Death in Venice

SKU: AP.12-0571539394

ISBN 9780571539390. English.

Britten's last opera, Death in Venice, is based on the short story by Thomas Mann. It follows the inner turmoil of the aging novelist Gustav von Aschenbach, who becomes infatuated by a boy he sees on the beach in Venice. Unable to confess his love, he dies as the city is ravaged by plague. Full of atmosphere and intense soundscapes, the simple yet subtle motives pull the opera together with great sureness of touch.

SKU: PR.11641139S

UPC: 680160682119.

Barca rolles for a Sinking City was inspired by the city of Venice, a place that has long held the fascination of artists, writers and composers, and which I have been lucky enough to visit on several occasions. Sadly it seems that future generations may not be so lucky: in addition to the city's slow sinking and recently discovered tilting, studies predict that if global warming and the resultant rise of ocean levels is unabated, the entire city (as well as many other coastal cities around the globe) will be under water by 2100.   I. Funeral Gondola The late, cryptic piano works of Franz Liszt made a profound impression on me as a young composer, among them two works he entitled La Lugubre Gondola (usually translated as The Funeral Gondola ) which were said to be a premonition of Wagner's death in Venice, his coffin transported through the canals in a black gondola. These late pieces of Liszt acquired even greater significance to me after I spent two summers in Bayreuth under the patronage of Friedelind Wagner, the granddaughter of Wagner and great-granddaughter of Liszt. This movement is a meditation on Wagner, Liszt, Venice and its own evanescence. II. Barcarolle/Quodlibet The Quodlibet (Latin for what pleases) is a musical form dating back to the 15th century where many disparate melodies are juxtaposed. Popular in the Renaissance, sacred and secular melodies were combined, often to comical effect due to the resultant incongruity of the words. The form was considered the ultimate test of a composer's mastery of counterpoint. The most famous Quodlibet is without doubt the final Variation of Bach's Goldberg Variations. As a form the Quodlibet is less common in more recent music, although examples can be found in the works of Kurt Weill and David Del Tredici.   My own Barcarolle/Quodlibet was inspired by the (perhaps apocryphal) story of the funeral where musicians were asked to play a Bach Choral, but due to miscommunication played instead the Bacarolle from The Tales of Hoffmann. Here, the Bach Choral Allen Menschen mussen sterben (All Men Must Die) is heard in the strings pizzicato, with a tempo indication In slow motion. The alto line of the Bach suggests a phrase from Beethoven's Ninth Symphony (Alle Menchen werden Bruder) heard in the muted trombone. Before long, the famous tune from Offenbach's opera is heard, followed by quotations from iconic Barcarolles by Chopin, Mendelssohn and Faure, as well as two Venetian popular songs and more Beethoven.   III. Barcarola/Ostinato/Carill on An ostinato is a repeated musical figure, and carillon is Italian for music box. This movement references the obsolete genre of salon pieces that imitated music boxes: such works by composers like Liadov and Gretchaninov used to be a mainstay of pianists' encore repertoire. This movement is however much darker in conception than those pleasant trifles. Utilizing the full battery of percussion, the carefully notated temporal slowing of the ostinato becomes overwhelmed by a poignant chorale melody before this box is snapped shut.   IV. Barcarolle Oubliee (Forgotten Barcarolle) Marked limpido (still) the final movement begins with the sound of rain produced by a percussion instrument called (appropriately) a rain stick. Halting phrases in the harp coalesce into the accompaniment for a plangent melody heard in the clarinet. The central Adagio of this movement leads to a shattering climax, before the opening phrases return and dissipate into nothingness.

SKU: PR.11641139L

UPC: 680160682126.

