Spem in alium: prelude to the post I'd like to make about this
Thursday, December 19th, 2013 08:00 pmSix years ago ![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
liv blogged about Thomas Tallis' choral piece Spem in alium nunquam habui, saying:
It's been my intention for a while to do what I suggested above; I've had the score printed out and sitting around my place for a while. Recently it occurred to me that with my mother's death imminent, I really ought to get on with this project, before I go into mourning and can't listen to live music, so this evening I sat down and...
Well, several attempts to get past the first few bars convinced me my music-reading skills are too rusty to manage a piece of this complexity; I need to work through it with a musical instrument. Sadly, my Music 4000 keyboard is broken ATM; I made the mistake of trying to fix the ribbon cable connection whilst it was plugged in and switched on, and the resulting spectacular BANG! blew three fuses en route to the wall. I'm lucky it didn't damage the BBC Micro it was plugged into; I haven't got around to trying to see whether the keyboard is reparable itself yet. So I dug out my viola...
... And discovered that the recording I have uses period pitch, and is about a whole tone higher than modern pitch. With the Music 4000, that wouldn't be a problem. I started retuning my viola, but decided halfway I'm so rusty with the viola (which, to a first approximation I haven't touched for twenty years) I'd be struggling to combine playing and following. What I'd like to do is try it with the piano when I'm at my parents' this weekend, but the problem is the pitch. I think I'll use Audacity to slow the recording down to modern pitch. Or failing that, get some new ribbon cable for my keyboard.
Watch this space for further developments. If I get around to doing any of the above in time.
liv blogged about Thomas Tallis' choral piece Spem in alium nunquam habui, saying:I responded:j4's enthusiasm convinced me I have to get to know this piece better
Mmm. It just so happens I recently introduced myself to this piece. Having recently watched (atDespite my initial reaction, the piece grew on me; I went back to YouTube several times to listen to it again, and eventually bought myself a copy, which is what I do when this happens.
...And was not, I hate to say, particularly whelmed. I think I would probably need help to appreciate this piece of music; either someone to point out features to me, or the score to follow (and preferably study by myself first at apianoMusic 4000 keyboard).
It's been my intention for a while to do what I suggested above; I've had the score printed out and sitting around my place for a while. Recently it occurred to me that with my mother's death imminent, I really ought to get on with this project, before I go into mourning and can't listen to live music, so this evening I sat down and...
Well, several attempts to get past the first few bars convinced me my music-reading skills are too rusty to manage a piece of this complexity; I need to work through it with a musical instrument. Sadly, my Music 4000 keyboard is broken ATM; I made the mistake of trying to fix the ribbon cable connection whilst it was plugged in and switched on, and the resulting spectacular BANG! blew three fuses en route to the wall. I'm lucky it didn't damage the BBC Micro it was plugged into; I haven't got around to trying to see whether the keyboard is reparable itself yet. So I dug out my viola...
... And discovered that the recording I have uses period pitch, and is about a whole tone higher than modern pitch. With the Music 4000, that wouldn't be a problem. I started retuning my viola, but decided halfway I'm so rusty with the viola (which, to a first approximation I haven't touched for twenty years) I'd be struggling to combine playing and following. What I'd like to do is try it with the piano when I'm at my parents' this weekend, but the problem is the pitch. I think I'll use Audacity to slow the recording down to modern pitch. Or failing that, get some new ribbon cable for my keyboard.
Watch this space for further developments. If I get around to doing any of the above in time.
