Open Ear; H&N, Sat, 15/9/18; 10:00pm

**ferneyhoughgeliebte** · 13-09-18, 12:46

A personal anecdote:

The UK premiere of Raphaël Languillat's La flagellation du Christ was given by Gilles Grimaitre at last year's Huddersfield Festival, at a concert I attended with a couple of other Forumistas. Now, as the previous year, there had been a number of works influenced by Jurg Frey's attendance at the Festival the year before, I told my friends that the works might be very quiet, and that we were probably best sitting at the front of the Hall, near to the piano. Ooops! Not only does the work require the performer to get the loudest sound that the instrument can produce for its quarter-hour duration, but these sounds are further electronically amplified. My brain throbbed for hours afterwards!

(The amplification isn't gratuitous - it picks out the clouds of resonance and overtones that the instrument creates as it is being played, and the effect is of a subtly shifting choir humming a different work in counterpoint to the piano piece. Live, it's a fantastic experience - whether the radio mics can reproduce the total effect ... remains to be heard.)

**teamsaint** · 13-09-18, 19:40

Originally posted by ferneyhoughgeliebte View Post

Perhaps it's just me, but I'm always wary when Beeb websites refer to anything as "cutting edge", but there are some very interesting Musicians involved in this programme (Chamber Choir Exaudi & James Weeks, Percussion Quartet We Spoke, pianist Gwen Rouger), so it might actually live up to the description for a change!

Amber Priestley: Help with Adverbs
Exaudi

Sarah Nemtsov (b1980): Seven thoughts – her kind (World Premiere)
Gwen Rouger (sampler keyboard & vocal)

Fritz Hauser (b1953): As We Are Speaking
We Spoke percussion ensemble

Sarah Angliss: set 1 (music from the album Ealing Feeder)
Sarah Angliss: acoustic instruments and live electronics
Stephen Hiscock: percussion

Simon Loeffler: “b"
We Spoke percussion ensemble

Lorenzo Pagliei (b1972): Corpi Celesti
Exaudi, directed by James Weeks

Sarah Angliss: set 2 (music from the album Ealing Feeder)
Sarah Angliss: acoustic instruments and live electronics
Stephen Hiscock: percussion

Petra Strahovnik (b1968): π
We Spoke percussion ensemble

Michael Oesterle (b1968): all words
Exaudi, directed by James Weeks

Raphaël Languillat (b1989): La flagellation du Christ
Gwen Rouger (amplified piano)

Tom Service presents, so it'll be ....

Well you gave the most recent show introduced by Tom a very frosty reception.

Anyway, I am intrigued by your description of the Languillat piece,and feel suitably forewarned.

(Sounds like one that might make the cats jump, and not in a Cab Calloway kind of way......)

**ferneyhoughgeliebte** · 13-09-18, 19:49

Originally posted by teamsaint View Post

Well you gave the most recent show introduced by Tom a very frosty reception.

(I speak as an aficionado of cereal Music.)

Anyway, I am intrigued by your description of the Languillat piece,and feel suitably forewarned.
(Sounds like one that might make the cats jump, and not in a Cab Calloway kind of way......)

It begins (IIRC) rather like a very loud Stockhausen Klavierstuck IX, but quickly takes on a "personality" all its own. I hope that the BBC microphones (and the radio speakers) does it justice.

**teamsaint** · 13-09-18, 20:26

Originally posted by ferneyhoughgeliebte View Post

(I speak as an aficionado of cereal Music.)

It begins (IIRC) rather like a very loud Stockhausen Klavierstuck IX, but quickly takes on a "personality" all its own. I hope that the BBC microphones (and the radio speakers) does it justice.

Lets hope so.

In case there are some cereal elements, I’m going to keep an ear open for Tony rows....

**teamsaint** · 16-09-18, 09:33

Well, impossible to say without comparison how the radio picked up the effects in the Languillat. I’m not sure that the full on attack and intensity that ferney referred to came over, but in any case I though it was the outstanding piece on the programme, (pr possibly one of two)although I may have missed the odd thing at the end. In retrospect, the repetetive attack put me in mind a bit of Glenn Branca ( well ,the little I know) which is no bad thing. Certainly lots of interesting sound combinations came over clearly enough on DAB.definitely one to revisit.
The other piece that I thought stood out was the Paglieli madrigal, very beautiful in parts,and an interesting concept as DLS touched on.

The rest of this variety pack wasn’t particularly to my taste. Great heads up on the Languillat, Ferney, so thanks for that.

