Music
Space trip
John Bridcut Twickenham is not normally associatedl with the space race, but that is from whe° Sittlimia di Sfere by Andrzej Panufnik. exiled Pole resident in England, emanate° for its premiere last week. He denies 0 connection with sky-science, or with Pyths' gorean music of the spheres (and presian ably, by extension, with Cicero's Dreaindi Scipio), preferring a mathematical, ge°, metric approach, and the score is Were' with diagrams to show it. But the title meant to suggest `a kind of journey I° space', and Panufnik envisages the I15t' ener's perception as a circular disc (a flYitl saucer?) ascending through three sphere each with a smaller concentric sphere side it. Despite that, the experience was er tirely earthbound for me, and is best colt sidered as purely abstract. The composer's preface explains in dela" his method of composition, which is sirTIPI' that ideas occur concurrently in ma0 different `spheres': melody, rhythm, hat mony, tempo and so on. The disc fli° through the six spheres, each with its Part digm of ideas; the six are subdivided irlt twelve hemispheres, mirror-fashion, whic' structurally represents exposition and re capitulation. (This is the point where thoS who argue that music should not explained must win the day by default: The construction is akin to Messiae° blocks, but because the ideas are closel integrated, Panufnik is much more succe ful. The melody is based throughout 0 variations of the same triad, comprising minor second and an augmented fourtt, which has featured in most of his works fc:t the past eight years. This involves a Ill°1 concentrated use of the tritone, but Pan°4' nik skilfully prevents it from sounell obsessive. The orchestra he uses is a brae, quartet (often treated soloistically), wind, strings and piano, with three sets .0. drums forming a triangle—another of tile favourite geometric figures—round t edge of the orchestra. The preface and ti!! score itself leave one with the impression,' great ingenuity, both musical and mathend atical, and herein lies the danger: s° detailed self-analysis permits a spurt unity and cohesion to build up before work has even been heard. In fairrIO. Panufnik urges the listener not to react 9 exegesis until afterwards. But the Pr, gramme note ignored this plea, and gave: incorrect abbreviation of the prefa;', coupled with an amalgam of most of trft, diagrams which was pretty and prettY ° intelligible. Rhythm and the drums are predomi°3: in the symphony. Panufnik says he ell°,11 drums for their 'magical, prinlordi
qualities' as a means of communication. If much of his musical language is individual, here he shares a contemporary instinct to return to the primary musical sources. Much the same idea governed Boulez's use of hieratic gongs and drums in his recent Rituel. In the Festival Hall, Panufnik's drums were placed less prominently than he had requested, and the centre and left sets had swapped parts—one of several alterations made after completion of the full score.
The preoccupation with rhythm is unexpected after his Violin Concerto, now recorded by Menuhin and his orchestra under the composer's baton (EMI: EMD 5525 £2.49). This is greatly concerned with the sensuousness of sound and the singing quality of the violin, and is reminiscent of Bartok's second concerto. On the same disc is the fourth of his five symphonies, Sinfonia Concertante, which uses the same triad as the spheres, and has the immediate appeal which the initial whining brass solos deny Sinfonia di Sfere. The spheres benefited from the fast speeds awarded them by David Atherton and the LSO—their estimated duration was cut by a quarter. It is an intriguing work deserving further performance, especially if much of the verbiage is stripped away.
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