Music and healing seminar

Andover Newton Theological Seminary

Monday, March 31, 2008

Sergei Rachmaninov [1873-1943]

Piano Concerto #2

notes from en.wikipedia.org

The sudden death of Tchaikovsky in 1893 made a strong impression on Rachmaninoff

Symphony No. 1 (Op. 13, 1896) premiered on 27 March 1897 in one of a long-running series of "Russian Symphony Concerts," but was torn apart by critics. In a particularly vitriolic review by a nationalist composer César Cui, it was likened to a depiction of the ten plagues of Egypt and suggested that it would be admired by the "inmates" of a music conservatory in hell.

Alexander Glazunov - a weak conductor and short on rehearsal time. Glazunov may have been drunk and, although this was never intimated by Rachmaninoff.

A negative review from writer Leo Tolstoy, and his distress over the Russian Orthodox Church's objection to his marrying his cousin, Natalia Satina, contributed to a period of severe depression.

Rachmaninoff wrote little music over the following years, until he began a course of autosuggestive therapy with psychologist Nikolai Dahl, himself an amateur musician. In January 1900 Dahl took Rachmaninoff into a treatment which lasted daily for more than three months, using hypnotherapy and psychotherapy.

Autosuggestion (or the related autogenic training) is a process by which an individual trains the subconscious mind to believe something, or systematically schematizes the person's own mental associations, usually for a given purpose. This is accomplished through self-hypnosis methods or repetitive, constant self-affirmations, and may be seen as a form of self-induced brainwashing.

Rachmaninoff quickly recovered confidence and overcame his writer's block. A result of these sessions was the composition of Piano Concerto No. 2 (Op. 18, 1900), dedicated to Dr. Dahl. The piece was very well received at its premiere, at which Rachmaninoff was soloist, and remains one of his most popular compositions.

Rachmaninoff's spirits were further bolstered when, after years of engagement, he was finally allowed to marry Natalia. They were married in a suburb of Moscow by an army priest on 29 April 1902, using the family's military background to subvert the church.

Johann Sebastian Bach [1685-1750]

The Goldberg Variations BWV 988

notes from en.wikipedia.org

The tale of how the variations came to be composed comes from a biography of Bach written by Johann Nikolaus Forkel:

[For this work] we have to thank the instigation of the former Russian ambassador to the electoral court of Saxony, Count Kaiserling, who often stopped in Leipzig and brought there with him the aforementioned Goldberg, in order to have him given musical instruction by Bach. The Count was often ill and had sleepless nights. At such times, Goldberg, who lived in his house, had to spend the night in an antechamber, so as to play for him during his insomnia. ... Once the Count mentioned in Bach's presence that he would like to have some clavier pieces for Goldberg, which should be of such a smooth and somewhat lively character that he might be a little cheered up by them in his sleepless nights. Bach thought himself best able to fulfill this wish by means of Variations, the writing of which he had until then considered an ungrateful task on account of the repeatedly similar harmonic foundation. But since at this time all his works were already models of art, such also these variations became under his hand. Yet he produced only a single work of this kind. Thereafter the Count always called them his variations. He never tired of them, and for a long time sleepless nights meant: 'Dear Goldberg, do play me one of my variations.' Bach was perhaps never so rewarded for one of his works as for this. The Count presented him with a golden goblet filled with 100 louis-d'or. Nevertheless, even had the gift been a thousand times larger, their artistic value would not yet have been paid for.”

Forkel wrote his biography in 1802, more than 60 years after the events related, and its accuracy has been questioned. The lack of dedication on the title page of the "Aria with Diverse Variations" also makes the tale of the commission unlikely. Goldberg's age at the time of publication (14 years) has also been cited as grounds for doubting Forkel's tale, although it must be said that he was known to be an accomplished keyboardist and sight-reader. In a recent book-length study, keyboardist and Bach scholar Peter Williams contends that the Forkel story is entirely spurious.

Indian Classical music

A detail-oriented site for Indian classical music: <http://www.chandrakantha.com/>