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Yesterday we discussed the need for new composers if there is to be any hope for a revival of interest in classical music. But, where I want to spin off is when we discussed the need for nationalism and patriotism in our classical music. Yesterday we touched on what Mark O'Connor is doing to create and record his own "Americana" and "Appalachian" music. But today I'd like to talk about the rising need for American performers to program American composers, and new American composers and new American music in their performances and recordings. So, today I would like to highlight a recording that focuses solely on American music, and includes some new music. This album is performed excellently by virtuosic pianist Joel Fan and is entitled West of the Sun: Music of the Americas.
Though the first, third, and fourth pieces are South American pieces by Nazareth and Ginastera, the rest of the entire album consists of North American composers. The first American composer is Louis Moreau Gottschalk, who is somewhat of a stretch as an "American" composer since he spent most of his life outside of the country, but Fan makes up for that stretch when he plays "Fire-flies, Op. 15 #4 by pure American Amy Marcy Cheney Beach. Beach embodies much of the American spirit that we should embrace more today. Though her romanticsm during the rise of modernist music helped to give American music that dirty label "effiminate," today we should begin looking beyond those sexist bonds of music and embrace the fact that during a period when women composers were so looked down upon, she was able to rise above and succeed.
Another female composer that we should take great national pride in is the African-American composer, Margaret Bonds. Not only did she have to overcome the fact that she was a woman in her quest for recognition, she also had to battle against the racial barriers to her education and performance opportunities, and yet she succeeded. Bonds is the type of composer that should be widely celebrated, and yet is little known. It takes recordings such as West of the Sun to introduce most listeners to these composers.
Another great programming piece on this album is Samuel Barber's Piano Sonata, Op. 26. Barber is a great choice for the album because he embodies great "modern" music that is listenable to many average listeners. His pieces are accessible, yet stood up to the other composers of his day. Barber should become a newly revived composer of pride for America, and is one that is being programmed more and more, but still not enough.
The one problem with trying to program these composers in order to reinvigorate national pride in American classical music is that these composers still fall under the stereotypical "dead composer" category that turns the younger generations off from classical music. However, Fan answers this problem with the William Bolcom piece Nine New Bagatelles written in 2006 (yes this is a different work than "Nine Bagatelles" written in 1996). This piece is so necessary because it gives audiences exposure to a living American composer. If classical music is to get out from under the stigma of old, stale, and "boring," then it is going to take something new!
American classical music performers should be following in Fan's footsteps and recording more and more new American music (or at least under-recorded compositions).
That's all for now...More tomorrow
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