Introduction and Theme. Adagio
Variation I. Allegro energico
Variation II. Tempo di valse in modo subdolo
Variation III. Allegro tempestuoso
Variation IV. Largo
Variation V. Adagio
Variation VI. Tempo di marcia
Finale: Fugue Apotheosis. Allegro vivace
In 2007, Pim van Lommel’s scientific research on near death experiences Eindeloos Bewustzijn (Consciousness Beyond Life) was published. The book gives strong evidence for the assumption that life doesn’t end with death and human beings indeed do have a soul that lives on eternally, as all religions claim. I was intrigued by the subject and started reading books that attempt to describe life ‘on the other side’, like Life in the World Unseen and A Wanderer in the Spirit World.
In 2010 I was commissioned to write a piece for the Koninklijke Fanfare ‘Sint Caecilia’, from the Dutch town Puth, to commemorate one of its members, the recently deceased young euphonium player Jeffrey Lindelauf. As coincidence would have it, Jeffrey’s parents asked me to express the viewpoint that life goes on after death in the composition, and they proposed that Vita Aeterna (Eternal Life) would be an appropriate title. They also sent me sheet music of the pieces that Jeffrey was fond of playing, and in my composition there are lots of hints to these pieces.
When I was asked to compose the test piece for the EBBC 2012 in Rotterdam, I soon came to the conclusion that I wanted to use the lyrical theme from Vita Aeterna as a theme for a set of variations, and to dedicate the new composition to Jeffrey’s parents. Not only do I use this musical theme from the previous piece, I also wanted to elaborate a bit more on the subject of ongoing life, now combined with what in Hinduism and Buddhism is called Karma.
As a result, the Vita AeternaVariations have the sort of rudimentary ‘program’ that many composers from the past have wisely kept to themselves. Here it is:
Introduction and Theme. Adagio Tentative beginning of Life. Variation I. Allegro energico Full of vital energy. Variation II. Tempo di valse in modo subdolo Evil seeks to seduce and gradually succeeds. Variation III. Allegro tempestuoso Fate strikes. Variation IV. Largo Despair. Variation V. Adagio Redemption. Variation VI. Tempo di marcia Gradual return of life power. Finale: Fugue and Apotheosis. Allegro vivace. Boisterous, overflowing with vitality and delight in the beauty of life.
There is one more person that put his stamp on the music of this composition. His name is Walter Saler. He was Naturheiler (naturopath), a very special person with an outspoken positive attitude to life, who has helped me on numerous occasions. As a way to thank him, I wrote Musik für Walter for him, a Theme with Variations for cello and organ, which reflects this positive attitude.
Since I wanted the music of the Vita Aeterna Variations to be uplifting for the soul and life asserting, my mind automatically returned to the composition for Walter, too, and then it turned out that elements from Vita Aeterna and Musik für Walter easily blended together. Some examples: the opening bars of the Walter theme can be played in counterpoint with the opening bars of the Vita Aeterna theme—which is exactly what happens towards the end of the composition, of course. The first and the fourth variation of the Vita Aeterna Variations have been derived from variations from the Walter piece, respectively called Super Super Super! and Immer Vorwärts (Onwards and Upwards).
Both men had their influence in shaping the music to what it has become; for which I am very grateful. And I am very happy that the piece has already reached such a wide audience. I hope that this version for symphonic wind orchestra will contribute to making a even wider audience acquainted with both men, their stories and the music they both influenced, each in his own way.
Commissioned by the Concejalía de Cultura del Excmo. Ayuntamiento de Yecla and the Museo de Réplicas del Greco Regreco 400
Dedicated to Ángel Hernández Azorín and the Banda “Asociación Amigos de la Música” de Yecla
This composition is the result of a joint commission by the Concejalía de Cultura del Excmo. Ayuntamiento de Yecla and the Museo de Réplicas del Greco Regreco 400 to write a piece after El Greco’s wonderful painting El Entierro del Conde de Orgaz(The Burial of the Count of Orgaz), to be performed by the Banda “Asociación Amigos de la Música” de Yecla and their conductor Ángel Hernández Azorín, in the year 2014, the fourth centenary of the painter’s death. I feel very grateful to have been entrusted with a commission with such spiritual significance and I have tried my best to compose a piece worthy of the occasion, the painter and the painting.
The painting itself depicts a miracle that allegedly took place in 1312. In that year, a certain Don Gonzalo Ruíz, native of Toledo, and Señor of the town of Orgaz, passed away. He was a pious man and a philanthropist, who, among other charitable acts, left a sum of money for the enlargement and adornment of the church of Santo Tomé (El Greco’s parish church). According to the legend, at the time of his burial, Saint Stephen and Saint Augustine descended in person from the heavens and buried him by their own hands in front of the dazzled eyes of those present.
A number of Gregorian melodies have been used to represent various personages on the painting, as will be explained in detail below. A number of players are meant to play these melodies offstage, from a more or less high position, in accordance with the level in which they are depicted on the painting. The composition’s structure is as follows:
I. Himno (Hymn) A jubilant Introduction, marvelling at the miracle depicted in the painting as a whole, based on the Latin words Magna et mirabilia opera tua, Domine Deus omnipotens (Great and marvellous are your works, Lord God Almighty!