**Serial_Apologist** · 16-09-18, 21:48

Originally posted by teamsaint View Post

[t]he repetetive attack put me in mind a bit of Glenn Branca

Well, that would certainly be a major turn-off for me!

**teamsaint** · 16-09-18, 21:53

Originally posted by Serial_Apologist View Post

Well, that would certainly be a major turn-off for me!

Well I certainly wouldn't want to put you off, S_A. Just something the music reminded me off, to an extent.

**Serial_Apologist** · 16-09-18, 22:24

Originally posted by teamsaint View Post

Well I certainly wouldn't want to put you off, S_A. Just something the music reminded me off, to an extent.

I really should listen to the programme first before spouting off.

**Beef Oven!** · 16-09-18, 23:45

Just finished listening. Couldn't get into it, especially the sub-Berio stuff. b was very good though - would go back to that one. I can think of a few adjectives for the woman who doesn't know what an adverb is. Hope next week is better. Shame new mucic can't be mainstreamed through the schedules, rather than ghettoising it.

**ferneyhoughgeliebte** · 17-09-18, 07:15

Originally posted by Serial_Apologist View Post

I really should listen to the programme first before spouting off.

- if it's any help, I mentioned earlier that Languillat's Flagellation (if you see what I mean) at first reminded me of Stockhausen's Klavierstuck IX before quickly becoming something quite distinct. It was good to hear it again, and glad to see ts enjoyed it, but the brain-sliding experience didn't come across at all from the broadcast - at least not from my radio (which admittedly wasn't on a high volume - I have some consideration for the neighbours at that time of night!) - and the "distant choir" created by the overtones and resonances was completely lost until the very last seconds after the pianist stopped. I'm not sure (and others will be able to clarify this) that microphones can cope with the piece - to capture the sheer amount of sound, levels would have to be compressed to such a level that the quieter background just disappears. So all we got was the surface of the piece, and that rather tamed to accommodate the broadcast.

I quite enjoyed most of the rest of the programme, too (not keen on the last piece).

**Boilk** · 19-09-18, 17:33

Originally posted by Beef Oven! View Post

Shame new mucic can't be mainstreamed through the schedules, rather than ghettoising it.

When some of it is a tad mediocre (like much of this 15/09 H&N edition) R3 probably needs to ghettoise it! I listened all the way through on iPlayer but found myself fast-forwarding in 2-minute segments all too often, waiting for something original or engaging to happen in several of these pieces. No doubt it would have helped if I were more immersed in the pieces by being in the auditorium. I think much experimental music works better on an experiential level (i.e. being there) than on a purely musical level.

**ferneyhoughgeliebte** · 19-09-18, 18:07

Originally posted by Boilk View Post

When some of it is a tad mediocre (like much of this 15/09 H&N edition) R3 probably needs to ghettoise it!

Crumbs! If this criterion were applied for all the Music broadcast on R3, there wouldn't be enough hours in the day for there to be a ghetto!

**teamsaint** · 19-09-18, 21:07

......which is one of the problems of modern technology in a nutshell.

We have technology undreamed of even 30 years ago at our fingertips. And we have access to music in a depth unthinkable perhaps as recently as 20 years ago. You almost have to feel sorry for programme makers, as we really don't have to live with our own short attention span, ( not you, Boilk !) or failure to respond positively within a few minutes. Not so long ago a certain kind of attention was more or less forced on us by scarcity, but that is no longer the case.

Like a lot of people I would sit there night after night with John Peel rattling away, and despite his rigorous research, and every decent new band beating a path to his door, there were more duds than hits most nights. But the point was that the hits were so worth the time and effort involved in the overall process. and actually , it wasn't just about how we responded personally to the music , it was also about how Peel and others responded. I remember vividly his excitement the first night he played the debut Killing Joke EP. Maybe it wasn't to my particular taste,( it was actually) but the musical moment was the thing, and the effect that the moment would carry forward. Which is why the wall to wall gushing about everything it broadcasts does R3 a real disservice ( pun accidentally intended).

Edit: Anyway, it doesn't have to be either ghetto or mainstream, does it ? in fact , it shouldn't be.

**MrGongGong** · 19-09-18, 21:43

Originally posted by Boilk View Post

I think much experimental music works better on an experiential level (i.e. being there) than on a purely musical level.

Was this "experimental" music ?
(I didn't listen to it so not sure)

Open Ear; H&N, Sat, 15/9/18; 10:00pm

Open Ear; H&N, Sat, 15/9/18; 10:00pm

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