Sonneck Society for American Music
Bulletin, Volume XXIV, no. 1 (Spring 1998)
Reviews of Recorded Material
Edited by Orly Krasner, Brooklyn College, CUNY
CRI American Masters
Douglas Moore: Farm Journal and Cotillion Suite, The Oslo Philharmonic
Orchestra, Alfredo Antonini, conductor; Symphony in A Major, Japan Philharmonic, William
Strickland, conductor. Marion Bauer: Prelude and Fugue for Flute and String Suite
for String Orchestra, The Vienna ORchestra, E. Charles Adler, conductor. Liner notes by
Eric Salzman. Composers Recordings, Inc. (CRI) American Masters, CD 714, 1996. One compact disc.
CRI American Masters
Lou Harrison: Symphony on G, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Gerhard Samuel, conductor.
Carl Ruggles: Organum and Men and Mountains, The Polish National Radio Corchestra,
William Strickland, conductor. Liner notes by Eric Salzman. Composers Recordings, Inc. (CRI) American
Masters, CD 715, 1996. One compact disc.
These two CDs are reissues of LPs from the 1950s and 1960s. Their digital remastering is excellent.
Although the performances do not reach the level of today's recordings of American music, they are
good for their time, perhaps even remarkable when one considers the limited rehearsal time
conductors had with these foreign orchestras. The liner notes are new, more ample, and offer more
historical perspective than the original ones.
The older generation remembers Marion Bauer (1887-1955) primarily through her books How Music
Grew (co-author Ethel Peyser, 1925), Music Through the Ages (1932, 1946), and especially
Twentieth Century Music (1933, 1947). Fewer know her music, and hardly anyone born after 1950
recognizes her name. Born in Walla Walla, Washington, Bauer eventially found her way to New York City
where she taught at New York University (1925-51) and plunged enthusiastically into the various musical
organizations of the day. Her musical oeuvre is small: a few pieces for orchestra including a symphony,
some songs and choral pieces, and a variety of chamber and piano music. Her modesty as a composer is
eveident in the few referenes to herself found in Twentieth Century Music, although she gave
capsule summaries of over one hundred American composers' careers, she did not include her own among
them. Others, nevertheless, honored her, for two of her orchestra pieces were included on CRI's very
first recording (1956). In those liner notes, Peggy Glanville-Hicks paid tribute to "this gallant
lady's long life as a professional teacher, critic, and composer," noting "much of her enery" was "spent
in administrative work."
Prelude and Fugue for Flute and Strings (1948) is a worthy but neglected piece in that body of
American neo-romantic or post-impressionist pieces for flute and orchestra by Arthur Foote, Charles Griffes,
Kent Kennan, and Howard Hanson. The lovely flute melody of the Prelude unfolds over an exquisite
subdued string counterpoint alternating with harmony. The fugue which follows is disappointing only in
its brevity. The Suite (1955) is more problematic but becomes more evident on repeated hearings.
IN the Prelude and Interlude, Bauer appears to be searching for her own voice with a distinctive,
dissonant counterpoint and harmony that is ever-restless but nevertheless remains tonal. The concluding
Fugue is more substantial than that of the flute piece and shows Bauer's skill at thematic
manipulation. The pieces on this recording are a demonstration of her esthetic credo, calling for
"a new romanticism, a renaissance of beauty and simplicity . . . but [with] new materials" (Twentieth
Century Music, 414).
The same CD also contains Douglas Moore's last three orchestral compositions. Like Bauer, Moore
(1893-1969) had a multi-faceted career as teacher (Barnard and Columbia), author of popular texts
(Listening to Music, 1932, 1937; From Madrigal to Modern Music: A Guide to Musical Styles,
1942), and an administrator, both academic and for various professional organizations. Unlike Bauer,
his music continues to be heard, principally the operas, which The Devil and Daniel Webster
(1938) and The Ballad of Baby Doe (1956) are the most popular of a dozen or so.
