September 25 - Glenn Gould (The Musical Birthday Series, 4th Annual Cycle)

Previous posts for September 25th are here: Jean-Philippe Rameau; Glenn Gould (2019), Dmitri Shostakovich (2020), and Jean-Philippe Rameau (2021)

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Glenn Gould (25 September 1932 – 4 October 1982) was a legendary Canadian pianist.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Trois pièces eccentriques pour Glenn Gould

Gould was known for his eccentricities, from his unorthodox musical interpretations and mannerisms at the keyboard to aspects of his lifestyle and behavior. He stopped giving concerts at age 31 to concentrate on studio recordings and other projects. -- Wikipedia

(1)

A youngster should never be schooled

Using piano recordings by Gould,

And this is because

If they do what he does

They will find their results overruled,

 

(2)

Glenn Gould, with his very low chair,

Made records with gusto and flair,

With results so outré

That I wonder if they

Were cheekily done on a dare. 

 

(3)

It’s no fault of the sound engineer

That on records by Gould you will hear

His voice, which I’d guess

They took pains to suppress,

But were unable to make disappear.

 

 

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September 24 - Jean-Louis Lully (The Musical Birthday Series, 4th Annual Cycle)

Previous posts for September 24th are here: John Rutter; Václav Nelhýbel (2019), John Rutter; Anthony Newley (2020), and John Rutter (2021)

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Jean-Louis Lully (24 September 1667 – 23 December 1688) was a French musician and composer, and the youngest son of Jean-Baptiste Lully.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Too Early

On 8 June 1687 he succeeded his father as surintendant and compositeur de la musique de la chambre du roi and he was nominated for another of his father's posts, Director of the Opera.  Because he was only 20 years old, however, the decision was postponed and was never ratified before he died the following year. His skill as a composer is unknown, in part because most of the works bearing his name were collaborations. — Wikipedia

Jean-Louis was meant

   To take his father’s place,

But Fate had no intent

   To let that take place.

Was he any good?

    The fact is no one knows,

But here is how things stood

    When his father bashed his toes:

As J.-L. came of age,

    His work yet unbegun,

He turned his final page

    And died at twenty-one.

 

 

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September 23 - John Lomax (The Musical Birthday Series, 4th Annual Cycle)

Previous posts for September 23rd are here: John Coltrane; Ray Charles; Bruce Springsteen (2019), John Lomax; Princess Marie Elisabeth of Saxe-Meiningen (2020), and Jean-Marie Leclair the Elder (2021)

 

John Lomax (23 September 1867 – 26 January 1948) was a pioneering American ethnomusicologist who did much for the preservation of American folk music.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Ballad of Lomax

Way out in the West

Where the tumbleweeds blow,

A man with a quest

Once decided to go

And find him some cowboys,

Although it seemed strange,

And then he said, “Now, boys,

“Sing songs of the range.

“Sing songs of the prairie

“Signs songs of the camp”

He found a spot where he

Could work by his lamp

As he gave his attention,

To music and word,

And without condescension

Transcribed what he heard

And thus, unrehearsed,

He was able to collect them, –

John Lomax, the first

To explore and respect them.

 

 

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September 22 - Michael Torke (The Musical Birthday Series, 4th Annual Cycle)

Previous posts for September 22nd are here: Debby Boone (2019), Andrea Bocelli; Anton Filtz (2020), and Arthur Pryor (2021)

 

Michael Torke (b. 22 September 1961) is a prominent American composer who writes music influenced by jazz and minimalism.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sensory Deprivation

A synesthete (he hears colors), Torke is the composer of numerous pieces (Bright Blue Music, Ecstatic Orange) which include colors in the titles. – adapted from Wikipedia

A synesthete

Achieves the feat

   Of hearing color.

For those of us

Without this plus…

    Life is duller.

 

 

 

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September 21 - Gustav Holst (The Musical Birthday Series, 4th Annual Cycle)

Previous posts for September 21st are here: Gustav Holst; Billy Porter (2019), Leonard Cohen (2020), and Gustav Holst (2021)

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Gustav Holst (21 September 1874 – 25 May 1934) was an English composer, arranger and teacher.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Heavenly Holst

Imogen Holst, the composer's daughter, wrote that her father had difficulty with large-scale orchestral structures such as symphonies, and the idea of a suite with a separate character for each movement was an inspiration to him. – Wikipedia, s.v. “The Planets”

When discomfort with abstract autonomy

Led Holst to the cosmic taxonomy

Which he used in his suite,

He employed the conceit

Of the planets from ancient astronomy.

 

 

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