panować światu to sekrety mnożyć Czwartego dnia czwartego dnia Sypnąłem gwiazdy w ciemność ziemskiej nocy I słońce w jasność dnia W ruch poszły wszystkie pełnej władzy żądne Dzień ruszył w pościg za nocą uparty Po czym uznałem dzieło swe za mądre Na tym się skończył pracy mej dzień czwarty Przepych określa panowania zasięg
Oto porządek nie do zastąpienia Wszelkie istnienie żyje swoim torem Człowiek panuje wszelkiemu istnieniu Władzę nad sobą uznając z pokorą Siódmego dnia siódmego dnia Ogarnął wszechświat jasny żar południa Stworzywszy w tydzień rajski świat Odpoczywałem przez cały dzień siódmy
The Creation of the World music & lyrics: Jacek Kaczmarski The creation of the earth does not come easy On the first day, on the first day I only divided the light from the darkness And I make the Earth’s shape I decided on what should be good or bad And it was the beginning of all that Then I thought my work was wise Then the first of day of my work was finished Whatever you do, you should be aware of the order of things On the second day, on the second day I divided waters to make the sky I made two worlds out of one So the shape of the matter moved with thoughts When it started to rain into seas Then I thought my work was wise Then the second of day of my work was finished When you create, the impatience of dreams can spoil your work On third day on the third day I slowly created the shape of the earth from the ocean’s abyss I gave plants, rich in fruit and it infinity of life would start on the earth Then I thought my work was wise Then the third of day of my work was finished To rule the world is to multiply the secrets
On the fourth day on the fourth day I spread stars in the darkness of earthly night And the sun into the brightness of the day They all moved eagerly power-hungry, The stubborn day rushed to chase the night Then I thought my work was wise Then the fourth of day of my work was finished The glamour limits the range of the rule On the fifth day on the fifth day I decorate the sky with bird flocks I awake the sea bottoms A bird imbibes with the smell of hot grass All sea creatures are swimming on the waves Then I thought my work was wise Then the fifth of day of my work was finished And there is no power without honour and humility, On the sixth day on the sixth day Wild animals went into terrestrial forests And a man like me has got a woman, senses and free thoughts which can escape through the mouth Then I thought my work was wise Then the sixth of day of my work was finished. Here is the order not to be replaced All creation lives its own life The man rules over the whole creation Which accepts his rule with humility On the seventh day on the seventh day The universe was filled with bright midday heat Having created the heavenly world within a week I rested on the whole seventh day.
*The source of the quotations from the Book of Genesis: www.vatican.va