Nowhere is Moore's felicity for combining music and idea more evident than in his four-movement
Farm Journal (1948). Imagine creating music for pieces called "Up Early," a rowdy reveille, and
"Sunday Clothes," a stiffly striding tuen reminiscent of starched collars. "Lamp Light" has a
lovely mellowness, but also reaches moments of lyric intensity, and "Harvest Song" has a mood of
joyous celebration. Cotillion Suite (1952) is a survey of popular nineteenth-century dances --
"Grand March," "Polka," "Waltz," "Gallop," "Cake Walk," and "Quickstep" -- but not without Moore's sophisticated
interpretations. For example, try keeping a steady 3/4 meter to the "Waltz." The four-movement
Symphony in A (1945) follows the conventional structure of classical symphonic form and is no different
from the clear-cut etchings of his operatic and programmatic music. It enjoyed considerable
popularity in its time. Bright and sentimental in turn and always cinematic, Moore's music evokes
Norman Rockwell's America in its blending of the rustic and the urbane. Once pictures a bustling small
town, its citizens moving about its streets on their daily business or gathered in parlors for an
evening's sociability.
Lou Harrison's Symphony in G (1966) may surprise those who think of his music primarily as a
blending of East and West. Here, Harrison (b. 1917) is a relatively young composer writing in the earnest
manner of the time. In his words: "The whole work, though serially composed . . . is nonetheless
tonally centered on the note G. In the first three movements the technique is classical 12-tone
procedure, but in the finale I have . . . written freely in the "frand manner"" (from liner notes to the
recording). The outer movements have dramatic urgency typical of contemporaneous symphonies by Peter
Mennin or William Schuman. Only in the third movement do we have a hint of the extended eclecticism that was
to become so much a feature of Harrison's later works. Entitled "Scherzo," it consists of four
successvie pieces: a nervous "Waltz" for strings; a barrelhouse "Polka" for solo clarinet balanced
by sassy brass licks; a gorgeous "Song" for the cello section accompanied by harp arpeggios and evoking
comparision with Saint-Saens' "Swan"; and a scholarly "Rondeau" for piano, tack piano (plucked resonance), and
harp. This impressive work is given an outstanding reading by Gerhard Samuel who premiered the work, and
according to the composer, played an important part in its gestation.
Undoubtedly a factor in the continuing popularity of Carl Ruggles's music is its association with certain
aspects of our mythical, composite American character. Just as Douglas Moore's music is a comentary on its
"homespun" and "gregarious" features; so Ruggles (1876-1971) typifies uncompromising "individualism" and
"ruggedness." Organum (1945) and Men and Mountains (1924-1935) are excellent representative
pieces from his few compositions. Organum is a shorter, one-movement work. Men and Mountains
is divided into three parts: "Men," "Lilacs," and "Marching Mountains." (Salzman reviews the
evolution of this piece into its final form.) Ruggle's style is singular and confined. Moving from
piece to piece, one has the impression of hearing a continuing work, with new themes subjected to the same
process: a waxing and waning of definable but nevertheless amorphous motives, each contrapuntal
line propelled at its own pace. Amid these powerfully surging sections are quiet interludes, and
dissonance prevails in both.
Together, these two CDs demonstrate the breadth of mid-twentieth-century composition. Not only
are the composers' style quite different, but also the compositions demonstrate a variety of orchestral
forms and expression. They remind us of how completely American music had "come of age" over a
generation ago.
--WIlliam Kearns
University of Colorado at Boulder
Gary Brewer and Phillip Sexton: The 5th Generation. June Appal Recordings, JA0076D, 1996.
One compact disc.
Leaving Hazard, Kentucky, Route 15 winds down to Route 7 and the little town of Viper which is the
home of ballad singer Jean Ritchie. The tortuous road continues to snake along the Kentucky River
into Letcher County, and past the village of Ulvah a small road veers off to the right, threading
its way along the narrow bottom land of LIne Fork. Rickety swinging bridges span the creek and lead
to dirt roads that wander past little homesteads that follow the narrow hollers into the kudzu-shaded
hills. This is the rugged Appalachian country that generations of Sextons have called home since the
eighteenth century, and this is home to the old-time and bluegrass song on Phil Sexton and Gary
Brewer's compact disc Fifth Generation.
It is wonderful to be able to listen to this music in your own living room without making the long
drive to Line Fork, but this convenience has a price. The sound is severed from the source and the
music is isolated from its original purpose, setting and social context. The sound itself is too
clear and polished for an intimate front porch jam or a rollicking square dance. On the other hand,
this CD made a real effort to retain both its generational and cultural ties. The interplay between
Gary Brewer and Phil Sexton, playing together for the first time, captures an element of front porch
spontanaity. Recorded directly from Appalshop's WMMT radio broadcast of "Bluegrass Express Live,"
the performance is charged with square-dance-style energy. The liner notes provide a further connection
to the dance by including Carolyn Sturgill's family square dance calls suitable for use along with
tunes like "Walkin' in the Parlor."
