Editor’s note:Arachnophonia is a regular feature on our blog where members of the UR community can share their thoughts about resources from the Parsons Music Library‘s collection.
If you know me, you know I listen almost exclusively to music from the 70’s and 80’s (see my posts about Steely Dan and A Chorus Line, the musical). That’s not to say that I don’t love music being produced today—I do–but my heart lies in my parents’ music. And a band my parents absolutely loved is America.
America has been making music for decades — really. They have 16 albums, not including special anniversary editions, re-releases, or any other specialty disc. They published their first album, America, in 1971, and their most recent album, Back Pages, is from 2011. That might sound like a lot of music, and it is, but we luckily have a Greatest Hits CD, which encompasses almost all of my favorite songs. “Daisy Jane” is one of the sweetest love songs I know (and it’s not just because 7 year-old me liked that my name was in the title).
By Source, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=19104741
If you’re a beginner at guitar, start with their arguably most famous song — “A Horse With No Name”. It’s literally two chords going back and forth throughout the entire song. When recently asked, I said that “Ventura Highway” is the song that best represents me. “Tin Man” (based on The Wizard of Oz), “Sister Golden Hair”, “You Can Do Magic”, and “I Need You” are some of my other favorites.
America’s music feels home-y. You can tell they’re really playing their instruments, and it’s so clear through their music that they simply love what they do. Their songs fall under the genre of folk rock, and a lot of them are about the experiences they’ve had in California, which I love listening to if I’m ever feeling homesick about being away from LA.
I actually watched America in concert a few years ago. My mom, my sister and I went together, and we couldn’t believe that after 40 years, they still sounded like their records from the 70s. If you’re looking for good, laid-back, driving with the windows down kind of music, I’d check them out.
(And just a hint: if you like this kind of music, go to the library search website, click on the “Subjects” tab, and type in “Rock music—1971-1980.” You can thank me later)
Editor’s note:Arachnophonia is a regular feature on our blog where members of the UR community can share their thoughts about resources from the Parsons Music Library‘s collection.
You’re watching a film. It’s a sports movie about a chippy group of underdogs defying all odds and barreling towards impossible success. Or it’s a coming-of-age story about teenagers coping with the incredible, ineffable weight of being. Or it’s a true story of human struggle in the face of calamity–a military operation gone wrong; an oil rig exploding. What music is playing? If the film was made in the past two decades, there’s a very good chance it’s post-rock.
The term ‘post-rock’ was coined by music journalist Simon Reynolds in 1994. It is used, broadly, in reference to any music that uses rock instrumentation but doesn’t adhere to rock song convention. Post-rock songs are most often long instrumental pieces that focus on musical texture and build to all-out climaxes, a subgenre affectionately dubbed ‘crescendocore.’
In 2003, Texas-based post-rock band Explosions in the Sky released their third studio album, The Earth is Not a Cold Dead Place. This album is widely regarded as their greatest work, and is considered one of the essential works of the genre. Explosions’ brand of post-rock — layers of reverb and delay-laden guitars punctuated by the ever-marching cadence of a snare drum — came to define the genre in the early 21st century, due in no small part to the 2004 film Friday Night Lights.
After Explosions released The Earth is Not a Cold Dead Place, they were approached by Brian Reitzell, a Hollywood composer, producer, and film music supervisor, about soundtracking the upcoming big-budget sports film Friday Night Lights. At this point, having a relatively unknown post-rock outfit soundtrack a major Hollywood release, let alone a sports movie, was unheard of. Rocky III’s “Eye of the Tiger“, this was not.
After Reitzell demoed the group’s music to studio executives, permission was granted to bring the band on board. Musically, the soundtrack to Friday Night Lights retains much of the aesthetic of The Earth is Not a Cold Dead Place. The band even adapted the song “Your Hand in Mine” from the album for the film.
Friday Night Lights went on to be both a critical and commercial success, though its greatest influence on the film industry was arguably its Explosions-crafted soundtrack. The film ushered post-rock into the mainstream, and the band’s music quickly found use as ‘temp-music’ — music used by directors when editing their films to give an idea to their composer of how they want a piece to sound (for an in-depth account of what temp music is and how it affects a film’s production, check out this video from Every Frame a Painting). James Rettig of Stereogum even went as far as to call the band’s signature sound to “a cheat code for music supervisors seeking to convey emotional turmoil and the triumph of the human spirit.”
