Possible Sky

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Possible Sky is a composition for choir and orchestra by the American composer Meredith Monk. The work was commissioned by the conductor Michael Tilson Thomas and the New World Symphony. It was first performed April 4, 2003 in Miami Beach, Florida by Thomas and the New World Symphony. The composition was Monk's first work for orchestra. [1] [2] [3]

Choir Ensemble of singers

A choir is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which spans from the medieval era to the present, or popular music repertoire. Most choirs are led by a conductor, who leads the performances with arm and face gestures.

Orchestra large instrumental ensemble

An orchestra is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families, including bowed string instruments such as the violin, viola, cello, and double bass, brass instruments such as the horn, trumpet, trombone and tuba, woodwinds such as the flute, oboe, clarinet and bassoon, and percussion instruments such as the timpani, bass drum, triangle, snare drum and cymbals, each grouped in sections. Other instruments such as the piano and celesta may sometimes appear in a fifth keyboard section or may stand alone, as may the concert harp and, for performances of some modern compositions, electronic instruments.

Meredith Monk American musician

Meredith Jane Monk is an American composer, performer, director, vocalist, filmmaker, and choreographer. Since the 1960s, Monk has created multi-disciplinary works which combine music, theatre, and dance, recording extensively for ECM Records. In 1991, Monk composed an opera called Atlas with the Houston Opera.

Contents

Composition

Inspiration and development

In composing Possible Sky, Monk made several visits to Miami to work with the musicians in developing the piece. She described this process in the score program notes, writing:

Since exploring and extending possibilities for the voice is the heart of my work, I asked the musicians to share the extended techniques for their instruments that they were aware of as well as find new sounds during the session. I sang phrases so that they could try playing them on their instruments in an unaccustomed way. We also experimented with sketches of material which I had composed in New York. Some of the fruit of those sessions has found its way into Possible Sky.

Monk added:

The interaction with these young musicians was playful and rewarding. This exchange is unusual in the orchestra world where players usually read and interpret a finished score. The concept of this project proposed by Michael Tilson Thomas with the encouragement and support of R. Kurt Landon was to offer the musicians a chance to experience in a very direct way the creation of a new work. [1]

Instrumentation

The work is scored for SAB choir and an orchestra comprising two flutes (2nd doubling piccolo), three oboes (1st doubling cor anglais), three clarinets (1st doubling E-flat clarinet, 3rd doubling bass clarinet), three bassoons (3rd doubling contrabassoon), four horns, three trumpets, three trombones, tuba, harp, piano (doubling synthesizer), four percussionists, and strings. [1]

Western concert flute transverse woodwind instrument made of metal or wood

The Western concert flute is a transverse (side-blown) woodwind instrument made of metal or wood. It is the most common variant of the flute. A musician who plays the flute is called a flautist, flutist, flute player, or (rarely) fluter.

Piccolo small musical instrument of the flute family

The piccolo is a half-size flute, and a member of the woodwind family of musical instruments. The modern piccolo has most of the same fingerings as its larger sibling, the standard transverse flute, but the sound it produces is an octave higher than written. This gave rise to the name ottavino, which the instrument is called in the scores of Italian composers. It is also called flauto piccolo or flautino.

Oboe musical instrument of the woodwind family

Oboes belong to the classification of double reed woodwind instruments. Oboes are usually made of wood, but there are also oboes made of synthetic materials. The most common oboe plays in the treble or soprano range. A soprano oboe measures roughly 65 cm long, with metal keys, a conical bore and a flared bell. Sound is produced by blowing into the reed at a sufficient air pressure, causing it to vibrate with the air column. The distinctive tone is versatile and has been described as "bright". When the word oboe is used alone, it is generally taken to mean the treble instrument rather than other instruments of the family, such as the bass oboe, the cor anglais, or oboe d'amore

Reception

When Monk was named the 2012 Composer of the Year by Musical America , the Los Angeles Times music critic Mark Swed gave special praise to Possible Sky, writing, "arresting Monkian melodies, bittersweet and inexplicable but somehow immediate, percolate through the orchestra." He added, "Even more startling, though, is the physicality. Orchestra musicians, bolstered by members of Monk's ensemble, sound as though they, too, make music from their bodies rather than merely following the directions of notes on a page." [4]

Musical America is the oldest American magazine on classical music, first appearing in 1898 in print and in 1999 online, at musicalamerica.com. It is published by Performing Arts Resources, LLC, of East Windsor, New Jersey.

<i>Los Angeles Times</i> Daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California

The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper which has been published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It has the fourth-largest circulation among United States newspapers, and is the largest U.S. newspaper not headquartered on the East Coast. The paper is known for its coverage of issues particularly salient to the U.S. West Coast, such as immigration trends and natural disasters. It has won more than 40 Pulitzer Prizes for its coverage of these and other issues. As of June 18, 2018, ownership of the paper is controlled by Patrick Soon-Shiong, and the executive editor is Norman Pearlstine.

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References

  1. 1 2 3 Monk, Meredith (2003). "Possible Sky: Programme Note". Boosey & Hawkes . Retrieved August 3, 2015.
  2. ↑ Ulrich, Allan (February 13, 2006). "Meredith Monk's eerie vocals have led her to unique synthesis of arts". San Francisco Chronicle . Retrieved August 3, 2015.
  3. ↑ Rowe, Georgia (October 14, 2008). "The Pathfinder". San Francisco Classical Voice. Retrieved August 3, 2015.
  4. ↑ Swed, Mark (2012). "Composer of the Year 2012". Musical America . Retrieved August 3, 2015.
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