harmonics – Eline Groslot

21st century · composers · Concert · glissando · Gordon · harmonics · Harp · Music · Orchestra · pedals · Stories

Eolian (5)

Once the score (that’s the full orchestral part, so no separate solo part yet) of the first and second movements was in my possession, it was itching to start studying quickly. During these first readings, a lot of questions came up about notation, playability, printing errors, etc.

3.7.2022

‘Good morning Eline!

I am so glad you are enjoying working on the concerto! Here are my replies to your questions about the first movement:

bar 64: is the gliss in c major? YES

bar 70: can I play one octave lower? it gives a better buzzing result. YES – DEFINITELY!

bar 106 and 176: for the left hand this is too high to play a double flageolet, can I play it one octave lower? YES, OF COURSE…

bar 114: is it correct that first group is all natural tones?

NO! Those should not be marked that way! This is a flaw in the Finale software! Those are repetitions of the previous measure – so F is sharp and B and E are flat! Thank you for catching that! I have attached a screenshot of that measure as it should be!

And for the blog – well, this is a continual issue, isn’t it! I keep track through various notations I make on a legal pad I keep near me at all times! I scribble down each measure, in a D-C-B/E-F-G-A pattern, so that whenever I need to make a change, I know where I am. But this is one of the great challenges of writing for the harp!

Enjoy your Sunday and let me know what questions you have on the other movements (as soon as I have your parts ready!)

Best, Geoffrey ‘

6.7.2022

‘Dear Eline…

Here is your solo part from the third movement! So we are at the finish line! Please have a look and a listen and let me know your thoughts ….!’

The finish line? Euh…. I have yet to master the whole concerto! 🙂 Besides, I’m about to leave on holiday. That was a bit of a difficult moment, leaving harp and score behind when you actually want to dive into that piece, time is running out after all, about 100 days left and it has to be on stage!

Fortunately, the season had also been so busy that after a few days away from my surroundings, I really did find the calm I needed to start setting my teeth into the concerto after this.

After a hefty serving of Caravaggio, I stroll through Valetta, it is too hot and my focus on the beauty of this town is somewhat clouded, yet something suddenly catches my attention:

What an unexpected coincidence! I alert my travelling companions (who do wonder what all the fuss is about) and stand enthusiastically waving at the picture until even the tourists around me start looking a bit strangely, I temper myself and think: I’ve read too much about John Cage and his coincidence…….

to be continued….

oktober 26, 2022

Concert · glissando · harmonics · Harp · Music · Orchestra · piano · Stories · Stravinsky

Les cinq doigts

(what you hear is a homemade live recording of two pieces from Les cinq doigts by Igor Stravinsky)

Some memories stay closer to our hearts than others. A piece can also have this effect on one, sometimes because the music touches you so deep, sometimes because it makes you think about the context you played or heard it in, for me it is often a combination of both.

This weeks program in Brussels Philharmonic flashes me back to my first orchestra experience ever: Petrouchka!

Although 2 other pieces by Stravinsky are featured (Chant du rossignol and The firebird), Stravinsky as a composer touched me very deeply during my first steps in my life as a musician….

….with Petrouchka for its playful waltz in which the harp accompanies the danse of the Ballerina and the Moor. A waltz in which the harp part tries to maintain the carefree spirit of a puppet tale. The version I played as a youngster was this of 1947 where he uses only one harp in his orchestration instead of two in his first 1910-11 version.

I love the girly notes in pink I made at that time!!

….. in Orpheus(which I encountered during an orchestra project at the conservatory), where the premier tableau starts with the harp in a very cinematic way and also further along he gives her some important soloist themes that the harp sings out first in the orchestra.

…in The firebird(the first piece by Stravinsky I played in Brussels Philharmonic) where the harmonics evoke the rocking of the Berceuse and off course the enchanting glissando after the horn solo in the Finale.

