Canto ostinato

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The first bars of Canto Ostinato

Canto Ostinato ("Ostinater Gesang" (from ostinato )) is a composition by the Dutch composer Simeon ten Holt .

The composition was completed in 1976 and premiered in 1979. It is the best known and most frequently performed work by Simeon ten Holt.

Performance instructions

What is remarkable is the freedom granted to the performers by the composer. Different instruments and a different number of players are possible. The work is usually performed on two or four pianos, but when it was first performed in Bergen , Holland , three pianos and an electronic organ were used. Further freedom of the interpreters can be found in the structure of the piece. It consists of 106 small cells, the 'sections', which each consist of only a few bars. You can ad libitum be repeated one or more times, this however with the exception of some bridge -called reconciliation that can only be played once. Because of this, performances can last anywhere from two hours to more than a day. The piece is notated in a uniform tempo of ♩ = 60, which is also repeated several times in the notes. The piece begins with 2/4 time, which often becomes 10/16 time through the use of quintuples.

Structure of the composition

Canto Ostinato follows a repeating structure:

Structure of the Canto Ostinato by Simeon Ten Holt
Section number Bars Measure of time Alternative conclusions Remarks
1 1 2/4 (or 10/16) -
2 1 2/4 -
3 1 2/4 -
4th 1 2/4 -
5 1 2/4 -
6th 1 2/4 -
7th 1 2/4 - This section is not repeated (bridge)
8th 2 2/4 -
9 2 2/4 First and Second End
10 2 2/4 First and Second End
11 2 2/4 First and Second End
12 2 2/4 First and Second End
13 2 2/4 -
13A 1 2/4 - This section is not repeated (bridge)
14th 2 2/4 -
14A 1 2/4 - This section is not repeated (bridge)
15th 2 2/4 -
15A 1 3/4 - This section is not repeated (bridge)
16 2 2/4 -
17th 5 2/4 -
18th 2 2/4 - This section is not repeated (bridge)
19th 2 2/4 -
20th 5 2/4 -
21st 2 2/4 - This section is not repeated (bridge)
22nd 2 2/4 -
23 2 2/4 -
24 2 2/4 -
25th 2 2/4 First and Second End
26th 2 2/4 -
27 2 2/4 -
28 2 2/4 -
29 2 2/4 -
30th 1 2/4 -
31 1 2/4 -
32 1 2/4 -
32A 1 2/4 - This section is not repeated (bridge)
33 1 2/4 -
34 1 2/4 -
34A 1 3/4 - This section is not repeated (bridge)
35 1 2/4 -
36 1 2/4 -
37 1 2/4 -
38 1 2/4 -
39 1 2/4 -
40 1 2/4 -
41 1 1/4 -
42 1 1/4 -
43 1 1/4 -
44 1 1/4 -
45 1 1/4 -
46 1 1/4 -
47 1 1/4 -
48 1 1/4 -
49 1 1/4 -
50 1 1/4 -
51 1 1/4 -
52 1 1/4 -
53 1 1/4 -
54 1 1/4 -
55 1 1/4 -
56 1 1/4 -
57 1 1/4 -
58 1 1/4 -
59 1 1/4 -
60 1 1/4 - In this segment, each section is repeated four times, then all nine sections are repeated, each ad libitum up to four times
61 1 1/4 -
62 1 1/4 -
63 1 1/4 -
64 1 1/4 -
65 1 1/4 -
66 1 1/4 -
67 1 1/4 -
68 1 1/4 -
69 1 2/4 -
70 1 2/4 -
71 1 2/4 -
72 1 2/4 -
73 1 2/4 -
74 9 2/4 -
75 4th 2/4 - This section is not repeated
76 4th 2/4 - This section is not repeated
77 4th 2/4 - This section is not repeated
78 2 2/4 -
79 4th Three bars in 2/4, one bar as 3/4 - This section is not repeated
80 9 2/4 - This section is a non-repeated addition to section 74
81 2 2/4 -
82 2 2/4 -
83 4th 2/4 First and Second End
84 2 2/4 -
85 1 3/4 - This section is not repeated (bridge)
86 1 2/4 - Transition (crescendo)
87 1 2/4 - Transition (diminuendo)
88A 1 2/4 - In section 88, the fourth piano plays other cells ad libitum
88A (variation I) 1 2/4 -
88A (variation II) 1 2/4 -
88B 2 2/4 -
88A 1 2/4 -
88B 2 2/4 -
88A (variation) 1 2/4 -
88B (variation) 2 2/4 -
88A 1 2/4 -
88A 1 2/4 -
88B 2 2/4 -
88A 1 2/4 -
88C 2 2/4 -
88A 1 2/4 -
88B 2 2/4 -
88A 1 2/4 -
88C 2 2/4 -
88C (variation) 2 2/4 -
88A 1 2/4 -
88B 2 2/4 -
88A 1 2/4 -
88E 1 2/4 -
88A 1 2/4 -
88B 2 2/4 -
88E 1 2/4 -
88A 1 2/4 -
88B 2 2/4 -
88E (variation) 2 2/4 -
88A 1 2/4 -
88F 4th 2/4 -
88A 2 2/4 -
88F (variation) 4th 2/4 -
88A 1 2/4 -
88B 2 2/4 -
88C 2 2/4 -
88C (variation) 2 2/4 -
88A 1 2/4 -
88E 1 2/4 -
88E (variation) 2 2/4 -
88G 2 2/4 - This section is not repeated
88H 1 2/4 -
88E 1 2/4 - This section is not repeated (bridge)
88A 1 2/4 -
88B 2 2/4 -
88C 2 2/4 -
88C (variation) 2 2/4 -
88G 2 2/4 - This section is not repeated
88H 1 2/4 -
88I 2 2/4 -
88G 2 2/4 - This section is not repeated
88H 1 2/4 -
88I 2 2/4 - This section is not repeated (bridge)
88K 4th 2/4 -
88F 2 2/4 -
88G 2 2/4 - This section is not repeated
88H 1 2/4 -
88I 2 2/4 -
88F 2 2/4 -
88G 2 2/4 - This section is not repeated
88H 1 2/4 -
No number 1 3/4 - This section is not repeated (bridge)
89 1 2/4 - Transition (crescendo)
90 1 2/4 - Transition (diminuendo)
91A 1 2/4 - In section 91 the fourth piano plays other cells ad libitum
91B 2 2/4 -
91A 1 2/4 -
91B 2 2/4 -
91A 1 2/4 -
91C 2 2/4 -
91A 1 2/4 -
91B 2 2/4 -
91A 1 2/4 -
91C 2 2/4 -
91D 2 2/4 -
91A 1 2/4 -
91B 2 2/4 -
91A 1 2/4 -
91E 1 2/4 -
91A 1 2/4 -
91F 2 2/4 -
91A 1 2/4 -
91B 2 2/4 -
91C 2 2/4 -
91G 2 2/4 -
91C 2 2/4 -
91F 2 2/4 -
91A 1 2/4 -
91B 2 2/4 -
91H 2 2/4 - This section is not repeated
91I 1 2/4 -
91E 1 2/4 -
91A 1 2/4 -
91B 2 2/4 -
91H 2 2/4 - This section is not repeated
91I 1 2/4 -
No number 5 Four bars in 2/4, one in 1/4 - This section is not repeated (bridge)
92 1 2/4 -
93 1 2/4 -
94 1 2/4 -
95 9 2/4 -
96 4th 2/4 - This section is not repeated
97 4th 2/4 - This section is not repeated
98 2 2/4 - This section is not repeated
99 2 2/4 - This section is not repeated
100 2 2/4 -
101 4th Three bars in 2/4, one bar as 3/4 - This section is not repeated
102 9 2/4 - This section is a non-repeated addition to section 95
103 2 2/4 -
104 2 2/4 -
105 4th 2/4 First and Second End
106 2 2/4 -