II. Cortejo Fúnebre (Funeral Procession) This movement deals with the painting’s lower part. A mourning crowd is accompanying Don Gonzalo Ruíz to his last resting place. A funeral procession melody, somewhat in the vein of Spanish Renaissance music, is alternated with the Gregorian plainchant Requiem aeternam(Eternal rest).
III. San Esteban y San Agustín (Saint Stephen and Saint Augustine) The sudden descending of the two saints is illustrated by a abrupt change of atmosphere, heralded by the entrance of soft organ and celesta sounds, followed by Gregorian chants representing both saints, played offstage. First, the bassoon plays Lapidaverunt Stephanum, et ipse invocabat Dominum, dicens: ne statuas illis hoc peccatum(They stoned Stephen, and he called upon the Lord, saying: don’t hold this sin against them). Then the alto saxophone follows with Augustine, lux doctorum, firmamentumEcclesiae(Augustine, light of the wise, firmament of the Church). Then the procession song is repeated, now transfigured in the major key, alternated with both Gregorian chants in counterpoint.
IV. El Ángel y el Alma (The Angel and the Soul) Together with the Gregorian chant Beatus vir(Blessed man), played by the tenor saxophone and the oboe, the soft celesta & organ sounds return, and also the Magna et mirabilia opera tua theme from the Introduction is repeated, now softly. Ascending celesta & organ sounds then depict how the Count’s soul, helped by an angel, rises up to Heaven; as can be seen in the painting’s central section.
V. En el Cielo (In Heaven) This movement deals with the painting’s upper part. Sounds of harp, celesta, glockenspiel and vibraphone invoke a celestial atmosphere. From diverse offstage positions, we now hear the following Gregorian melodies:
• the trumpet, representing Jesus: Jesus Christus heri et hodie, ipse et in saecula (Jesus Christ, yesterday and today,
and in all eternity);
• the flute, representing Maria: Ave Regina caelorum, ave Domina Angelorum (Hail, Queen of the heavens, hail,
Mistress of the angels);
• the flugelhorn, representing Saint John the Baptist: Joannes vocabitur nomen ejus et in nativitate ejus multi gaudebunt
(John he was called, and many rejoiced in his birth).
Then the atmosphere intensifies with broken chords in flutes and oboes. To the abovementioned melodies (Mary now being represented by the E flat Trumpet) are now added:
• the trombone, representing the apostles Peter and Paul: Petrus Apostolum, et Paulus Doctor gentium, ipsi nos
docuerunt legem tuam Domine (Peter the apostle, and Paul, teacher of the people, have taught us your law, oh Lord);
• the euphonium, representing the apostle Thomas: Dedit in Thoma abyssus vocem et altitudo manus suas levavit
(The sea roared loudly to Thomas, and its waves rose high).
Next, the procession song is heard one last time, now in triple metre, in an atmosphere of the ‘heavenly turbulence’ that characterizes the painting’s upper part. This time, it is alternated with the Gregorian plainchant In Paradisum: In Paradisum deducant te Angeli. Chorus Angelorum te suscipiat, et cum Lazaro quondam paupere aeternam habeas requiem (May angels lead you into paradise. May the ranks of angels receive you, and with Lazarus, once a poor man, may you have eternal rest).
Finally, the Gregorian melodies representing Mary, St. John, Peter and Paul and St. Thomas reappear, followed by those representing St. Stephen and St. Augustine, after which a gradual build-up follows, combining the beginning of the Jesus motive with the In Paradisum melody; a build-up leading to:
VI. Himno (Hymn) The jubilant Magna et mirabilia opera tua theme from the Introduction returns with full force, now reinforced with glockenspiel, vibraphone and chimes. When the music finally starts to relax, the motives belonging to the saints Stephen and Augustine and to Jesus are heard one last time. After a final reminiscence to the transfigured Procession melody, the music comes to a quiet and peaceful ending.
Youtube:
This documentary, El Sonido del Lienzo (The Sound of Canvas), by Álex González y Adrián Ortín, is about the history of the Asociación Amigos de la Música de Yecla, its Banda Sinfónica and their conductor Ángel Hernández Azorín, about the coming into being of my composition and about the wonderful collaboration with the Banda and the eventual premiere.
Commissioned by the Dutch Ministry of Defense
Composed for and dedicated to the Koninklijke Militaire Kapel ‘Johan Willem Friso’ (Royal Military Band ‘Johan Willem Friso’) and their conductor Tijmen Botma
In 2000, I composed a piece for choir, fanfare orchestra and large percussion ensemble, called Walpurgisnacht, to words from Goethe’s Faust. The composition was premiered in July 2001. A few months later , the New York Twin Towers were destroyed. In the years to come, my view of the world would change drastically.