If the Friday Night Lights soundtrack is the sound that launched a thousand imitators, The Earth is Not a Cold Dead Place is the band’s full-length expression of that sound, uncompromised by the necessities of scoring a film. Though their music has inescapable cinematographic connotation, Explosions in the Sky’s albums remain an intensely intimate listening experience. The lack of lyrics in fact enhances the music’s narrative potential: It invites you to construct a mental movie theater for one. You sit down in your seat and gaze up at the silver screen as your own memories are projected in front of you. Scenes from your life play out like a film, a melodramatic filter laid over it all. You conjure some memories that aren’t your own — games never played, starry night skies above fields never lain in, chances never taken — but the feelings are yours. When you open this album, you are greeted by the explanation to its title: “The Earth is not a cold dead place because you are breathing, because you are listening.”
Editor’s note:Arachnophonia is a regular feature on our blog where members of the UR community can share their thoughts about resources from the Parsons Music Library‘s collection.
My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (MBDTF) is my favorite Kanye album. Many fans, reviewers and artists in the industry also agree with me that the albumis both technically amazing and culturally significant, with many music publications reporting back in December that MBDTF is their top album of the entire 2010s, such as Rolling Stone and Billboard. Why I believe this album is worthy of this praise is two-fold: first, the album continues the musical genius and masterful production that were present in The College Dropout, Late Registration and Graduation; and second, this album marked Kanye’s public apology for his previous wrong-doings and public controversy, while apologizing in the most ‘Kanye’ way possible; self-reflection upon fame and ego.
I would be remiss in writing about MBDTF if I did not first acknowledge the character and artist behind the production of the album. Kanye has had his fair share of headlines throughout the past ten years or so, between his support of Donald Trump and the idea that Democrats have “brainwashed” black Americans, to his laptop being “stolen” by his cousin who leaked private videos of him, to his famous Twitter tirades in which he has attacked figures such as Wiz Khalifa and the company Nike, to his ongoing bouts with Taylor Swift. The list is long and could have been expanded upon further. Kanye is rarely in the news for positivity, but I argue that his albums should be judged separately from the creator. It is actually the last headline, his history with Taylor Swift, which started the production of MBDTF. In 2009 at MTV’s Video Music Awards, Kanye infamously took to the stage to interrupt Swift’s acceptance speech for Best Female Video, proclaiming that Beyoncé should have won the honor. This prompted nationwide outrage against Kanye, which prompted an apology tour soon afterwards. He then took off to Hawaii that same year in the form of a retreat, in which he began working on MBDTF in Honolulu’s Avex Recording Studio.
Kanye West Performing at SWU Music Arts Festival 2011 by Renan Facciolo – Kanye West – SWU Music & Arts, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=18137550
MBDTF is a journey. First, many elements of his previous albums can be identified on tracks throughout this album, indicating a feeling that the work in its entirety could be considered Kanye’s magnum opus. It borrows on the soul and experimental hip-hop aspects found in The College Dropout and Late Registration, mixed with the unrestricted emotional and innovative gleam evident in Graduation and 808s & Heartbreak. Second, the album explores themes such as wealth, prominence, decadence, excess, escapism, self-aggrandizement and self-doubt. An interesting understanding I found in my research is from Andrew Martin of Prefix Magazine, in which he notes in his review that this work “derives its intrigue from the shortcomings of its creator” and “it’s a meditation on fame.” Topics from previous, and even future Kanye albums, explore social issues that plague the world, such as abuse of drugs or the ongoing mistreatment of people of color. However, the “apology album” that MBDTF was expected to be allowed Kanye to reflect on the personal characteristics of his life, and to recognize that he is not perfect.
Focusing on specific tracks, the album opens with the aptly titled “Dark Fantasy.” Nicki Minaj introduces the first track through spoken-word, which then transitions into Kanye rapping about his images of grandeur as a child, and how the population perceives the fame, he has experienced incorrectly. Continuing through the album, “All of the Lights” is my personal favorite track. Between the masterful uses of synthesized sound bites to the lyrical story of a convicted man due to physical assault charges, the song is amazing in my eyes and by the public, receiving many accolades such as Best Rap Song at the 54th Grammy Awards. Another noteworthy track is “Runaway,” which appropriately premiered as a live performance at the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards, a year after Kanye’s public condemnation for his action against Swift, which prompted the creation of this album. Many reviewers laud “Runaway” as Kanye’s best song, placing emphasis on the ego of himself in a statement of lyrical apology for his public figure, but referring to the flaw of human nature of self-absorption that caused his problems. Some other album highlights include “Monster,” “Devil in a New Dress,” and “Lost in the World.”
