Rothko Chapel (composition)

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Rothko Chapel is a composition by Morton Feldman of around 30 minutes in 1971.

occupation

  • viola
  • Celesta
  • percussion
    • Timpani
    • Big drum
    • Vibraphone
    • Block of wood
    • gong
    • Tubular bells
    • Temple block
    • Tenor drum
  • Choir
  • Solo soprano
  • Soloalt

construction

Feldman felt that the music required a series of strongly contrasting merging sections, which he said could be characterized as follows:

  1. quite a long declamatory opening
  2. a rather constant “abstract” part for choir and tubular bells
  3. a motivic interlude for soprano, viola and timpani
  4. a lyrical ending for viola with vibraphone accompaniment, with a choir later starting in a collage effect

Emergence

Morton Feldman and John de Menil

At the de Menils party for the premiere of Merce Cunningham's new choreography of Summerspace for the Balanchine Company, Morton Feldman first met John de Menil. Feldman writes that he had never heard of the de Menils until that evening. Most of the guests also didn't know that he was the composer of Summerspace . So he was anonymous but not unhappy at the party and had at least eleven glasses of champagne. He would then have lost his balance walking down a spiral staircase, but slipped down the last six steps without spilling any of his champagne. John de Menil came to him and said that he had to get to know someone who could do something like that.

“He had a gentle radar for the unusal. A crazy idea, a beautiful idea, an irreverent or a religious idea, as long as it had some 'guts and personality' behind it, got immediate attention and, many times, immediate support. Even a heavy man gliding down a staircase with a champagne glass in his hand became a very good friend of his. ”

“He had a fine radar for the unusual. A crazy idea, a beautiful idea, disrespectful or religious, as long as it was just a little 'eggs and character', got his immediate attention and often his immediate support. Even a fat man sliding down a flight of stairs with a champagne glass became a good friend of his. "

- Morton Feldman on John de Menil

Feldman and painting

Feldman's friends included the artists Jackson Pollock , Mark Rothko , Philip Guston , Franz Kline and Robert Rauschenberg . He was an enthusiastic connoisseur of contemporary painting of the 1950s and 1960s and based his compositional work in part on the artistic considerations of painting.

Rothko Chapel

Rothko Chapel
Rothko Chapel, interior

The Rothko Chapel was built in 1971 for the de Menil Foundation in Houston (Texas, USA). Philip Johnson , Howard Barnstone and Eugene Aubry worked as architects . It is a relatively small, octagonal, windowless building that serves as an interfaith chapel and space for dialogue and prayer. It is dedicated to the artist Mark Rothko, who committed suicide in 1970. It contains 14 wall paintings by the American painter, the red, black and purple colors of which vary depending on the incidence of light.

assignment

When Feldmann attended the opening ceremony of the Rothko Chapel in 1971, Dominique and John de Menil asked him if he wanted to write a composition as a tribute to Mark Rothko, which would be performed the following year.

composition

“To a large degree, my choice of instruments (in terms of forces used, balance and timbre) was affected by the space of the chapel as well as the paintings. Rothko's imagery goes right to the edge of his canvas, and I wanted the same effect with the music - that it should permeate the whole octagonal-shaped room and not be heard from a certain distance. "

“My choice of instruments in terms of line-up, sound balance and timbre was largely determined by the space in the chapel, but also by the pictures. Rothko's portrayal goes straight to the limits of the canvas. And I wanted to get the same effect with the music. It should penetrate the entire octagonal room and not be heard from a certain distance. "

- Morton Feldman

Feldman wrote the soprano melody on the day of Igor Stravinsky's funeral in New York. The viola melody, which sounds towards the end of the piece, was written by Feldman at the age of fifteen while attending New York High School of Music and Art during World War II. Certain intervals in the piece represent the sound of a synagogue. There are other personal references, according to Feldman, which he no longer remembers.

premiere

The premiere took place on April 9, 1972 in the eponymous Rothko Chapel in Houston (Texas, USA). Conducted by Maurice Peress played the Corpus Christi Symphony Orchestra and Karen Phillips played as solo violist.

Recordings

  • Kim Kashkashian , Sarah Rothenberg, Steven Schick, Houston Chamber Choir, Robert Simpson: Rothko Chapel - Feldman. Satie, Cage, ECM Records, 2015
  • Karen Phillips, James Holland, Gregg Smith Singers, Gregg Smith: Prophets of the New. Sony Masterworks, 2013.
  • Rupert Huber , SWR Vokalensemble Stuttgart: The Rothko Chapel / for Stefan Wolpe / Christian Wolff in Cambridge. SWR-Music, 2002.
  • Klangforum Wien , Furrer, Moffat: Emergent, Rothko Chapel, Intégrales. Col Legno, 2000.
  • Grup Instrumental de València, Joan Cerveró, Rozart, 2009.
  • Morton Feldman: Rothko Chapel / Why Patterns? New Albion Records, 1991.

Varia

Fourteen Black Paintings by Peter Gabriel , released on the album Us in 1992 , is another piece of music inspired by the Rothko Chapel.

literature

  • Rothko Chapel , Study Score, Universal Edition, ISBN 978-3-7024-1435-1 .
  • Rothko Chapel in Give My Regards to Eight Street - Collected Writings of Morton Feldman, Ed .: BH Friedmann, Walter Zimmermann, Exact Change, Cambridge, 2000.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c Feldman - Rothko Chapel for soprano, alto, mixed choir and instruments. Retrieved May 26, 2020 (English).
  2. ↑ a b c d Morton Feldman: Rothko Chapel . In: BHFriedman (Ed.): "Give MY Regards to Eight Street" - Collected Writings of Morton Feldman . Exact Change, Cambridge 2000, ISBN 1-878972-31-6 , pp. 125-126 .
  3. ↑ Morton Feldman: John de Menil . In: BH Friedman, Walter Zimmerann (eds.): "Give My Regards to Eight Street" - Collected Writings of Morton Feldmann . Exact Change, Cambridge 2000, ISBN 1-878972-31-6 , pp. 122-123 .
  4. ^ Morton Feldman: "Give MY Regards to Eight Street" - Collected Writings of Morton Feldman . Ed .: BHFriedman. Exact Change, Cambridge 2000, ISBN 1-878972-31-6 (English).
  5. ↑ Rothko Chapel. Retrieved May 26, 2020 .
  6. ↑ Rothko Chapel (Morton Feldman). Retrieved May 26, 2020 (English).
  7. ↑ Morton Feldman essay. Retrieved May 26, 2020 .
  8. ↑ Amazon.de: Rothko Chapel. Retrieved on May 26, 2020 (German).
  9. ↑ Morton Feldman Rothko Chapel. In: Positive Feedback. November 1, 2017, accessed May 26, 2020 .