As many people are now aware of, the official story about 9/11 has far too many inconsistencies and leaves far too many questions unanswered to be credible. I will limit myself here to mentioning that not just the Twin Towers collapsed, but also the so-called ‘Building 7’, even though it wasn’t hit by anything at all. A comparison comes to mind with the so-called ‘false flag’ ‘Operation Northwoods’ (you can google it if you don’t know about this). Once considered a ‘conspiracy theory’, Operation Northwoods is now factual history, since its gradual declassification in the years between 1997 and 2001.
It leaves one wondering what more schemes people in elite positions are able to concoct. Personally, I believe 9/11 to be Operation Northwoods 2.0. To cut a long story short, reaching this conclusion gradually opened my mind, step by step, to the possibility that there are Satanists in circles of power worldwide, who have been performing a great many atrocities over the years, among which large-scale sexual abuse of children. This suspicion only grew when I heard of the atrocities that BBC presenter Jimmy Savile had been able to get away with during his whole life, up to his death in 2011; this in relation to the many connections he had to high-profile people.
Here are just a few examples of the many stories I have come across up till now, always pointing to the same: the existence of a large global network of powerful people who indulge in satanic rituals whereby children are sexually abused and killed:
Satanic elite and ritual abuse (German documentary, Dutch subtitles):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8H0cm7T1PY0 (One of the victims, Noemi, recalls several meetings of her abusive father with Marc Dutroux. Both are clearly part of a network.)
An excerpt from this documentary, with English subtitles: Extreme “Satanic” Paedophilia Testimony: Deborah & the elite German and French ring:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2NCqWz9Rq70
Satanic human sacrifice FBI raid 1998:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h9CtZDsoOfE (Halfway this video there is an excerpt from a ‘snuff movie’. Warning: extremely graphic!)
Institutional child abuse:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=69TtyKith_M (Many similar testimonies, each of which may be difficult to believe. The cumulative effect of all of these stories, however, is compelling.)
When in the spring of 2013 conductor Tijmen Botma requested me to compose a truly virtuoso piece for him and his Royal Military Band ‘Johan Willem Friso’ wind orchestra, I felt very honoured by this offer, which I accepted with gratitude. I felt the need to ‘do something’ with the knowledge I had recently gained, so I decided to musically depict a satanic ritual that is being put an end to by a ‘new dawn’. I wanted to use my earlier composition Walpurgisnacht as a starting point, since Walpurgis night or Beltane, the night from April the 30th to May the 1st, is said to be one of the most important nights on the satanic calendar; a night during which blood rituals and human sacrifice take place.
The structure of the composition:
The first movement is called Satanic Ritual. It starts with a slow and dark introduction, gradually leading to a diabolical march. The music comes to a temporary halt, followed by a frenzied bacchanalian dance. After a while, this dance reaches a climax and is then suddenly interrupted by a return of music from the slow introduction, now even softer and more sinister. After this, the music gradually becomes lively again, building up towards a new climax. But then, rather unexpectedly, the dance dies down, as the first signs of the coming daylight emerge. In the words from Goethe’s Faust:
Wolkenzug und Nebelflor
Erhellen sich von oben.
Bleich noch, kommt das Morgenlicht hervor…
Und alles ist zerstoben.
Cloud-drift and hazy gauze
Brighten from above.
Still bleak, the morning light comes forth …
And everything is scattered.
After some music of ‘reviewing and pondering’, based on the slow introduction, there is a new buildup, but now a tender and a positive one, leading to the second part: A New Dawn. The theme of the grotesque march is now transformed into a depiction of a new daybreak, with light getting brighter and brighter, eventually reaching the darkest corners of the planet.
There is also an abridged version for brassband, called Coming to Light Shortly. An impression of this version, in the form of a performance of the version for wind band with cut, can be heard here:
Commissioned by the Landesmusikrat NRW and the Verein zur Förderung von Landesjugendmusikensembles NRW
Written for and dedicated to the Junge Bläserphilharmonie NRW and their conductor Harry Vorselen
I. Recollections attacca: II. April 1915 attacca: III. Grief attacca: IV. Eternal Peace
Dedicated to the commemoration of the great Armenian bard Komitas
In April 1915, the Turkish government started to carry out a long standing plan to exterminate most of the Armenian people living in Turkey. The execution of this plan has become widely known as the Armenian genocide. One of the many victims of the gruesome atrocities that took place during this genocide is the great Armenian ethnomusicologist, musician and composer Soghomon Soghomonian, better known as Vartabed (Father) Komitas, who lived from 1869 to 1935. Together with several other prominent Armenians, he was arrested on April the 24th, 1915, and transported to Chankiri in Central Anatolia. Some weeks later, he was released and brought back to Constantinople. However, he couldn’t cope emotionally with what he had experienced and witnessed.
Soon, the first signs became apparent of what we would now call a Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, a disease still unknown at the time and therefore neither diagnosable nor treatable. He got into such a deep state of depression that his friends decided to take action. Against his will he was brought to the Hôpital de la Paix, a Turkish military hospital in Constantinople. Unfortunately, his emotional condition worsened to such a degree, that his friends decided to transfer him to a private clinic in Paris. For financial reasons he was later moved to the cheaper state institute Hôpital Villejuif, where he spent the remaining thirteen years of his life. He died in 1935, 66 years of age, as a result of a bone infection. The destiny of his creative legacy was no less tragic. The majority of his manuscripts was destroyed or got lost.
