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The Five Feature Length: Star Trek Beyond

Star Trek Beyond (2016)

Alright you guys let's put this Into The Wrath of Khan's Darkness rubbish to bed once and for all...*

Did you know they've released a new Star Trek film?  No?  I mean, I didn't until I heard a rumour about a trailer, mere months, only moments before the release ("Hey this trailer looks great, when is this out... July?!").  Here's the thing: It's quite good.  After 2013's author-enraging mess that was Star Trek Into Darkness (the tactic of losing the colon after the franchise name is novel but worthwhile), a nostalgia grab that borders on shameless parody and certainly not my Khan, this theatre-length episode of Season Four of the original characters, initially portrayed by Shatner, Nimoy et al., is quietly brilliant and definitely one of the better films of the franchise as a whole.  You could even think of this as the Star Trek we need right now.  Spoilers throughout, yo.

Okay, maybe I'm a little too invested in all of this.  Right?  This film is a much more able successor to 1982's seminal Wrath of Khan both tonally and in its plot.  Let's get to our modern action blockbuster checklist though... Hey!  The deadly weapon at the end which hangs above everyone's heads in the final moments... DOESN'T GLOW!  Anyway, this film is a sunny day compared to its eternally damned prequel, and suspiciously free of universe breaking plot-holes.  The premise is simple - after the destruction of the Enterprise, the crew must work together to defeat the seemingly unstoppable alien menace of Krall, who hates all that the United Federation of Planets stands for, and wants only to see its destruction.  Right?  Pretty easy, sorta villain-of-the-week format, right?  Right?!?!

I've read in countless 'tipz 4 writers' that if you get stuck in your novel, take drastic action and kill someone.  Kill the main character!  And so does this film.  In the opening moments, Kirk's monologue includes the term "episodic", riffing on the fact there's a new franchise supporting tentpole block buster film out every two months at a minimum, or that there are so many episodes of Star Trek (this year is the 50th anniversary after all) or just blah blah isn't everything safe and normal for us now.  The following crash-landing of escape pods and one proton torpedo (The Search for Scotty?) on the alien planet also gives us an epic saucer section crash money shot.  The crew get split up and this basically turns into a buddy episode, with the nameless and faceless army of extras posing as the starship crew captured pretty much straight away, and the main characters pair off in "unexpected" ways - Spock and McCoy are the breakout couple in the film... Unless you've seen any other, older Star Trek films that is, anyway.

Actually, a word about Spock: A week before seeing this film, I had started and finished William Shatner's latest book, Leonard.  This is neither the time or place to debate the what really stopped them from talking and whether Shatner's account really is the truth, but it brings the incredible life and talent of Leonard Nimoy into sharp focus.  He died from complications due to COPD, after a career as an actor, writer and photographer that spanned 60 years in 2015, while this film was starting pre-production.  After cameo appearances as "Spock Prime" in the last two films, it wouldn't be too much of a leap to suggest that he would do so again, but, alas.  Early on in the film, Quinto's Spock is taken quietly aside by Vulcan Ambassadors and told the news, which initially causes him to decide to leave Starfleet at the conclusion of this mission - but don't worry folks, he doesn't!  At the end of the film though, he is handed some of old Spock's most important belongings - including a photo of the original cast in their red uniforms with the fold down panel, probably from Star Trek IV or V.

As the film goes on we learn scraps about our mystery villain, Krall.  There's no fakeout here (thinking about it the John Harrison/Khan flip is as obvious and bad as Arkham Knight/Jason Todd), as Krall is an original character with an interesting past, which lines him up better with a Khan figure (especially the character of Ricardo Montalban's Khan) - the former military commander Balthazar Edison, from before the Federation federated, who was given a starship to captain after the end of galactic conflict, is lost through a wormhole, crashes on the planet and then uses the life-preserving technology of the previous inhabitants to become the monstrous enemy.  This references (and goes on to further homage) the ill-fated Enterprise, the only (so far and hopefully ever) part of the franchise to have a song as the opening title music.  In making him a new character rather than "borrowing" him from the Prime timeline, the film succeeds in the same way that the original series did - taking contemporary issues and throwing them far into the future.  Rather than the generic Nero of the first film of the rebooted series, Krall is on a mission to destroy the Federation, not just Kirk or Spock or some other revenge plot, no, he's out for the whole thing, ideology and all.  A war veteran who feels deserted by the very establishment he fought to establish, he feels that the diversity and peace has weakened the resolve of the once-great civilization he fought for, and it must be stopped.  As the final act tears on, his appearance gradually changes back to a more human visage, revealing him to be DUN DUN DUNN none other than fan-favourite Idris Elba, who ends up losing the climactic Zero-G tussle with Chris Pine for the deadly disintegrating weapon.  

There are some really smart homages as well, and I couldn't let this feature length write up of a feature length episode go without mentioning at least some...

• Much like the Wrath of Khan, the opening act includes Kirk's birthday; instead of just getting old though, this timeline's Kirk is now older than his father was at his death (at the start of the first rebooted film).
• The climactic battle involves a space station at the edge of a nebula, in which hilariously The Beastie Boys are referred to as "classical music" (best gag that people didn't get).
• The station is named after the first draft name for the Enterprise, instead named Yorktown.
• The poster that I've used for the post image is a direct homage to a poster used for Star Trek: The Motion Picture (see here).
• The USS Franklin, dug out of the cliff is an NX class, same as NX-01 from Enterprise, which holds the uniforms with the coloured shoulders and flipped Red/Blue rank indicators.
• The MACO military organization that Edison was part of is also from Enterprise
• Kirk refuses a promotion to Admiral, to which the commanding officer or the Yorktown agrees, saying that it is his "First, best destiny" to captain the Enterprise (more Wrath of Khan)
• After the destruction of the Enterprise and the "borrowing" of the Franklin, the film ends with the crew departing on the newly minted NCC-1701-A, mirroring the construction of the new Enterprise at the end of Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home

I give this film lots of thumbs up, or whatever.  In the great and unquestionable order of all things, I place this as my third favourite Trek film, behind Star Trek IV in second and The Wrath of Khan as the undisputed champion.

*No, I will never leave it alone.  Bite me.
(Update: The photo Spock is given is a cast photo from Star Trek V: The Final Frontier)

The Five Feature Length Showings - Ghostbusters

Ghostbusters (2016)

Another release, another reboot.  Or is it?  The weird chronology of the film seems to suggest both; to quote the director, Paul Feig: ' “30 years ago, four scientists saved New York,” it declares. “This summer, a new team will answer the call.”'... So that clears that one up.  The controversy that surrounded the development and release of this film is proof that we can't have nice things - if it wasn't enough people swearing this would ruin everything forever (a phrase more commonly associated with the Transformers franchise), there's been a slew of online attacks against one of the stars of the piece, Leslie Jones.  How does this happen?  What is people's problem?  Jeez... Anyway, who's seen the original Ghostbusters?  The 1984 classic that introduced the phrase "this man has no dick" to the world?  Here's the spoiler "du jour" - they might as well be the same film.  32 years is a long time in pop culture, true, but there are also video media that last for that time too, just ask anyone buying Disney VHS tapes on eBay, or trying to find a LaserDisc player to watch those huge discs on.  I'm not trying to criticise the film directly for it (maybe a little), but they could have done something original with the premise.  Three white people with science and engineering based skills team up with a black person who has "street smarts" (or whatever you're calling it these days) set up a ghost hunting agency with a secretary of the opposite gender to them, have some success, the Mayor's office try to shut them down, and the finale is a battle against a gigantic antagonist who wreaks a swathe of destruction through New York City.  Oh yeah, sure, you say, but this time they have the regulation massive glowing portal!  Ho ho!  It's in the ground here rather than in the sky, and something in the back of my mind says there's a reference to the rescue at the end of Pacific Rim in there.