Music is a strange dichotomy in which it is explicitly linked with the creators of itself and its performers, while also taking on its own personality completely separate from association with a person. I believe that My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy should be viewed through a similar lens. Personally, I have friends who refuse to listen to Kanye West’s music simply because of the nature of himself as a person and the way he has publicized himself throughout the world. However, I believe it to be a great tragedy to close oneself off to the music that he creates as a separate entity of himself, only to experience the idea of the music and what it is trying to portray to us as an audience. No recommendation could ring more true than his album, which should be experienced and loved by all listeners.
Editor’s note:Arachnophonia is a regular feature on our blog where members of the UR community can share their thoughts about resources from the Parsons Music Library‘s collection.
The item spotlighted in today’s edition of Arachnophonia is titled, Vocal Selections from Next to Normal. This musical score of the 2008 smash hit musical Next to Normal featuring Aaron Tveit and Alice Ripley is a simply stunning piece that has been lucky enough to be purchased and brought into the Parsons Music Library Collection for years to come. Despite only lasting a few years on the big stage, this musical score has warmed the hearts of many even 12 years after its Broadway debut. Its popularity and relevance has garnered enough support as to open a revival at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C earlier this year. However, it was through a friend back home that I had found out about this musical. Sharing her Broadway playlist with me on Spotify, filled with over 1,000 Broadway hits (this number sounds big and yes. It is very big. The run time of the playlist is a few days long), I had come across the song “How Could I Ever Forget,” sung by the character Diana, as she reminisces the day that doctors informed her that her infant son had passed.
Although the lyrics, written by Brian Yorkey and composed by Tom Kitt, were full of raw and intense emotion that could turn you to tears in an instant, I fell in love with the song and the emotion put behind it. So, as any normal human being would do, I heard the entirety of the musical’s score. It moved me to tears, which I admit is hard to do for the most part. The songs were just full of raw emotion and the harmonies between all the characters made the songs super catchy. I played it on repeat for days.
Alice Ripley, Aaron Tveit, and J. Robert Spencer in Broadway production of Next to Normal – Joan Marcus
One day I just decided that maybe it would be cool if I find the score of some of the songs, play it, and possibly sing along to it. By no means am I a singer (I am so bad), but the ingenuity and the emotion felt behind the song compelled me so much, that I decided to take a stab at it. So, as a normal human being would do, I went to the Boatwright Memorial Library website and searched for my score. Sure enough, the coveted musical score that I so sought was there waiting for me, available under the illustrious call number: M1508.K5 N49 2009. I quickly checked out the score and began to play.
Even to this day, 12 years after its debut, there is something to the pieces that never get old. Although I did not have much time to play the songs since this spring semester has started, I am urging and scratching to find time just to hear myself play the amazing songs brought to us by Yorkey and Kitt. I urge that even if you are not interested in Broadway musicals, to check out the Vocal Selections from Next to Normalbook for a couple weeks, or at least have a listen. Tears will be shed, but it would be the best cry you’ve had in years.
Editor’s note:Arachnophonia is a regular feature on our blog where members of the UR community can share their thoughts about resources from the Parsons Music Library‘s collection.
I’ve been really into the band Beach House lately, so I was excited to see that we have their 2010 album Teen Dream in our catalog!
Beach House is a dream pop duo originating in Baltimore, Maryland, that I first listened to when visiting my twin brother in Los Angeles, California. Their music is beautiful, intense, evocative and emotional, perfect for a late-night drive or particularly cinematic moment. Lead singer Victoria Legrand has an incredible voice, and the lyrics of songs like “Used to be” and “Space Song” are haunting and melancholic, speaking to existential struggle and the human condition. At the same time, Legrand’s dreamy vocals, sweeping keyboard tones and swirling organs and guitars keep a lightness to Beach House’s sound, creating a beautiful contrast between song feeling and form.
My favorite song on Teen Dream is “Take Care”, a track in which Legrand speaks to her younger self with compassion, promising guidance and gentle care. “Take Care” embodies thew ability of Beach House’s music to be simultaneously moving and comforting, providing listeners with nostalgia but continued familiarity. I’m excited to check out tracks on the Teen Dream album that I don’t know as well, like “Walk in the Park” and “Silver Soul”, and see where Beach House’s inspiration takes me next.