For a very long time I nurtured the wish to write a large-scale composition that in some way reflects all this, as a tribute to the great Armenian bard. During many years, I collected lots of sheet music and recordings of Armenian folk music, much of which notated by Komitas. Contact with the Dutch Marine Band about a new piece to be written for them provided a fresh impetus for realizing my wish, which eventually led to the Dutch Fund for the Podium Arts NFPK benevolently granting me two commissions for a symphony in four movements: one for the first two movements, and later a subsequent one for the third and fourth movements.
The entire symphony is based on motives from compositions by Komitas and on Armenian folk melodies, as notated by him, complemented with motives from Turkish folk tunes. The events of 1915 play an important part in the whole of the symphony, and are at the heart of its second movement. The division in movements is as follows:
Recollections attacca:
April 1915 attacca:
III. Grief attacca:
Eternal Peace
I. Recollections. During composing, I imagined Komitas in the Hôpital Villejuif looking back on his life until April 1915. In the sombre slow introduction there are two principal melodies: Ervum èm (Mourning song) and Lord, have mercy from his Armenian liturgy Patarag. Also, bits from a threatening sounding Central Anatolian tune are announced. And a glimpse from Komitas’ carefree Song of the Partridge─ people familiar with music for wind orchestra will know it from Alfred Reed’s Armenian Dances─ is heard, too. In the ensuing Allegretto, Komitas’ song Garun (Spring) and the movements Unabi and Marabi from his cycle of six Armenian dances for piano are the principal themes. In essence, this music has a friendly and delicate atmosphere, but ever again an element of tension and threat emerges. Now a forceful Allegro follows, in which several themes are being treated from a different perspective, reflecting conflicts and violence prior to 1915. Finally, the musical material is recapitulated. This time, the music never succeeds in recapturing the friendly and delicate atmosphere that was sometimes realized earlier on. There is more anguish and grief now, and the movement ends on a sombre note..
II. April 1915.Allegro barbaro. The Anatolian melodies that had already been indicated in the first movement, are at the heart of this movement, complemented with a Turkish tune for the zurna, an instrument that Komitas hated because of its shrill sound. At times, Komitas’ Ervum èm breaks through, and at one point, his Lord, have mercy is predominant.
III.Grief. Here, Komitas’ Lord, have mercy is the central theme, alternated with his famous song Krunk (The Crane), a song of an expatriate, an Armenian in the Diaspora, asking the crane if he has perchance any news from his motherland.
IV. Eternal Peace. Principal theme here is Komitas’ Et-Aratsch from his six Armenian dances for piano. His Song of the Partridge, featuring fleetingly in the first movement, now serves as a secondary theme. To me, Komitas comes across as having a very gentle nature and a refined taste. I imagine that he has found rest and peace in the hereafter. Since this isn’t possible without total forgiveness, I have taken the liberty to let the Anatolian melodies that appear in the first and second movements return at the end of the symphony, now in a peaceful and harmonious atmosphere.
Youtube:
Marine Band of the Royal Netherlands Navy conducted by Jan Cober
Osaka University Wind Orchestra conducted by Yoshinori Kubota
At last, score and parts of this version have now become available for purchase. Scroll down for a first recording. Here are the prices:
Score paper
€ 55,50
Complete set, paper
€ 305,00
Score digital
€ 30,53
Complete set, digital
€ 167,75
All prices incl. 9% VAT, prices of hardcover material excl. package and postal expenses.
Introduction and Theme. Adagio
Variation I. Allegro energico
Variation II. Tempo di valse in modo subdolo
Variation III. Allegro tempestuoso
Variation IV. Largo
Variation V. Adagio
Variation VI. Tempo di marcia
Finale: Fugue Apotheosis. Allegro vivace
The original version for brass band was commissioned by the Foundation Kunstfactor to serve as the test piece for the EBBC 2012 in Rotterdam, and has been dedicated to Roger and Madeleine Lindelauf.
The version for wind band was commissioned by Thomas Haas and Rainer Fitsch and has been dedicated to Thomas Ludescher. The greater part of the score can be viewed and downloaded here.
In 2007, Pim van Lommel’s scientific research on near death experiences Eindeloos Bewustzijn (Consciousness Beyond Life) was published. The book gives strong evidence for the assumption that life doesn’t end with death and human beings indeed do have a soul that lives on eternally, as all religions claim. I was intrigued by the subject and started reading books that attempt to describe life ‘on the other side’, like Life in the World Unseen and A Wanderer in the Spirit World.
In 2010 I was commissioned to write a piece for the Koninklijke Fanfare ‘Sint Caecilia’, from the Dutch town Puth, to commemorate one of its members, the recently deceased young euphonium player Jeffrey Lindelauf. As coincidence would have it, Jeffrey’s parents asked me to express the viewpoint that life goes on after death in the composition, and they proposed that Vita Aeterna (Eternal Life) would be an appropriate title. They also sent me sheet music of the pieces that Jeffrey was fond of playing, and in my composition there are lots of hints to these pieces.
