This post isn’t a normal one. In some ways, it isn’t a post for Musicolunia. Maybe I should have written it in Englunia or my Persian weblog, 5th Movemement. Anyhow… I feel a little strange. I have a Danish friend, Elora, whom I found her exactly because of that Muhammad cartoons. She’s such a lovely person, I like her characteristics, being really open minded and one thing I like a lot, (as it appears to me, and in a way I like) being crazy!
Her father had cancer, and he died tonight. I knew that would come sooner or later, but this feeling is a strange one. I haven’t seen her. We’re kilometers away from each other. We are of two different cultures, and yet I regret for the way she feels now.
This post’s music is exclusively for Elora. It’s from Stravinsky’s Fire Bird suite, the last part, Final Hymn. And from the 1945 version, conducted by the composer himself.
Stravinsky wasn’t a great conductor, but he was able to make orchestra play what he wanted his music sound like. So his recordings of his works are the exact way he wanted them to be performed.
Fire bird suite, a very revolutionary work, was the first of ballets which made Stravinsky a famous and leading composer. The original version was written in 1910 and he made two revisions in 1919 and 1945. I’m not going to write much about the piece in this post, as it needs a more complete series of posts.
Anyway, in my imagination, the Final Hymn is Hope. It may not be that one Stravinsky thought of for the ballet scene, but I like to think of it in that way. Small sparkles of hope shines, and then strengthen. They grow and get stronger and stronger, but suddenly fogs of uncertainty and indeterminacy come and fill the whole atmosphere, but at last the light comes out even stronger and hope wins the battle!
That’s it, Stravinsky’s Fire Bird, Final Hymn, 1945 version, as performed by Columbia Symphony Orchestra conducted by the composer… for dear Elora.

I tried a lot to have more visitors for this weblog, especially for the Farsi version. Unfortunately classical music doesn’t have many audiences in my homeland, and so I didn’t succeed.

I don’t want to nag or anything like that, just to tell you that I won’t update this weblog anymore. I had in mind to give more attention to 20^th century music. As I won’t reach 20^th century composers, for example in our concerto’s series, just for a beautiful goodbye, I’ve chosen a Russian Song from my favorite composer, Igor Stravinsky. The fourth and last of these russian songs, Tilim-Bom.

Hope you’ll enjoy it,

Bye :)

Igor Stravinsky has one very particular distinguishing characteristic which can hardly be found in any other not even composer, but artist. He has composed in many different styles and totally different kinds of music. Though he’s most famous for his early pieces which are categorized as polyphonic modern classical music, but his works expand from Baroque to serialism and even Jazz and rag music!
Here you can to his Italian Suite, no. 3 for Cello and the Piano as played by Laffranchini and Rebaudengo. Even in this Baroque style piece you can hear his very brilliant innovations. I like this piece a lot, especially those parts the music changes in a very special way kill me!!

5 Ecce gratum (Chorus) (Behold, the pleasant spring)

Ecce gratum      Behold, the pleasant
et optatum      and longed-for
Ver reducit gaudia,      spring brings back joyfulness,
purpuratum      violet flowers
floret pratum,      fill the meadows,
Sol serenat omnia.      the sun brightens everything,
Iamiam cedant tristia!      sadness is now at an end!
Estas redit,      Summer returns,
nunc recedit      now withdraw
Hyemis sevitia.      the rigours of winter. Ah!

Iam liquescit      Now melts
et decrescit      and disappears
grando, nix et cetera;      ice, snow and the rest,
bruma fugit,      winter flees,
et iam sugit      and now spring sucks at summer’s breast:
Ver Estatis ubera;      a wretched soul is he
illi mens est misera,      who does not live
qui nec vivit,      or lust
nec lascivit      under summer’s rule. Ah!
sub Estatis dextera.

Gloriantur      They glory
et letantur      and rejoice
in melle dulcedinis,      in honeyed sweetness
qui conantur,      who strive
ut utantur      to make use of
premio Cupidinis:      Cupid’s prize;
simus jussu Cypridis      at Venus’ command
gloriantes      let us glory
et letantes      and rejoice
pares esse Paridis.      in being Paris’ equals. Ah!

