CGF Newsletter 30: A Program Programs Programs

Jeremy goes to the opera; Joey outsources his concert prep; the CGF Newsletter team says hey!

Name That Tune

This week’s Name That Tune was submitted by Listener Eric. Here’s your hint: This piece is expressly an imitation of (or more accurately, refers to) the work of a composer originally from the same country as this composer (though who composed mostly in a different one). 

As always, your goal is to provide as much accurate analysis as possible. First try to get the nationality, year, and genre, then make educated guesses about the composer and — if possible— the piece. If you know the piece immediately, send us an email at classicalgabfest@gmail.com instead of commenting so the rest of us can have fun guessing. 

Last Week’s Results

CGF Newsletter 29
Fanny Mendelssohn, Schöne Fremde

Well, what can I say? Nailed it! Listener Cody wisely bandwaggoned with “a Mendelssohn,” and Listener Kevin wrote in with “Well, Mendelssohn of course” which was an awfully cheeky way to phrase something when he didn’t specify which Mendelssohn.

Think you can stump your fellow Listeners? Go ahead and try!

Head to our Google Form to upload a 30-second clip of an unidentified piece of classical music for us to try to identify.

Listener Review: The Life and Death(s) of Alan Turing

From the CGF Chicago Bureau, Listener Jeremy submits the following review. Listeners: take this as a source of inspiration—if you have guest posts you’d like to have included in the newsletter, just let us know!

The Life and Death(s) of Alan Turing
Chicago Opera Theater (World Premiere Production)
March 25th, 2023

I would like to preface my review with a couple of notes for context of my relationship to the subject matter. First, while I’m generally acquainted with the rough story of Turing’s life, I am not intimately knowledgeable of the details and so am unable to judge the veracity of the depiction. Second, I hate bio-pics.

That said, I liked this bio-opera. It's been in development since 2012 and it shows. Librettist David Simpatico approached the problems of distilling a complex real human life into a satisfying narrative for a drama by focusing almost entirely on Turing’s homosexuality in seven scenes from his teens through his death (and beyond.) The libretto was direct about the discrimination, dangers, and oppression Turing faced while keeping enough subtlety depicting the more institutional aspects of that oppression to not turn it into a lecture (Simpatico saved that for his program notes.)

There was also room for times of joy and bits of Turing’s interests, work, and theories peppered efficiently throughout. The libretto didn’t avoid the trap of trying to ascribe a final meaning or purpose to a life (see my aforementioned thoughts on bio-pics), but the concluding sci-fi/fantasy sequence (wherein Turing has uploaded his mind to a machine and is reunited with his teenage love Christopher Morcom) worked much better than it sounds.

I was, of course, more focused on the music. Composer Justin F. Chen wove in a variety of styles for the leads and ensembles (from near-sprechstimme to imitations of then-popular song) while keeping the whole opera in a unified sound world with more continuous choral and orchestral textures underscoring the tension of the drama. Not everything worked. Connecting the scenes was a sonic gimmick Chen calls “chat clouds” (the aural equivalent of word cloud pictures, made up of overlapping choral murmurs and orchestral cacophony punctuated by shouted words relating to the next scene) that made my eyes roll. 

But overall, I liked the music and it served the drama well. Chen infused real excitement and thrill into a sequence where Turing, having been asked if he thinks humans are mechanical, describes physical reactions in the body, culminating in a surreptitious kiss. And a scene set in Bletchley park musically portrayed the bustle & chaos beautifully. This scene also contained the absolute musical highlight of the show: Turing’s surprisingly sultry aria about the Enigma Machine.

Thumbs up, audience loved it (based on standing O and crowd chatter), would see again.

—Listener Jeremy

PS: I would be remiss if I didn’t make mention of the true hero of the production: clarinetist Gene Collerd. Keep up the good work, Gene.

ChatGPT for Programming

I (Joey) decided to finally step into the world of AI by playing around with ChatGPT recently. And, as an obsessive musician, I of course wanted to see what it knew about classical music. I’m a DMA piano student, and I like weird music, so the following conversation is the result of my seeing what kind of program it could make for someone like me.

Joey: I want a really weird program for a dma piano recital

ChatGPT: Sure, here's a weird program for a DMA piano recital:

"Dissonant Lullaby" - A piece that combines dissonant harmonies with a slow, soothing melody, creating an unsettling and dreamlike atmosphere.

"The Sound of Silence" - A piece where the pianist plays only the keys that produce no sound, exploring the idea of absence and emptiness in music.

"Rhythmically Speaking" - A piece where the pianist uses only percussive sounds on the piano, including tapping, scratching, and hitting the keys, creating a rhythmic and energetic composition.

"Reverse Etude" - A piece where the pianist plays a famous etude backwards, challenging the audience's expectations and perception of the original work.

"Randomized Improvisation" - A piece where the pianist improvises based on a set of random instructions, such as playing only white keys or using only the sustain pedal, creating a unique and unpredictable performance.

"Chaos Theory" - A piece where the pianist performs a composition that is completely chaotic and disorganized, exploring the beauty in randomness and unpredictability.

"Silent Movie Soundtrack" - A piece where the pianist improvises a soundtrack to a silent movie, using the piano to convey the emotions and actions of the characters on the screen.