When I was asked to compose the test piece for the EBBC 2012 in Rotterdam, I soon came to the conclusion that I wanted to use the lyrical theme from Vita Aeterna as a theme for a set of variations, and to dedicate the new composition to Jeffrey’s parents. Not only do I use this musical theme from the previous piece, I also wanted to elaborate a bit more on the subject of ongoing life, now combined with what in Hinduism and Buddhism is called Karma.
As a result, the Vita AeternaVariations have the sort of rudimentary ‘program’ that many composers from the past have wisely kept to themselves. Here it is:
Introduction and Theme. Adagio Tentative beginning of Life. Variation I. Allegro energico Full of vital energy. Variation II. Tempo di valse in modo subdolo Evil seeks to seduce and gradually succeeds. Variation III. Allegro tempestuoso Fate strikes. Variation IV. Largo Despair. Variation V. Adagio Redemption. Variation VI. Tempo di marcia Gradual return of life power. Finale: Fugue and Apotheosis. Allegro vivace. Boisterous, overflowing with vitality and delight in the beauty of life.
There is one more person that put his stamp on the music of this composition. His name is Walter Saler. He was Naturheiler (naturopath), a very special person with an outspoken positive attitude to life, who has helped me on numerous occasions. As a way to thank him, I wrote Musik für Walter for him, a Theme with Variations for cello and organ, which reflects this positive attitude.
Since I wanted the music of the Vita Aeterna Variations to be uplifting for the soul and life asserting, my mind automatically returned to the composition for Walter, too, and then it turned out that elements from Vita Aeterna and Musik für Walter easily blended together. Some examples: the opening bars of the Walter theme can be played in counterpoint with the opening bars of the Vita Aeterna theme—which is exactly what happens towards the end of the composition, of course. The first and the fourth variation of the Vita Aeterna Variations have been derived from variations from the Walter piece, respectively called Super Super Super! and Immer Vorwärts (Onwards and Upwards).
Both men had their influence in shaping the music to what it has become; for which I am very grateful. And I am very happy that the piece has already reached such a wide audience. I hope that this version for symphonic wind orchestra will contribute to making a even wider audience acquainted with both men, their stories and the music they both influenced, each in his own way.
First recording of the version for symphonic wind orchestra of my Vita Aeterna Variations, performed the 11th of November, 2018, in the St. Valentine Church of the Swiss town of Rüthi, by the Sinfonisches Blasorchester Vorarlberg, conducted by Thomas Ludescher:
Please note the following:
– this recording was made with a simple device.
– the acoustics of the church necessitated slower tempi than indicated.
– it was very cold in the church, as a result of which the first oboist had water in the keyholes of his instrument in the fugue.
In spite of this, the performance certainly has its merits, and this recording gives a good overall impression of the composition.
Introduction and Theme. Adagio
Variation I. Allegro energico
Variation II. Tempo di valse in modo subdolo
Variation III. Allegro tempestuoso
Variation IV. Largo
Variation V. Adagio
Variation VI. Tempo di marcia
Finale: Fugue Apotheosis. Allegro vivace
Dedicated to Roger and Madeleine Lindelauf
In 2007, Pim van Lommel’s scientific research on near death experiences Eindeloos Bewustzijn (Consciousness Beyond Life) was published. The book gives strong evidence for the assumption that life doesn’t end with death and human beings indeed do have a soul that lives on eternally, as all religions claim. I was intrigued by the subject and started reading books that attempt to describe life ‘on the other side’, like Life in the World Unseen and A Wanderer in the Spirit World.
In 2010 I was commissioned to write a piece for the Koninklijke Fanfare ‘Sint Caecilia’, from the Dutch town Puth, to commemorate one of its members, the recently deceased young euphonium player Jeffrey Lindelauf. As coincidence would have it, Jeffrey’s parents asked me to express the viewpoint that life goes on after death in the composition, and they proposed that Vita Aeterna (Eternal Life) would be an appropriate title. They also sent me sheet music of the pieces that Jeffrey was fond of playing, and in my composition there are lots of hints to these pieces.
When I was asked to compose the test piece for the EBBC 2012 in Rotterdam, I soon came to the conclusion that I wanted to use the lyrical theme from Vita Aeterna as a theme for a set of variations, and to dedicate the new composition to Jeffrey’s parents. Not only do I use this musical theme from the previous piece, I also wanted to elaborate a bit more on the subject of ongoing life, now combined with what in Hinduism and Buddhism is called Karma.
As a result, the Vita AeternaVariations have the sort of rudimentary ‘program’ that many composers from the past have wisely kept to themselves. Here it is:
Introduction and Theme. Adagio Tentative beginning of Life. Variation I. Allegro energico Full of vital energy. Variation II. Tempo di valse in modo subdolo Evil seeks to seduce and gradually succeeds. Variation III. Allegro tempestuoso Fate strikes. Variation IV. Largo Despair. Variation V. Adagio Redemption. Variation VI. Tempo di marcia Gradual return of life power. Finale: Fugue and Apotheosis. Allegro vivace. Boisterous, overflowing with vitality and delight in the beauty of life.