He knew so well how to use the harp in his orchestration; not only in the way of pure writing and notation but also regarding balance and types of sound. In Orpheus he counts on the harpist to make a very marcato, dry but clear sound, somewhat ancient but still clearly a harp, whilst in the berceuse of the Firebird he expects that the flageolets can make a very round soundscape.

Also the 2 harp parts in Le chant du Rossignol are very storytelling -probably the most when the harp plays the rhythm of the mechanical bird- glisses, staccato marks, round chords, they all represent a special image in the story.

And still, with all his knowledge even Stravinsky wrote some five fingery chords or patterns now and then (see Kastchei’s dance f.e) and I can not wisk the thought that he did this to challenge us!

So to honor the great Stravinsky I made a little recording of two of his pieces from Les cinq doigts (for piano, unfortunately he didn’t write anything for harp solo)which you heard whilst reading this blog.

For more Stravinsky:

on my spotify you’ll find a playlist of examples given above: click here

or come and join us tomorrow:

Saturday 9th October 2021, 20.15h, Flagey : Birds, Brussels Philharmonic conducted by Jun Märkl. More info

oktober 8, 2021

Artist · composers · harmonics · Harp · Japan · Music · Stories

And then I knew ’twas wind

Special thanks to my colleagues Jill Jeschek, flute and Hélène Koerver, viola to make this recording happen!

(english below)

Als harpist kennen wij geen vaste kamermuziekformatie zoals een strijkkwartet of blaaskwintet bv, maar de combinatie fluit, altviool, harp is -naar het voorbeeld van Debussy’s triosonate uit 1914- in opmars om daar iets aan te veranderen. Reeds in de 20ste eeuw lieten componisten zich inspireren door Debussy’s ‘Sonate en trio’ en voor vele ensembles werd het een reden om compositie-opdrachten uit te schrijven.

Zo ook ‘And then I knew ’twas wind’ van Toru Takemitsu, dat in 1991 in opdracht van Mr. Akira Obi voor het trio van Aurèle Nicolet, Naoko Yoshino en Nobuko Imai werd gecomponeerd.

Gelukkig voor ons is Takemitsu één van de grote componisten van de 20ste eeuw die toch heel wat harp in zijn repertoire heeft opgenomen. Wellicht kunnen we -uit wat Toshio Hosokawa in zijn interview vertelde- concluderen dat dit mogelijks komt door het feit dat harp qua klank dichtbij de natuur en dichtbij de klank van Japanse traditionele instrumenten staat, zeker als je de harp in kwarttonen herstemt zoals Takemitsu in veel van zijn werken vraagt.( bv. Rain Spell, Les fils des étoiles,..)

Zijn oeuvre bekijkend, verraden de titels reeds zijn gevoeligheid voor de natuur en klankprecisie. Als je de partituur van dit trio bekijkt, werd quasi geen enkele noot een nuance- of articulatie-aanduiding ontzegd.

Voor harp gebruikt hij hier geen baanbrekende nieuwe technieken, maar slaagt er wonderwel in, een heel ander klankspectrum van het instrument aan te spreken.

Bij het uitvoeren van dit werk heb ik vaak het gevoel dat hij methodes zoekt om onze klank te verlengen, zoals een strijker met zijn boog, helemaal tot in de stiltes, die minstens even belangrijk zijn dan de noten eromheen.

Luister naar de dubbele flageoletten die hij veelvuldig gebruikt, ze zijn qua aanslag veel zachter dan die van de gewone vingeraanslag en bovendien klinken de boventonen veel rijker. Hij laat de harp soms 1 noot unisono verdubbelen in een melodielijn van fluit of altviool, waardoor de aanslag alweer verzacht wordt, maar de klankillusie verlengd.

De verfijning, zijn meesterlijke creativiteit, de bewondering voor Debussy, het aanspreken van de gevoeligheid van elk van de drie instrumenten, zijn slechts een paar ingrediënten die van dit trio -voor mij althans- iedere keer opnieuw een wonderlijke ontdekkingstocht maken.