The stand-out performance that rescues this from pleasant mediocrity is Kate McKinnon as Jillian Holtzmann.  McKinnon is a treasure and her hilarious and rightfully unapologetic performance is a shining beacon in every scene she's in.  Chris Hemsworth is another surprise standout playing the dumb blonde receptionist trope to breaking point, at one point trying to answer the phone in an empty fish tank, another showing of topless modelling pictures of himself with non-sequitur props.  It looks like Hemsworth is having the time of his life chewing through scenery left right and centre, including the inevitable possession by the big bad near the end.  Some of the original cast make cameo appearances, including Dan Aykroyd who might as well be an old Ray Stantz, retired to cab driving.  I feel cruel in boiling it down, but this film sometimes feels like the answer to the question "What would happen if we crossed Bridesmaids with Ghostbusters?"  The stars align: Female SNL alumni in a team film vs the regulation portal that dominates the finale of action/comic book movies.  There are some truly hilarious, laugh out loud moments, granted, but in a world with no Dana, how could there be Zuul?

The Five Feature Length Showings of Darkness (part 1) - Central Intelligence

Once upon a time (a time, a time, a time, once upon a time when the world was round) when I actually wrote regularly and wasn't afraid of either the blank page or actually saying anything that might be considered ever so slightly controversial (look how far I've gone backwards... But more on that another time), I gave an honest stab at trying to write film reviews.  As I slowly remember how to type 1000 words plus without suddenly having an existential crisis and leaving it forever to rot in my ever growing store of unpublished drafts, here's an account of the last five films I've been to see this summer...

Central Intelligence (2016)

Beneath the surface of this lighthearted vehicle for Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, so-called the most bankable star in Hollywood, now a whole human being rather than half a special effect, lies the shadow of what might be.  The plot follows Hart's character, formerly beloved top of the class High School valedictorian turned small time accountant going through the beginnings of a mid-life crisis.  Suddenly, a facebook message from Johnson, playing a CIA agent who may or may not have gone rogue changes everything as they go on a madcap hour and a half to save the world.  While this is no great cinematic epic, there are some neat touches sprinkled throughout that raise this from a mere by-the-numbers action comedy.  The first we see of Johnson is through the magic of a CG fat suit, at the High School senior assembly where he is thrown naked into the school gym in front of the graduating year.  The image of this fat Rock is reflected back at us in a glass office door when the dynamic duo go and see the bully who was behind the original naked humiliation, played by Jason Bateman, who after pretending to be born again Christian turns out to be the same old bully he ever was.  At the end of the film, however, when Hart manages to persuade The Rock to come to the High School reunion (after saving the world, of course), where in a fit of acceptance of what he was (a fat special effect) to what he is (a huge body builder), he strips off naked.  To the side of the stage stands a mirror, which now just reflects the actual man mountain.  The emotional messages come in pretty heavy handed - bullies are bad, good people can change but bad people stay bad, accepting yourself &c &c... A dark heart beats underneath this "zany" romp though - Johnson's character has been out of contact with Hart's for 20 years; as the film progresses, we find that he has not only kept Hart's Senior Jacket all this time, but rides the exact same motorbike he had, constantly brings up stories of Hart's achievements at school - 20 years of body building and CIA training... to find his worshipped school hero?  20 years spent modelling himself on the memory of an idol.  Really?  Things get brushed under the carpet as part of a little throwaway joke but... The seeds are there (and have found a more fertile ground in my nihilist ways than this film ever could be).  Perhaps The Rock is this generation's Schwarzenegger?  This excellent article makes a case for a career trajectory that Johnson seems to be matching in terms of media presence and sheer identity.  He'll be starring in Disney's Moana soon enough, lending his voice to, well, a big Samoan Demi-God covered in tattoos.  Seems legit.  Oh, yeah; an inflatable gorilla makes for the best Chekov's gun I've ever seen.

Poem

The tide has gone

Just upped and shipped out.

Probably had enough

of ships, sliding on its surface, oily

and bearing down;

Boring through sheer size.

The beating hearts of ocean life - 

(as if they were the men of the land,

sound out

unobstructed by time that seems

to stop and start anew)

 - carry on

without a word

in sounding deeps

that lead to greater depths.

MESLANGE DES JEUX DE L'ORGUE - Gaspard Corrette

Those of you who know me will recall that I still like to play the organ from time to time.  Truro Cathedral is of course, blessed with the only Cathedral Organ built by 'Father' Henry Willis to still be even approaching its original state (a new detached console and moving the Solo Tuba to the front part of the interior pale in comparison to the rebuilds [and repitchings] other Cathedral organs have faced), but alas, I have not had the pleasure of playing it.  And rightfully so, for an organ scholar in retirement like me!  However, I am allowed access to one of the Cathedral's other instruments - what remains of the organ installed in 1750, in the Parish church of St. Mary in Truro, built by John Byfield II. (NPOR)

Battered and bruised over its 266 year lifespan, I now jump at whatever chance I have to play this noble fragment (the case and I'd say barely 4 of the 19 stops that would have accompanied the  first service of Nine Lessons and Carols remain, in heavily altered form), and hack through my favourite stuff: French Baroque.  Full of character and uncompromising discord, the composers of the French School had a talent for the dramatic, as well as the pastoral, using the 8 church modes to create suites of pieces that were designed to accompany the worship of French liturgy, either as alternating with chanting or a choir, or as pieces to be played at the communion.  Organ building reached a peak (and arguably stagnated), meaning that almost all instruments had the same basic sound available (with according luxuries on lager instruments), so a set of registrational rules were drawn up that once learned, could be applied to any instrument.

The menu that follows comes from the introduction to Gaspard Corrette's Organ Mass, the title of which translates as "Mass on the 8th tone for the Organ, for the usage of Nuns and useful to those who play the Organ" (no, really).  It's great, full of crashing discord and a few indulgent melodies thrown in to the mix of dialogues and Plein Jeu's... But trying to register anything on what's left?  I'll leave the French intact and give the hilarious machine translation but after I'll give as good an account as I can of what actually happens.  Unfortunately, everything starts to sound the same after a while...

Pour le PLEIN JEU: L'on tire les Claviers ensemble, Au Grand Jeu, Bourdon de 16 pieds, Bourdon, Montre, Prestant, Doublette, Fourniture et Cymballe, Au Positif, Bourdon, Montre, Prestant, Doublette, Fourniture et Cymballe. 

For FULL GAME, Keyboards together are drawn, In Big Game, 16-foot Bumblebee, Bumblebee, Watch, Prestant, Doublette, Supply and Cymballe, In the Positive, Bumblebee, Watch, Prestant, Doublette, Supply and Cymballe.

Couple the manuals; On the Great, Open Diapason, Stopt Diapason, Principal.  On the Swell, Open Diapason, Stopt Diapason, Principal, Mixture.  Couple both to Pedal (in case of tenths)

Pour la FUGUE: L'on tire les Claviers ensemble, Au Grand Jeu, Bourdon, Prestant, Trompette, Au Positif, Bourdon, Prestant ou Montre, et le Cromhorne. 

