Siebengesang (1966-67) is an oboe concerto that voices Trakls Siebengesang des Todes (Dead Mans Seven-Song) through seven sections that correspond to the seven stanzas of the poem. In the first three sections the oboe is pitched against various groups: a septet of violins (first section, playing harmonics); a concertino of harps and keyed instruments, whose brilliant, luminous figures answer the poems nocturnal imagery; a low ensemble of cellos, basses and bass clarinets (third section). With the entry of violins and piccolos, the third section comes to a climax, after which the soloist is left with five violas, conveying him into the fourth sections middle-register quintet, where his partners are alto flute, English horn, horn and viola. He then has some rest during the fifth section, a crescendo of orchestral groups that finally brings on new ones - percussion and brass - while all the time gongs have been counting out 23 five-second units. At the conclusion of this the soloist emerges with a new voice, amplified, moving on to special effects and electronically modified sounds, which call up new kinds of foil and imitation from instrumental groupings. Once more the music rises towards a tumultuous climax, and once more it engenders a new voice: that of a choir of seven women, seven sirens, singing the last five lines of the poem in a slow finale with bass chime bars, the solo oboe and the concertino. --Paul Griffiths
Posted on: Sat, 02 Aug 2014 15:06:22 +0000
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