New Year (Tippett)

[smittims]

I always found Tippett's new works difficult at first, from The Vision of S. Augustine (where I began) onwards. But repeated listening soon revealed its wonders. He was often accused of being twee and even incompetent, but now he's increasingly being shown to have knowing what he was doing all along.

[Master Jacques]

I always found Tippett's new works difficult at first, from The Vision of S. Augustine (where I began) onwards. But repeated listening soon revealed its wonders. He was often accused of being twee and even incompetent, but now he's increasingly being shown to have knowing what he was doing all along.

Yes, those few who thought him "incompetent" too readily allowed themselves to be fooled by the smokescreen he put out to protect himself. It's rather similar to RVW's cultivating the totally spurious pose of the "gentleman amateur", equally nonsensical. Tippett was at all stages a highly self-conscious, fastidious craftsman, who (as you say) knew exactly what he was doing at all times.

[silvestrione]

I resent any attempt to group me with those who dismiss Tippett too easily, on the basis of my inability to see anything much in New Year. My 'Tippett pedigree' is pretty good: I was at the first performance of the Triple concerto and the 4th Piano Sonata, the first British performance of The Mask of Time, went to The Ice Break in its first run,...I could go on. And I have not been in the position of taking time to 'get' new works, particularly. I went to one of the rare performances of The Vision Of St Augustine (knowing it from the LP), and I've always loved that work. There are so many fine neglected works that it pains me when people revive undistinguished ones, such as The Rose Lake or New Year. Nevertheless Brabyns is obviously a hero for me, with, e.g. Steven Osborne and now Ed Gardner (and Simon Rattle has the Ritual Dances in his concert on the 12th January at the Barbican! I'll be there).

[Serial_Apologist]

I resent any attempt to group me with those who dismiss Tippett too easily, on the basis of my inability to see anything much in New Year. My 'Tippett pedigree' is pretty good: I was at the first performance of the Triple concerto and the 4th Piano Sonata, the first British performance of The Mask of Time, went to The Ice Break in its first run,...I could go on. And I have not been in the position of taking time to 'get' new works, particularly. I went to one of the rare performances of The Vision Of St Augustine (knowing it from the LP), and I've always loved that work. There are so many fine neglected works that it pains me when people revive undistinguished ones, such as The Rose Lake or New Year. Nevertheless Brabyns is obviously a hero for me, with, e.g. Steven Osborne and now Ed Gardner (and Simon Rattle has the Ritual Dances in his concert on the 12th January at the Barbican! I'll be there).

I have to agree, while adding that for many who love aspects of Tippett, as opposed to others who hold most if not all his work in equally high regard, his music is a mixed bag. The very complexity of both the multifarious idiomatic trends and intellectual ideas contained often more by force than affinity as the decades roll on renders the contents of the bag contentious in different ways to different people. I have always happened to think the earlier works, up to say the Second Symphony, are the best because of the consistency with which Tippett succeeded up to that point in amalgamating his musical and intellectual influences, many of which would probably have been judged mutually incompatible at the time; it's just that, for me, he tried too hard to push that combination further and still further than it could sustain, leading to a sense of strain, one that makes the later symphonies and operas (post Midsummer Marriage) too hard to take, in my case.

It may be that others will argue that this sense of strain is the very point that makes their case for it!

[Boilk]

Taking this 'new' work in slowly, first hearing just this afternoon. One thing seemed obvious, listening "between the lines" of her questioning to the panel, Kate Molleson seems not to be a Tippett (or late-Tippett) fan ...predictably dragging up stock-in-trade Tippett attack phrases suchs as "bonkers plot", "cultural appropriation" (Donny's music), etc. Where was the Listening Service?

[Ein Heldenleben]

Taking this 'new' work in slowly, first hearing just this afternoon. One thing seemed obvious, listening "between the lines" of her questioning to the panel, Kate Molleson seems not to be a Tippett (or late-Tippett) fan ...predictably dragging up stock-in-trade Tippett attack phrases suchs as "bonkers plot", "cultural appropriation" (Donny's music), etc. Where was the Listening Service?

