Tombeau en James Preiss

Tombeau en James Preiss is a evenling length concert based around the concept of influences. The title of the concert is a reference to the initial ways composers wrote music in honor of someone else.

This concert is an ode to my friend and mentor, James Preiss (1941-2014).

The concert is comprised of live music, recorded interviews, and soundscapes. Applause will only occur at Intermission and the end of the program.

Tombeau en James Preiss Program:

Jacob Druckman - Reflections on the Nature of Water, Mvt. 2 Fleet (1986)

Introduction

*Interview Ted

Theodore Wiprud - Reflexions (2009)

**Reich impression 1

Interview Eva

Eva Weiner - Glacial Space: Concerto for Solo Marimba (2006)

Reich Impression 2

J.S. Bach - Cello Suite in G Major, Prelude (1717-23)

Intermission

Interview Keith

Keith FItch - Manhattan Rolls (2004)

Reich Impression 3

Interview Davide

Davide Zannoni - Six Fleeting Moods (2002)

Reich Impression 4

Closing remarks

Interview Ted

Gordon Stout - Four Episodes, No. 2 (1994-95)

*The Interviews are recordings of the composers sharing a memory of themselves with Jim***. The interview with the composer precedes their piece.

**The Reich Impressions are an elongated idea (or measure) from selected Steve Reich works that I have associated experience with Jim. The pieces selected were Nagoya Marimba, Drumming, Six Marimba, and Music for 18 Musicians. These Impressions are not a straight reproduction of the selected piece, they are merely an interpretation of a single measure from each work. (Here is an example)

***Officially, on programs and official publications, Jim wanted his name spelled James Preiss.

About this project:

Tombeau en James Preiss is a biographical memorial program of our relationship through selected works that I relate to him, and a way to present some of the works from the James Preiss Solo Marimba Commissioning Project.

This concert has been in the works for several years. When I heard of Jim's passing, I had recently performed Music for 18 Musicians for Steve Reich's 75th birthday celebration at Walt Disney Hall in Los Angeles, and the Conrad Prebys Concert Hall at the University of California at San Diego with Bang on a Can Allstars, and had been trying to get a hold of him regarding the my initial idea for this concert. I was coincidentally at the JFK airport flying back home to San Diego when I heard of his passing, and during that flight I realized that this concert was then my memorial and tribute to James Preiss.

James Preiss 2007 biography:

James Preiss is principal percussionist of the Brooklyn Philharmonic, the American Composers Orchestra, the Westchester Philharmonic, and the Riverside Symphony and also performs regularly with the Orchestra of St. Luke’s and the American Symphony Orchestra. A founding member of the Parnassus Contemporary Chamber Ensemble, he has been a member of the Steve Reich Ensemble since 1971. He has recorded on many labels, including the Deutsche Grammophon, ECM, and Nonesuch.

Mr. Preiss holds degrees from the Eastman School of Music and Manhattan School of Music.

Manhattan School of Music faculty from 1970 –2006.

Mannes College of Music faculty until 2010.

Information James Preiss Solo Marimba Commissioning Project:

There is nothing official written up about the James Preiss Solo Marimba Commissioning Project. In conversation, Jim stated that this was a project setup to commission friends. The list of composers includes: Keith Fitch, Daniel Levitan, Eva Weiner, Theodore Wiprud, and Davide Zannoni. There is a chance other composers were commissioned before Davide's piece in 2002, but I am unaware of these. To obtain any work from the series you need to contact the composer. Daniel Levitan's work that is part of this JPSMCP is published through Keyboard Percussion Publications (KPP).

As a related side note, James Preiss did commission other works in addition to these. One notable work of these commissions is Archers of Solitude by Davide Zannoni, which is a concerto for a trio of performers (soprano, clarinet/bass clarinet, and marimba/percussion) plus accompanying percussion ensemble.

Selection of pieces for this program:

Druckman - I first learned Fleet during my second year at Ithaca College, while studying with Gordon Stout. I then relearned it when preparing for my graduate auditions. This is the first marimba piece I played for Jim. Jim also had interactions with Jacob Druckman's son, Daniel, starting when he was a teenager. Eventually Dan and Jim were friends and peers that played together for many years.

Bach - In my initial conversations with Jim, we spoke on our mutual admiration for the Bach Cello Suites. During my studies with him I took many of Bach's work to him. Jim's love for the Cello Suites pushed him to record his only solo album, Bach's Cello Suites 1-3.

Stout - As mentioned earlier, I studied with Gordon Stout during my undergraduate degree. When I told Gordon that I wanted to study in NYC for my graduate work, as well as study with someone who was a respected marimbist, Gordon mentioned James Preiss (and emphasized Jim's work with the Manhattan Marimba Quartet). For juries during my graduate degree, Jim said I should learn two movements from Gordon's Episodes. Episode Number 2 was one of those movements. As coincidental side note, Episode 2, is an homage to Paul Smadbeck's Rhythm Song, which is the piece that I was working on when I first heard Jim on the recording of Steve Reich's Nagoya Marimba.

Program Notes:

Jacob Druckman - Reflections on the Nature of Water, Mvt. 2 Fleet (1986)

Reflections on the Nature of Water is a small payment toward a very large debt. There were primarily two composers, Debussy and Stravinsky, whose music affected me so profoundly during my tender formative years that I had no choice but to become a composer. It is to Debussy that I doff my hat with these reflections of his magical preludes.

