Lori Laitman

Komponist

Lori Laitman

Texter

Thomas Lux

Verleger

Enchanted Knickers Music

Genre

Klassische Musik / Lied

Instrumentierung

Klavier, Bariton

Partitur für

Solo, Klavierbegleitung

Art der Partitur

Klavierauszug mit Singstimmen

Länge

11'0"

Sprache

Englisch

Schwierigkeitsgrad

Schwer

Jahr der Komposition

2000

Beschreibung
My daughter Diana introduced me to the work of Thomas Lux, one of her favorite poets. When I first read Men with Small Heads I thought the text might be impossible to set to music. However, as I delved further into Mr. Lux's poems I came to appreciate their incredible structure, and my imagination ran wild. Several musical motifs dominate and unify Men with Small Heads. (The piano quotation of America The Beautiful at the end is intentional.) Refrigerator, 1957 is a musical fantasy. Reminiscent of French songs, the opening veers into a 3/4 section as the subject, "maraschino cherries," is introduced. Humorous tidbits (including a nod to Italian opera with the phrase “glob of ice cream”) lead to a lyrical and touching close. Imitation figures prominently in A Small Tin Parrot Pin as the piano punctuates the singer's offbeat observations. Snake Lake uses hissing to emphasize the recurring "s" sound in the poem. The "squiggly" musical figures employed in both voice and piano symbolize swimming and water, and the accented notes are meant to portray the lurking danger — and sting — of a snake bite.
You can see a performance by baritone Andrew Garland and pianist Donna Loewy at these links:
1) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NZopW2nT6d8
2) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A_YvC2_JgUs
3) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xxkf9ju4JcI
4) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9rZ6OVPlWaE

Datum des Uploads

14.04.2020