For the RUNNING AWAY, Keyboards together are drawn, In Big Game, Bumblebee, Prestant, Trumpet player, In the Positive, Bumblebee, Prestant or Watch, and Cromhorne.

Swell Oboe and SD, couple to pedal (in case of tenths)

Le TRIO A DEUX DESSUS: on pousse les Claviers, la Main droite sur le Positif, et la Main gauche sur le Grand Jeu, Au Grand Jeu, Bourdon, Prestant, Montre, Tierce, Grosse Tierce, Nazar, et Quarte de Nazar, Au Positif, Bourdon, Prestant ou Montre, le Cromhorne, et le Tremblant Doux. 

The TRIO HAS TWO TOPS, Keyboards, the Right hand on the Positive, and the Left hand on Big Game are pushed,
In Big Game, Bumblebee, Prestant, Watch, Third, big Third, Nazar, and Quarte de Nazar,

In the Positive, Bumblebee, Prestant or Watch, Cromhorne, and Trembling Soft.

Right hand on the Swell and the left hand on the Great.  Sw. SD and Principal and Gt. OD (or Principal an octave down)

Le DUO: On pousse les Claviers, la Main droite sur le Positif, et la Main gauche sur le Grand Jeu, Au Grand Jeu, Bourdon de 16 pieds, Bourdon, Prestant, Tierce, Grosse Tierce, Nazar, et Quarte de Nazar, Au Positif, Bourdon, Prestant ou Montre, Tierce, et Nazar. 

The DUET, Keyboards, the Right hand on the Positive, and the Left hand on Big Game are pushed, In Big Game, 16-foot Bumblebee, Bumblebee, Prestant, Third, big Third, Nazar, and Quarte de Nazar, In the Positive, Bumblebee, Prestant or Watch, Third, and Nazar.

Right hand on Swell and the left hand on the Great.  Sw. Oboe (or OD and Principal), Gt. SD

Le RÉCIT DE NAZAR: Se touche sur le Positif, et l’Acompagnement sur le Grand Jeu, Au Grand Jeu, Bourdon, et Montre de quatre pieds, Au Positif, Bourdon, Prestant ou Montre et le Nazar. 

The STORY OF NAZAR, feels each other on the Positive, and Acompagnement on Big Game, In Big Game, Bumblebee, and four-foot Watch, In the Positive, Bumblebee, Prestant or Watch and Nazar.

Solo on the Great, accompaniment on the Swell - Gt. Principal and Sw. OD and SD

DESSUS DE PETITE TIERCE: Se touche sur le Positif, et l’Acompagnement sur le Grand Jeu, Au Grand Jeu, Bourdon, et Prestant, Au Positif, Bourdon, Prestant ou Montre, Tierce, et Nazar. 

TOP OF THIRD BABY, feels each other on the Positive, and Acompagnement on Big Game, In the Big Game, Bumblebee, and Prestant, In the Positive, Bumblebee, Prestant or Watch, Third, and Nazar.

Solo on the Swell, accompaniment on the Great.  Sw. SD and Mixture, Gr. OD

BASSE DE TROMPETTE: On pousse les Claviers, Au Grand Jeu, Bourdon, Prestant, et Trompette, Au Positif, Bourdon, et Prestant ou Montre. 

BASS OF TRUMPET PLAYER, Keyboards are pushed, In Big Game, Bumblebee, Prestant, and Trumpet player, In the Positive, Bumblebee, and Prestant or Watch.

Solo on the Great, accompaniment on the Swell - Gt. Principal and OD, Sw. OD and SD (box half closed)

BASSE DE CROMHORNE: On pousse les Claviers, Au Grand Jeu, Montre et Bourdon, Au Positif, Prestant ou Montre, Nazar, Tierce, Doublette, Larigot, et le Cromhorne, point de Bourdon.

BASS OF CROMHORNE, Keyboards are pushed, In Big Game, Watch and Bumblebee, In the Positive, Prestant or Watch, Nazar, Third, Doublette, Larigot, and Cromhorne, no Bumblebee.

Solo on the Swell - Sw. Oboe and SD, Gt. Dulciana.  Great to Pedal coupled.

CROMHORNE EN TAILLE: Au Grand Jeu, Montre, Bourdon, et les Pedalles de Flûte, Au Positif, Bourdon, Prestant ou Montre, et le Cromhorne.

CROMHORNE THERE SHARPENS, In Big Game, Watch, Bumblebee, and the Pedalles de Flûte, In the Positive, Bumblebee, Prestant or Watch, and Cromhorne,

Solo on the Swell - Sw. Oboe and SD, Gt. SD.  Great to Pedal coupled.

TIERCE EN TAILLE: Au Grand Jeu, Bourdon de 16 pieds, Montre et Prestant, et les Pedalles de Flûte, Au Positif, Bourdon, Prestant ou Montre, Nazar, Tierce, Doublette, et Larigot. 

THIRD THERE SHARPENS, In Big Game, 16-foot Bumblebee, Watch and Prestant, and the Pedalles de Flûte, In the Positive, Bumblebee, Prestant or Watch, Nazar, Third, Doublette, and Larigot.

Solo on the Swell - Sw. Mixture, Principal, SD, Gt. SD.  Great to Pedal coupled

FOND D’ORGUE: On tire les Claviers l’un sur l’autre, Au Grand Jeu, Bourdon de 16 pieds, Bourdon, Prestant, et Montre, Au Positif, Bourdon, Prestant ou Montre. 

BOTTOM Of ORGAN, Keyboards the one at other one are drawn, In Big Game, 16-foot Bumblebee, Bumblebee, Prestant, and Watch, In the Positive, Bumblebee, Prestant or Watch.

All 8 foot stops coupled to Great

CONCERT DE FLUTE: On tire les Claviers l’un sur l’autre, Au Grand Jeu, Bourdon et Flûte, Au Positif, Bourdon, Flûte et le Tremblant doux. 

CONCERT OF FLUTE, Keyboards the one at other one are drawn, In Big Game, Bumblebee and Flute, In the Positive, Bumblebee, Flute and Trembling soft.

Manuals coupled, Sw. SD, Gt. OD and Flute

DIALOGUE DE VOIX HUMAINE: On ne tire point les Claviers l’un sur l’autre, Au Grand Jeu, Bourdon et Flûte, Au Positif, Bourdon, Flûte, la Voix Humaine, et le Tremblant doux. 

HAD TALKS OF VOX HUMANA, Keyboards the one at other one are not drawn, In Big Game, Bumblebee and Flute, In the Positive, Bumblebee, Flute, Vox humana, and Trembling soft.

Solo on Swell - Sw. Oboe, Gt. Dulciana

DIALOGUE A DEUX CHŒURS: On tire les Claviers l’un sur l’autre, Au Grand Jeu, Bourdon, Prestant, Trompette, Clairon, et le Cornet, Au Positif, Bourdon, Prestant ou Montre et le Cromhorne.

They HAVE TALKS IN TWO CHŒURS, draw Keyboards the one at other one, In Big Game, Bumblebee, Prestant, Trumpet player, Bugle, and the Cone, In the Positive, Bumblebee, Prestant or Watch and Cromhorne.

