A Concerto Grosso named Salmigondis - Ken Hesketh

Later this month the young musicians of Britten Sinfonia Academy will give the first performance of Concerto Salmigondis as part of At Lunch Five. Ahead of the premiere, we asked composer Ken Hesketh to share his experience of writing this work, which was also inspired by Handel manuscripts from the Fitzwilliam Museum, for the young ensemble...


Writing for a young group, without conductor, using the music or some aspect of George Frideric
Handel (to be found in the marvellous Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge) is not the type of
commission that comes across my work desk every day, or even every year. Don't get me wrong - it intrigued me and the unforeseen is certainly a good thing, at least musically. Thus, I accepted the commission.

My work is (far more often than not) rhythmically agile and turbulent, usually rapid in harmonic
change and generally quite tricky to pull off. I like it that way. However, I also like working with
younger players, especially those who have technical facility and musically open minds. The brief
necessarily challenged my usual way of working and so this particular commission became an enjoyable conundrum that needed to be solved and one that in doing so sharpened my lateral thinking skills. There are various approaches I could have pursued - graphic score, some form of aleatoricism, some sort of post-minimal knitting music (rhythmically repetitive to get around the no-conductor stipulation). The list of options could go on as you might imagine. However, the Handelian requirement of the brief gave me a clue as to how to proceed.

During the workshops with Britten Sinfonia Academy, led by the wonderful Rachel Byrt and
Christopher Suckling, I was able to indulge my early joy of the music of Handel, specifically from my years as a chorister and as a young school boy. One of my first Dover edition scores was the Concerti Grossi, Op. 6, or Twelve Grand Concertos, HWV 319–330, by Handel. The other was the complete Brandenburg Concerti. Both are now discoloured with age and show signs of early dog-earing. Being able to peruse the delicacies and riches of the Fitz Handeliana collection (thanks to Rachel Sinfield and Dr Suzanne Reynolds at the Fitzwilliam Museum for such access) was a real joy, particularly in the company of Rachel and Christopher. Seeing the young performers from BSA enjoying their exploration of the collection was a delight. The introduction by Dr. Suckling to various aspects of Handel's music, life and times really enthralled the young players and in the process suggested a way for me to combine aspects of the collection in my own new piece. Amid the manuscripts on display during the workshop was a carillon part from the final chorus of Part 1 of L'Allegro, il Penseroso ed il Moderato (an ode by Handel based on the poetry of John Milton) titled "Or let the merry bells ring round". In my correspondence with Dr. Suckling regarding the carillon part, he sent me the following rather splendid quotation from Charles Jennens to Lord Guernsey, 19 September 1738:

"Mr Handel’s head is more full of Maggots [an 18th century term for an earworm] than ever. I found yesterday in his room a very queer Instrument which He calls Carillon (Anglice a Bell,) and says some call it a Tubalcain, I suppose because it is both in the make and tone like a set of Hammers striking upon Anvils. ’Tis play’d upon with Keys like a Harpsichord, and with this Cyclopean Instrument he designs to make poor Saul stark mad."

Look up TubalCain in the bible (Genesis 4:22) by the way (and Jubalcain if you have a few minutes after that).

The carillon part itself seems to be transposed by a perfect fifth (it sounds in D, but is notated in G). I therefore chose to put a quotation from this part in G (though the surrounding texture of my work is anything but G, D or anything else). There is speculation, according to Dr. Suckling, that Handel's carillon "had thick bars to sound like [an] anvil with pitch higher than written notes (for metal bar free at both ends, thicker bar = higher pitch)".

The one extra-musical element present in my work comes from a painting, "The Charming Brute" - a caricature by the French engraver, painter and set designer Joseph Goupy of Handel (dated 1754) - which also resides at the Fitzwilliam museum and suggested the title for one of the movements of the Concerto. The story behind this painting is fascinating and there is a recounting of it in the Monthly Epitome and Catalogue of New Publications, Volume 2, Jan to Dec 1798 (reproduced below):

An interesting insight to Handel’s culinary generosity!

