Byzantion (βυζάντιο)
A cycle of works referencing the Byzantine Empire, the poems of W.B. Yeats & historic Orthodox chant
for English Horn, Bassoon & Piano, in varying combinations
Following on from Byzantion I - Hagia Sophia (EH, Bsn & Pf) come...
A cycle of works referencing the Byzantine Empire, the poems of W.B. Yeats & historic Orthodox chant
for English Horn, Bassoon & Piano, in varying combinations
Following on from Byzantion I - Hagia Sophia (EH, Bsn & Pf) come...
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BYZANTION II
Through Space and Time for Bassoon* & Piano World Premiere Tuesday 23 July 2024 at 1015 Kitt Recital Hall, NAU 53rd IDRS Conference, Flagstaff, Arizona, USA Conor Bell, Bassoon Tiantian Liang, Piano |
"O sages standing in God's holy fire
As in the gold mosaic of a wall, Come from the holy fire, perne in a gyre, And be the singing-masters of my soul." "Sailing to Byzantium" by W.B. Yeats (1927) Work is Now Complete Duration: 5' 30" *or Baritone Sax/Cello |
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BYZANTION III
δελφίνια (Dolphins) for English Horn** & Piano World Premiere TBA (2024-2025) Kathleen Carter Bell, EH; TBA, Piano Expected Final Duration: 4-6 mins **or Tenor Sax/Viola |
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"Astraddle on the dolphin's mire and blood, Spirit after spirit! The smithies break the flood, The golden smithies of the Emperor!...That dolphin-torn, that gong-tormented sea."
Introducing Byzantion
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Byzantion I - Hagia Sophia (2022): for English Horn, Bassoon & Piano
(IDRS 50-for-50 Commissioning Grant Winner, 2022) COMPLETED (see video below) Byzantion II - Through Space and Time (2024): Bassoon & Piano COMPLETED STILL TO COME: Byzantion - Interlude: Solo Piano (TBC) Byzantion III (2025) - EH & Pf Byzantion IV (2025 or 2026) - EH, Bsn & Pf |
Understanding Byzantion (βυζάντιο)
The Byzantion concept brings together three distinct, but related, things: the history and aesthetics of the Byzantine Empire, represented by the Emperor Justinian - builder of Hagia Sophia and immortalised in the mosaics of Ravenna, Italy; ancient Greek Orthodox chant; and three poems by William Butler Yeats, namely Sailing to Byzantium (1927); Byzantium (1933); and The Second Coming (1919).
These three major themes are being combined in both obvious and subtle ways, to create a new cycle of pieces for the instruments which form the double-reed piano trio. These pieces can either be performed in their entirety (once the cycle is complete), on their own, or in varying combinations.
For example, in Byzantion I - Hagia Sophia, 12th-century chant from the holy island of Patmos forms the departure point of the piece. Once the chant and ison are performed by the trio, my music takes over, and the piece develops from there, before concluding with my answer to the original chant. The structure of the piece is identical to Yeats' structuring of Sailing to Byzantium. The second frame of Hagia Sophia, immediately after the initial chant, moves into the musical equivalent of iambic pentameter in ottava rima. The time signature is 5/4 (10 quavers or eighth-notes per bar - i.e. iambic pentameter), and there are four central frames (sections) of eight bars, representing the four eight-line stanzas of the poem. The final section is a coda.
The focal point of the piece is the Hagia Sophia - once the world's largest church - and founded by Byzantine emperor Justinian in the 6th century AD. Hagia Sophia was the jewel in the crown of the Byzantine Empire, and the centre of Orthodox worship.
Byzantion II - Through Space and Time focuses on two verses from Sailing to Byzantium which feature in the video, above, of Hagia Sophia.
Byzantion II is intentionally written as a recital piece for Bassoon & Piano, in order that performers can still participate in the cycle, should a third player not be available. Byzantion III will also be a recital piece, for the same reason - but for English Horn & Piano, in this case.
Byzantion IV, the concluding part of the cycle, will bring all three instruments back together, once again.
These three major themes are being combined in both obvious and subtle ways, to create a new cycle of pieces for the instruments which form the double-reed piano trio. These pieces can either be performed in their entirety (once the cycle is complete), on their own, or in varying combinations.
For example, in Byzantion I - Hagia Sophia, 12th-century chant from the holy island of Patmos forms the departure point of the piece. Once the chant and ison are performed by the trio, my music takes over, and the piece develops from there, before concluding with my answer to the original chant. The structure of the piece is identical to Yeats' structuring of Sailing to Byzantium. The second frame of Hagia Sophia, immediately after the initial chant, moves into the musical equivalent of iambic pentameter in ottava rima. The time signature is 5/4 (10 quavers or eighth-notes per bar - i.e. iambic pentameter), and there are four central frames (sections) of eight bars, representing the four eight-line stanzas of the poem. The final section is a coda.
The focal point of the piece is the Hagia Sophia - once the world's largest church - and founded by Byzantine emperor Justinian in the 6th century AD. Hagia Sophia was the jewel in the crown of the Byzantine Empire, and the centre of Orthodox worship.
Byzantion II - Through Space and Time focuses on two verses from Sailing to Byzantium which feature in the video, above, of Hagia Sophia.
Byzantion II is intentionally written as a recital piece for Bassoon & Piano, in order that performers can still participate in the cycle, should a third player not be available. Byzantion III will also be a recital piece, for the same reason - but for English Horn & Piano, in this case.
Byzantion IV, the concluding part of the cycle, will bring all three instruments back together, once again.
