Saint Joseph’s Arts Society 4/7/23: Show Notes & Gallery
WOW… What a show!!
Thank you for supporting Mercury Soul by attending this SOLD OUT event.
We hope you enjoyed hearing meditative & hypnotic music from over a millennium of history resonate throughout the stunning cathedral space, while awe-inspring visuals flashed across its gorgeous architecture.
And hopefully, you stayed late and joined the dance party on the stage!
What Did I hear?
• Our oldest piece was written a thousand years ago by Hildegard von Bingham, a Benedictine abbess and polymath active as a writer, composer, and philosopher of the High Middle Ages. Among her many achievements, she is considered to be the founder of scientific natural history in Germany.
• Our newest piece was composed by Mason Bates for his opera The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs, which is coming to SF Opera this fall. The aria “Look Up, Look Out” was performed by SF Opera Adler fellow Nikola Printz.
John Cage (1912-1992)
In a Landscape
Composed in 1948, John Cage’s minimalist solo piano work In A Landscape was composed with the idea that the purpose of the music was “to sober and quiet the mind, thus rendering it susceptible to divine influences.” It was written during a time where Cage was incredibly interested in the music of Erik Satie, in particular his ‘furniture music.’ Composed as an homage to Satie, the work is a cycle of patterns that open doors into reflection, peacefulness and sonority.
Antonio Lotti (1667-1740)
Crucifixus
Lotti was an Italian composer of the Baroque era, serving as cappellmeister of St Mark’s Basilica in Venice at the height of the city’s reign as a leading port city. Beginning as an alto singer, Lotti ascended the ranks: assistant to the second organist, second organist, first organist, and finally maestro di cappella. Much of Lotti’s music was written for the Basilica of San Marco in Venice at a time when expense and extravagance were not spared, and it is at the cutting edge of the galant style that prefigures the Classical era.
Philip Glass (1937—)
Glassworks: Opening
Glassworks, released in 1982, was Glass’ first attempt to introduce his music to a more general audience following his large-scale concert and stage works. It includes both solo piano and ensemble pieces, and it was one of his few albums not intended for theatrical performance. It was deliberately created to be “Walkman-suitable,” with short accessible pieces written for the recording studio. The LP and cassette releases add had their own separate mixes: the record album intended for home listening and the tape for personal cassette players.
Carlo Gesualdo (1566-1613)
O Vos Omnes
The curious life of the 16th Century composer Gesualdo mirrors his highly idiosyncratic harmonies. As a composer he is known for writing madrigals and pieces of sacred music that use a chromatic language not heard again until the late 19th century. He is also known for killing his first wife and her aristocratic lover upon finding them in flagrante delicto. About a year after the gruesome end of his first marriage, Gesualdo’s father died and he thus became the third Prince of Venosa and eighth Count of Conza.
(Gesualdo’s castle)
Apex Twin (1971—)
Rhubarb
Richard David James, best known as Aphex Twin, is an Irish-born composer and DJ. Known for his idiosyncratic work in electronic styles such as techno, ambient, and jungle, he has been called one of the most influential artists in contemporary electronic music. The debut album Selected Ambient Works is often cited as one of the seminal contributions to the ambient music genre.