All couplers - Sw. full, Gt. OD, SD, Principal, Ped. OD brought on for final 'Fort Lentement' 

DIALOGUE A TROIS CHŒURS: On tire les Claviers l’un sur l’autre, Au Grand Jeu, Bourdon, Prestant, Trompette, Clairon, Cornet, Nazar, Quarte de Nazar et Tierce, Au Positif, Bourdon, Prestant ou Montre, Cromhorne, Tierce et Nazar, le Troisième Chœur sur le Clavier d’Echo, et le Tremblant à Vent Perdu.

They HAVE TALKS IN THREE CHŒURS, draw Keyboards the one at other one, In Big Game, Bumblebee, Prestant, Trumpet player, Bugle, Cone, Nazar, Quarte de Nazar and Third, In the Positive, Bumblebee, Prestant or Watch, Cromhorne, Third and Nazar,

the Third Chorus on the Keyboard of Echo, and the Trembling with Lost Wind.

Don't even start chummy, you're 'avin a laugh.

Pfff.  Big Game...

If anything, Organ teachers should just hand out a list of machine translated stop lists and let their students have an honest stab at it before telling them the real things.  Imagine, that one day a recital is given by one of these earnest pupils, who through sheer nerves tells their audience that they hope to showcase the beautiful voicing of stops with Monseigneur Couperin's "Top of Third Baby", only realising what they said after a smattering of confused applause and the audience mumbling the word "...baby?"

Trust not too much

Think about it.  Give yourself 30 seconds, and diagnose a problem.  And give me a solution.  Well.  More for me, really.

I've all but let go of writing recently.  They say when will you write again, they say where was that review of Star Wars?  They say isn't it a shame.  They even said you should write a book.

I always wrote as if I was in the centre of a narrative.  My life had a direction, even if I didn't know what it was, because things were happening that were taking me to different places.  Now, not so much.  Or at least, I don't really see it that way any more.  I came to realise that all of my problems were the same problems that everyone faces, give or take, rather than to try and frame it into a narrative where I overcome various challenges as set by some malevolent deity (or Choirmaster), and enjoy a moral and societal feeling of justification.

I had to down tools about 8 months ago, as I thought that things had gotten a little too close for comfort really.  It was impossible to talk about problems without maintaining the usual veneer of almost respectable semi-anonymity, which then got in the way of basically everything else that I wanted to do.  Once upon a time I had grand designs for a fortnightly schedule, but because of one thing or another, I let it go.  Creativity took a back seat to, well, I don't know, the abyss.  My obsession with long form also doesn't help, but neither did the nagging feeling that I was wasting my time with people in particular.  It's not just institutions that close their ranks, after all.  

There's also something about regular work that's upset the ship slightly, but the massive increase in salary and disposable income must make up for that, surely?  (You are not your bank account)  But surely, the major flaws of data entry and answering the telephone leaves me with little in the way of feelings of accomplishment; I regularly attend admin "team" meetings (because everything is a team these days - not a kitchen but a catering team, not a choir but a music team &c &c) where I bring up that really anyone could answer the phone and unjam the photocopier (actually it seems I'm almost the only one who can), only to be told that no I am valued and a special unique snowflake that they couldn't do without and it really doesn't ring true.  It's okay to have someone employed as the monkey who answers the phone, but not okay to make it seem any more than that.

Anyway.  It's about time I came back, somehow.  It's boring, not writing.  And I hate being bored.

The Human Torch was denied a bank loan

Ok, hands up everyone - who exactly went to see the new Fantastic Four movie?  There has to be more than just me?  I went on the 8th of August, and at the Truro Plaza's screen 1 there must have been oh no more than could be counted on the fingers of two hands.

Is this the first sign of the Superhero film business bubble bursting?  That at last, after Hugh Jackman's rise to fame and fortune as the immortal Wolverine, a character so unkillable that in order to finish him off in print they had to encase him in the same unbreakable metal bonded to his very bones (blah blah) (but for how long?) the dream is over?  To be honest... Probably not.  It might be the end to anything not produced by either Warner Brothers or Disney though, except perhaps for the ever-rolling tide of X-Men sequels and spin-offs.  Let's get things straight, I don't actually think this film is as bad as a lot of other reviews have suggested; I didn't at any point consider walking out and asking for a refund, for example... But I wouldn't blame anybody else if they chose to.

Vox's incredible assault on the film is a worthwhile and illuminating read, alongside Wired's short list that reads like a first draft for one of my favourite YouTube channels, Cinema Sins (and I seriously can't wait for his assessment of this sad waste of opportunity).  A common thread through even the most damning of pieces is that it shouldn't have been this bad.  Opening reports were terrible enough, with people somehow flipping their lids over the fact that Johnny Storm is NOW A BLACK MAN I mean come on guys how many of you cared that the only evidence I could see in the film for Ben Grimm's Jewishness is a single menorah on a bookcase in his family home (the self animated Golem?), and the strange reports that their infamous antagonist would start his fictional life out as a hacker... Right.  So this is going to be different off the bat (naturally, everything is ruined forever), but fingers crossed, yeah?  No.

It's unfair to call this film a trainwreck, but only because it doesn't actually build any momentum.  Like an ancient train engine struggling up the side of a mountain, it stuggles inch by inch before at last the traction fails and it slips, leaving us thankful that it hadn't got high enough to cause any damage.  The opening sequences show some muted promise, and the first of several bad Star Wars references rears its ugly and impossible-to-tell-if-intentional head, with the young Luke Skywalker finally getting to Tosche Station for that power converter, uhhhh, I mean Reed Richards at the Grimm family junkyard looking for a... Oh.  A power converter.  By this point, we have already met our first major villain - the class teacher, whose disbelief in the accomplishments of Richards (and subsequently Grimm) border on cartoonish, decrying their device at a School Science Fair as nothing more or less than a cheap magic trick.  Victory by demoralisation!  Hurrah!  We eventually meet the rest of the main players, Franklin and Susan Storm, the latter this time adopted and toting the now-ubiquitous Samsung cell phone.  There's plenty of hefty stereotyping being thrown about: Richards is the nerd, Grimm the silent but strong type, Johnny as the hot headed rebel (foreshadowing!), and Sue as the girl... I want to say something clever about her being quiet enough to go unnoticed here (more foreshadowing lololol), but can't seem to work up the required effort (much like the film itself).  Then we meet Victor von Doom (von dooooooooooom), a bearded loner who has some kind of shady past including sabotaging data servers, a stalker-esque attraction to Sue, who lives in an orgy of evidence that he is in fact a computer genius, and seems to be controlling everything with his eye.  Skip!

Amazingly, this is all still the 'good bit', and we gradually uncover that the government want to use the dimesion hopping research to find new energy sources blah blah blah some kind of soft environmental message is shoehorned in here.  When the suits come down and tell the gang that their taking over after sending the worst CGI chimpanzee test subject I have ever seen (seriously, they could have just filmed a fucking chimp's face for the screen, and then have like a hairy cushion or something for the two seconds we see them carry it back and forth to the pod HONESTLY) as an "organic matter test", the male main characters get drunk and decide to automate a run so they can be first, following an interesting little speech from Doom (doooooooom) about how we all know Neil Armstrong's name, but not the names of the people that actually were responsible in getting him to the Moon.  Spoiler alert, everything starts out okay and then it all goes wrong, as Doom (doooooooooooooooom) dips his hand into glowing green goop on the alien planet/dimension and ultimately gets sucked in (by like, a thing?  Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within has much to answer for), and bizarrely specific accidents happen to the others, and a wave passes through Sue upon the capsule's return (who saw that coming?).  The aftermath of this crash is possibly the best part of the film, with some deftly handled body horror: Terrifying limbs, a pile of rocks mewling for help and a man on fire.