"Musical Palindrome" - A piece where the pianist performs a composition that reads the same forwards and backwards, creating a sense of symmetry and balance in the music.

"Minimalist Meditation" - A piece where the pianist plays a minimalist composition that slowly builds in intensity and complexity, creating a meditative and introspective atmosphere.

"Lunar Sonata" - A piece where the pianist uses the piano to create otherworldly sounds and textures, evoking the mystery and beauty of the moon.

Joey: Not quite what I meant. I want composed pieces of music 

ChatGPT: My apologies for the confusion. Here is a list of composed pieces of music that could be considered "weird" for a DMA piano recital:

"Sonata for Prepared Piano" by John Cage - In this piece, Cage places various objects on the strings of the piano to alter its sound, creating a unique and unconventional composition.

"Gymnopédies" by Erik Satie - These pieces are characterized by their sparse and melancholy melodies, with unexpected harmonies and dissonances.

"The People United Will Never Be Defeated!" by Frederic Rzewski - This composition is a set of variations on a Chilean protest song, with intricate and complex textures and rhythms.

"Metamorphosis" by Philip Glass - This piece is a minimalist composition with repetitive and hypnotic patterns that gradually shift and evolve over time.

"Études" by György Ligeti - These pieces explore unconventional techniques and textures, such as glissandos, clusters, and polyrhythms.

"Six Encores" by Morton Feldman - These short pieces are characterized by their sparse and delicate melodies, with unexpected pauses and silences.

"Klavierstücke" by Karlheinz Stockhausen - These pieces are experimental and avant-garde, with unconventional notations and techniques that challenge the pianist's interpretation.

"Musica Ricercata" by György Ligeti - This piece is a set of eleven variations on a theme, with each variation exploring different textures and techniques, such as dissonant clusters and percussive rhythms.

"Le tombeau de Couperin" by Maurice Ravel - This suite is a tribute to the French Baroque composer François Couperin, with each movement exploring different dance forms and textures.

"The Art of Fugue" by Johann Sebastian Bach - This monumental work is a series of fugues and canons, with intricate and complex counterpoint that challenges the pianist's technique and interpretation.

Joey: The best suggestions here for me are the Musica Ricercata.. could you do more in that vein?

ChatGPT: Certainly, here are some more compositions in the style of György Ligeti's "Musica Ricercata":

"Variations for Piano" by George Crumb - This piece is a set of variations on a theme by Robert Schumann, with each variation exploring different textures and extended techniques such as string glissandos and percussive effects.

"Préludes" by Olivier Messiaen - This suite is a set of twelve preludes, each exploring a different musical idea, such as birdsong, Hindu rhythms, and ancient Greek modes.

"Vingt Regards sur l'Enfant-Jésus" by Olivier Messiaen - This monumental work is a set of twenty contemplative pieces, each exploring a different aspect of the life of Jesus.

"Preludes, Books 1 and 2" by Claude Debussy - These two sets of preludes explore a range of musical styles and textures, from the impressionistic harmonies of "La fille aux cheveux de lin" to the polyrhythmic complexity of "Feux d'artifice."

"The Well-Tempered Clavier" by Johann Sebastian Bach - This monumental work is a set of preludes and fugues in all the major and minor keys, with each piece exploring different musical ideas and technical challenges.

"Sonatas and Interludes" by John Cage - This piece is a set of twenty pieces for prepared piano, with each piece exploring different sounds and textures created by objects placed inside the piano.

"Gaspard de la nuit" by Maurice Ravel - This suite is a set of three pieces inspired by poems by Aloysius Bertrand, with each piece exploring different technical challenges and evocative moods.

"Études-Tableaux" by Sergei Rachmaninoff - These pieces are characterized by their virtuosic technical demands and evocative musical images, such as the thundering chords of "The Sea and the Seagulls" and the delicate trills of "The Little Red Riding Hood."

"Piano Sonata No. 2" by Galina Ustvolskaya - This piece is a challenging and intense composition, with massive chords and extreme dynamic contrasts that push the limits of the pianist's technique.

"Sonatas" by Domenico Scarlatti - These short pieces are characterized by their virtuosic runs, ornaments, and trills, with each sonata exploring different technical challenges and expressive moods.

Joey: Ok this is too long - I need an hour of music max.

ChatGPT: I apologize for the length of my previous response. Here are five composed pieces of music that are around an hour in length or less, and could be considered "weird" for a DMA piano recital:

"The Art of Fugue" by Johann Sebastian Bach - This monumental work is a series of fugues and canons, with intricate and complex counterpoint that challenges the pianist's technique and interpretation. It can be performed

And that’s all she wrote.

The CGF Newsletter Team United Will Never Be Defeated

A reminder about Joey & Will’s Seattle appearance on Saturday.

Classical Mixtape

Ravel, Une barque sur l’océan

This is the Will-Joey consensus choice this week. Joey is preparing for a performance later this month of the complete Mirroirs (of which “Une barque” is a movement) and he’s used his time in Seattle to give some preview performances at retirement homes here. I heard him play this piece this afternoon, and as much as it will always make me think of Timothée Chalamet, Joseph’s rendition nudges him to the top of my list of personages I associate with this piece.