Ravinia 2024 Issue 3

Venus and Mercury. Holst’s nondescript work- ing title— Seven Pieces for Orchestra —was in- spired by Arnold Schoenberg’s Five Pieces for Orchestra , which he had heard in concert in 1912 and greatly admired. The “suite” designation that Holst applied informally further empha- sized the composition’s non-symphonic nature. The creative labor extended over three years, as Holst devoted weekends and summer vacations to the work he later renamed The Planets . St. Paul’s constructed a soundproof composition studio especially for their music teacher. As po- litical tension mounted in Europe, but before the formal declaration of war in August 1914, Holst finished Mars, the Bringer of War . The 40-year-old composer frequently tested new musical ideas on his pupils. Irene Bonnett and Nancy Gotch remembered reading through the pencil sketches of Saturn at the piano: “The composer sat between us and talked about it now and again; he never spoke of it as his Cre- ation but more as if it were something that he happened to write down.” Holst finished composition in early 1916 with Mercury . The orchestration, which involved an enormous ensemble, took one additional year. The Planets received three partial performances of select movements before the official premiere of the entire score on November 15, 1920, at Town Street and Thaxted Church in Thaxted (early 1900s) St. Paul’s Girls’ School in London Queen’s Hall by the London Symphony Orches- tra under Albert Coates—an event Holst missed because of travel to the Middle East. Published reviews ran the gamut from magnanimous praise to outright condemnation. Neither critics nor advocates could alter the enormous popular appeal of The Planets . Mars, the Bringer of War . Leo’s horoscope, which Holst relied upon (although not without some modification) for characterizations of the planets, offers a very rich description of Mars. A heroic and triumphant figure “fond of liberty, freedom, and independence” emerges in place of the traditional warrior of classical mytholo- gy. Holst paraded his champion to a five-beat march rhythm and brassy fanfare. Venus, the Bringer of Peace. This portrayal of the “love goddess” stands in serene opposition to the opening movement. Holst seems to em- phasize her “keen appreciation of art and beauty, and … all the pleasure-loving inclinations” in this sensual piece. Mercury, the Winged Messenger. Born under this astrological sign, Holst took special care in composing this fleet, scherzo-like piece. Con- sidering that Leo described Mercury as “col- orless,” it seems ironic that Holst should create extraordinarily polychromatic music based on an unusual scale formation and kaleidoscopic instrumentation. Jupiter, the Bringer of Jollity. Leo ascribed to Jupiter attributes of cheer, hope, and nobility of spirit. Holst captured this essence most success- fully in his central melody, which developed a quasi-spiritual life outside the suite as the pa- triotic hymn tune, “I Vow to Thee, My Coun- try” (the tune is called Thaxted), familiar to the world at large as the late Princess Diana’s favor- ite hymn. Saturn, the Bringer of Old Age. Holst frequent- ly singled out Saturn as his favorite movement in The Planets . Many who knew the composer found this poignantly expressive piece more depictive of its creator than Mercury . Holst ex- plained to his pupil Dorothy Callard that “two very old men in black gowns [tolling bells at the Durham Cathedral], very slow and solemn” in- spired his own dirge-like pealing of bells. Uranus, the Magician. Countless observers have pointed out the resemblance between Uranus and Paul Dukas’s The Sorcerer’s Apprentice . Leo described the magician as “eccentric, strange, and bizarre,” attributes reinforced by Holst’s fan- tastical sequence of seemingly unrelated themes. Neptune, the Mystic. This “planet” revels in the ethereal quest for pure musical sonority (a tex- tless women’s chorus augments the orchestral group) in the tradition of Schoenberg’s Klang- farbenmelodie , or “sound-color melody.” Leo’s description might apply equally well to those who hear Holst’s music: “These persons should endeavor to live as purely as possible, so that they may sense a few of those vibrations that so rarely come to the ordinary human being.” AMANDA LEE FALKENBERG (b. 1976) THE MOONS Symphonic Suite Scored for two flutes, alto flute, and piccolo, two oboes and English horn, two clarinets and bass clarinet, two bassoons and contrabassoon, four horns, three trumpets, two tenor trombones and bass trombone, tuba, timpani, triangle, crash cymbals, suspended cymbal, large gong, medium gong, tambourine, wind chimes, ratchet, snare drum, bass drum, anvil, glockenspiel, crotales, xylophone, tubular bells, celesta, two harps, and strings Pianist and composer Amanda Falkenberg grew up in Barossa Valley—the renowned winemak- ing region of southern Australia—surrounded by music. She began taking piano lessons at age 2½, eventually aspiring to a career as a concert pianist. Falkenberg studied at the Elder Conser- vatorium of Music in Adelaide and, following graduation, earned a position as piano accom- panist with the Australian Ballet Company. One day, while playing standard repertoire during dance class, she had an epiphany: “I thought that I could offer some music that was a little bit more conducive to the exercises I was watching them do … a bit more of a flourish for that arm movement, say!” ( Creative & Co , March 4, 2017). Falkenberg began writing her own catalog of dance music, eventually compiling more than 120 pieces, which she recorded on the three-CD set Moving with Music . A composer was born! Falkenberg has continued to expand her com- positional catalog into orchestral works, dance pieces, chamber music scores, film soundtracks, and solo songs—always with an inclination to- ward storytelling, visuals, movement, and the natural world. “I see everything as a vibration and movement,” Falkenberg explained, “so that’s the way I work creatively.” Her interest in dance led to the creation of a full-length ballet for pia- no and orchestra, Edge of the World , Amanda Lee Falkenberg RAVINIA.ORG  • RAVINIAMAGAZINE 59 BENJAMINEALOVEGA(FALKENBERG)