There is one more person that put his stamp on the music of this composition. His name is Walter Saler. He was Naturheiler (naturopath), a very special person with an outspoken positive attitude to life, who has helped me on numerous occasions. As a way to thank him, I wrote Musik für Walter for him, a Theme with Variations for cello and organ, which reflects this positive attitude.
Since I wanted the music of the Vita Aeterna Variations to be uplifting for the soul and life asserting, my mind automatically returned to the composition for Walter, too, and then it turned out that elements from Vita Aeterna and Musik für Walter easily blended together. Some examples: the opening bars of the Walter theme can be played in counterpoint with the opening bars of the Vita Aeterna theme—which is exactly what happens towards the end of the composition, of course. The first and the fourth variation of the Vita Aeterna Variations have been derived from variations from the Walter piece, respectively called Super Super Super! and Immer Vorwärts (Onwards and Upwards).
Both men had their influence in shaping the music to what it has become; for which I am very grateful. And I am very happy that the piece has already reached such a wide audience. I hope that this version for symphonic wind orchestra will contribute to making a even wider audience acquainted with both men, their stories and the music they both influenced, each in his own way.
Youtube:
Dutch National Youth Fanfare Orchestra NJFO conducted by Danny Oosterman
Composing this song cycle was made possible by Christoph Bouthillier and Nelly Bouthillier – Den Boer
Dedicated to the children of Gaza and their parents
The full score may be copied, shared and distributed freely. It can be downloaded here for free: Children of Gaza – Partituur met Voorwerk. It will be appreciated if information about performances and / or recordings of this cycle or part thereof is sent to hallo[at]eduarddeboer.org[1].
[1] Please replace the [at] by @. This is to avoid spam attacks.
Youtube:
Dima Bawab, soprano; the composer, piano
In 1976, I was 19 years old when I spent my summer holidays in Israel. I worked for three weeks in a Kibbutz, then travelled one week through the country. I very much enjoyed those weeks and have many beautiful memories of them. However, contrary to the expectations I had at the time, my fondest memories today have to do with Palestinians rather than Israelis. For instance, I vividly remember that, during my weeks in the Kibbutz, I was ordered to join a group that worked on a sunflower field in a nearby village, supervised by an old Palestinian man. He turned out to be the friendliest, mildest and loveliest person I had ever met. And I also remember hitchhiking somewhere, with a large backpack on my shoulders and a big camera hanging around my neck, when someone shouted at me, inviting me to come into his house; which I did. Maybe it was a naïve thing to do, especially for someone who obviously looked as much like a young and vulnerable Western tourist as I did, but I never regretted it. I was welcomed by a group of very friendly Palestinians, who offered me food and drink, and even showed me where the key to the house was hidden, so I could enter it at any time, whenever I wished. I had never encountered such hospitality before. These experiences formed a contrast to what I had learned at the Christian schools I had attended, where I had been told that Arabs were stupid heathens and that it was a good thing that God had finally returned the ‘Holy Land’ to his ‘chosen people’.
I never returned to Israel, but I did develop a fondness for Jewish folk melodies, which I incorporated into some of my compositions, for instance in my first symphony and in my Yiddish Suite for cello and piano. (Recordings of these compositions can be found on YouTube, under my pseudonym Alexander Comitas.)
It was many years after my visit to this country, that my Belgian friend André Posman, at the time an organizer of classical concerts, made me aware of the plight of the Palestinians and the lack of attention by the mainstream media for their dire situation. He offered me a book about the situation in the Gaza Strip, a book that among other things contained some poems. Slowly the idea began to take shape in my mind ‘to do something’ with this, at some point in the future.
Again, years later, this idea had developed to the point that I wished to compose a song cycle about Palestinian children in Gaza. By then, the Internet had become commonplace, so I began searching it for poems having to do with this theme. In doing so, I came across the name of an American poet, Michael R. Burch, who on his website www.thehypertexts.com has for many years been campaigning very actively for the Palestinian cause. I found his e-mail address and in January 2016, I finally decided to contact him about the idea of a song cycle. By then, the idea of a ‘storyline’ had become rather clear. I envisaged a cycle with two consecutive climaxes, one where a child’s family is shot by Israeli soldiers during a raid, and later another one where a child is killed by a bomb dropped by an Israeli plane[1]. I also had found a number of Palestinian folk songs on YouTube and I had purchased a CD called Lost Songs of Palestine. In this way, I had acquired a small collection of songs to which I could allude.
And then a miracle happened, or rather: a series of miracles. Michael not only gave me permission to use any of his poems I wanted, but also offered to write any additional poems I needed for the cycle. Furthermore, I could feel free to instruct him not only about the subject of each poem, but also about its length, its meter and form, and about certain melodies I would like to use. He turned out to be just the ideal collaborator to make the wish of composing a cycle like this come true!