Dit wordt zeker niet de laatste keer dat Toru Takemitsu in mijn gps-lijst verschijnt.

As harpists we are not familiar with fixed chamber music groups like a string quartet or a woodwind quintet f.e., but the combination of flute, viola and harp -after the example of Debussy’s trio from 1914- is steadily on the rise of changing this. Many composers of the 20th century were inspired by Debussy’s ‘Sonate en trio’ and many ensembles commissioned composers to write for this cast. This is also the case for ‘And then I knew ’twas wind’ by Toru Takemitsu, commissioned in 1991 by Mr. Akira Obi for the trio of Aurèle Nicolet, Naoko Yoshino and Nobuko Imai.

We can count ourselves very lucky that Takemitsu -being one of the great composers of the 20th century- took on quite a lot of harp in his repertoire. We can probably deduce -like Toshio Hosokawa told in his interview- that the main reason for this, is that the harp has a sound that leans very close to nature but also resembles so well the sound of traditional instruments, especially when it is tuned in quarter tones, like Takemitsu often requests in his music. (f.e. Rain spell, Les fils des étoiles,..)

Looking at his oeuvre, the titels already reveal his extreme sensitivity for nature and sound precision. When you look at the score of this trio, hardly any note is lacking an indication of articulation or nuance.

He doesn’t use any pioneering techniques for harp in this piece, but however does succeed in conjuring a whole new sound spectrum out of our instrument. By executing this work, I often feel that he searches ways to prolong our sound, like a string player using his bow, all the way into the silence, which is as important as the notes surrounding it.

Take the double harmonics, which he often uses, they are a lot softer than a normal finger stroke and in addition the overtones produce a very rich sound. In the melodies of viola and flute, the harp sometimes doubles one note in unisono, softening also the attaca and lengthening the illusion of the harp sound.

His refinement, masterful creativity, his admiration for Debussy, the way he addresses each of the three instruments in their most sensitive way, are just few ingredients that make this trio, time after time -for me anyway- a truly amazing exploration.

It certainly won’t be the last time that Takemitsu will appear on my gps-list.

augustus 6, 2021

21st century · Artist · glissando · harmonics · Harp

The beauty of a day’s work (2)

(english below)

Als je een harpist(e) in een interview leest dan merk je vaak iets terugkerend: de behoefte om te laten verstaan dat de harp veel meer kan dan rollende akkoorden spelen en toverachtige glissandi produceren, de behoefte om te beklemtonen dat er een andere kant is aan ons instrument, een robuustere, die willen we tonen aan ons publiek, om zo ons engelachtige imago af te werpen.

Moeten we ons imago bijsturen? Is er iets mis met de elementen die de harp zo stereotyperen?

Let’s face it, hoe hard we ook proberen, als je een heavy metal band wil starten heb je niet het juiste instrument gekozen, als je wil imponeren met je klankvolume, tja dan zijn trombone lessen misschien een goed idee.

Deze week staat er een partij op mijn orkestpupiter die je alleen maar feeëriek kan noemen: Ma Mère l’Oye van Ravel.

Ik steek niet onder stoelen of banken dat Ravel absoluut één van mijn lievelingscomponisten is, misschien omdat die muziek zo ongelofelijk vanzelfsprekend voelt op harp of misschien omdat ik deze muziek al vanuit mijn wieg hoorde.

In dit mooie sprookje -dat hij oorspronkelijk voor vierhandig piano schreef en nadien zelf orkestreerde- zit er een kleine cadens voor de harp, deze omvat Ravels favoriete elementen: glissandi en flageoletten.

Niet alleen in Ma Mère l’Oye(1911), maar ook in het Pianoconcerto en sol(1928-30) en in Introduction et allegro(1906, wat we kunnen beschouwen als een concerto voor harp met ensemble) gebruikt Ravel steeds de combinatie Aeolian flux en flageoletten.