Editor’s note:Arachnophonia is a regular feature on our blog where members of the UR community can share their thoughts about resources from the Parsons Music Library‘s collection.
Today’s installment of Arachnophonia is by student worker Allison (class of 2022) and features George Gershwin‘s classic piece for orchestra and piano, Rhapsody in Blue. Thanks, Allison!
George Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue was premiered in New York on February 12, 1924 by Paul Whiteman and his orchestra, featuring Gershwin on the piano. Whiteman, conductor of the Palais Royal Orchestra, had previously talked with Gershwin about mixing classical music with jazz and decided that Gershwin would premiere a piece at his “Experiment in Modern Music” concert. Although Gershwin had not formally committed to composing a piece, it was already announced in the newspapers so he had to. In just five weeks, the piece was composed and rehearsed, with Gershwin playing the piano part. Interestingly, he left his piano part to be improvised during the world premiere.
Gershwin’s autograph score to Rhapsody in Blue showing the iconic clarinet opening. Image source: https://smtd.umich.edu/ami/gershwin/?p=213
Although somewhat common today, it was groundbreaking in that time period for an orchestra to play a jazz concerto. The premiere of Rhapsody in Blue was wildly successful and opened doors for many future composers to incorporate jazz elements into their music. In addition, by choosing to compose this piece, Gershwin opened many doors for himself as a composer. Prior to Rhapsody in Blue, Gershwin composed scores for Broadway musicals. The piece didn’t change the trajectory of his career but expanded it as he became more well known.
George Gershwin composing at the piano. American composer, 1898-1937. (Source: https://doi.org/10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.A2252861)
The first Gershwin piece I heard was An American in Paris while preparing for an audition. I was very intrigued by the piece but never was able to fully appreciate it until playing it with my youth orchestra. Because I loved that piece, I was excited to receive music for another Gershwin piece this semester. Rhapsody in Blue is very different from An American in Paris but both pieces are composed in a manner that is clearly Gershwin.
Editor’s note:Arachnophonia is a regular feature on our blog where members of the UR community can share their thoughts about resources from the Parsons Music Library‘s collection.
One of my favorite albums (and singers) is Norah Jones’ Come Away With Me.This might sound odd, but it’s what I most frequently listen to when cooking or baking — it’s the perfect rainy day music.
Her tone is so soft and sweet and her songs are very melodic. I love that intertwines jazz and blues because it’s hard to find that type of music now. Jones was a lot more popular in the early 2000s — I was first introduced to the album when my mom and dad would play it in our house when I was in elementary school.
She has lots of awards and has sold more than 50 million records worldwide. In the beginning of the 2000s Billboard deemed her the top jazz artist of the decade. She has won nine Grammys and writes her own songs as well as plays the piano.
Norah Jones at Bright Eyes at Town Hall 29 May 2007 (credit: Yaffa)
Come Away With Me is the album that kick started her career and launched many of her songs into popularity. The album is a fusion of jazz with country, blues, folk and pop. It was certified diamond, meaning that it sold over 27 million copies. This album alone was enough to win Jones five Grammys, including Album of the Year and Best New Artist. My personal favorite songs from the album are “Don’t Know Why” and “Shoot the Moon,” but all of the songs are so unique and enjoyable in their own way. I tend to listen to a lot of mainstream pop because it’s always on everywhere and I want to stay up-to-date on all the trending music, however, this is a nice change of pace from that. I think it’s important to listen to a wide range of artists and music, and Norah Jones is the kind of singer that I believe almost everyone would like.
Some other singers that mirror her musical vibe are Diana Krall, Corinne Bailey Rey, Alicia Keys, Adele, and Duffy. I’d say her style is a bit more laid back and the songs aren’t as fit for blasting on the radio, but her songs are written about similar themes and use little auto-tuning or electronics.
Editor’s note:Arachnophonia is a regular feature on our blog where members of the UR community can share their thoughts about resources from the Parsons Music Library‘s collection.
With the 92nd Academy Awards freshly behind us, I’ve been thinking about my favorite film soundtracks. For me, a driving factor of what makes a movie memorable or great is its music –either score, soundtrack, or both. I love when I hear a song that I recognize during a scene, which I can dance or sing along to in my seat. On the other hand, I also love when movies introduce me to music. The only reason I loved the songs “Hungry Eyes” and “Be My Baby” so much as a kid was because of the movie Dirty Dancing.
