Aphorisms on "B-A-C-H" for percussion solo and strings (op. 105, 2000)
I. Prolog, II. Burleske, III. Rezitativ und Choral, IV. Intermezzo, V. Coda
Strings and percussion instruments: vibraphone, marimba, 4 tubular bells, snare drum, military drum, 2 bongos, 2 tom-toms, bass drum, log drum, large African slit drum, 5 temple blocks, 4 cymbals, studded cymbal, glissando gong, gong, tam-tam, chimes (met.), triangle, 4 cowbells, vibraslap, whistle, 4 b-a-c-h tuned whistles
Duration: 18 minutes
Henning Kirsch | Hamburger Camerata | Max Pommer
Mell D. Csicsila | Trinity Chamber Orchestra | Daniel Hathaway
Title: Aphorisms on B-A-C-H for percussion and strings op. 105 composed for the Hamburg Camerata
Length: 25 pages
Dated: I. 7.4.2000 II. 2.Aug.00 III. 8.5.2000 IV. 6.8.2000 V. 21.5.2000
Location: Bavarian State Library Munich
Vogt & Fritz VF 1309 ISMN-M 2026-1955-1
Hummel's "Aphorisms on B-A-C-H" for percussion and strings, op. 105, was characterised by precisely this cleverness, this subtle, subtle humour, but also by its superiority and independence in dealing with sounds and rhythms.
This five-part work, which was heard for the first time in Würzburg, is a delight with its impressive images and formulae. In the prologue, four tubular bells coordinated with the magical letters introduce a dazzling, colourful percussion spell created by M. J. Pina-Arasa, which often competes teasingly with the strings. In the Burleske, this fabulation, this amusing tossing around of the four letters is "literally whistled off" to make way for the contemplative dialogue of the chorale "O Haupt voll Blut und Wunden" with B-A-C-H variations
In the fourth movement, the first minuet from Anna Magdalena Bach's little book of music haunts the play with the four notes, which fades away quietly in the last movement. Huge applause for an evening in which one could feel blessed, bravos for the phenomenal soloist.
The "Aphorisms on B-A-C-H", a performance piece by Bertold Hummel, had everyone completely enthralled. Percussionist Henning Kirsch in particular made the hall go wild with his performance, which was well worth hearing and seeing. The applause was never-ending.
"Like Hummel's Percussion Concerto op. 70, the piece could become a popular addition to the repertoire, as it makes attractive use of the possibilities of the metal, wood and skin instruments." "The player is technically challenged, the listener is first-class entertained..."
The "Aphorisms on B-A-C-H" for percussion solo and strings op. 105 were commissioned by the Hamburg Camerata in 2000.
The tone sequence B-A-C-H is omnipresent in 5 movements (in basic form, inversion, retrograde and retrograde inversion, as well as their transpositions).
1. four tubular bells (B-A-C-H), commented on by metal and wood sounds, open the prologue; the "theme", introduced by marimba and violins, subsequently undergoes a number of metamorphoses until, towards the end, the four tubular bells signal the conclusion of this movement, which fades away in extreme pianissimo.
2. The Burleske transfers the 'theme' gesturally to woodwind and fur instruments in a turbulent dialogue with the strings, which also function partly as percussion instruments. The grotesque play is literally whistled off.
3. in the 3rd movement (recitative and chorale), the chorale "O Haupt voll Blut und Wunden", performed by the strings, is in tension with the recitatives of the percussion, which are derived from the B-A-C-B material.
4. the intermezzo brings the 1st minuet from Anna Magdalena Bach's music booklet as a kind of picture puzzle, as a reminder of my first encounter with Bach's music, embedded in many variations of the main theme.
5. The coda is dominated by a velvety marimba and string sound. A short passacaglia leads into a 12-part chord, in whose finale the tubular bells once again resonate with the B-A-C-B motif. Very quiet ending with an almost imperceptible string glissando.
Bertold Hummel
Although countless composers have already used the B-A-C-H motif, the Würzburg composer Bertold Hummel has succeeded in making it appear unused in his latest work "Aphorisms" for percussion solo and string orchestra.
The composition opens with a prologue. In the first few bars, the soloist sets the mood for the following development of the theme with tubular bells, cymbals, gongs, slit drums, temple blocks, wind chimes and vibraphone. This then appears in long notes played by the marimba, violins and double basses, but overlaid by pizzicato whole tone layers from the other instruments, before undergoing a wide variety of rhythmic and tonal changes. The violas and cellos are divided once, the violins eight times.
The lively burlesque is introduced by tremolo chords and is then characterised by a lively interplay between soloist and orchestra. As a humorous gag, Hummel has the theme played by four tuned whistles distributed around the room at the end of the movement.
The third movement (recitative and chorale) is based on the Bach chorale "O Haupt voll Blut und Wunden". The vibraphone, enriched in colour by tam-tam, triangle wood drum, glissando gong and various cymbals, takes on the role of reciter.
The lively intermezzo is dominated by temple blocks, various drums and vibraphone.
The calm coda begins again with the four-note motif in four-part chordal writing tremoloed on the marimba. Otherwise, only metal sounds are used in the solo part, which emphasise the motivic development of the string orchestra. The piece ends with superimposed triads in H major and A major, to which C major and B major are added by the strings' final glissando.
The seventeen-minute work represents a distinctive enrichment of the literature for percussion soloists and was already a great success with the public at the Hamburg premiere in November 2000 with Henning Kirsch as soloist.
It is published by the Schweinfurt music publishers Vogt and Fritz and is available as a complete set for approx. 50 euros.
(From the catalogue of the music publisher Vogt & Fritz)