Ik vond het een leuk idee om deze cadensen eens naast elkaar te leggen ter vergelijking en het resultaat van dat brouwsel kan je hier beluisteren.

We worden niet graag geassocieerd met glissandi, maar waarom niet eigenlijk? We zijn het enige instrument dat een eolische glissando kan spelen en ook flageoletten zijn één van onze hyperkarakteristieken, die omwille van het rechtstreekse contact met de hand op de snaar bijzonder warm en vol klinken, bovendien kunnen we op de harp over een zeer grote tessituur octaaf harmonieken spelen.

“Art being based on the principle of accentuating characteristics and taking advantage of all organic differentiation, makes the very nature of the harp seem destined to be Aeolian.”

Carlos Salzedo

Hoe zeer wij harpisten dat delicate misschien willen ontvluchten, zowel de glissandi als de flageoletten worden ook verderop in de 20ste en 21ste eeuw één van de favoriete tools bij componisten.

Glissandi krijgen variaties: dempen met één hand en met de andere hand glijden over de snaren; ritmische, ietwat abrupte snelle glissandi in clusterakkoorden, glissandi net onder de stempennen of juist boven de klankkast, verticaal over de snaren, pedaalglissandi enz.

Idem met de flageoletten: naast het octaaf, worden kwint- en tertsflageoletten ingezet en experimenteert men ook met de rariteit van het septiem.

Moeten we het fragiele toch maar meer koesteren en ons erbij neerleggen dat bepaalde rollen niet voor ons zijn weggelegd?

De truffel in de pasta zijn, het heeft ook wel iets…..

Vrijdag 2 juli 2021 om 20u: Honegger, Swerts, Ravel, meer info hier

When reading interviews with different harpists, they often have something in common: the need to express that the harp is capable of a lot more than playing rolling chords and magic glissandi, the need to emphasize that the instrument has a different side, much more robust, a side we want to show to our audience, in this way changing our angel-like image.

Do we need to adjust our image? Is there anything wrong with the stereotype characteristics of the harp?

Let’s face it, if you want to start a heavy metal band, you have chosen the wrong instrument. If you want to impress with your sound volume, a trombone course is maybe a good idea.

This week my orchestra stand is showing a beautiful fairy-like score: Ravel’s Ma Mère l’Oye.

I won’t deny that Ravel is one of my favorite composers, maybe because his music feels so natural playing it on harp, maybe because already as a baby I was soused in it.

This beautiful fairytale -originally for four hands piano and later on orchestrated by the master himself- features a small harp cadenza, which is build out of Ravel’s favorite harp techniques: glissandi and harmonics.

Not only in Ma Mère l’Oye(1911), but also in his Pianoconcerto en sol(1928-30) and in Introduction et Allegro(1906, that we can consider a harp concerto with ensemble) he uses the combination of the Aeolian flux with harmonics.

This 3 look-a-like cadenza’s gave me the idea to compare them and you can listen here to the result of my stew.

We don’t like to be associated with glissandi, but why not? We are the only instrument that is capable of playing an Aeolian flux and also harmonics are one of our strongest characteristics, because of the wide range on which we can play them, but also because they are directly formed by the hand, making a beautiful warm and round sound.

“Art being based on the principle of accentuating characteristics and taking advantage of all organic differentiation, makes the very nature of the harp seem destined to be Aeolian.”

Carlos Salzedo

As much as we would like to avoid being associated with only the delicacy of our instrument, glissandi as well as harmonics also become further on in the 20th and 21st century one of the favorite tools of composers.

Off course we find variety in the use of glissandi: sliding close to the sounding board, with the nails, gushing chords, pedal slides and also the harmonics are further explored by using harmonics in the tenth, twelfth and even searching to reach the fifteenth.

So shouldn’t we cherish our fragility and accept that some roles are just not for us?

Being the truffle in the pasta, sounds nice also….

Friday, July 2nd 2021 at 20.00: Honegger, Swerts, Ravel, info here

juni 28, 2021