The piece is now performed frequently by various interpreters in the Netherlands.

style

Originally this composition was assigned to minimal music because of its repetitive and ostinate elements, but this classification is not undisputed. Ten Holt usually used the term “ genetic code ” to describe this work , probably to describe the structure of the work. In contrast to many other modern works, this work is not atonal; rather, Canto Ostinato contains numerous tonal elements and does not appear very atonal overall. This has to do with the ostinatas, constantly repeated bass figures, which gave the work its name. Due to the similarity of the various sections, Canto Ostinato has an overall meditative effect, with the emotional meaning of course being different for each listener.

Ten Holt wrote a few other works in a similar compositional technique, such as Lemniscaat (1983), Horizon (1985), Incantatie IV and Meandres (1997), but these works did not come close to the popularity of `` Canto Ostinato ''.

Recordings

There are now several recordings of the Canto Ostinato . The most famous was the CD recording by Kees Wieringa and Polo de Haas, which, released in 1996 by the Emergo Classics label, sold more than 15,000 copies, which is very unusual for modern classical music . Furthermore, the recording of the Jeroen Van Veen Piano Ensemble , with Irene Russo, Fred Oldenburg, Sandra van Veen and Jeroen van Veen, which was released in 2012 by the Brilliant Classics, achieved considerable popularity. Ivo Janssen's recording on a single piano from 2009, on the other hand, only takes 60 minutes, but still largely sticks to the original composition. Further versions with different line-ups, organ (Aart Bergwerff, 2007), harp (Assia Cunego, 2009) and marimba (Peter Elbertse, 2012), inspired by Janssen's version, have since been published.

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Ton van Asseldonk about Ten Holt at www.simeontenholt.com
  2. ↑ The biography of Ten Holt at www.simeontenholt.com

Web links