Cantata (music. The Golden Legend (cantata) Early vocal score, c. 1889 A few days after the first performance, Gilbert wrote to Sullivan, "I congratulate you heartily on the success of the Cantata which appears from all accounts to be the biggest thing you've done. "[1] In May 1888, there was a performance of the work at the Royal Albert Hall by command of Queen Victoria. She sent for Sullivan after the performance and said, "At last I have heard The Golden Legend, Sir Arthur ... You ought to write a grand opera – you would do it so well Numerous amateur choral societies performed the work, and at one point the composer declared a moratorium on its performance, fearing that it was becoming over-exposed. Page from a proof score of The Golden Legend signed by Sullivan, 1886 Sullivan and soloists at the premiere The Prologue depicts a storm raging around Strasburg Cathedral as Lucifer and his spirits of the air try to tear down the cross from the spire, only to be chased away by the ringing of the bells.
Sir Arthur Sullivan, c. 1886. Prayers of Kierkegaard. Prayers of Kierkegaard is a one-movement extended cantata written by Samuel Barber between 1942 and 1954. The piece has four main subdivisions and is based on prayers by Søren Kierkegaard. It is written for chorus, large orchestra, soprano solo and incidental tenor and alto solos. Origins[edit] Historical significance[edit] Samuel Barber chose a selection of prayers by philosopher and theologian Søren Kierkegaard, derived from his Journals, as well as his books The Unchangeableness of God and Christian Discourses.
Musical significance[edit] Prayers of Kierkegaard is an unequivocal religious statement that Samuel Barber divided into 4 distinct parts, each representing a different prayer. In the second section, which is recited in the first person, the soprano solo receives the melody from an oboe solo. References[edit] Further reading[edit] Jens Staubrand: Kierkegaard International Bibliography Music Works and Plays, Copenhagen 2009.
External links[edit] Das klagende Lied. Das klagende Lied (Song of Lamentation) is a cantata by Gustav Mahler, composed between 1878 and 1880 and greatly revised over the next two decades. In its original form, Das klagende Lied is one of the earliest of his works to have survived (the Piano Quartet movement in A minor is believed to date from 1876). Compositional History[edit] Mahler began to write the text of Das klagende Lied (possibly basing it on the fairy tale of the same name by Ludwig Bechstein and/or Der singende Knochen (The Singing Bones) by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm) during the early part of his final year in the Vienna Conservatory, where he was a student between 1875 and 1878.
The draft text for the work is dated 18 March 1878, and composition of the music began in the Autumn of 1879 and was completed on 1 November 1880. The work is laid out on a very large and complex scale, requiring a large orchestra and taking 60–70 minutes to perform in full. As originally composed, Das klagende Lied was in three parts: 2 oboes. Tips For Playing The Descant Recorder, Music Tutorial, Recorder Songs and reading music. What does descant mean? Descant Productions. Dictionary. Descant. Descant or discantus can refer to several different things in music, depending on the period in question; etymologically, the word means a voice (cantus) above or removed from others.
A discant (occasionally, particularly later, written descant) is a form of medieval music in which one singer sang a fixed melody, and others accompanied with improvisations. The word in this sense comes from the term discantus supra librum (descant "above the book"), and is a form of Gregorian chant in which only the melody is notated but an improvised polyphony is understood. The discantus supra librum had specific rules governing the improvisation of the additional voices. Descants in hymns[edit] Hymn tune descants are counter-melodies, generally at a higher pitch than the main melody. Further reading[edit] Clark Kimberling, "Hymn Tune Descants, Part 1: 1915–1934", The Hymn 54 (no. 3) July 2003, pages 20–27.
External links[edit] Selection of hymnal descants. Descant: Fort Worth's Journal of Poetry and Fiction. Calls for Submissions | Descant Magazine. Click here for information on the 2013 Winston Collins / Descant Prize for Best Canadian Poem. Before submitting work to Descant, you may wish to consider the following guidelines: Content Descant considers submissions of poetry (submit about six poems), short stories, novel excerpts, plays, essays, interviews, musical scores and visual presentations. Standards for acceptance are high. Format for Written Work - Hard Copy Submissions must be typed and double-spaced on one side of the page. Manuscripts may be sent back if they do not adhere to format guidelines. The mailing address to send submissions to is: DescantPO Box 314, Station PToronto, ON M5S 2S8 Format for Written Work - Electronic Please adhere to the same requirements as hard copy. Email submissions that are not included in attachments in the preferred formats or do not adhere to the guidelines above will be sent back.
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