Rather than spend time exploring this in any detail, the film serves us a "1 year later" placeholder, where we fast forward to a few training montages, and the unsurprising sight that Ben Grimm has become the darling of the US Armed Forces. Notably one of these scenes from the trailer is missing, alongside several more no doubt, that one where the air-drop The Thing ("How long until he's in?"), but I digress.  They obviously cut that one because Reed and Sue are smiling, and SMILING IS NOT ALLOWED IN THIS MOVIE.  Another classic example of the film being dark and brooding merely through being shot in low light (Batman I'm looking at you).  I honestly found it difficult to pay attention to the rest of the film, really.  There was a cool moment when Reed used his rubber powers to change his face, but then there's a hilariously terrible bit with stretchy limbs after - I mean, just how practical are these powers in reality?  Being a rock monster is pretty obvious, as is being able to set yourself on fire and fly, and be invisible... But stretching?  Whatever.  Some badly artificed drama about Ben not forgiving Reed for leaving is stuffed in but then completely forgotten by the end "battle" and final scenes.

At some point they bring Doom (doooooooooooooooom) back for the seemingly pre-requisite final battle, and Jesus Christ the effects are dreadful.  Having fused to his spaceman-container suit, he also glows with green energy, and glowing green eyes (which barely ever match up to where his eyes should be, looking vaguely disturbing but mostly crap), he goes on a murder rampage blowing up heads like Tetsuo Shima (Tetsuooooo!  Kanedaaaaa!), eventually causing the death of old Franklin Richards, whose last words might as well be "There is... another... Skywalker" (jeez seriously), and then they troll off for the showdown on 'Planet Zero', against a Doom (dooooooooooooooooooooooom) who looks more like a cheap knock-off Stormtrooper figure than ever (you know those really big ones made out of shitey plastic at Pound shops), throwing out cliched dialogue and random phrases.  Even Ben's "It's clobberin' time!" is robbed of any power due to the zero character development (we hear his bullying older brother use it at the start of the film once.  That's it), as the assembled heroes win the day and save Baton Rouge errrrr the World from further destruction.  Poor Louisiana.  Roll credits.

{~"~}

I think I've enjoyed recalling the plot to kick it about more than actually having watched it.  The film's greatest sin is that it's actually just simply very boring.  Thick with cliche, badly paced and lacklustre effects, almost zero excitement past a few opening flourishes, where characters showed chance of becoming fully formed... But no.  No, no, no.  We may never know what weird horror-character piece the director had in mind initially, as it seems obvious there's been more hands to this than perhaps there should be (reshoots by different directors is a persistent rumour), missing scenes from trailers, and also the fact that it's only 92 minutes lending credence to the idea that an entire act's worth of material is missing from somewhere... Oh I don't know.  

However, the most memorable episode of my entire visit was... this.  I missed the first twenty or so seconds of it, so just sat down thinking this was a car becoming a bigger car... But no.  No.  No no no no no.  If you've ever wondered where Transformers come from, well, this isn't a good start.  The advert left me feeling strange, a state of total unease that doubtless coloured my interpretation of the film... Or something.  But seriously guys... *shudder*

Come Clap Thy Hands

I'm closing the Asylum down for a little while.  I like to think it's for repairs, just like the Cathedral and the north side of the nave roof.  Yes, imagine that, a whole load of scaffold up around my head; whole wings lay in ruins, hardly any of the lights work and various doors either won't open or close depending on where they are and who's behind them.

I'm tired, I suppose.  I know I'm upset about the end of the year as well, before anyone points it out for me, especially as it feels particularly abrupt this year - just so many things have happened: Filming 9 Lessons and Carols alongside the usual packed Christmas timetable, audio recordings in January, Come and Sing, the termly concerts with their own highs and lows (Less than half the Cathedral full on a Friday night?  Thoughtless errors in the Durufle Requiem?!), this year's CD followed swiftly by the broadcast... It's been a packed schedule.  Maybe you as audience may scoff at this - perhaps you are part of a choir that does this every year so it's in your stride?  Maybe you have a full time job and demanding home life?  Or maybe you have no idea why this sounds like a lot?  Who knows.  I know that as we reached and somehow survived this last hurrah... I just feel knackered.  I'm worn through and burnt out really; not so much burning the candle at both ends as throwing the whole candle into the fire.  

So, like I say, the place is going to close for a little bit.  If anybody catches me publishing anything before the 6th of September then, then... I don't know, some arbitrary measure of punishment ought to be involved.  Seven weeks ought to be good enough.  Did you know there's a difference between saying something doesn't matter and saying something isn't important?  Amazing.  But I digress.  I used to write about how much it upset me that I didn't fit in: Humanity is still essentially a herd animal - social but ultimately stupid and dangerous in large numbers.  After a modicum of success I once again feel pretty much the same, so I guess this is my get out post for now though - there's just so much bullshit I've decided that the best option now is to down tools and shut the doors - there are battles here that I will never win, ever, and trying to fight on terms other than my own is destroying what's left of me.  Sometimes I feel like the monomaniacal Ahab, hell-bent on his own destruction... Although having thought about who or what my own white whale would be, and what sort of short-sighted offence might be taken, I should say no more on it.

I wonder whether I have left bridges unburnt merely for the sake of it?  I've never felt so inadequate in all my life, said I, before processing up for Evensong... But that's for another time, I suppose.  Frankly, I feel more and more that I have been treated increasingly as a commodity: enough is enough.  That my opinions are increasingly invalid; that my decisions are easy to overturn, or are simply incorrect in the first place; that I am at others' convenience, and that alone; that I may be cancelled, and cancelled on; that simply, it does not matter.  Good for answering your questions, but not much else.  Maybe if I tear enough down, tear it all down, maybe I can build something better.  Yes!  Build a better asylum, build a better mousetrap, build a better me.  Such lofty aspirations.  

There are some good things to come out of all this dread though, in a way.  I now look after a tiny little doglet person, a Golden Retriever puppy of gradually increasing age,size and appetite.  Odds are that nobody would ever have thought I'd be a dog person, in fact probably not any kind of animal at all person but there we go - a change really is as good as a rest.  In a way, he acts like a little Emotional Support Animal, what with me being "on the spectrum" and all (before any of you clever dicks out there say it first), and that I have had no more fun this year so far than chasing this tiny dog around the house and garden, and taking him out and gradually introducing him to the world at large.  He may not strictly be my dog... But when I have custody of him he is my responsibility, and what I say goes.  I've taken to carrying the treat pouch around with me now, to encourage him to behave better (especially at road sides), which garnered me the strange but (probably deserved) compliment that I was "like a proper daddy", which filled me with an as yet unknown sense of pride.

I suppose I'm angry as well.  Maybe it's all misplaced, or totally unwarranted or even unjustified, but that's neither here nor there.  I really need to get my life in order for a really quite substantial change (no, I'm not moving away... But I can't help but think perhaps I missed an opportunity, but actually I do have promises to keep after all), and relieving myself of any guilt of having not posted anything is as much a part of it as anything else.  I am in a time of change, as always at the end of an academic year, and as old totems finally crumble from sheer age I don't really know how to replace them - I am unsure and feel almost totally alone.

