How much "new music" can be on a recital program?

[David_Norton]

I am seriously contemplating doing a solo recital this autumn, with a slight twist. I'd be playing a program of almost entirely "new" CG music, written since 1983, with one notable exception.

The programme would be:

Yves CARLIN: Le forêt mystérieuse (16 minutes)
Nick FLETCHER: The Sound of Arisaig (5 minutes)
Maria LINNEMANN: Scottish Miniatures (5 minutes)
Andrew SHIELS: Suite in C (11 minutes; a sort of neo-baroque homage to Anton von Logy)
Jean-Marie RAYMOND: Suite des constellations (10 minutes, Brazilian rhythms)

[INTERMISSION]

Federico MORENO-TORROBA: Preludio; Serenata Burlesca; Burgalesa; Minuetto del Majo; Nana; Madroños (17 minutes)
Claude GAGNON: Le forêt enchantée (24 minutes)

We metaphorically enter by way of a Mysterious (Belgian) Forest, and exit by way of an Enchanted (Quebecois) Forest. In-between, stopovers in Scotland, Dutch-Scotland, Irish-Bohemia, French-Brazil, and Spain.

Everything is tuneful, a decent mix of moderate and uptempo pieces. Also a good mix of major and minor tonalities. Two movements of the Gagnon suite slightly stretch the definition of tonality, the rest are things which a Segovia or a Parkening would perform without any hesitation. And music for which the audience for Segovia or Parkening would applaud.

The Torroba is in there as an "offering of appeasement" to those who may want to hear some familiar music. And it's music I like playing. Even there, 4 of the 6 titles are pretty obscure. Absent the Torroba, I would plug in 16-20 minutes of music by Giorgio Signorile and by Miroslav Loncar.

Thoughts?

[Scot Tremblay]

I'd say as much as you want. I've heard a few concerts lately that were all new music (late 20th - early 21st century). Don't forget that until fairly recently ( late 19th century, for guitar, Tarrega - Segovia era maybe) all music played in concerts was "New Music". You didn't see concert programs of Beethoven, Sor or Mertz with renaissance, baroque, classical and early romantic pieces programed...it was all contemporary music on the program...I don't see why it cannot be the same today...on occassion.

As a listener, I wouldn't mind if the Torroba were replaced with something a little more contemporary...just my opinion.

[Alan Green]

I'd say that it depends on how much of an intellectual challenge the music turns out to be for the audience. I really do think there should be a couple of reference points that the audience will/ might already know so I probably wouldn't programme a whole show of new music.

But overall - new music, yes; and living composers, a most definite yes.

[60moo]

We metaphorically enter by way of a Mysterious (Belgian) Forest, and exit by way of an Enchanted (Quebecois) Forest. In-between, stopovers in Scotland, Dutch-Scotland, Irish-Bohemia, French-Brazil, and Spain.

David, that is so cool! If you were to say words to this effect to your audience by way of introduction, then you will most certainly have piqued their interest and anticipation for what is to come.

As suggested by Alan Green, maybe putting in a reference point in the first half as well wouldn't be a bad idea. The "risk" would be reduced, whilst still keeping the theme intact. Sueno en la Floresta perhaps?

[randalljazz]

play all contemporary. the program looks good...but i would usually put the "heaviest" piece immediately after the intermission. extra-musical factors ("forest in, forest out") are interesting, but should be far less consideration than the emotional arc of the music itself.

[Jeff Kross]

I think you need to take into consideration the intended audience. Last year, a professional classical guitar quartet (which here shall remain nameless) played a recital out here in west Sonoma County, in a little town populated generally by a few score of ex-hippies, medicinal marijuana growers, and gray-haired urban refugees. The quartet started with a brief arrangement of a Telemann piece, but the rest of the 90-minute recital was comprised of music composed last week, much of which was utterly cacophonous. By the end of the recital, the groaning from the audience was almost palpable, and they fled for the exits as soon as the recital was over. I kept thinking that while that set list might have been appropriate for an audience comprised of young, urban San Francisco musically adventurous hipsters, it was a terrible choice for that locale. I had lots of 'splainin' to do to the local friend I brought to the recital.

[David_Norton]

Jeff: I agree 100% with the "cacophony" concept, and stay as far away from that style of writing as I can. It just doesn't sound good to me, though I realize that lots of people enjoy it. (I don't like Thai or Indian food, either, but millions of people do!)

