created: 19-01-2011

update: 31-01-2011

UNDER CONSTRUCTION

Click the picture to hear this Metzler organ. Aarnoud de Groen, performing his composition Psalm 75 Geneva Psalter.

TWENTY HARMONIUMS IN CONCERT

Visited Saterday 15 january 2011 [Arie Schüller, Willem van Tuijl, Frans van der Grijn & partners]

Test Extra Program is part of 'Het Nutshuis'

HET NUTSHUIS DEN HAAG: TEST EXTRA PROGRAM

Test Extra is a program of six events per year, four sound, space and experiment. In this program composers, performance artists and other creative spirits produce and demonstrate their latest performance experiments.
The focus of Test Extra Program is to develop interaction within a generation of young artists, meant to be an inspiration for the city of The Hague.

TEST EXTRA PROGRAM SATURDAY 15 JANUARY 2011: 20 HARMONIUMS +

The standard procedure for a Test Extra program is to find and explore every nook and cranny of the "Het Nutshuis" building.  Due to the vast amount of performers and also due to celebrating the New Year, this edition of Test Extra Progam is housed in the vast, enormous space of "De Grote Kerk" opposite of the Nutshuis building.

CURIOUS UNAWARENESS

The promotion for Test Extra Program was through the website of "Nutshuis". 
And referring to the 20 harmoniums it said:

This unawareness was taken to the concert/performance too. It was embarrassing to see that on each and every reed organ (all of them being of the suction type) ALL STOPS were pulled. Some of them left out the Vox Humana. Hence dismissing the tonal resources of reed organs.

ALL STOPS PULLED

Pulling ALL the stops does not seem to be 'using all resources' to those familiar with reed organs. As an example I will show the stoplist of one of the reed organs in the concert. This one happens to be an Estey, Grand Salon Organ Style 910, as shown in the 1886 catalog as printed in: Robert B. Whiting, Estey Reed Organs on Parade, page 44. It seems obvious this one is in a 'new case' as was done many times in the post World War II era. See pictures below, original case design next to the present 'design'.
Bass	Treble
Sub-Bass 16' Melodia 8' Gamba 8' Violetta 4' Cornettino 2' Cornet Echo 2' Harp AEolian 2' Basset 16' Bassoon 16' Forte II (Bass) Kneeswell Bass (Left) Grand Organ (pedal)	Clarionet 16' Bourdon 16' Royal Jubilante 16' Diapason 8' Dulciana 8' Hautboy 8' Flute 4' Barytone 32' Sub-Bourdon 32' Waldflute 2' (named Cornettino on this one) Forte I (treble) Kneeswell Treble (right) Harmonique (octave coupler upwards) Vox Humana (treble)
Original case design ca. 1880-1890	Present case in concert

EIGHT COMPOSITIONS BY 8 COMPOSERS

Eight composers have written eight compositions for 20 harmoniums. Performed as a spatial installation in the vast and reverberant Grote Kerk of The Hague as in a acoustic landscape.

THE PROGRAM AND PROGRAM NOTES

1. INTRO

Francesco Tarréga - Valse in A | Played on the church's towerbells by Henk Lemckert. We refer to towerbells as "Carrillon"

2. 20 HARMONIUMS

Ingi Gardar | Ingi Gardar Erlendsson was born in Keflavík, Iceland. He has one wife, Vala. One daughter, Ísold Anna. One son, Frosti Pétur.

3. Ingi Gardar | PSALMFIETS

Psalmfiets is a reference to other nicknames for the reed organ as we know, like:  Psalmenpomp; Halleluja Sirene; Cirkelzaag des Geloofs. [ Or to English spoken people: pumporgan, and other nicknames you know, please e-mail me these :-)

4. PUMP THE HARMONIUM

A 6 peace composition by Teodora Stepancic. The parts:

1. Pump my harmonium
2. _
3. Spiral Song
4. (gradus)
5. Song
6. Pump my harmonium

During this composition video was shown featuring parts of the Serbian movie Davitelj protiv davitelja.
Here part 1 was performed.

5. EUPHONIUM CONCERTO | Corné Roos

6. _

by Teodora Stepancic  | Part 2:  _  as mentioned at 3. Pump the Harmonium

7. MAN OF THE YEAR | Graham Flett

With more than 500 million people participating in his seemingly benign data-mining scheme, this man should be welcomed in our ranks.  Having provided so manyu of us with the delights of anonymous voyeurism, narcissist affirmation and even more continual distractions, his work should be seen as a testament, whether he knows it or not, to the new world we desire.

8. SPIRAL SONG | Teodora Stepancic

Part 3 of the composition mentioned at 3. Pump the Harmonium

9. FOR JOHN LELY | Taylan Susan

"Rede daß ich Dich sehe! - Dieser Wunsch wurde durch die Schöpfung erfüllt, die eine Rede an die Kreatur ist; denn ein Tag sagts dem andern, und eine Nacht thuts kund der andern. Ihre Losung läuft über jedes Klima bis an der Welt Ende und in jeder Mundart hört man ihre Stimme" [Johann Georg Hamann]

"Speak that I may see thee! This wish was fulfilled in the creation, which is a speaking to the creature through the creature; for day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth knowledge. There line is gone out through all the earth to the end of the world, and there is no speech or language, where their voice is not heard" [ Ronald Gregor Smith, translation].

Sound, like all percepts, is part of the divine speech to creation, through creation. It is the role of the musician to reveal this sounding of the world. In making music, we prepare a place for the divine to humbly condescend into the world.
Rather than being an announcement, I believe that this revelation is a form of sharing (delen versus mededelen).  What is shared is an intimate enigma in which the listener know he or she is meant - Antoine Beuger reminds us of the etymologic relation between 'meinen' [to mean] and 'minnen' [ to love]. This is that precarious mystery, which we must approach as heedfully but filled with expectation as we approach our lover.
This piece is dedicated to John Lely, experimental composer and friend.

10. GRADUS | Teodora Stepancic

Part 4 of item 3.

11. LINING HYMN AND PRAYER|Hollas Longton

Lining Hymn and prayer. The piece is a kind of response to church music and specifically the kind of crazy heterophony found in some of the religious music found in rural Appalachia. Most of the melodies are very similar to another, but each is its own personality, and it's own person.  The result is something between an unison and a canon, underpinned with some organchords.
[ This is the piece where we noticed the hymn "Was Gott tut daß ist wohlgetan" with some reference to Franz Liszt's "Weinen, Klagen, Sorgen, Zagen". fvdg]

12. SONG | Teodora Stepancic

Part 5 of item 3.

13. HARMONIUM FIELD | Jeremiah Runnels

14. PUMP MY HARMONIUM  | Teodora Stepancic

Part 6 of item 3.
This is the part where the players all went down on their knees, pumping the harmoniums by hand, and playing an arpeggio like scales over the whole of the keyboard.

15. LAYER 0.1 AND LAYER 0.5 | Grzegorz Marciniak

This work is a collaboration: Grzegorz Marciniak, Tom Aldrich, Lev Kazachenko, Veniamin Kazachenko, & Nare Eloyan.
The piece is based on a poem "General Wojciech Jaruzelski" by Melchior Kosodrzewina.
The painting was made by Veniamin Kazachenko.

The composers...