Barca rolles for a Sinking City was inspired by the city of Venice, a place that has long held the fascination of artists, writers and composers, and which I have been lucky enough to visit on several occasions. Sadly it seems that future generations may not be so lucky: in addition to the city's slow sinking and recently discovered tilting, studies predict that if global warming and the resultant rise of ocean levels is unabated, the entire city (as well as many other coastal cities around the globe) will be under water by 2100.   I. Funeral Gondola The late, cryptic piano works of Franz Liszt made a profound impression on me as a young composer, among them two works he entitled La Lugubre Gondola (usually translated as The Funeral Gondola ) which were said to be a premonition of Wagner's death in Venice, his coffin transported through the canals in a black gondola. These late pieces of Liszt acquired even greater significance to me after I spent two summers in Bayreuth under the patronage of Friedelind Wagner, the granddaughter of Wagner and great-granddaughter of Liszt. This movement is a meditation on Wagner, Liszt, Venice and its own evanescence. II. Barcarolle/Quodlibet The Quodlibet (Latin for what pleases) is a musical form dating back to the 15th century where many disparate melodies are juxtaposed. Popular in the Renaissance, sacred and secular melodies were combined, often to comical effect due to the resultant incongruity of the words. The form was considered the ultimate test of a composer's mastery of counterpoint. The most famous Quodlibet is without doubt the final Variation of Bach's Goldberg Variations. As a form the Quodlibet is less common in more recent music, although examples can be found in the works of Kurt Weill and David Del Tredici.   My own Barcarolle/Quodlibet was inspired by the (perhaps apocryphal) story of the funeral where musicians were asked to play a Bach Choral, but due to miscommunication played instead the Bacarolle from The Tales of Hoffmann. Here, the Bach Choral Allen Menschen mussen sterben (All Men Must Die) is heard in the strings pizzicato, with a tempo indication In slow motion. The alto line of the Bach suggests a phrase from Beethoven's Ninth Symphony (Alle Menchen werden Bruder) heard in the muted trombone. Before long, the famous tune from Offenbach's opera is heard, followed by quotations from iconic Barcarolles by Chopin, Mendelssohn and Faure, as well as two Venetian popular songs and more Beethoven.   III. Barcarola/Ostinato/Carill on An ostinato is a repeated musical figure, and carillon is Italian for music box. This movement references the obsolete genre of salon pieces that imitated music boxes: such works by composers like Liadov and Gretchaninov used to be a mainstay of pianists' encore repertoire. This movement is however much darker in conception than those pleasant trifles. Utilizing the full battery of percussion, the carefully notated temporal slowing of the ostinato becomes overwhelmed by a poignant chorale melody before this box is snapped shut.   IV. Barcarolle Oubliee (Forgotten Barcarolle) Marked limpido (still) the final movement begins with the sound of rain produced by a percussion instrument called (appropriately) a rain stick. Halting phrases in the harp coalesce into the accompaniment for a plangent melody heard in the clarinet. The central Adagio of this movement leads to a shattering climax, before the opening phrases return and dissipate into nothingness.

SKU: BT.PWM12158010

SKU: HL.14014073

UPC: 884088808891. 8.5x11.0x0.108 inches.

'Verse 1' marks the beginning of a more ambitious and intense style of composition. The ideas are relatively simple and develop gradually in a cyclic fashion within a one movement, sectional design. Progressively faster tempi lead to the main climax of the work near the end of the piece. Then a short coda leads to a very quiet ending and a return to the original tonal centre of C. Quoting composer:'In April 1975 I occupied a flat in Aldeburgh, Suffolk, near the seafront. As a member of the English Chamber Orchestra, I had come to work for a week on a recording of Britten's opera 'Death in Venice', so the real and suggested sound of the sea was in my ears, so to speak, for days on end. A few weeks later, when I started work on 'Verse 1', it became clear in the first few bars that I was recalling and suggesting the sea and the beach at Aldeburgh. I am not aware of any direct influence from Britten's music, but I do, however, quote a small fragment from a theme to be found in a piano quartet by Mahler, played early in the piece by the flute (bars 6 & 7). This work was awarded the First Prize in the Viotti International Competition for composers, in Italy in 1975.

SKU: HL.14035114

Few baroque composers were ever able to create work as sunny, as joyous as Vivaldi did in this beloved Gloria. The contrast of mood throughout the work as it moves through the drama of the Mass to its satisfying double final movement shows the composer at the height of his powers.Vivaldi composed this work in Venice in about 1715, during his fruitful time at the Ospedale della Pieta. In his lifetime this priest, composer and virtuoso Violinist achieved enormous musical success. Considering his great popularity in the modern era, it is difficult to believe that public appreciation of his work declined after his death and that the Gloria languished undiscovered forcenturies. It wasn't until 1957 that the restored work was heard again in its entirety. Since that time, this moving and joyous Gloria has been recorded more than one hundred times and perennially appears on concert series around the world.

SKU: BA.BA04081

ISBN 9790006497782. 33 x 25.8 cm inches.

In his libretto for “ Riccardo primo”, Paolo Rolli drew on Antonio Lotti’s opera “ Isacio tiranno ” which had been performed in Venice in 1710. Handel needed a text with two great women’s roles, for the two best female singers of the day were members of his troupe – Francesca Cuzzoni and Faustina Bordoni . He had already written the operas “Alessandro” and “ Admeto ” for them. He began composing “ Riccardo ” in spring 1727, completing the first version on 16 May.
However, following the death of King George I on 11 June 1727, the theatres remained closed. For Handel, who had become a British citizen in February 1727, the accession of George II to the throne offered new possibilities, and he embarked on a revision of the opera. With this, he was able to offer a new opera for the coronation festivities, the hero of which was one of King George’s charismatic forebears.
From May onwards, Handel thoroughly revised the present score, wrote some parts anew and expanded it with particularly splendid music. Handel and Rolli also improved the plot and introduced patriotic elements to honour the British monarchy.

The historic background is the third crusade against Saladin, the Sultan of Egypt and Syria , who had recaptured Jerusalem in 1187. Although King Richard I captured Cyprus and together with French crusaders stormed the fortress of Akko in the Holy Land, the crusade ended with a ceasefire and Jerusalem remained in Saladin’s hands. Richard was given the title ‘Coeur-de-lion‹’ by the English for his great military ability and bravery, although the Sicilians had first given him this name because of his relentless cruelty in clashes around Messina .

The vocal score is based on the Halle Handel Edition volume published in 2005, edited by Terence Best, and contains the second version of the opera which was premiered in November 1727.

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