I like bonkers plots and cultural appropriation is the essence of creativity….
It’s Tippett’s combination of musico- compositional fastidiousness, borrowing from other genres and very English eccentricity (or bonkersness ) that makes his work so interesting .

[Master Jacques]

Taking this 'new' work in slowly, first hearing just this afternoon. One thing seemed obvious, listening "between the lines" of her questioning to the panel, Kate Molleson seems not to be a Tippett (or late-Tippett) fan ...predictably dragging up stock-in-trade Tippett attack phrases suchs as "bonkers plot", "cultural appropriation" (Donny's music), etc. Where was the Listening Service?

Kate Molleson? Best to simply ignore her ...

... or sing her this song from The Tempest:

The master, the swabber, the boatswain, and I,
The gunner and his mate,
Loved Mall, Meg, and Marian, and Margery,
But none of us cared for Kate.

For she had a tongue with a tang,
Would cry to a sailor, “Go hang!”
She loved not the savour of tar nor of pitch,
Yet a tailor might scratch her where'er she did itch.
Then to sea, boys, and let her go hang!

Well sung, Stephano.
(And by the way, Tippett's setting of this ditty for the Old Vic production was a corker.)

[silvestrione]

Don't know that I've ever heard that setting. It's not in Songs for Ariel (obviously). Is it available, Master, or are you remembering the production?

[smittims]

There was a memorable concert at the QEH in 1980 or '81 when the Tempest music , or most of it, was performed in concert, conducted, I think, by a young Nicholas Kraemer. It may well have included 'Stephano's song'. The concert was also memorable for Michael himself turning up to conduct the Concerto for Double String Orchestra in whchthe middle movement was less pastoral idyll than rigorous yearning, which reminded me of his words about his time among the unemployed miners : 'when I returnned to the well-fed south, I felt ashamed'.

To be fair to Kate Molleson (for once!) I think she was playing devil's avocate to provoke a robust reply from Oliver Soden. It worked. He was the voice we needed to hear, she was just the 'feed'.

[Master Jacques]

There was a memorable concert at the QEH in 1980 or '81 when the Tempest music , or most of it, was performed in concert, conducted, I think, by a young Nicholas Kraemer. It may well have included 'Stephano's song'.

Thank you, smittims.

In the "official" suite from the 1960 Old Vic production, made in 1995 by Meirion Bowen, the song appears in an instrumental rather than the original vocal version which you doubtless heard c.1980. The 1995 Suite (Nash Ensemble, Martyn Hill tenor, Stephen Barrell baritone, conducted by Andrew Parrott) had its BBC broadcast premiere that year, surprising new listeners by its foretastes of The Knot Garden, in Ariel's music and elsewhere, which had clearly germinated in part during the writing of that 1960 stage score.

[Pulcinella]

Thank you, smittims.

In the "official" suite from the 1960 Old Vic production, made in 1995 by Meirion Bowen, the song appears in an instrumental rather than the original vocal version which you doubtless heard c.1980. The 1995 Suite (Nash Ensemble, Martyn Hill tenor, Stephen Barrell baritone, conducted by Andrew Parrott) had its BBC broadcast premiere that year, surprising new listeners by its foretastes of The Knot Garden, in Ariel's music and elsewhere, which had clearly germinated in part during the writing of that 1960 stage score.

Some kind soul here (might it have been you?) sent me some files of The Tempest: must find them and listen again.

[Master Jacques]

Some kind soul here (might it have been you?) sent me some files of The Tempest: must find them and listen again.

It was indeed. If anyone else cares to privately message me, I'll share a link I have.

[Pulcinella]

Released on 14 March 2025

https://www.prestomusic.com/classical/products/9750874--michael-tippett-new-year