None of this rage will matter next year though, as I will finally have a job and money and maybe even some status to go along with them.  Maybe people will finally like me!  I crack myself up... Ah, once upon a time, while I still thought that killing myself was a valid and morally reasonable option, I joked about how I would take so long writing a suicide note that would encompass all my feelings of being wronged and why I ought to leave this mortal plane that I would become too engrossed in the actual note itself, inadvertently saving my own life.  It was at that moment, I knew it was a writer's life for me!  All laughter aside though, wouldn't it be boring if I died?  I can't stand being bored myself, and I'm sure plenty of people would be even more bored if it wasn't for me, so I'll be sticking around for a while.  Anyway, I'd have nothing to complain about!  Even at the gallows, one's sense of humour is still important.

I'll leave you with a real joke for now; I think Rorschach said it best...

"I heard joke once: Man goes to doctor.  Says he's depressed.  Life seems harsh, and cruel.  Says he feels all alone in threatening world.  Doctor says: "Treatment is simple.  The great clown - Pagliacci - is in town.  Go see him.  That should pick you up."  Man bursts into tears.  "But doctor..." he says "I am Pagliacci."

Good joke.  Everybody laugh.  Roll on snare drum.  Curtains." 

Come then, and clap thy hands.  

In Paradisum - Truro Cathedral Choir Summer Concert, Saturday 20th June 20

PROGRAMME

  

The Truro Evening Canticles – Russell Pascoe (b 1960)

The Beatitudes – Arvo Pärt (b 1935)

Mother of God, here I stand – John Tavener (1944-2014)

Elegy – George Thalben-Ball (1896-1987)

Soloist: Luke Bond (organ)

Funeral Ikos – John Tavener

Herzliebster Jesu – Gabriel Jackson (b 1962)

Soloist: Luke Bond (organ)

Nunc Dimittis – Gustav Holst (1874-1934)

Soloists: James Lansdowne (treble) and Peter Thomson (tenor)

INTERVAL

Requiem – Maurice Duruflé (1902-1986)

Soloists: Jacob Dennison and Nicholas Hawker

1 Introitus

2 Kyrie

3 Domine Jesu Christe

4 Sanctus

5 Pie Jesu

6 Agnus Dei

7 Lux æterna

8 Libera me

9 In Paradisum

WORDS AND PROGRAMME NOTES

The Truro Evening Canticles – Russell Pascoe

Cornish composer Russell Pascoe was commissioned to write this set of evening canticles for the Cathedral Choir, which were broadcast live as part of Choral Evensong on BBC Radio 3 on the 17th of April, 2013. 

Pascoe chooses to set the Magnificat as a great song of praise, rather than in the more introspective style particularly characteristic of Herbert Howells, full of exciting syncopation and the use of quick changes of time signature to shift the pattern of strong and weak beats in both the music and words, often over a short phrase.  He confidently mixes tonal and modal harmonies alongside sometimes unexpected rhythms and free repetition of the words, always maintaining a sense of surging momentum, with the fully independent organ part adding sudden flourishes that leap out from the texture. The Gloria takes us briefly to another world entirely, one where there is a majestic timelessness. This world is one inhabited by Arvo Pärt and John Tavener whose music is greatly influenced by the Orthodox Church. For the opening of the Gloria, with its drone bass underpinning a strong melody with embellishments, Pascoe had in mind the eyes of an icon (like the Virgin of Tenderness of Vladimir in the Cathedral) staring out and requiring a response.

The Nunc Dimittis is much darker in tone, starting with the basses of the choir over a low organ drone, again evoking an atmosphere of the Orthodox Church. The texture gradually builds over the course of the words, which are not repeated. The canticle ends triumphantly, with a grand climax leading straight into a reworking of the majestic Gloria from the end of the Magnificat, the organ accompaniment far more embellished than before.

My soul doth magnify the Lord : and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.

For he hath regarded : the lowliness of his handmaiden.

For behold, from henceforth : all generations shall call me blessed.

For he that is mighty hath magnified me : and holy is his Name.

And his mercy is on them that fear him : throughout all generations.

He hath shewed strength with his arm : he hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.

He hath put down the mighty from their seat : and hath exalted the humble and meek.

He hath filled the hungry with good things : and the rich he hath sent empty away.

He remembering his mercy hath holpen his servant Israel : as he promised to our forefathers, Abraham and his seed for ever.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son: and to the Holy Ghost;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

Luke 1.46-55, lesser doxology

Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace : according to thy word.

For mine eyes have seen : thy salvation,

Which thou hast prepared : before the face of all people;

To be a light to lighten the Gentiles : and to be the glory of thy people Israel.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son: and to the Holy Ghost;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

Luke 2.29-32, lesser doxology

The Beatitudes – Arvo Pärt

One of only three works composed by Arvo Pärt in English, this setting of Jesus’s “Sermon on the Mount” from Matthew's Gospel is an excellent example of the Estonian composer's “tintinnabuli” style, the name of which comes from the Latin for “bell”, that he established for himself in the 1970s. This style is characterised by the use of two voices, the first being the “tintinnabular” which jumps around the notes of a tonic triad, and the second a voice that moves by step. This often produces a curious texture of parts constantly crossing over each other; the trebles and tenors have the tintinnabular voice, with wide leaps, contrasting with the altos and basses, who move in contrary motion with each other (where one part goes up the other goes down, in relation to the tonal centre). Pärt’s genius lies in making what could so easily be dry compositional techniques into music of immense emotional power. 

The choir enter on a discord, and the sentences of the scripture are punctuated by silence, before being joined discreetly by an underpinning organ pedal. The piece gradually moves higher through the choir's range, building a kind of devotional intensity while the pedal holds beneath the voices until the colossal “Amen”, when the organ suddenly bursts into life concluding the piece with a fantasia, indicative of the blessings of heaven that await the faithful. The organ fantasia gradually falls in pitch, returning to the original key of the opening; not only do the choir parts mirror themselves in their pairs, but the piece itself is a harmonic mirror, reflected through the “Amen”, that great declaration of affirmation.

Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.

Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.

Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.

Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.

Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.

Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.

Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.

Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.

Amen.

Matthew 5.3-12

Mother of God, Here I stand – John Tavener

This simple, hymn-like setting is the opening anthem of John Tavener's The Veil of the Temple, a work that lasts over seven hours in its entirety and is performed overnight, much like Rachmaninov's All-night Vigil, commonly known as his Vespers. The text is a setting of the first two verses of Mikhail Lermontov's A Prayer Poem, translated by Mother Thekla, with whom Tavener shared an exceptionally close relationship, acting at times as librettist, spiritual advisor and even counsellor to the composer. 

The text is imbued with a simple honesty, the poet offering his prayers to the Mother of God not for himself in any way, but for “her alone”, reflected in the sustained phrases which repeat the same musical material for every two lines of text, focussing the devotional nature of the prayer. The end of each phrase features exceptionally low bass notes, common in the music of the Eastern Orthodox Church, laying a harmonic foundation like the pedal stops of an organ.

Mother of God, here I stand now praying,

Before this ikon of your radiant brightness,

Not praying to be saved from a battlefield;

Not giving thanks, nor seeking forgiveness for the sins of my soul, nor for all the souls

Numb, joyless and desolate on earth; but for her alone, whom I wholly give you...

