Contemporary Classical - Thea DerksMeira Warshauer writes musical plea for the ocean
In the turbulent 1960-70s, it was almost a given that artists and composers were socially and politically engaged. The best-known Dutch example is the opera Reconstruction, which saw five ‘Nutcrackers’ deliver a fierce indictment of US imperialism. In the course of the full-length performance, a statue was erected for Cuban resistance fighter Che Guevara.
Meira WarshauerIn the following decades, composers turned increasingly inward, but this is gradually changing. The British Kate Honey, for instance, wrote her Shell Symphony in 2017 to convince the Concertgebouw to stop its sponsorship by the oil magnate. In March 2024, The Shell Trial by American composer Ellen Reid premiered at The Amsterdam Music Theatre. The composer Merlijn Twaalfhoven has been committed to fraternising among peoples and dealing better with our environment for years.
Environmental concern
Hitherto unknown to me was American Meira Warshauer, whose trilogy Ocean Calling was recently released on CD. This three-part cycle for two pianos addresses the large-scale pollution, overfishing, acidification and temperature rise of the world’s oceans. A quick look at her website reveals that concern for our environment is a constant in her work. ‘The ocean covers 72% of our planet’s surface and produces half the oxygen we breathe,’ she writes in the CD booklet. But human activity ‘undermines the ocean’s ability to sustain its own ecosystem and the planet as a whole’.
Each of the three movements has its own character and title. The cycle opens with Waves and Currents. In eight minutes, Warshauer sketches a vivid picture of the various manifestations of water. Clattering, descending runs sound like playful drops of water, glissandi of a chain pulled across the piano strings recall the bursting foam of the surf, while thunderous chords in the lows evoke the destructive power of the dangerous undertow that irrevocably sucks people into a deadly depth.
Extended techniques
From the Depths offers a plethora of extended techniques in the sound box of one of the two pianos. Sometimes we seem to hear the calls of seagulls or other seabirds, at other times the whisper of the wind or the plaintive honk of a ship’s horn, only to be surprised the next instant by flageolets, the tinkle of a metal rod, or the glissando of a finger trailed along a string. The second pianist offers sparse notes with depressed pedal, their wide reverberations painting an apt picture of the immense expanse of the ocean. The hushed character creates an almost spiritual atmosphere.
The third and last movement, The Giant Blue lasts over eighteen minutes and has a charged atmosphere. Heavy chords in the low register of one piano versus pendulous motifs of the second depict the immense depth and darkness of the underwater world. Long-held, gritty sounds of bowed piano strings are reminiscent of the foam trail of a ship or the song of the blue whale, known as the largest animal in the world.
Mandatory listening
Slowly, both parts ascend into the higher registers, while the rhythm becomes faster and more exhilarating. The grinding of the bow becomes more prominent, while furious clusters in the very lowest registers and agitated motifs in the treble express anguish, as if the ocean is in pain and literally crying out for help.
Pianists Phillip Bush and Elizabeth Loparits perform the cycle very skilfully and with a sense of nuance. They do not shy away from ugly, barbaric sounds, but also bring to life ear-pleasing flageolets and dreamy motifs with audible abandon. Their toucher is rough or velvety when the music demands it.
With Ocean Calling, Meira Warshauer composed a glowing plea for our planet, that should be mandatory listening for all politicians and administrators.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yI0ZrPRZFdk
#ElizabethLoparitz #EllenReid #MeiraWarshauer #OceanCalling #PhillipBush
Christophe Béchu