Tonight, recorded at the Three Choirs Festival Gloucester, Hiawatha complete.

[Nick Armstrong]

That's nothing. I recall speaking to a conductor who did S C T's A Tale of Old Japan with a university music society. The first words (the first words) sung fortissimo by the chorus are "Peonies! Peonies!". "You try getting a group of university students to sing that with straight faces", he said to me. And I agree.

Perfect, Pabs

I witnessed a choir corpse trying to sing 'In full enjoyment of felicity' from that Harris anthem.... (The director of music's wife was named Felicity).

[mercia]

That's nothing. I recall speaking to a conductor who did S C T's A Tale of Old Japan with a university music society. The first words (the first words) sung fortissimo by the chorus are "Peonies! Peonies!". "You try getting a group of university students to sing that with straight faces", he said to me. And I agree.

that was the thing yesterday, the climaxes fortissimo were on words like wumpum or wigwam

[Sir Velo]

That's nothing. I recall speaking to a conductor who did S C T's A Tale of Old Japan with a university music society. The first words (the first words) sung fortissimo by the chorus are "Peonies! Peonies!". "You try getting a group of university students to sing that with straight faces", he said to me. And I agree.

That reminds me of when, as a bunch of unruly fifteen year olds, we all collapsed helplessly as our Drama supply teacher introduced himself by saying "Hi guys, my name's Seaman".

[salymap]

No-one is claiming it's the greatest work ever but I have very fond memories of it.

Perhaps it's a work for the performers. If you heard 'Sumptious Was the Feast' on R3 recently you could see that everyone from Sargent's secretary to the children who took part in the dramatised performanes loved every minute.

It is also a work with such sad overtones. Coleridge-Taylor was a black man who won his place in history and it was of its time.

We were lucky tohave a conductor who took G&S and Hiawatha asseriously ashe took Elgar and Sibelius. Iloved the RCS rehearsals and was an unofficial member of thechoir, being scared to take the sight reading test.

[edashtav]

Perfect, Pabs

I witnessed a choir corpse trying to sing 'In full enjoyment of felicity' from that Harris anthem.... (The director of music's wife was named Felicity).

I mentioned that Hiawatha had a relationship with the (long, earnest) cantatas of Max Bruch. When our choral society "rendered" Bruch's Das Feuerkreuz (The Fiery Cross), the men had to sing in 4-part harmony fff "Greybeards! Greybeards!!". We glanced at each other ( average age 65) and ... well, I don't need to sketch the rest.

[Pabmusic]

No-one is claiming it's the greatest work ever but I have very fond memories of it...

I enjoy Hiawatha, even though I'm first to admit that it's not always very inspired. Coleridge Taylor was a talented composer (the violin concerto is very good) and he was quite successful in his day. He had a very sad end. He was a professor at Trinity College of Music, but he collapsed on Eat Croydon station of 'influenza' which was actually TB; he never recovered.

[Flosshilde]

just as well Sam didn't set the whole poem, it is huge - as it is he did well to keep it down to 2+ hours of music, I guess by not repeating any lines. I followed with an online score, to my untutored ear it sounded sort of Gilbert & Sullivan with moments of interesting harmony, many key changes as was mentioned by a guest. For me, in the performance the male contributors, soloists and choral were the most successful. Interesting background info. from the contributors. I think I would find it difficult to sing without sniggering at the wacky words. e.g.

First they ate the sturgeon, Nahma,
And the pike, the Maskenozha,
Caught and cooked by old Nokomis;
Then on pemican they feasted,
Pemican and buffalo marrow,
Haunch of deer and hump of bison,
Yellow cakes of the Mondamin,
And the wild rice of the river.
--------------------------------------
He was dressed in shirt of doeskin,
White and soft, and fringed with ermine,
All inwrought with beads of wampum;
He was dressed in deer-skin leggings,
Fringed with hedgehog quills and ermine,
And in moccasins of buck-skin,
Thick with quills and beads embroidered.
On his head were plumes of swan's down,
On his heels were tails of foxes,
In one hand a fan of feathers,
And a pipe was in the other.
---------------------------------------
"Onaway! my heart sings to thee,
Sings with joy when thou art near me,
As the sighing, singing branches
In the pleasant Moon of Strawberries!

& people complain about Tippett's libretti!

[edashtav]

I enjoy Hiawatha, even though I'm first to admit that it's not always very inspired. Coleridge Taylor was a talented composer (the violin concerto is very good) and he was quite successful in his day. He had a very sad end. He was a professor at Trinity College of Music, but he collapsed on Eaat Croydon station of 'influenza' which was actually TB; he never recovered.

Yes, we may have been robbed of the best of Coleridge-Taylor through his untimely death.

Talking of influenza , I was one in a Choral Society preparing Hiawatha's Wedding Feast. On the day, our bass section was almost literally, decimated, reduced from 13 to 3, by an outbreak of influenza. We few remained behind a bucolic, amateur, trombone section. By golly, was that a hard day's night!

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

& people complain about Tippett's libretti!

[Bryn]

Yes, we may have been robbed of the best of Coleridge-Taylor through his untimely death.

Talking of influenza , I was one in a Choral Society preparing Hiawatha's Wedding Feast. On the day, our bass section was almost literally, decimated, reduced from 13 to 3, by an outbreak of influenza. We few remained behind a bucolic, amateur, trombone section. By golly, was that a hard day's night!

One for the pedants' thread, I think. Decimate infers one in ten gets the chop, not one in ten is in the clear.

[Unless, of course, you meant that a tithe was applied to the influenza sufferers. ]

[amateur51]

+ 1

[edashtav]

One for the pedants' thread, I think. Decimate infers one in ten gets the chop, not one in ten is in the clear.

[Unless, of course, you meant that a tithe was applied to the influenza sufferers. ]

Cheers, Bryn - only now does a lesson from my eccentric Latin master, Mr.Pettoello, come into focus.

Silly me`!

[Nick Armstrong]

a bucolic, amateur, trombone section.

Now you're talking !

[Pabmusic]

...We few remained behind a bucolic, amateur, trombone section. By golly, was that a hard day's night!

I certainly associate -olic with trombone sections. More so if there's a tuba player with them.

[Flosshilde]

[Unless, of course, you meant that a tithe was applied to the influenza sufferers. ]

Doesn't a 'tithe' mean a tenth (eg a tenth of the harvest was given to the church)? In which case 'a tithe' means the same as 'decimate'