Mikhail Lermontov, trans. Mother Thekla

Elegy – George Thalben-Ball

This Elegy, arguably Thalben-Ball's most recognisable piece, started life as an improvisation after a BBC broadcast during the Second World War when the service itself unexpectedly ended a few minutes early. So many listeners phoned the BBC to find out what piece he was in fact playing, Thalben-Ball decided to transcribe it as best he could remember. It is dedicated to Thalben-Ball's predecessor at the Temple, Sir Henry Walford Davies, and is reminiscent of the older organist's Solemn Melody, following a similar structure of a quiet opening statement that builds to a climax before returning to a subdued ending. The score notes that the first statement of this tune must have a “cello quality”, but no other registration instructions are given throughout, fitting its improvisational origins. This simple, dignified and never overly sentimental piece may well have been an affectionate tribute to Walford Davies, who died in 1941. 

Funeral Ikos – John Tavener

Written in 1981, this sets words from the Order for the Burial of Dead Priests from the Greek Orthodox liturgy.  Unfamiliar to most of us, it shows the frank and honest approach towards physical death, but that it does not diminish the souls of the righteous.

The long chanted lines, moving from unison to three parts and back again, coupled with the “Alleluia” refrain give the piece a meditative atmosphere, and help this delicate and deeply religious Ikos to move past being just music and words, and become more of an idea in and of itself – although performed out of context here, it echoes the message in The Beatitudes that heaven awaits the righteous but is beyond a veil of suffering and physical death, and that if we truly believe and keep faith we will find heaven. The text also touches on many aspects outside the funeral itself: the grief of feeling abandonment, loss, doubt, and fear of the unknown. Ultimately, the text points to closure; not just for the souls of the dying, but also the living who survive them, allowing them to move on and look to their faith: “Let us all, also, enter into Christ, that all we may cry aloud thus unto God: Alleluia”.

Why these bitter words of the dying, O brethren, which they do utter as they go hence?  I am parted from my brethren.  All my friends do I abandon, and go hence.  But whither I go, that understand I not, neither what shall become of me yonder; only God, who hath summoned me knoweth.  But make commemoration of me with the song: Alleluia.

But whither now go the souls?  How dwell they now together here?  This mystery have I desired to learn, but none can impart aright.  Do they call to mind their own people, as we do them?  Or have they forgotten all those who mourn them and make the song: Alleluia.

We go forth on the path eternal, and as condemned, with downcast faces, present ourselves before the only God eternal.  Where then is comeliness?  Where then is wealth?  Where then is the glory of this world?  There shall none of these things aid us, but only to say oft the psalm: Alleluia.

If thou hast shown mercy unto man, O man, that same mercy shall be shown thee there;and if on an orphan thou hast shown compassion, the same shall there deliver thee from want.  If in this life the naked thou hast clothed, the same shall give thee shelter there, and sing the psalm: Alleluia.

Youth and the beauty of the body fade at the hour of death, and the tongue then burneth fiercely, and the parched throat is inflamed.  The beauty of the eyes is quenched then, the comeliness to the face all altered, the shapeliness of the neck destroyed; and the other parts have become numb, nor often say: Alleluia.

With ecstasy are we inflamed if we but hear that there is light eternal yonder; that there is Paradise, wherein every soul of Righteous Ones rejoiceth.  Let us all, also, enter into Christ, that we all we may cry aloud thus unto God: Alleluia.

From The Order for the Burial of Dead Priests, trans. Isabel Hapgood

Herzliebster Jesu – Gabriel Jackson

Commissioned as part of The Orgelbüchlein Project, this chorale prelude was first performed by William Whitehead at The Passiontide Festival held at Merton College, Oxford, on 31st of March 2012. This project seeks to 'complete' Johann Sebastian Bach's Orgelbüchlein (Little Organ Book), which out of a total of 164 chorales for liturgical use throughout the church year saw only 46 completed by Bach at the time of his death, leaving 118 chorales either unfinished or entirely unwritten. Modern composers have been invited to contribute by either picking up where Bach left off or by creating an original composition, which will be collected and published alongside Bach's original preludes and published in one volume in 2017.

Gabriel Jackson finds inspiration from Bach in setting the chorale melody (a German hymn tune) in a solo voice in the right hand of the organ, while accompanied by left hand cluster chords and deep pedal notes underneath. While Jackson's melodic and rhythmic figures are beyond what Bach may have imagined or intended, the modern idiom is not so far removed from other decorated chorale melodies (such as O Mensch, bewein BWV 622), and the outline of the melody is well-preserved. The irregular rhythm in the accompanying parts promotes a sense of unease matching the dark undertones of the text, the first verse of which is printed here.

Herzliebster Jesu, was hast du verbrochen,

Daß man ein solch scharf Urteil hat gesprochen? Was ist die Schuld? In was für Missetaten Bist du geraten?

O dearest Jesus, what law hast Thou broken

That such sharp sentence should on Thee be spoken?

Of what great crime hast Thou to make confession,

What dark transgression?

Johann Heerman, trans Catherine Winkworth

Nunc Dimittis – Gustav Holst

Composed one hundred years ago, this unaccompanied Nunc Dimittis was commissioned by Richard Terry, then Organist of Westminster Cathedral. It received its liturgical première on Easter Sunday of 1915 as part of compline (which explains why there is no accompanying Magnificat), and almost completely disappeared thereafter. It was rediscovered in the 1970s by the composer's daughter Imogen, who revised it slightly ahead of its first 'modern' performance, given by the BBC Northern Singers as part of the 27th Aldeburgh Festival in 1974.

One of the most recognisable openings of any evening canticle setting, the eight parts enter one by one, holding “Nunc” until the full choir is singing. From this, Holst uses a great deal of techniques to vary the eight part texture constantly – renaissance inspired counterpoint gives way to full sections, antiphony not only between the first and second parts but also between the upper and lower voices, and two short but effective solos, sung by a treble and tenor. The piece culminates with a thrilling Gloria full of exciting counterpoint, ending with a sustained top A in the trebles that peals out, the final major chord instilling a sense of joy.

Nunc dimittis servum tuum, Domine, secundum verbum tuum in pace:

Quia viderunt oculi mei salutare tuum

Quod parasti ante faciem omnium populorum:

Lumen ad revelationem gentium, et gloriam plebis tuae Israel.

Gloria Patri, et Filio, et Spiritui Sancto,

Sicut erat in principio, et nunc, et semper, et in saecula saeculorum. Amen.

Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace : according to thy word.

For mine eyes have seen : thy salvation,

Which thou hast prepared : before the face of all people;

To be a light to lighten the Gentiles : and to be the glory of thy people Israel.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son: and to the Holy Ghost;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

Luke 2.29-32, lesser doxology

INTERVAL

Requiem – Maurice Duruflé

Born in 1902, Maurice Duruflé began his musical training at the age of ten, when his father enrolled him as a chorister at Rouen Cathedral, the choir of which was famous for singing entirely from memory until the time of the French Revolution. It is also the home of Jean Titelouze, recognized as the founder of the great French Organ School of composers. It was in this environment that the young Duruflé found his love of Gregorian Chant, on which much of his limited compositional output is based – only 14 opus numbers were published in total. The Requiem is a fusion of many disparate elements that Duruflé juxtaposes with incredible skill, making the melodies and modal flavour of Gregorian chant seem a natural match to the lush, almost impressionistic harmonies surrounding it.

The Requiem itself was possibly started as early 1941, but was not completed until 1947, when it was dedicated to the memory of his father, who had died that year. Initially conceived as a suite of solo organ pieces based on the chants for the Missa pro Defunctis (Mass for the Dead), it gradually expanded to this setting in nine movements for choir and orchestra, which Duruflé later reduced to choir and organ accompaniment, as it is performed tonight. (There is also a third version, accompanied by organ and chamber orchestra.)