Reflections on the Nature of Water is comprised of several short movements, each with a contrasting character. It was written for William Moersch, and with his counsel, for which I am indebted. (source link)

Theodore Wiprud - Reflexions (2009)

When James Preiss commissioned me to compose a substantial work for solo marimba, he framed the assignment as creating a work that could go alongside the Bach suites on a recital program. Clearly this called for some serious thought, so I asked him for models to study. He referred me to Reflections on the Nature of Water by Jacob Druckman with something like awe, and as soon as I heard the piece I could see why. I set out to compose something informed by Druckman’s sensitive use of the marimba’s rich palette of sound. But it was only much later that a colleague pointed out to me that I had actually titled my piece like an homage. I’m very happy to tip my hat toward the earlier work, but I arrived at my title differently.

Reflexions comprises twelve short studies, played without pause, that recur as mirror images—that is, the first is mirrored in the twelfth, the second in mirrored in the eleventh, and so on. What is meant by mirroring is different with each pair—in some cases that latter version actually continues right where the earlier one left off, while in other cases there is some form of inversion. The seventh alters the sixth in timbre (fingertips replacing mallets) and in transposition. As each study reacts to its neighbors and to its double, the idea of a physical “reflex” crept into my title. Like one of Bach’s books of keyboard preludes and fugues, these twelve studies touch twelve keys. So the piece you hear this afternoon is a triple homage—to Jacob Druckman, to Johann Sebastian Bach, and to James Preiss, whose playing has inspired me on many occasions. (source link)

Eva Weiner - Glacial Space: Concerto for Solo Marimba (2006)

Glacial Space: Concerto for Solo Marimba was commissioned by percussionist James Preiss for the James Preiss Solo Marimba Commissioning Project and is dedicated to him. Timbral specificity plays an enormous role in my music, and I composed this piece with Jim’s very special timbral sensitivity in mind. The title of the piece refers to the particular timbre that I associate with the opening section of the work: a “cold” resonance.

The work has a harmonically and rhythmically angular profile. It is built on two intervals: the fifth and the major seventh. Harmonic dissonance prevails throughout the composition. The interval of the fifth is occasionally isolated to create points of consonance. Rhythmically, the piece often exhibits irregularity in the placement of beats within groupings.

The work was originally conceived as a solo piece in which the writing would display a consistent character. During its composition, characteristics of a concerto emerged, bringing about clearly differentiated “tuttis” and “solos.” The work has eight sections within its single movement: Introduction, Cadenza, Tutti, Cadenza, Tutti, Solo, Tutti, and Coda. Momentary pauses delineate the sections. The cadenzas are generally characterized by a higher tessitura, a sparer texture and a more lyrical style than is found in the rest of the piece.

Keith FItch - Manhattan Rolls (2004)

Manhattan Rolls was commission by James Preiss (member of Steve Reich Ensemble), and is the second work as part of his Marimba Commissioning Series. The inspiration of Manhattan Rolls comes from the idea of the György Ligeti’s Études pour piano (1985). Ligeti’s Études pour piano was considered very difficult and nearly impossible to play when they were first composed, but now are more standard in the piano repertoire. Manhattan Rolls is based on the initial ten chords of the piece; that then goes through a series of variations and inventions. There are seven main sections of the work with a cadenza in the middle. Each section has a distinct style that explores the musical ideas to the fullest capacity with some sections having secondary ideas (which are almost another variation), as well as transitional areas that help move the listener into the next section. Certain sections utilize extended techniques of playing the shaft of the mallet on the bar, playing on the bar from the edge of the bar to the center, and switching mallets while sustaining pitch(es) in the other hand.

Davide Zannoni - Six Fleeting Moods (2002)

In spite of the frequent over-intellectualization of the past years, I believe that, at its core, all music is about basic emotions. When percussionist James Preiss asked me to write a marimba solo for him, I decided to base the piece on some of the most common and intense emotions we experience. The work, dedicated to him, is divided into six movements, each depicting a different mood, while also emphasizing different instrumental techniques. The first (With Uncontrollable Fury) is violent, very fast and dissonant, and emphasizes the rhythmical use of chords. The second (With Unabashed Playfulness) is more tonal and easy-going, and emphasizes the independence of the two hands. The third (With Unquenchable Longing) is slow and lyrical, emphasizing four-mallet harmonic writing. The fourth (With Dazed Bewilderment) is mostly atonal, with a free tempo, and allows the performer to show his/her speed. The fifth (With Aloof Irony) quotes several short passages from classical, folk and pop music. (As this movement was written during the soccer World Cup, the Italian National Anthem and Yankee Doodle also found their way into the music). Technically, this movement emphasizes the independence of the two hands, which play melody and accompaniment at the same time. The final movement (With Relentless Persistence) tries to give an idea of tenacity through the use of repeated notes and accents. (source link)

Gordon Stout - Four Episodes, No. 2 (1994-1995)

The second (episode) is my way of paying homage to (Paul) Smadbeck's Rhythm Song. (source link)

Links relating to James Preiss:

- His solo Bach cd was recorded through Bachovich Music Publications, and can be purchased through this link

- On Steve Reich's webstie, Steve and Russel Hartenberger wrote some very nice things about Jim here

- A partial list of cd's that James Preiss recorded through a search on Discogs can be seen here

Composers' websites:

Theodore Wiprud website

Keith Fitch website

Davide Zannoni website

Gordon Stout website