In order to bring these elements together I chose a musical form called the pasticcio (literally pasty in Italian); a musical work built from an adaptation of an existing work (or works). Handel worked with the pasticcio form throughout his life, for example in Muzio Scevola (1721) and Giove in Argo (1739). My work for BSA, Concerto Salmigondis, utilises this form. The word salmigondis is a synonym for pasticcio (salmigondis is a French word meaning a disparate assembly of things). Loosely based on the Concerto Grosso form, similar to those found in the Op. 6 concerti, it is in five sections - Intrada, Lento, Leggiero – The Charming Brute, Musette and Hop Jig. The antique titles and forms of the movements have been freely interpreted and, if one is frank, resulted in a neoclassicisation of my style for this particular work. The concept of the concertino and ripieno groups from the Concerto Grosso form is utilized (mostly formed of principle strings and harpsichord, but also, in the ‘Brute’ movement, of various groups of flutes, oboes and brass); the carillon part from the Fitz Handeliana collection also peeks through textures in various forms in the third movement. Four of the five movements are based on music written when I was about the age of the average BSA member (the 'Brute’ movement has no antecedent). The reworking of the originals includes extensions and recastings as well as the imposition of various episodes for the concertino groups on the extant materials’ formal arcs. This frequently meant taking the originals down very different compositional routes allowing me to have a great deal of fun in the process.

After hearing a rehearsal of the completed work for the first time with BSA I was convinced I had
fulfilled the brief. I had enjoyed doing so, and it was clear - wonderfully clear - that BSA really
enjoyed what I had written. When that happens it's a wonderful feeling as you might imagine. Being able to cut one’s musical cloth accordingly and to quickly commit to a project outside of the everyday was something Handel was pretty good at. I greatly enjoyed doing likewise, just for a moment, and in the process communicated, interacted and responded to the wider musical world in a way that usually evades me.

Ken Hesketh (composer)

Concerto Salmigondis will be performed by Britten Sinfonia Academy as part of At Lunch Five. Tickets are still available for both performances, in Norwich's St Andrew's Hall on Thursday 30 June, 1pm (tickets), and in Cambridge's West Road Concert Hall on Friday 1 July, 1pm (tickets). More information can also be found on our website.

Getting a handle on Handel...

On Sunday 6 December at 3pm, the young musicians of Britten Sinfonia Academy will be sharing the culmination of recent weekends' exploration of the music of Handel in collaboration with the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge. Through this course, Academy members have been joined by Handel and Early Music specialist Dr Christopher Suckling to explore the museum's unique collection of autographed scores by Handel. With a focus on composition and the realisation of a composer's wishes in performance, they have also been working with composer Kenneth Hesketh to develop their own miniatures from a series of unpublished fragments in the collection. Britten Sinfonia Academy clarinetist, Morgan Overton, shares his experience of their recent work...

On Sunday 29th November - amid hectic rehearsals and not-so-hectic sandwiches - we members of Britten Sinfonia Academy went for a little look inside the Fitzwilliam Museum's Founders' Library. This intriguing library, hidden behind high wooden double doors, is home to well over 10,000 volumes reflecting the varied interests of the Viscount FitzWilliam (whose will allowed the formation of the museum in the first place). Items of note include the Fitzwilliam Virginal Book (a compilation of Elizabethan and Jacobean keyboard music rare in scope and comprehensiveness but greatly important in the history of chamber music), as well as medieval and Renaissance illuminated manuscripts and tomes on history, natural sciences, philosophy and religion, travel and (naturally) music. However, what we were here to see was some Handel.

Morgan exploring the manuscripts at the Fitzwilliam Museum

Being our principal focus as an orchestra over these weeks, it was natural to want to see the Fitzwilliam's Handel selection. What we were not prepared for was how widely varied it all was. FitzWilliam was a close associate of Handel, and partook in many performances of his work, whether he was an instrumentalist or an organiser. Therefore, he managed to collect throughout his life several Handelian manuscripts, many of which are unique. These include entire collections of 'scrap paper' where Handel collected notes and melodic ideas, as well as 'words-only' manuscripts waiting for the music to be set to the words, as well as more conventional scores and reductions.

(c) Fitzwilliam Museum

However, what was remarkable to see, even on the performance parts, was how there was no extra marking, except those Handel or his copyists had put on the page that were originally on the score. In other words, the musicians performing knew every piece of articulation, every phrase length and every bit of dynamic shaping without any marking it on the scores. However, beside the more musicological aspect of viewing the manuscripts, it was just extraordinary to be so close to such rare old documents - it was overwhelming, and the excitement doubled when we also were able to view handwritten manuscripts of Bach. It was truly an extraordinary experience, and one none of us in the orchestra will forget for a very long time.

Morgan Overton (Clarinet, Britten Sinfonia Academy 2015-16)

You can join Britten Sinfonia Academy for their performance on Sunday 6 December 2015 at 3pm in Gallery Three of the Fitzwilliam Museum. The Academy members will perform extracts from Handel's Messiah and Acis and Galatea with introductions from Dr Suckling and Kenneth Hesketh. Manuscripts from the collection will also be on display for members of the audience to view.

