 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
bryce
beverlin II
rogosanti
composed by james wood in 1986
performed by bryce beverlin II
may 13 2000 performed at my senior recital in regenstein recital hall northwestern university chicago illinois click here to listen
may 16 2000 performed at percussion ensemble concert in pick staiger concert hall northwestern university chicago illinois click here to listen
these are recordings of live performance . no edits or overdubs have been made . i performed the work to the best of my ability
this
cd contains 2 performances of the percussion work
to play audio : insert in cd player . try last two tracks . don't play
the video tracks in the cd player or it may damage your speakers
to play video : insert in computer [pc] . files are playable on wmp
or winamp . both are free to download . try http://www.winamp.com
suminagashi painting above by brandy lachapelle
james wood writes:
Rogosanti
In most early civilizations percussion instruments were (and to a certain extent
still are) considered sacred, and to possess the power of magic. In Sri Lanka
the Kandyan Drum is used in religious rituals and is considered to possess healing
powers. In Java and other parts of South East Asia and China the gong has been
credited with healing sickness, expelling evil spirits and defending against
ghosts. It is even said that bathing from a gong gives health, and to be touched
by a gong strengthens the soul and creates strength and happiness.
Rogosanti is the Sanscrit word for ‘healing’ or
‘quietening of disease’. Here the evil spirit is represented by
a rhythmic cell from Northern India called Ata Trisra (3.3.2.2) and is associated
with the drums and wooden instruments - the good spirit by a cell from Southern
India called Dhamar tala (5.2.3.4) and is associated with the metal instruments.
If healing is to be achieved, the evil spirit must become possessed by the good
spirit.
Rogosanti was written in November 1986 for my good friend, Steven Schick.-JW
at
the time of performances, bryce wrote:
wow.
i don’t really know where to start. this piece has required more from
me mentally, physically, and preparatorily than any other i’ve tackled.
i’ve built instruments, ground glockenspiel bars to quartertone pitches,
sought rare gongs, broken many mallets, pushed the limit of how fast i can get
around the drums, and developed a slight twitch from the rhythms contained herein.
the first time i heard the piece (james wood playing it) on recording, i was
in awe...no idea what was going on. not that i know now, but i’m getting
closer every time i think about the piece, listen, and practice it. in a similar
compositional style as his, ‘village burial with fire,’ a quartet
piece we performed one year ago, james writes music to truly challenge the performer
as well as the listener.
instruments : the drums starting from the highest pitch are : bongos (4) : congas
(4) : a large deep sounding almost slackened-head tom tom : large suspended
bass drum : pedal kick bass drum : large slackened-head timpani : to the right
of the bongos is a small tambourine suspended inside a hoop with rubber bands
and small sleigh bells attached so the sound is initially tambourine head sound
and the bells ring on longer : the large piece of hard wood on the stand above
the drums is called a ‘samatra’ : next to it is a contraption called
the ‘clapper’ made of wooden tongues sprung apart until struck when
the tongues clap together : the golden metal discs above the pedal kick bass
drum are crotales (low b + high b pitches) : the maraca is hung for convenience
of producing swirling sounds before moving to other instruments quickly : the
large metal sheet is called a thunder sheet which is gently nudged and punched
in this piece : placed on the timpani is a japanese temple bowl which is struck
with the large silver tubular chime hanging near the timpani : just kidding
: above the timpani is a glockenspiel made up of tones from a standard glock
and some pitches tuned in between notes on a regular keyboard called quartertones
: for example, halfway between a and a# there is an a+ note...a ‘half-sharp’
if you will : the small bell tone to the left of the glockenspiel and timpani
is a tuned drain stopper : serendipity played some role in making this piece
possible : and finally, the suspended round metal object on the far right is
a javanese gong tuned to an a : it is struck with the flesh of the fist and
produces a bell like tone
thanks
are due to those who made this possible :
mom + dad : michael j burritt : tj moore : greg stuart : john hain : don nichols
: big country : brandy lachapelle : j1 [who let me practice on household items
with chopsticks for weeks] : james wood
insides17