The structure takes inspiration from Fauré's Requiem, and follows in its mood of dignified acceptance of death and confidence in God’s mercy. Amongst the dramatic moments are the massive 'Hosanna' in the Sanctus which gives listeners a vision of the gates of heaven, and the 'Dies irae, dies illa' that reminds us that God will come and judge the world by fire in the end of days. The solos in the third and eighth movements use the uppermost part of the range, providing a magisterial effect, particularly in the phrase “tu suscipe” in the third movement. Finally, in the sublime ending, the last moments of the In Paradisum itself, having seen heaven from afar, we are led by flights of angels as the choir and organ melt away into eternity.

I. Introit

Requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine: et lux perpetua luceat eis.

Te decet hymnus Deus in Sion, et tibi redetur votum in Jerusalem.

Exaudi orationem meam; ad te omnis caro veniet.

Rest eternal grant unto them, O Lord: and let light perpetual shine upon them.

Thou, O God, art praised in Sion, and unto thee shall the vow be performed in Jerusalem:

Hear my prayer; all flesh shall come to thee.

II. Kyrie

Kyrie eleison.

Christe eleison.

Kyrie eleison.

Lord, have mercy upon us.

Christ, have mercy upon us.

Lord, have mercy upon us.

III. Domine Jesu Christe

Domine Jesu Christe, Rex gloriae,

libera animas omnium fidelium defunctorum de poenis inferni, et de profundo lacu:

Libera eas de ore leonis, ne absorbeat eas tartarus: ne cadant in obscurum.

Sed signifer sanctus Michael repraesentet eas in lucem sanctam,

Quam olim Abrahae promisisti, et semini ejus.

Hostias et preces tibi, Domine, laudis offerimus:

tu suscipe pro animabus illis quarum, hodie memoriam facimus. 

Fac eas, Domine, de morte transire ad vitam.

Quam olim Abrahae promisisti, et semini ejus.

O Lord Jesus Christ, King of glory,

deliver the souls of the departed from the pains of hell and the bottomless pit:

Deliver them from the lion’s mouth, lest hell devour them: may they not fall into darkness, but let Saint Michael, the standard bearer, lead them into the holy light,

which thou once promised to Abraham and his seed.

Sacrifices and prayers do we offer to thee, O Lord:

do thou accept them for those souls in whose memory we make this oblation.

Make them, O Lord, to pass from death to life,

which thou once promised to Abraham and his seed.

IV. Sanctus

Sanctus, sanctus, sanctus, Dominus Deus Sabaoth.

Pleni sunt cœli et terra gloria tua.

Hosanna in excelsis.

Benedictus qui venit in nomine Domini.

Hosanna in excelsis.

Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of Hosts.

Heaven and earth are full of Thy glory.

Blessed is he who cometh in the name of the Lord.

Hosanna in the highest.

V. Pie Jesu

Pie Jesu Domine, dona eis requiem.

Dona eis sempiternam requiem.

Blessed Lord Jesus, grant them rest.

Grant them eternal rest.

VI. Agnus Dei

Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi, dona eis requiem.

Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi, dona eis requiem sempiternam.

O Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, grant them rest.

O Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, grant them rest eternal.

VII. Lux aeterna

Lux aeterna luceat eis, Domine, cum sanctis tuis in aeternum: quia pius es.

Requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine: et lux perpetua luceat eis.

Quia pius es.

Let light eternal shine upon them, O Lord: with thy saints for evermore: for thou art gracious.

Rest eternal grant unto them, O Lord: and let light perpetual shine upon them.

For thou art gracious.

VIII. Libera me

Libera me, Domine, de morte aeterna, in die illa tremenda:

Quando coeli movendi sunt et terra; Dum veneris judicare saeculum per ignem.

Tremens factus sum ego, et timeo, dum discussio venerit, atque ventura ira.

Dies illa, dies irae, calamitatis et miseriae, dies magna et amara valde.

Requiem aeternam dona eis Domine, et lux perpetua luceat eis.

Deliver me, O Lord, from everlasting death in that fearful day:

When the heavens and earth shall be shaken; When thou shalt come to judge the world by fire.

I am in fear and trembling, until the sifting be upon us and the wrath to come.

That day, the day of wrath, calamity and misery, the great day of exceeding bitterness.

Rest eternal grant unto them, O Lord: and let light perpetual shine upon them.

IX. In Paradisum

In paradisum deducant Angeli, in tuo adventu suscipiant te martyres,

et perducant te in civitatem sanctam Jerusalem.

Chorus Angelorum te suscipiat,

et cum Lazaro quondam paupere aeternam habeas requiem.

May the Angels lead thee into Paradise, and the Martyrs receive thee at thy coming

and bring thee into the holy city Jerusalem.

May the choir of Angels receive thee, and mayest thou,

with Lazarus once poor, have everlasting rest.

Missa pro Defunctis

Programme notes by Paul-Ethan Bright

Truro Cathedral Choir

Truro Cathedral has had a choir of boys and men since it was consecrated in 1887. The current team of eighteen boy choristers and twelve gentlemen sings at six services each week during term time as well as at the major services around Christmas and Easter. They also undertake regular concerts, broadcasts, webcasts, foreign tours and CD recordings.

In recent years the choir has performed live on BBC1 as well as making recordings for BBC1’s Songs of Praise programme and a BBC2 documentary The Truth about Carols. There are regular live broadcasts on BBC Radio 3 and, in 2011, it became the first British cathedral choir to webcast a service. On Radio 4’s Desert Island Discs programme, Howard Goodall chose the choir’s recording of music by French composer Maurice Duruflé as his favourite disc.

Recent CD recordings have attracted praise from critics in the international classical press: “Inspirational singing from one of the top cathedral choirs in the land” (Organists’ Review); “The singing of the choir, set in the wonderful acoustic of Truro Cathedral, is beyond praise” (MusicWeb International); “They have a fresh, unforced sound and encompass with ease the bigger eight-part writing and unexpected harmonic progressions. It’s noticeable that the solo voices include five different boy choristers of equal accomplishment – a tribute to Gray’s expert training.” (Gramophone).

In addition to its commitments in Truro, the Choir has performed in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, France, Sweden, Italy, Spain and the USA.

A great deal of new music has been written specially for Truro Cathedral Choir by some of the UK’s top composers, among them David Bednall, David Briggs, Jonathan Carne, Paul Comeau, Paul Drayton, Graham Fitkin, Howard Goodall, Gabriel Jackson, James MacMillan, Russell Pascoe, Howard Skempton and Philip Stopford.

The eighteen boy choristers are all educated at Polwhele House School. They rehearse every day before school for at least 45 minutes. On most weekdays they come straight from school to the Cathedral where they do their homework before rehearsing for another 40 minutes and singing a service at 5.30 pm. They sing two further services on Sundays.

The boys are joined by twelve gentlemen who sing the alto, tenor and bass parts. Seven are Lay Vicars who are based permanently here in Cornwall. Five are Choral Scholars who come from various parts of the UK and further afield to spend their gap years singing with our renowned choir. There is also an Organ Scholar. All organise their lives, work and holidays around the choir’s busy schedule of commitments.

Truro Cathedral supports three other choirs which provide singing opportunities for boys and girls aged 7 to 18, as well as adults. A separate team of girl Choristers, in the age range 13 to 18, will join Truro Cathedral Choir next September. Full details can be found on the Cathedral’s website.