Dennehy GRÁ AGUS BÁS

Grรก agus Bรกs for singer and ensemble

Donnacha Dennehy 2006-7

Commissioned by Trinity College Dublin. Written especially for the sean nós singer Iarla O’ Lionaird and Crash Ensemble. Premiered at Samuel Beckett Theatre, Dublin, on 10 February 2007 by Iarla O’ Lionaird and Crash Ensemble, conducted by Alan Pierson.

Grá agus Bás is inspired by the moments of ecstasy, both luscious and dark, within a number of particular sean nós (meaning “old style”) songs, particularly Aisling Gheal. It uses these as a collective point of departure for a journey exploring the themes of love (grá) and death (bás) in a non-narrative context.

Technically, it may be of interest to now that the treatment of pitches and harmony in this piece oscillates between an equal-tempered and a quasi just-tuned spectral approach. In general, equal temperament is used when the piece is harmonically mobile, and just intonation is used when the piece is harmonically static.

Special thanks are due to Michael Taylor, head of the School of Music of Trinity College, for organizing a commission for what was essentially a labour of love; to Kate Ellis, Crash Ensemble’s cellist, for so patiently coaching me on the various gymnastic patterns of harmonics I wanted to use; and to Iarla for his talent, enthusiasm, and open-minded assistance throughout.

The text for Grá agus Bás (“Love and Death”) circles around the following lines from the third verse of the traditional Irish song Aisling Gheal (“Bright Vision”), using “an ghníomh” (“the deed”) as its point of departure: A phlúr na bhfear, mo shlad na déin-se…

Dá dtiocfadh sa ghreann dúinn clan do dhéanamh, ‘S go mbeifeá séantach insan ghníomh, Gur ghearr on mbás mé…

‘S im ghóist im aonar bheinn romhat id tslí.

O flower of men, do not cause my destruction…

If it happened in our pleasure that we made a child, And if you were to deny the deed, I would be near death…

And as a ghost on my own I would be before you on the road.

While the final section concentrates mainly on the final two lines from above, the middle section incorporates two lines from the song Táim Sínte Ar Do Thuam (“I am stretched on your grave”): Tá cló ar mo chroí-se.

Tá líonta le grá dhuit.

There is a nail on my heart.

I am filled with love for you.

Instrumentation and stage layout Solo voice (singing in sean nรณs style) Flute doubling piccolo Clarinet in B-flat doubling bass clarinet (or with a additional clarinetist) Trumpet Trombone (with F attachment) Percussion (vibraphone, kick drum, sampler) Electric guitar Violin Viola Cello Double bass (tuned D-G-D-G) Electronics (triggered by the percussionist)

General notes on notation and accidentals Where accidentals (including microtones) occur, they last through the bar unless otherwise specified. They are immediately cancelled in succeeding bars unless reapplied.

A diminuendo at the end of a phrase that does not include a terminating dynamic marking simply means fade out. It only applies to that phrase (i.e., it does not carry to the next entrance on that instrument). Similarly, a crescendo at the beginning of a phrase that is not accompanied by an initial dynamic marking means fade in.

Tuning and tolerance zones The ensemble should tune to a G, not an A. Before beginning rehearsal, it is a good idea to tune the first sixteen overtones of a G spectrum so that the group feels comfortable with the sound world. The strings can supply 1˚, 3˚, 5˚, 7˚, 8˚, and 16˚ without difficulty. The flute can supply 11˚ and the trombone 13˚. The other instruments can supply 9˚ and 10˚ (in this instance considered as equal-tempered).

In general, equal temperament is used when the piece is harmonically mobile, and just intonation is used when the piece is harmonically static. Most of the tuning indications are given in exact cents, because in the majority of cases they are specific overtones of a G or, more rarely, a C fundamental. I’ve decided to aim high in an optimistic fashion, but will accept approximations, of course, of these tunings. Nevertheless, many will be quite possible, especially when they are in close proximity to the correctly tuned natural harmonic.

One should endeavour to be at least within an eighth tone of the correct pitch. Performances with less than a quarter tone accuracy are still doable, but sacrifice much of the colour I am aiming for. In any case, there is a deviation in writing it, where if the note is within six cents of an equal-tempered not, it is considered equal-tempered in this context.

Specific instructions for instrument groups Strings n n+ s.p. s.t.

normal bowing position between normal bowing position and sul pont. (basically poco sul pont.) sul pont. sul tasto

A horizontal arrow from one bowing position to another indicates a gradual change from the initial bowing position to the next.

For most naturally-sounding harmonics, I have provided the string on which it is to be played and the harmonic on that string. E.g., III [5˚] indicates the fifth harmonic on the third string.

Percussion The Max MSP patch changes in the piece are triggered by the percussionist. He or she will need the following: (a) (b) (c) (d)

a laptop running Max MSP a small midi keyboard mounted near the vibraphone a foot pedal connected to the laptop the Max patch and appropriate sound files, which can be downloaded at https://www.dropbox.com/sh/t4c1hznk334k6ug/8FA6CIADrB

Boxed cue numbers indicate changes in patches. The φ symbols are an extension of these cues onto the staff, and indicate the points at which (s)he should trigger that numbered patch using the foot pedal. The midi keyboard is used to play the sampler melodies at cues G and K. Electric guitar The  symbol indicates noise, created by feedback loop or other methods. This should have a rich quality.

Notes to the sound engineer The ensemble and singer should be amplified. If the acoustic is dry, some reverb should be added, especially to the singer. The singer will also need reverb on his own voice in the monitor.

The singer’s sound should be above the sound of the ensemble, but it should also be integrated. You should clearly hear that it is a solo voice, but the ensemble needs a significant presence as well.

At two specific places, because of the volume produced by the ensemble, the volume of the singer will need to be boosted substantially.

These places are between cues S and X and at cue LL, in advance of the voice’s entry just before cue MM. Below is a chronological account of the relationship between the singer and the ensemble: Measure #

Instruction

1 71 (cue E) 107 (cue G) 143 (cue I) 182 (cue K) 193 to 243 (before cue N) 248 Prior to 306 (cue S) 546 (cue LL)

Singer should sit a little above the sound of the ensemble, but should blend nicely. The dynamic here is fairly gentle.

Singer might need to be boosted slightly.

Singer can come down to the opening level.

Singer should be raised gradually to compete with the growing ensemble dynamic.

Singer can come down to a level slightly about that of the opening level.

Singer should be raised gradually and dynamically in accordance with the dynamic peaks in the music.

Return to the opening level (possibly slightly above).

Significant boost in anticipation of voice’s re-entry at cue S Significant boost in anticipation of voice’s re-entry before cue MM