As befitting the album's title, the performers and the repertory reflect generations of tradition.
Brewer is the grandson of bajoist Finley "Pap" Brewer and Sexton is both the son of master banjoist
Lee Sexton and newphew of Morgan Sexton, winner of the National Heritage Award. The songs cover that
same five-generational range, from a lovely and archaic "Cumberland Gap" frailed by Lee Sexton to bluegrass
classics like "Foggy Mountain Breakdown" and "Salt Creek" cleanly picked at breakneck speed. This
recording is like an entertaining geological core sampel that presents various strata of Kentucky
mountain musical styles including Scotch-Irish fiddle tunes, balladry, bluegrass, and Gospel hymnody.
--Ron Pen
University of Kentucky
Video Reviews
Editor's Note: The recent increase in the availability of high quality videotaped materials
in American music mandates a venue in which to critique these important teaching resources. The
Sonneck Society Bulletin, beginning with this issue, will occasionally feature these items in
"Reviews of Recorded Materials."
Critiquing a video demands the same scrutiny of technical details, historical accuracy, relevance to the
larger topic, and production quality as an audio recording. Additional factors, however, are also
important. Because videos, either purposefully or inadvertently, communicate the social context
of the music, they must also be considered from an ehtnomusicological perspective. The presentation
of material varies widely. Some are filmed under natural circumstances (with the producer taking
the role of an observer); others are carefully staged. Still or video images of historical or
contemporary importnace may be inserted from outside the immediate performing context. Videotaped
interviews with cultural members can range from casual conversation to well rehearsed commentary
on the featured topic. Some videos feature a narrator who comments, summarizes, or otherwise
participates in the construction of context. The narrator may be presented as an expert on the
subject, actually appearing in the video, or may be an anonymous documentary-style voice, projecting
the air of authority. Videos always reflect the producer's viewpoint, whether disinterested observer
or polemic lecturer. The critic's role is to discuss these features and perspectives.
The Music District. California Newsreel (415-621-6196), 1996. 57 minutes. New
England Fiddles: Playing Down the Devil. Media Generation (available from Multicultural
Media), MCM 1003, 1995. 20 minutes (plus a 20 minute appendix of more fiddle playing). New
England Dnaces: Squares, Quadrilles, Step Dances. Media Generation (available from
Multicultural Media), MCM 1002, 1995. 29 minutes. THe Unbroken Circle: Vermont Music, Tradition
and Change. Upstreet Production (available from Multicultural Media), MCM 1001, 1985.
59 minutes. JVC/Smithsonian Folkways Video Anthology of Music and Dance of the Americas.
Smithsonian Folkways, VTMV-225-230. Six Volumes: 43-60 minutes each.
The JVC/Smithsonian Folkways Video Anthology of Music and Dance of the Americas is a six-volume
collection of short performance segments of various American folk styles. The strength of this
collection is its diversity. There are eleven sacred and fourteen secular African-American examples,
five sacred and seventeen secular Anglo-American, fifteen secular French-American (from the northeast
United States, Canada, and Louisiana), and a few examples from several other traditions. The
limited amount of music from Hispanic and Native American communities is partially compensated for
by the Central and South American and Caribbean sections of this anthology; Native American examples are
inclued on the original JVC/Smithsonian Anthology of World Music and Dance.
The Brevity of the examples allows for the coverage of a wide variety of musics. Attaining
breadth at the expense of depth results in some selections that are too short to be of much use,
most notably those of the Inuit vocal games and Wiregrass Sacred Harp Singers. One especially
disconcerting cut occurs in Reverend Al Green's rendition of "Precious Lord," in which the final
line of the verse is omitted.
Each tape has an accompanying booklet that explains the cultural context for each example. Most of the
selections give the impression that the viewer is an observer of a natural performance. Several of the
performances, however, appear to be staged, while others have been excerpted from pre-existing
videos. Successive clips may feature a performance staged in a living room, a festival performance,
and a performance with interpolated scenes from daily life in the culture. This non-uniformity
of performance venues, however, is to be expected in a collection of this scope.
The performers themselves vary from the unknown to cultural icons. Although no interview material
is ;included, performances by Doc Watson, The Four Echoes, Elizabeth Cotten, Sonny Terry, Bill
Monroe, Jerry Douglas, Rodney Balfa, Beausoleil, the Ardoin Family, and Tito Puente, among others,
make this collection a valuable addition to one's library.