Many of these composers are on YouTube, you could sample their writing styles that way.

[Kenbobpdx]

David,
As someone who is not a fan of "weird modern" music I think your proposed list would be an excellent experience as a audience member. All of the pieces I am familiar with in your set are accessible to the casual audience member while giving the guitar players something to appreciate and chew on, too. Celtic-y pieces and Brazilian rhythms are always fun to hear and the Raymond is quite nice as well. Not real familiar with the Gagnon but I have heard snippets. No pieces with alligator clips attached to the strings or people humming under bags at the side of the stage

[riffmeister]

My completely subjective answer........50%.

In fact, it would be great if that were a *requirement*.

[Kjetil Heggelund]

Hello!
I often have just one modern piece in my programs but love most newly written music. I think the program seems a bit long. You have 47 minutes in the 1st half and 41 in the 2nd. I personally would love such a concert but maybe non-musicians would be just as happy if it were around 70 minutes total or less. I've probably been affected by the small town I live and work in...Your program seems exciting though! GO FOR IT!

Kjetil.

[Godlovitch]

How good is this music? Has it been well received elsewhere? How good is the player? Does his reputation precede him? Imagine presenting pieces of the quality of Britten's Nocturnal. When Bream first tried that out, his audience was in raptures. But look at the player; look at the composer. If you've not got that winning combo and the audience isn't predictably to be receptive to the player from the start, best perhaps to dribble it out to test the waters.
Stan

[pogmoor]

Hello Stan,
Welcome to the forum. You can find out a lot about us by looking at this welcome page and a description of forum rules here. It would be great if you could introduce yourself here so other forum members get to know a bit about you

[David_Norton]

How good is this music?

I like it, and so do others. "Good" is a highly subjective. They are melodic, well-written, with interesting harmonies and rhythmic figurations. As I said above, it takes no effort at all to imagine someone like Segovia or Parkening programming any of this material. It's probably too conservative for Bream's taste.

Has it been well received elsewhere?

Many of the pieces are on YouTube. Everyone I have played them for thus far has liked them, and many have me asked where the scores could be purchased.

How good is the player? Does his reputation precede him?

You are welcome to look up my YT channel, "davinort". No one will confuse me with a World Class player, guaranteed. But that isn't the skill-level needed for this music.

Imagine presenting pieces of the quality of Britten's Nocturnal. When Bream first tried that out, his audience was in raptures. But look at the player; look at the composer. If you've not got that winning combo and the audience isn't predictably to be receptive to the player from the start, best perhaps to dribble it out to test the waters.

No one in their right mind will confuse this music with Britten, nor my playing with Bream's. But it also isn't really necessary to make such a comparison. The German pianist Wilhelm Bachaus was interviewed in The New Yorker magazine in about 1939, and he said “Why seek difficulty when there is so much that is quite as beautiful and yet not so difficult? Why try to make a bouquet of oak trees, when the ground is covered with exquisite wildflowers all around, waiting to be collected?”

[Sean Eric Howard]

David,

That's a fine program. I've often found everyday people find relaxation in pieces such as these as opposed to something like the Britten, which would empty seats fairly quickly.

[lagartija]

Perhaps I am a typical example of a musically unsophisticated audience member and can give some insight on the reception you might receive.
Before I took up playing classical guitar, if you had asked me to go to a concert of "new" music, I probably would have declined. All of the "new" music that I had heard sounded like.... noise. I could discern no structure, no rhythm or anything I could hold onto that would differentiate it from "noise". It was unpleasant to listen to and I avoided recitals of "new music".
When I started to play classical guitar and played the Estudios Sencillos of Brouwer, heard Cuban Landscape with Rain played by a guitar quartet, listened to Usher Valse by Koshkin, and other pieces by living composers, I started to like "new" music. I still would not like a program of atonal, non melodic music; I am still not that musically sophisticated and need a discernible structure to follow. You say the pieces you have chosen are melodic or have Brazilian rhythms. That would be enough for me to enjoy the concert and if I didn't live on the other side of the country, I would happily attend your recital.
The advantage you have is that "new" music on the guitar seems to be (in my experience) more accessible than that which is played by orchestra or string quartets. Maybe it is just the timbre of the guitar that helps.... or maybe the modern composers for the guitar are a bit more lyrical than others.