SKU: CA.927200
ISBN 9790007302030. English.
A short and accessible work that nevertheless captures an entire cosmos of ideas and elements of contemporary vocal music!The internationally renowned Swedish composer and conductor Karin Rehnqvist undertook some research before beginning work on her composition Universe. Wanting to know how many stars and galaxies are in our universe, she came across estimates by renowned astronomers: 200 billion trillion stars and 2 trillion galaxies. Such dizzying numbers are simply beyond our human comprehension. Universe begins with a swelling opening chord, which directs our gaze into the sky. Then Rehnqvist portrays this dizzy sense of awe by means of tumbling glissandi, rhythmic off-beats that disrupt the meter, secondary clusters stacked on top of each other, and babbling speech. Eschewing major/minor tonality, she instead makes use of pentatonic series and different tonal centers. This work is ideal for ambitious amateur choirs, as the pentatonic series are easy to memorize while the skillful voice leading makes it easy to correctly pitch the clusters. A great piece for anyone wanting an accessible and realizable introduction to contemporary vocal music and advanced performance techniques!For budding astronomers, Karin Rehnqvist recommends the following website:https://theco nversation.com/how-many-s tars-are-there-in-space-1 65370
SKU: SU.32040140
2222; 4331; timp, 2 perc, pno; stgs Duration: 13'30 Composed: 2016 Published by: Amy Mills Music, LLC Like a modern Pictures at an Exhibition…. Ha Shamayim is an original piece for orchestra that was inspired by photographs taken by the Hubble space telescope. Each section is inspired by one photo; the title of each section is the title that NASA gave to the photograph. The words Ha Shamayim are Hebrew for The Heavens. They are written in Genesis 1:1, In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The words are also seen in Psalm 19. Section I: Warped Edge-On Galaxy ESO 510-G13 The piece begins in outer space with its glistening stars. Glissandi are used to depict the strange but beautiful warp seen in the photograph. Section II: Galaxy Fires at Neighboring Galaxy Suddenly the piece erupts as one galaxy fires blue gas at its neighbor. They engage in a cosmic battle. Section III: Youthful-looking Galaxy May Be an Adult The adolescent galaxy is personified by a humorous, gawky melody reminiscent of teenage boys who walk on feet that are still too big. Occasionally there is an argument with an authority figure, but the joy of exploring the universe quickly returns. Section IV: Star Birth in Galaxy M83 The dramatic photograph looks like a womb with veins. The music begins on one note, then it begins to explore the initial swelling and stretching. It morphs into an energetic fast theme, still growing. Ultimately it becomes glorious and expansive, like the new star. Section V: String of ‘Cosmic Pearls’ Surrounds an Exploding Star The first theme is a happy circle dance inspired by the circle of white dots in the photograph. The second theme is noble and joyful. It is reminiscent of the melody in the famous chorus in Haydn’s The Creation with the words from Psalm 19, The heavens are telling the glory of God. The music then has flashbacks to the earlier sections, and ends in triumph. The five sections in Ha Shamayim are continuous with no breaks. Difficulty Level: 5 (Advanced/Professional) See composer website for audio sample. Performance materials available on rental only:.
