music

Spohr’s Seventh Symphony

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Spohr’s late symphonies, the Seventh through the Ninth (or the Tenth, counting the one which he withdrew but didn’t destroy), don’t have the appeal to me of the earlier ones. Still, a complete understanding of his music needs to include these symphonies, and they have some interesting features.

The Seventh, written in 1841, follows an unusual plan. The title is “Irdisches und Göttliches im Menschenleben: Doppel-Symphonie für zwei Orchester” (earthly and godly in human life: double symphony for two orchestras). It’s a kind of concerto grosso, with a small orchestra and a full orchestra. There are three movements, each with its own title.
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Spohr’s Des Heilands letzte Stunden

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A new release of Spohr’s oratorio, Des Heilands letzte Stunden (the Savior’s last hours), is out from Carus-Verlag. The solo singers are Florian Sievers, Johanna Winkel, Maximilian Vogler, Arttu Kataja, Thomas E. Bauer, Felix Rathgeber, and Magnus Piontek. The chorus is the Kammerchor Stuttgart, and the orchestra the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen. It covers the same ground as Bach’s Passions, from Judas’s betrayal of Jesus to his crucifixion. A booklet in English and German contains Johann Friedrich Rochlitz’ full text with a loose translation, as well as detailed notes.

This oratorio came after Die letzten Dinge, also with text by Rochlitz. It premiered in Kassel in 1835. The earlier oratorio is a disaster movie in music. This is a more introspective work. Unlike Bach’s Passions, this “passion oratorio” tells the story primarily from the perspective of Jesus’s followers. The numbers are mostly dedicated to showing their reactions to his capture, trial, and crucifixion. Bach tells the story from a cosmic perspective; Spohr’s oratorio gets very close to the people portrayed. Even Judas is somewhat sympathetic as he expresses his terror over the situation he’s gotten himself into.
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Stan Laurel in Dr. Pyckle and Mr. Pryde

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Stan Laurel was a well-known silent film actor before he teamed up with Oliver Hardy. I’ve uploaded his 1925 film, Dr. Pyckle and Mr. Pryde, to YouTube with my accompaniment. The two-reel comedy plays off two earlier Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde films, both released in 1920. In this version, Laurel’s character turns into a prankster rather than a real menace. He escapes from the angry crowd by returning to Jekyll’s lab and drinking the reversing potion, but his supply is limited.
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The Mark of Zorro with Douglas Fairbanks 2

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My latest silent film upload with my accompaniment is the 1920 The Mark of Zorro, starring Douglas Fairbanks. It’s one of the most libertarian films of the silent era, presenting a masked hero who fights against oppressive rulers in Spanish California. He wears a mask, appears when he is most needed, and has a secret identity as a rich but timid caballero. It’s obvious that he was part of the inspiration for Batman. The film was Fairbanks’ first role starring as an action hero.

As usual, the accompaniment is my improvised music, played on a Roland EX-50. For this movie, I wanted to sound a bit Mexican, so I did some research. It led to a wonderful discovery: the Spanish scale, which oddly enough is also the Jewish scale. The common source is the Sephardi Jews of the Middle Ages. I started noodling in that scale and, olé! It’s a tricky scale to use when creating harmonies; there’s no proper dominant chord. With some practice, I was able to weave between major, minor, and Spanish modes. Also, I tried to sound like a guitar in some scenes, as if I were a storyteller accompanying myself.
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