Psalm
Jon Magnussen
About this work:
This work was performed by American Composers Orchestra and is included on NewMusicJukebox through a partnerhsip between AMC and ACO.
Commissioned by the José Limón Dance Foundation, Psalm was composed at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton during the winter of 2001-2002, to accompany José Limón’s classic 1967 ballet of the same name. The work is scored for baritone solo, large choir, and chamber ensemble, and was premiered at the 2002 Salt Lake Winter Olympic Arts Festival with baritone André Solomon-Glover and the Weber State University choir under the direction of the composer. The Salt Lake Tribune called the music "hauntingly beautiful."
Magnussen’s Psalm is a unique score for a modern dance ballet in that the dance actually preceded the music. Says Magnussen, "Most music-dance collaborations are conceived whereby either pre-existing music provides the impetus for the dance, or both the composer and choreographer work together to create a work concurrently." In this case, José Limón’s classic 1967 ballet Psalm provided the basis for the musical work.
Magnussen worked from a video reconstruction of the ballet, sketching musical material using a computer software program commonly used by film composers. "Writing music to complement pre-existing choreography creates a different set of challenges than that of composing music per se," says Magnussen. "The constraints imposed by the dance narrow down the number of possibilities and force a certain creativity within an existing framework. The challenge is to ensure that whatever I compose synchronizes perfectly with the live dance—not only on a technical level, but also on an emotional one."
"I imagine it would be similar to compose music for a silent film that ultimately must come alive for performance with real actors—with all of the movements timed exactly to accompany the screen version but flexible enough to be translated into a live performance situation."
The choreographic inspiration for José Limón’s Psalm came from André Schwarz-Bart’s novel, The Last of the Just, which is based upon the Jewish tradition of the Lamed-vovniks and recounts the struggle of Ernie Levy, an Auschwitz victim and a "Just Man." Limón abstracted this theme for Psalm, creating a solo role for the "Just Man," and a community of dancers which supports him. According to Carla Maxwell, Artistic Director of the Limón Company and Magnussen’s collaborator throughout the project, Psalm, like many of Limón’s works, "is about a people faced with annihilation, rising above it all."
Magnussen’s Psalm was funded in part by the Gladys Krieble Delmas Foundation, The Library of Congress, the National Endowment for the Arts, and Meet The Composer Commissioning/USA.
Magnussen’s compositions span the disciplines of the concert hall, drama, and dance and have been received with critical acclaim. Hailed by the Los Angeles Times as a "major artist," his music has been heard nationally and internationally, from such distinguished performers as the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, baritone Sanford Sylvan, and The Juilliard
Year composed: 2002
Duration: 00:31:00
Ensemble type: Chorus, with or without Solo Voices:Unknown
Instrumentation: 1 Flute, 1 Clarinet, 1 Trombone, 1 Timpani, 1 Percussion (General), 1 Piano, 4 Strings (General), 3 Cello, 1 Double bass, 1 Harp, 1 Baritone, 4 S, 4 SS, 4 A, 4 AA, 4 T, 4 TT, 4 B, 4 BB
Instrumentation notes: Psalm may also be performed in a version with expanded strings and percussion. Please contact Jon Magnussen for more information.