And it didn’t stop there. I had proposed to Michael to make it a project extending over several years. I earn my income mainly by composing in response to commissions and I intended to write one song at a time in between them. But then, in February, I received an e-mail from Nelly, the widow of Christoph, a dear friend of mine who had sadly died a few months earlier, informing me that in his will he had left me and my wife an amount of money. I asked her if she would allow me to regard this amount as a commission fee for a Children of Gaza song cycle, and she liked the idea, because Christoph was the type of person who always stood up against injustice.
And on top of all this, against my expectation, I couldn’t start with either of both composition commissions I had at this time: for one of them, a scenario still hadn’t been written and for the other one I needed a detailed account of the technical level of the members of the performing band. So, suddenly and unexpectedly, I had the collaboration of an ideal poet, the money necessary to write the cycle, and also an unexpected and perhaps provident amount of time!
Michael and I decided to go for it the cycle rapidly progressed, until 2½ months later we reached the point that it was ready. Luckily, inspiration came abundantly, and during the whole composing process I had the feeling that everything was just falling into place automatically. To give an example: the impact of the fatal bomb at the end of the song In the Shelter turned out to be exactly at the Golden Ratio point of the cycle as a whole; something I had neither expected nor influenced consciously in any way. The whole experience felt to me as if ‘it just had to be’.
The Palestinian folk songs that are quoted or alluded to in the cycle are:
– Al-Yadil Yadi (My Carefree Ways). This melody appears right at the opening of the first song and it returns at various places throughout the cycle.
– A so-called Dabka, a Palestinian folk song and dance, dealing with the occupation of Palestine in 1948. This theme, too, is heard for the first time in the first song, and it, too, returns a number of times, throughout the cycle.
– Mouvasha Lamma Bada Yathanna, an ancient song of lament. Merely hinted at in the song For God’s Sake, I’m only a Child, it is clearly alluded to in the songs In the Shelter and Among the Angels.
– Hala Layya, a lullaby. The beginning of this melody appears for the first time in the song Mother’s Smile, reappearing in In the Shelter and Among the Angels.
Happy as the story of this cycle’s creation is, the plight of the Palestinians living in Gaza and the West Bank is far from happy. No parent would allow his or her own children to be subject to the dire circumstances under which the children born there are living, and this alone ought to be enough reason for everyone to want to put an end to the atrocities that have been going on far too long in this troubled region. Everyone who has access to the Internet can now read about this, for instance on Michael Burch’s website www.thehypertexts.com (search for the terms ‘Palestine ‘or ‘Nakba’) or can watch videos, for instance on Facebook pages like The Eye of Palestine or The Palestinian Information Center. No ‘Holy Land’ or text in Bible or Torah can justify how Palestinian children are treated on their native soil.
Eduard de Boer, May 14th, 2016.
[1] The idea for both dramatic climaxes came from a number of poignant accounts on Michael Burch’s website
www.thehypertexts.com, (search for ‘Nakba Index‘, nakba being Arabic for catastrophe). See www.breakingthesilence.org.il, with testimonies by critical Israeli soldiers, for similar stories. A particularly poignant testimony by founder of the Palestina Medical Relief Society Mustafa Barghouti can be found on YouTube (www.youtube.com/watch?v=kDe_ZXOwWlU, search words Gaza Barghouti).
Commissioned by Roger & Madeleine Lindelauf and Koninklijke Fanfare St. Caecilia, Puth
Written for Koninklijke Fanfare St. Caecilia, Puth and their conductor Chris Derikx
Dedicated to the memory of Jeffrey Lindelauf
Libretto by Rudolf Herfurtner
Commissioned by Audi, Ingolstadt (Germany)
Written for the Audi Symphonic Wind Orchestra Ingolstadt and the choir class of the Reuchlin-Gymnasium
Dedicated to Maurice Hamers
Youtube: Nr. 1. Vorspiel:
Nr. 12. Freundschaftslied:
Several soloists; choir class of the Reuchlin-Gymnasium (Chorus master: Eva-Maria Atzerodt); Symphonic Wind Orchestra Ingolstadt; Conductor: Christian Lombardi
I. Intro: Er was eens… (Intro. Once upon a time…)
II. Aan het Hof (At the Court)
III. Entree van prinses Flora (Princess Flora’s Entry)
IV. Mars March
A. Entree van prins Fritz (Prince Fritz’ Entry)
B. Pas de deux
C. Danse générale
V. Scène (Scene)
VI. Consternatie (Consternation)
VII. Entree van de Sprookjesprins
VIII. Scène (Scene)
IX. Duel en Scène (Duel and Scene)
X. Pas de deux
XI. Wals (Waltz)
XII. Finale (Final)
XIII. Applausmuziek (Applause Music)
Commissioned by Stichting De Kunstfactor
Written for and dedicated to Serge Latychev & Accordion ensemble Alphen Opus 2
Dedicated to Peter Leerdam and ‘Harmonieorkest Sint Jan, Wierden’
Commissioned by the Rabobank Noord-West Twente, Stichting Kunstfactor – Unisono and foundation De Noaber van Wierden
Youtube:
Peter Leerdam, contrabass; Harmonie Sint Jan, Wierden, conducted by Josef Suilen
There is also a reduction for contrabass and piano.
