John Williams: Music from The Star Wars Trilogy - Special Edition

SKU: BT.AMP-028-140

English-German-French-Dutch.

The piece reflects the composer's fascination with the origins of the universe and deep space in general. The title comes from a theory, formulated by Pythagoras, that the cosmos was ruled by the same laws he had discovered that govern the ratios of note frequencies of the musical scale. (‘Harmonia’ in Ancient Greek, which means scale or tuning rather than harmony - Greek music was monophonic). He also believed that these ratios corresponded to the distances of the six known planets from the sun and that the planets each produced a musical note which combined to weave a continuous heavenly melody (which, unfortunately, we humans cannot hear). In this work, these six notesform the basis of the sections MUSIC OF THE SPHERES and HARMONIA. The pieces opens with a horn solo called t = 0, a name given by some scientists to the moment of the Big Bang when time and space were created, and this is followed by a depiction of the BIG BANG itself, as the entire universe bursts out from a single point. A slower section follows called THE LONELY PLANET which is a meditation on the incredible and unlikely set of circumstances which led to the creation of the Earth as a planet that can support life, and the constant search for other civilisations elsewhere in the universe. ASTEROIDS AND SHOOTING STARS depicts both the benign and dangerous objects that are flying through space and which constantly threaten our planet, and the piece ends with THE UNKNOWN, leaving in question whether our continually expanding exploration of the universe will eventually lead to enlightenment or destruction.

Dit werk weerspiegelt de fascinatie van de componist voor het heelal. Het begint met een hoornsolo met de naam t = 0, waarmee sommige wetenschappers de oerknal aanduiden. Dan volgt een weergave van de oerknal zelf. Het volgendegedeelte, The Lonely Planet, is een meditatie over het ongelooflijke samenspel van omstandigheden dat leidde tot het ontstaan van de Aarde. Asteroids and Shooting Stars beschrijft objecten in de ruimte. Het werkeindigt met The Unknown, waarmee we in het ongewisse blijven over de gevolgen van onze verdere verkenning van het universum. In 2005 won Philip Sparke met Music of the Spheres de National Band Association/William D.Revelli Memorial Band Composition Contest.

Dieses Werk handelt vom Weltall und unserem Platz im Universum, auf dem Weltbild von Pythagoras basierend. Am einfachsten lässt sich diese außergewöhnliche Komposition wohl als Filmmusik ähnliches Stück beschreiben ? Musik zu einem Science-Fiction-Film eines Ripley Scott oder Steven Spielberg oder auch Musik, wie sie ein John Williams oder Danny Elfman schreiben würde: absolut stimmungsvoll, brillant instrumentiert mit Klangfarben, Strukturen, Effekten und Timbres, gemischt mit fließenden musikalischen Linien, die die Substanz des Themas auf den Punkt treffen. Dieses atemberaubende neue Stück hebt Ihr Blasorchester auf ein höheres Niveau, sowohl im technischen als auchmusikalischen Sinn.

La fresque Music of the Spheres (“La musique des sphères”) souligne la fascination qu’éprouve le compositeur pour les origines de l’univers. L’orchestration est proche de la musique de film. Le climat musical est ample, sonore et contrasté.

Music of the Spheres evidenza il fascino che le origini dell’universo esercitano su Philip Sparke. Il titolo proviene da una teoria del matematico greco Pitagora, secondo la quale il cosmo è retto dalle stesse leggi che governano i rapporti di frequenza tra le note della scala musicale. Questa composizione inizia con un assolo di corno chiamato t = 0, nozione che definisce il momento del big-bang. The Lonely Planet (Il pianeta solitario) è una meditazione sulle circostanze che hanno portato alla creazione della terra. Asteroids and Shooting Stars (Asteroidi e Stelle cadenti) descrive i molteplici oggetti che si muovono nello spazio e che rappresentano unrischio per il nostro pianeta. Le battute finali portano verso l’ignoto (The Unknown) sollevando una domanda la cui risposta resta in sospeso: la nostra continua avanzata nell’esplorazione dell’Universo porter un giorno alla scoperta o alla distruzione?

SKU: HL.14021105

ISBN 9780711997950. UPC: 884088433307. 8.25x11.75x0.088 inches.

The composer writes: Pilgrim was inspired, it will be no surprise to learn, by reading Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress - Vaughan Williams's great opera on the subject had fascinated me from its first performance, yet it was a long time before I caught up with this essential item in any well-stocked library of English classics. It made a great impression, not least because of its theme of a journey of self-discovery, and a rediscovery or renewal of faith. These are ideas which have a strong interest for me, not in religious terms but in their application to every aspect of human life (including great journeys), and this piece reflects my response in musical terms to this concern. The tempo of the whole piece, which lasts about 18 minutes, is basically slow. There are two quick episodes, but these act somewhat like the trio sections of a classical scherzo, save that the tempo relationships are inverted (the classical trios would have been slower, not quicker) and the canvas is much larger, being that of a single, substantial, slow movement. The form of the whole is perhaps fantasia-like rather than having any relationship to classical forms such as sonata or rondo - some motifs and themes are varied as the work develops, and the opening chords are of primary importance throughout the work. There has been no attempt to convey any pictorial elements deriving from Bunyan's great book. There is, however, one feature which, upon completion of the score, struck me with some force, which is that almost all the thematic material is essentially striving upwards - there is a constant upward movement (sometimes over a lengthy period) throughout the work. Pilgrim was commissioned by the Luton Music Club for the Raphael Ensemble with funds provided by the Eastern Arts Board and Bedfordshire County Council, and is dedicated to the Luton Music Club. The first performance was given in Luton on February 10th 1997 and followed, as part of a joint scheme, by performances in the same week at the Music Clubs of Bedford and Leighton Buzzard.