Uf dem anger

6. Tanz (Dance)

7. Floret silva nobilis (The woods are burgeoning)

(Chorus)
Floret silva nobilis      The noble woods are burgeoning
floribus et foliis.      with flowers and leaves.

(Small Chorus)
Ubi est antiquus      Where is the lover
meus amicus?      I knew? Ah!
Hinc equitavit,      He has ridden off!
eia, quis me amabit?      Oh! Who will love me? Ah!

(Chorus)
Floret silva undique,      The woods are burgeoning all over,
nah min gesellen ist mir we.      I am pining for my lover.

(Small Chorus)
Gruonet der walt allenthalben,      The woods are turning green all over,
wa ist min geselle alse lange?      why is my lover away so long? Ah!
Der ist geriten hinnen,      He has ridden off,
o wi, wer sol mich minnen?      Oh woe, who will love me? Ah!

Well, after a long period not updating here, this page is updated with one of my favorites. Two pieces from Carmina Burana by Carl Orff. Orff is probably the greatest German musician of third Reich era.
Carmina Burana was his first major work, based on Latin and German poems of before 13th century, found in a chapel.
Here you can listen to Ecce gratum, it’s fifth part and Tanz and Floret silva nobilis it’s sixth and seventh parts.
Poems are as follows:

5 Ecce gratum (Chorus) (Behold, the pleasant spring)

Ecce gratum      Behold, the pleasant
et optatum      and longed-for
Ver reducit gaudia,      spring brings back joyfulness,
purpuratum      violet flowers
floret pratum,      fill the meadows,
Sol serenat omnia.      the sun brightens everything,
Iamiam cedant tristia!      sadness is now at an end!
Estas redit,      Summer returns,
nunc recedit      now withdraw
Hyemis sevitia.      the rigours of winter. Ah!

Iam liquescit      Now melts
et decrescit      and disappears
grando, nix et cetera;      ice, snow and the rest,
bruma fugit,      winter flees,
et iam sugit      and now spring sucks at summer’s breast:
Ver Estatis ubera;      a wretched soul is he
illi mens est misera,      who does not live
qui nec vivit,      or lust
nec lascivit      under summer’s rule. Ah!
sub Estatis dextera.

Gloriantur      They glory
et letantur      and rejoice
in melle dulcedinis,      in honeyed sweetness
qui conantur,      who strive
ut utantur      to make use of
premio Cupidinis:      Cupid’s prize;
simus jussu Cypridis      at Venus’ command
gloriantes      let us glory
et letantes      and rejoice
pares esse Paridis.      in being Paris’ equals. Ah!

Uf dem anger

6. Tanz (Dance)

7. Floret silva nobilis (The woods are burgeoning)

(Chorus)
Floret silva nobilis      The noble woods are burgeoning
floribus et foliis.      with flowers and leaves.

(Small Chorus)
Ubi est antiquus      Where is the lover
meus amicus?      I knew? Ah!
Hinc equitavit,      He has ridden off!
eia, quis me amabit?      Oh! Who will love me? Ah!

(Chorus)
Floret silva undique,      The woods are burgeoning all over,
nah min gesellen ist mir we.      I am pining for my lover.

(Small Chorus)
Gruonet der walt allenthalben,      The woods are turning green all over,
wa ist min geselle alse lange?      why is my lover away so long? Ah!
Der ist geriten hinnen,      He has ridden off,
o wi, wer sol mich minnen?      Oh woe, who will love me? Ah!

Igor Stravinsky! My beloved musician. I have a mysterious devotion and respect for him so I wanted his appropriate post to be a very complete and special one.

This has caused in nothing! As I’ve not updated here for a long time (mostly because of lack of audiences/viewers) in my new attempt I prefer to put two of his works. The long post I want to write about him will be for his Rite of Spring ballet which is about 34 minutes long!
Now I invite you to listen to Russian Dance and Petrushka from Ballet Petrushka, by Igor Fedorovitch Stravinsky, one of the most talented musicians of history.

Russian Dance- Petrushka Ballet, Igor Stravinsky

Petrushka- Petrushka Ballet, Igor Stravinsky