My parents showed me Dirty Dancing at a young age, probably because I was a dancer whose first childhood dream was to be a Broadway star, and it instantly became one of my favorite movies. The soundtrack, which features songs spanning multiple decades, made an already wholesome and fun movie even more enjoyable. Even as a child, I could feel the nostalgia that it portrayed, as it features 50’s and 60’s pop hits like “Love is Strange” and “Stay” that instantly transport the viewer to a summer in 1963. Naturally, a distinctly 80s sound is also incorporated in songs like “She’s Like the Wind” sung by lead actor Patrick Swayze himself, a man of apparently many talents. And of course, many of these songs are used in dance scenes, following Baby and Johnny’s journey from frustrating rehearsals to final performance.
There are many iconic movie scenes that will be forever associated with their respective songs, or vice versa. Think: “(Don’t You) Forget About Me” with Judd Nelson’s fist in the air at the end of The Breakfast Club, or “Girl You’ll Be a Woman Soon” in Uma Thurman’s apartment in Pulp Fiction. But undoubtedly one of the most commonly known and referenced music/movie scene pairings is “(I’ve Had) The Time Of My Life” from the final dance scene in Dirty Dancing –with extra emphasis on the achievement of Baby’s lift that happens right as the song climaxes. This is the kind of flawless, emotional moment that makes the right fusion of a scene and a song selection one of my favorite aspects of film. It’s also one of the many moments that made the Dirty Dancing soundtrack go multi-platinum.
Editor’s note:Arachnophonia is a regular feature on our blog where members of the UR community can share their thoughts about resources from the Parsons Music Library‘s collection.
In doing so, they document how the U.S. criminal justice system’s policing of hip hop and rap music has evolved, and elucidate the dire consequences and First-Amendment concerns of using rap lyrics to convict and incarcerate young men of color.
Here are five deeply concerning takeaways:
1. Rap lyrics are almost always permitted as evidence to prosecute serious crimes like murder, robbery and drug trafficking
Throughout their research, Nielson and Dennis have identified more than 500 cases across the U.S. in which rap lyrics were used as evidence in a criminal trial. In some cases, the prosecution introduced a defendant’s lyrics as substantiating evidence of the defendant’s guilt in some crime. Other times, the lyrics were the crime.
According to the New Jersey ACLU, rap lyrics were permitted as evidence in 80 percent of cases that considered their admissibility. But Nielson and Dennis say the number, according to their research, is significantly higher.
2. Police and prosecutors target young, black and Latino amateur rappers
In roughly 95 percent of cases involving rap lyrics, the defendant is a young, black or Latino man with a local fan base, if any fan base at all. Because of their social status, amateur rappers, in the eyes of police and prosecutors, are not real artists.
3. Rap lyrics are used to convince jurors of the defendant’s “true character”
By Dennis and Nielson’s analysis, police and prosecutors nationwide interpret and present to jurors rap music as autobiographical. A training manual written by a California prosecutor says that, through music lyrics, prosecutors “can invade and exploit the defendant’s true personality.” The manual tells prosecutors not to be fooled by the defendant’s nice court attire.
“The real defendant is a criminal wearing a do-rag and throwing a gang sign,” according to the manual.
In the hands of prosecutors, rap lyrics are taken out of context and construed as accurate depictions of the defendant’s real life, despite the art form’s well-known tradition of hyperbole. Because of this, defendant’s will often plead guilty in exchange for a lesser sentence, knowing their lyrics, presented by prosecutors, might significantly bias the jurors.
To introduce lyrics as evidence, prosecutors often argue that the lyrics they wish to introduce are evidence of the defendant’s motive, knowledge or ability to commit the crime in question. If a defendant is being accused of murder, for instance, prosecutors will cherry-pick from the defendant’s rap lyrics the lyrics most evocative of murder, and argue before the jury that the rap lyrics at least prove the defendant is capable of murder.
Prosecutors have used rap lyrics to argue for harsher sentences. Dennis and Nielson have identified thirty cases in which prosecutors used a defendant’s lyrics to argue that the defendant’s “true character,” as exposed in his lyrics, was so beyond any hope of rehabilitation that he should be sentenced to death.
In at least one case, prosecutors used a defendant’s lyrical abilities to argue that he was mentally stable and intelligent enough to be executed.