Please note: a few years ago, I transcribed the original brass band version of this composition for symphonic wind band. During the process, I found some mistakes in the brass band version (in addition to the mistakes I discovered when I transcribed the composition for symphony orchestra in 2014). Here is a list of the new errata, whereby the errata marked in yellow are the important ones. And here are the pages from the score where I discovered and corrected something that was wrong.
Introduction and Theme.
Variation I. Adagio
Variation II. Allegro energico
Variation III. Tempo di valse in modo subdolo
Variation IV. Largo
Variation V. Adagio
Variation VI. Tempo di marcia
Finale: Fugue and Apotheosis. Allegro vivace
Commissioned by the European Brass Band Association, to serve as a test piece during the
European Brass Band Championships EBBC 2012, from May 1 to 6, in De Doelen in Rotterdam
Dedicated to Roger and Madeleine Lindelauf
In 2007, Pim van Lommel’s scientific research on near death experiences Eindeloos Bewustzijn (Consciousness Beyond Life) was published. The book gives strong evidence for the assumption that life doesn’t end with death and human beings indeed do have a soul that lives on eternally, as all religions claim. I was intrigued by the subject and started reading books that attempt to describe life ‘on the other side’, like Life in the World Unseen and A Wanderer in the Spirit World.
In 2010 I was commissioned to write a piece for the Koninklijke Fanfare ‘Sint Caecilia’, from the Dutch town Puth, to commemorate one of its members, the recently deceased young euphonium player Jeffrey Lindelauf. As coincidence would have it, Jeffrey’s parents asked me to express the viewpoint that life goes on after death in the composition, and they proposed that Vita Aeterna (Eternal Life) would be an appropriate title. They also sent me sheet music of the pieces that Jeffrey was fond of playing, and in my composition there are lots of hints to these pieces.
When I was asked to compose the test piece for the EBBC 2012 in Rotterdam, I soon came to the conclusion that I wanted to use the lyrical theme from Vita Aeterna as a theme for a set of variations, and to dedicate the new composition to Jeffrey’s parents. Not only do I use this musical theme from the previous piece, I also wanted to elaborate a bit more on the subject of ongoing life, now combined with what in Hinduism and Buddhism is called Karma.
As a result, the Vita AeternaVariations have the sort of rudimentary ‘program’ that many composers from the past have wisely kept to themselves. Here it is:
Introduction and Theme. Adagio Tentative beginning of Life. Variation I. Allegro energico Full of vital energy. Variation II. Tempo di valse in modo subdolo Evil seeks to seduce and gradually succeeds. Variation III. Allegro tempestuoso Fate strikes. Variation IV. Largo Despair. Variation V. Adagio Redemption. Variation VI. Tempo di marcia Gradual return of life power. Finale: Fugue and Apotheosis. Allegro vivace. Boisterous, overflowing with vitality and delight in the beauty of life.
There is one more person that put his stamp on the music of this composition. His name is Walter Saler. He was Naturheiler (naturopath), a very special person with an outspoken positive attitude to life, who has helped me on numerous occasions. As a way to thank him, I wrote Musik für Walter for him, a Theme with Variations for cello and organ, which reflects this positive attitude.
Since I wanted the music of the Vita Aeterna Variations to be uplifting for the soul and life asserting, my mind automatically returned to the composition for Walter, too, and then it turned out that elements from Vita Aeterna and Musik für Walter easily blended together. Some examples: the opening bars of the Walter theme can be played in counterpoint with the opening bars of the Vita Aeterna theme—which is exactly what happens towards the end of the composition, of course. The first and the fourth variation of the Vita Aeterna Variations have been derived from variations from the Walter piece, respectively called Super Super Super! and Immer Vorwärts (Onwards and Upwards).
Both men had their influence in shaping the music to what it has become; for which I am very grateful. And I am very happy that the piece has already reached such a wide audience. I hope that this version for symphonic wind orchestra will contribute to making a even wider audience acquainted with both men, their stories and the music they both influenced, each in his own way.
I Openingstune (Opening Tune)
II Easy going
III Spiegelzaal (Hall of Mirrors)
IV Quickstep voor Elise
V Huppelende Alpen (Frolicking Alps)
VI Finale
Encore ad lib.: Foxtrot over een Nederlands Volksliedje (Foxtrot on a Dutch Folk Tune)
Commissioned by the Fonds voor de Scheppende Toonkunst
Commissioned by the Nederlandse Organisatie Voor Akkordeon en Mondharmonika (NOVAM) (I & II), by Herma Bosma (III) and by accordion orchestra ‘Alphen Opus 2′, with financial support from Foundation Unisono and Herma Bosma (IV)
Written for accordion orchestra ‘Alphen Opus 2′
Dedicated to Maaike (I & II), to Bep van Doorn (III) and to Serge Latychev (IV)
Youtube:
Accordion ensemble Alphen Opus 2 conducted by Serge Latychev
Inspired by the Witches’ Song from Shakespeare’s Macbeth
Commissioned by the Dutch Institute for Wind Music NIB
Dedicated to Jouke Hoekstra and the Frysk Fanfare Orkest