A Museum, A Composer and Britten Sinfonia Academy

On the 12^thand 13^th October 2013, the Britten Sinfonia Academy took part in a weekend’s residency at the Fitzwilliam Museum,Cambridge. Working for the first time amongst the museum’s artefacts, we embarked on the very first stages of our creative collaboration with composer Philip Cashian, who will be writing a piece for the Academy to perform in the coming year. Working upstairs in the museum’s twentieth century gallery, amidst works by artists including Picasso, Nicholson, Sutherland, Moore and Hepworth, we spent the weekend composing and improvising musical responses to the artworks around us, with the museum visitors invited to observe our work in progress. 

Philip began by showing us three of the artefacts that had initially inspired him: a Graham Sutherland painting, a Ben Nicholson relief, and an ornate astronomical clock from another of the galleries. Dividing into small ensembles, we each chose one of the three, and began to develop short pieces inspired by the work. Aside from some small visual ‘doodles’ created earlier by Philip, we had a virtually blank canvas, and it was fascinating to see how each ensemble approached the task, with some starting with a chord or texture, and others working from a particular motif or melody. Beginning in this way really helped to broaden our minds to the different ways of linking art to music, and the proof was in the sheer variety of responses that emerged. It was especially interesting comparing the ideas of ensembles that had worked on the same artefact, but had come up with utterly different interpretations: in the case of the clock, for example, there was a definite duality between the florid, feminine aesthetics of the exterior echoed in the melodies of one group, and the more abstract concept of time and machinery that dominated the work of other groups. Using these first pieces of composition, Philip then selected individuals to walk around the gallery and conduct an improvised ‘piece’, bringing groups in as they wished. The conductor had total power over the shape of the piece, experimenting with different layers and combinations, and dictating the dynamics and atmosphere of the piece. At the same time, however, the elements of chance and spontaneity led both to moments of cacophony and glimpses of unexpected magic, as whole new ideas were uncovered with the merging of different compositions. This was great fuel for another day of composition - this time taking inspiration from any painting, sculpture or object in the gallery. It was amazing to see the change that had taken place since the previous day. For some, the combination of art and music had felt more natural, whilst for others it had clearly been a stretch outside of their comfort zone, but by the end of the weekend it felt as though everyone was putting forward their own personal responses to the works and the resulting pieces were a giant step up from the previous day.

Working in the environment of so many incredible artworks was such a wonderful and rare experience, and we all left feeling buoyant and inspired. It was lovely to get to know Philip, and we all look forward to hearing his first ideas in the spring.

Eliza Spindel (violin)
Britten Sinfonia Academy Member

Find out more about Britten Sinfonia Academy here
Deatils of the concerts featuring Britten Sinfonia Academy and Philip Cahsian's new work can be found here

Britten Sinfonia Academy - Fitzwilliam Museum residency

 

Last weekend, Britten Sinfonia Academy performed as part of the Fitzwilliam Museum’s Sunday concert series.  Britten Sinfonia Academy is a new ensemble giving young classical musicians from the East of England an opportunity learn and develop their chamber skills alongside some of the UKs top chamber musicians. In addition to performing at the Fitzwilliam, the ensemble were resident in the museum for the weekend, giving more time for the young musicians to explore the museum and to explore the context and relevance of its artifacts to their music.

Britten Sinfonia Academy member, Andrew reports on the weekend:

"Last weekend Britten Sinfonia Academy made their way to the Fitzwilliam Museum for rehearsals, which culminated in a concert on Sunday afternoon. On arrival on Saturday morning, we started to rehearse some small ensemble work in the grand spaces available to us in the museum. We ran through and refined previously rehearsed works during the morning, and progress was greatly enhanced by the discovery of the kettle midway through the morning! We worked especially on Stravinsky’s Suites for Small Orchestra throughout the day, for which we came together as a large ensemble.

 

In the afternoon we were guided on two tours around the museum, in which we studied paintings from the time of the composers of our works, to give us context on the music that we were preparing to perform. I think everyone found that this helped us to find character in our pieces, and I was surprised at how much that I learnt on these tours.

 

 

After battling through hoards of keen participants in the Cambridge Half Marathon on Sunday morning, rehearsals commenced with final tweaks being added to our performances. We made the long trek upstairs to the gallery where we were to perform with our instruments in the early afternoon, after eating far too much cake in our break beforehand! The hall was full for our performance, with spectators even gathering at the back of the hall to get a glimpse of the chamber music that we were presenting. Everyone really enjoyed performing in the concert, and felt that all of the pieces ran smoothly. The concert ended with an arrangement of Piazzolla’s Oblivion, which was rehearsed and performed solely by members of the Academy."

To find out more about Britten Sinfonia Academy click here