While the JVC series can be a good starter collection for the teacher of American music, video tapes
dedicated to a single topic can provide the depth necessary to present a tradition more fully. Three
recent videos, including some of the same performers (and sometimes the same performances) as on the JVC
videos, focus on the music of New England.
New England Dances and New England Fiddles effectively mix interviews and performances
without narration. Performances are usually presented in their entirety and under natural
conditions. The camera angles and quality of the video are sometimes compromised, but this is a
small price to pay for the feeling of immediacy. Both tapes present a wide variety of Anglo- and
French-American music and dancing.
The Unbroken Circle combines anonymous narration with interviews and performances.
Unfortunately, the narration is laid over the audio track on several of the ballad performances,
rendering parts of text, and therefor the story line, unintelligible. Several of the performances
are quite good, particularly Norman Kennedy's renditions of Irish balladry and Wilfred Guillette's
French-Canadian style fiddling accompanied by his own clogging. Another section features a
retrospective on the pioneering work of Vermont folksong collector Helen Hartness Flanders.
A brief booklet contains additional information on the works and includes simple questions for study.
Another video, The Music District, focuses on four African-American bands from Washington, DC:
The Legendary Orioles, a rhythm and blues gospel quartet; the Four Echoes, a jubilee quartet; the
Junk Yard Band, which plays the truly unique Washingtonian style of Go Go music; and the Kings of
Harmony, a sacred brass "shout" band. Although the JVC set includes all four groups in identical
footage, the makers of this vdeo expand significantly on the amount of performance time and the variety
of performance venues featured. Instead of narration, a simple text screen at the beginning of
each section provides an explanation of the featured genre. Of the videos reviewed here, The
Music District is the most effective at combining long and well-filmed performance segments
with illuminating interviews.
--Larry Worster
The Metropolitan State College of Denver
Notes in Passing
Exsultate Jubilate: Sacred Choral Music of Daniel Pinkham. Belmont Chorale; Sherry
Hill Kelly, Director; Linda Ford, organ and piano. Gasparo, GSCD-288, 1993. One compact disc.
Daniel Pinkham: Christmas Cantata; Wedding Cantata; Advent Cantata; Introduction, Nocturne &
ROndo; String Quartet. Boston Cecilia; David Teeters, conductor; Boston Composers String
Quartet; Qilliam Buonocore, mandolin; John Curtis, guitar; James David Christie; organ; Ariel Wind
Quintet; Carol Baum, harp; Lenox Brass. Koch International Classics, 33-7180-2H1, 1993. One compact
disc.
The Belmont Chorale, a thirty-voice undergraduate ensemble under the direction of Sherry Hill Kelly,
gives disciplined and energetic performances of sacred choral music by Daniel Pinkham (b. 1923). The
repertory on this recording is limited to a cappella works or those accompanied by piano or organ.
A dozen brief psalm motets explore a ariety of moods, from the stentorian "O Lord God" to the
rhythmically compelling "Thou Has Turned My Laments into Dancing." The composer's masterful contrapuntal
style, demonstrated in the canonic third movement of the Wedding Cantata (1956) or the more recent
"Festival Jubilate" (1991), reflect his ongoing fascination with Renaissance choral music. All of the
works presented here are in English; the texts are not included but the excellent diction makes this
forgiveable. The minimal liner notes by the composer are disappointing. Although the intonation is
sometimes less than pristine, these are sensitive performances of works that bear repeated listening.
The recording by the Boston Cecilia conducted by David Teeters also includes the Wedding Cantata, as well
as two seasonal works in Latin: The Christmas Cantata (1958) with organ and brass accompaniment, and the
Advent Cantata (1991) with wind quintet and harp. The insert include texts and translations, and
each piece is preceded by Pinkham's terse commetns identifying the commission or original performers.
Fortunately, this is augmented by Steven Ledbetter's insightful essay. The Boston Cecelia has a rich,
polished choral sound, but their performances seem emotionally bland and are marred by the occasional lapse
in diction. Two instrumental works round out this recording; the delicate "Introduction, Nocturne &
Rondo" (1984) for mandolin and guitar, and the String Quartet (1990). The latter work in particular
marks the composer as one who thinks vocally even when writing for instruments. Although both
recordings would have benefitted from a more immediate sonic presence, the performances and repertory
justify Daniel Pinkham's reputation as one of the most prolific and accessible composers of
contemporary choral music.
--Orly Leah Krasner
Brooklyn College, CUNY
Updated 4/20/98