Saunders: "Yes"; H&N, Sat, 15/12.18; 10:00pm

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

The one I've been waiting for, and dreading. The work is overwhelming, the performance astonishing - but how will the sounds be adequately captured by the microphones and communicated through a pair of radio speakers? (Even with super-duper surround-sound cinema systems, you'd need speakers in different rooms and hanging from the ceiling above you, as well as all those encircling you.) But as a memory-jogger for those of us who have heard it Live (and, for me, a neat "top & tailer" for this year's Huddersfield experience, in that it was the first work I heard at this year's Festival, and here it concludes R3's series of broadcasts) - and for anyone who hasn't, a glimpse of a great Musical masterpiece. Unmissable.

Rebecca Saunders(b1967): Yes; Juliet Fraser/MusikFabrik/Enno Poppe (UK Premiere, recorded in Huddersfield Town Hall on Friday, 16th November)

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0001m3g

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

Oh, and there's a couple of "fillers" - Clara Iannotta(b1983)'s dead wasps in a jam jar, for S4tet and electronics performed by the Ardittis, and Nick Morrish Rarity(b1989)'s Life of lines II, performed by United Instruments of Lucilin.

Looking forward to hearing these, too - but I think it would have been better to have had a couple more programmes from HCMF (Stockhausen's Oktophonie, Sciarrino's Carnaval, Braxton's The Monochrome Project ... ) and devoted the "spare" time around Saunders' Yes to a discussion with the composer and performer.

[Serial_Apologist]

This problem has of course affected listener perceptions since the beginnings of electronic composition; I have never been enabled to experience "Kontakte" in the sound-surround way in which it was projected when I heard it in the Albert Hall back in the 1960s. One sort of makes allowances for inevitable deficiencies. At least we have stereo broadcasting, which iirc we didn't when that Prom was broadcast!

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

This problem has of course affected listener perceptions since the beginnings of electronic composition; I have never been enabled to experience "Kontakte" in the sound-surround way in which it was projected when I heard it in the Albert Hall back in the 1960s. One sort of makes allowances for inevitable deficiencies. At least we have stereo broadcasting, which iirc we didn't when that Prom was broadcast!

(Saunders' piece doesn't involve electronics, though - the spatial timbre comes from the various chamber ensembles positioned around the whole of the [in this case] Town Hall concert space. The same problem of capturing the resulting sound masses with microphones and relaying them through speakers, of course.)

[teamsaint]

Ferney, how did it come over on the radio , in comparison to the live performance ?

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

Ferney, how did it come over on the radio , in comparison to the live performance ?

As I feared - rather "flat". So much detail was lost - not helped by too prominent a focus on the voice. (It's a fantastic voice, but the vocal line isn't supposed to be so "forward" in the texture.)

Had I not heard the work in the Hall and just heard this broadcast, I would've been very disappointed and thought the magic Saunders touch had eluded her in this piece.

Heigh-ho - I have the memories.

[teamsaint]

As I feared - rather "flat". So much detail was lost - not helped by too prominent a focus on the voice. (It's a fantastic voice, but the vocal line isn't supposed to be so "forward" in the texture.)

Had I not heard the work in the Hall and just heard this broadcast, I would've been very disappointed and thought the magic Saunders touch had eluded her in this piece.

Heigh-ho - I have the memories.

Thanks for that, and also all the reports from the festival.
I may give this a miss, and spend the time on something else , perhaps something you would recommend of hers ?

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

I may give this a miss, and spend the time on something else , perhaps something you would recommend of hers ?

Well, this is the first piece of hers that I ever heard (20 years ago, after a broadcast of its first UK performance), and it started my interest in (and subsequent adoration of) her Music:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0NjT1GlDlrs

[teamsaint]

Well, this is the first piece of hers that I ever heard (20 years ago, after a broadcast of its first UK performance), and it started my interest in (and subsequent adoration of) her Music:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0NjT1GlDlrs

Thanks.

[teamsaint]

I i can see why “ Quartet”got you hooked, Ferney. And what a lovely “ less is more “ video of the performance. Although i did half expect to get a cornflake advert popping upat the end......

There can’t be too many accordionists comfortable in that sort of repertoire.