4. Rap lyrics and videos are used to warrant “gang enhancements”
If prosecutors can show that the crime the defendant is standing trial for was committed on behalf of or in association with a gang, prosecutors can request a “gang enhancement,” which can double a defendant’s sentence. In some states, gang enhancements allow for juveniles to be charged as adults.
Prosecutors regularly use rap lyrics to seek gang enhancements. If a defendant references gang themes in his lyrics, or even just mentions certain neighborhoods, prosecutors will use those rap lyrics to connect the defendant’s crime to gang activity.
Increasingly common is the use of rap music videos to justify gang enhancements. Dennis and Nielson have identified cases in which prosecutors used rap music videos to justify a gang enhancement for defendants who were seen in the background of a music video.
5. “Gang experts” routinely use rap music and videos to surveil entire communities
Nielson and Dennis make clear that, although “Rap On Trial” is focused on the use of rap lyrics as evidence in criminal trials, police and so-called “gang experts” nationwide use hip hop, rap music and videos to surveil communities, to identify suspects and to justify arrests, all before rap enters the courtroom.
Michael Render, also known as “Killer Mike” from the Atlanta, Georgia, hip hop duo “Run The Jewels,” is a close friend of Nielson’s and wrote the foreword to Rap On Trial.
“Right now, aspiring rap artists need to know they are being targeted by the authorities,” Render wrote, “and they need to balance their right to free speech–and their desire to push the envelope of free speech–with the reality that police are watching.”
Editor’s note:Arachnophonia is a regular feature on our blog where members of the UR community can share their thoughts about resources from the Parsons Music Library‘s collection.
Today’s installment of Arachnophonia is by student worker Emma R. (class of 2021) and features a study score edition of Mozart’s Requiem. Thanks, Emma!
What does it mean to compose a piece of music? Is it writing the notes on the page? Is it dictating the general musical idea? Writing the lyrics? What about the problem of orchestrations? If the composition is in the musical idea, can we know what a composer intended the piece to sound like? These kinds of questions can apply to many pieces by composers who do not work completely alone – both contemporary and long-dead. However, when considering a piece such as Mozart’s Requiem, these questions clearly take on greater than typical importance. As is commonly known, Mozart’s Requiem was left unfinished at the time of the composer’s death – a tale highly dramatized throughout the centuries since. But dramatization aside, this leaves serious questions for modern historically aware performers and listeners – questions which are not present when considering most other works. Who really wrote what parts of the Requiem? What did Mozart imagine when he conceived of the work?
Due to the unfinished nature of the work, the autograph does not contain all the answers. Portions of the autograph – the original handwritten version of the piece – are in Mozart’s hand and other portions are not. Significant portions were not completed at all. Orchestrations and – some scholars argue – entire sections, such as a hypothesized intended fugue – are missing. This doesn’t even begin to consider the lack of answers to many performance questions which impact the sound of the piece – articulation markings, dynamics, tempos, and more.
1st page of Mozart’s autograph manuscript of the Requiem Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=853665
Currently, the version completed by Mozart’s student Süßmayr is considered somewhat the standard. However, this is still a decision that must be made prior to every performance of the work, as other versions – completed by Mozart scholars – do exist. I myself am not informed enough about Mozart’s style nor his compositional process to make normative statements about the potential distance between the composer’s likeliest intentions and the accepted completed version today, however scholars such as Friedrich Blume and Nathan Broder have. In their article, “Requiem but No Peace,” these scholars argue, for example, “that flutes, oboes, clarinets, and horns are wholly absent in the complete Requiem is entirely unMozartean and must weaken Süssmeyer’s (sic) credit…” (Blume and Broder 1961, 161). Furthermore, these authors argue that since Mozart tended to compose orchestrations in three rounds – the above mentioned winds in the last round – that the lack of these instruments is more likely due to the unfortunate death of the composer than due to his intentions to leave them out (160).
Can we really say that the Requiem as we hear it performed – perhaps Mozart’s most well-known work today is really written by Mozart? Is the Requiem we know actually what the Mozart Requiem would have sounded like had the composer lived long enough to see it completed?
This study score at the Music Library shows all parts of the accepted Süßmayr completion – including markings which denote portions from the manuscript judged to be in Mozart’s vs Süßmayr’s handwriting. (It’s a miniature score – so it isn’t large and bulky). Take a listen and read along. No matter who wrote it, it really is a marvelous work.
Detail of a portrait of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart by Johann Nepomuk della Croce – Unknown, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=449108
