Cowell - Dynamic Motion

[jositaJea]

wow lol never seen that "play chord with whole forearm" notation before :D

[MrXephyr]

A rat trapped in a piano.

[farshimelt]

the ignorance of the responders is appaling.

[jcracker]

its like buckethead's shredding on the piano

[rydubz7]

Genius



[MrSeemby]

My mother's maiden name was Cowell... ugh....

[ignasie]

horrible

[telsarowe]

Unskilled scumbag. A move backward not forward. Cowell's music was another black eye for the piano and pianists. Wannabe Bach with his mathmatical crap. Gross.

[tntn58]

aucun intérêt.

tout à fait indigent.

[mrbbartok]

sounds like a crazy ex-girlfriend, but it sounds like the sex was great

[MrFullyawesome]

this piece is total crap. lol

[DainGerrUsss]

@MrFutureFilmaker - Ives was stating a truth. Although, it is a rather advanced music aesthetics concept, not a literal statement, which is probably why you did not understand it. Obviously music has sound and vice-versa. John Cage wrote a pice of MUSIC entitled 4'33", which had NO sound whatsoever, and yet is totally considered music - - - get it???

[akamarutv]

I'm going to play this at a funeral.

[akamarutv]

This is actually very hilarious to listen to and look and the sheet music cause it's freakin ridiculous! The technical ability required, I'd like to see a real person play this song.

[AkLvKk]

very full of motion.

[Theonedue]

How would you play the harmonics on the piano?

[sleepytimejesse]

@Theonedue You depress the note keys without producing a sound. Once you strike another note, those strings will resonate sympathetically.

[WackidWally2]

Uhh, I could come up with something like this?

[MrCamiloguitar]

you can tell me, what is the font where you get the information and description of Henry Cowell?. Thanks!!

[aliberi20]

i seriously could play this when i was 10 sounds the same



[Pakkapikk]

Great idea to have the music but the page turns are too early. One solution would be to scroll the music or to turn it closer to when the music actually gets within a couple of beats or so before the end of the page.

[jessegguitar]

i wanna smoke what he was smokin

[goulldspellah]

ya "put arms on piano repeatedly" then do the most concentrated and intricate piano fingerwork that anyone has ever mastermined. Then try to concieve of how a genious like this really made sounds like this, which inspired Gershwin, Thelonius Monk, Miles davis, and countless other avante garde composers. I don't hate you, just your simple slanted views.

[massimiliano123123]

@heyheyguesswhat And WHY you want that a pianist puts his arms on piano?

Real composers are who KNOW the reasons of them CHOISES.

Sorry for bad english!

[huzzzzzzahh]

This would be a lot easier with 50 fingers.

[DainGerrUsss]

I can't disagree with that, but I think that you missed the point. Charles Ives, an approximate contemporary of Cowell said, and I am very roughly paraphrasing, that from an aesthetic point, music has nothing to do with sound, and vice-versa. MY only point was, that I was not particularly moved by the Cowell, and that when it comes to composers of this period, I prefer Scriabin. That's all. I definitely DO think that while the Cowell does have value, it just is not my "cup of tea".

[MrFutureFilmmaker]

@DainGerrUsss "Music has nothing to do with sound"  ...really?

[Thrash0Jazz0Assassin]

@MrFutureFilmmaker yup

[jamesbannon100]

I liked it :)

[witness124]

Sorry. It eves about as much emotion in me as watching paint dry.

[LokiClock]

@witness124 That's a sign of inaccessibility as much as of bad music. The difference is whether you know what emotion you're supposed to feel. If you don't, explore it first and find out what it means before writing it off.

[kingcade]

The part I liked about this piece was the gradually crescendo-ing percussive hits from 1:00-1:30 (was it LH hits with pedal, or does "with pedal" literally mean you slam the pedal down so all the strings ring, harder & harder? I couldn't be sure.) ... It was like some massive, inscrutable machine turning on and gathering steam. I liked that technique. The rest of it ... didn't do much for me.

[bylokonnor]

This is red hot, this is! I'm a Henry Cowell man from now on! Great stuff! Smashing! Yes, I once had a German girlfriend who behaved like that.

[YTlsubzero]

who is the performer?

[DainGerrUsss]

I have to admit that some of Henry Cowell's Aeolian Harp music is relatively interesting, but why bother listening to tone cluster banged on the piano, when you can listen to great piano music written by Beethoven, Chopin, Liszt, Brahms, Debussy, Ravel and Rachmaninoff.

[justinmutchler]

@DainGerrUsss Agreed. I appreciate that some people get something out of this variety of music. That is what gives it its intrinsic value.

However I do not understand the attraction. Clavicembalisticum, English Country Tunes....Sorry, I would rather listen to Scriabin any day.

[xxxslayerxxx666]

@DainGerrUsss it's much more than that....stuff like this and edgar varese is what inspired frank zappa, and without him there would possibly not be any mr. bungle(mike patton has as big of a cult following as zappa did, it might actually be bigger) and without mr. bungle avenged sevenfold wouldn't use his nasally technique in the clean vocals,everything is connected, music is about being open, once you have expanded your sense of rhythm than you will understand that dissonance goes well with it

[elreydefutbol111]

I think he was mad when he made this... his mad songs will live on though.

[joefrompic]

This song is amazing. Id definitely isn't Mozart, but it is very interesting.

[MrOliverKjaerulff]

What the hell happened to "classical music" nowadays... serioulsy, this is not even creative nor innovative imo it's just plain stupid sorry to say.

[DarkZekeX]

@MrOliverKjaerulff how was this not creative or innovative for 1916? Its okay if you don't like it (though if you gave it a chance, it may grow on you) but that doesn't make it uncreative.

[MrOliverKjaerulff]

@DarkZekeX It's a funny idea with the tone clusters, I must admit, but why couldn't Cowell use his ideas to make something that actually sounds good? I can imagine that this is diffucult music to play on the technical level, but what is the point of learning it or even listening to it when it just sounds like random slamming on the piano? Maybe I just don't get it.

[DarkZekeX]

@MrOliverKjaerulff I like it. The ideas of tone clusters are very interesting to me, and I think the music itself is interesting and beautiful. I think if you gave Cowell's music more of a chance, and probably if you get acquainted with other great 20th century works and composers, you may even grow to like this kind of music :)

Would you like some recommendations? :3

[MrOliverKjaerulff]

@DarkZekeX Yes please! send me a PM :)

[ElectricDynamiteVids]

Okay, I hope people know that this doesn't sound very good. Unless the purpose was heavy dissonance, you need to remember that it's alright to say someone from back then had a crap piece.

[DarkZekeX]

@ElectricDynamiteVids Sure its okay to think that a composer wrote bad/boring music, but its also okay for people to disagree with what you think is good-sounding music.

[CammehYaBams]

And this piece is dedicated to my loving family...

BANG, BANG, BANG, BANG

[steeeeevve]

wow!!!!!!

[bauctjdem]

Where can I get notes of this track?

I looked everywhere, but I can not find it.

[DanDanTheBassman]

@bauctjdem I mean... you could just watch the video and write it down.

[PrettyGoodies1]

I'm crazy about Cowell. The more I hear of him, the higher he rises on my list of favorites. He brought true artistic genius to his experimentation.

[MrPianoLover1]

This is the single scariest piece I've ever heard. I thought fhood's ex was coming to kill me in the night with a swordfish.

[L4RSLink]

perfect, the pianist played every right!!!!

[dragmio]

This is the best avant-garde music I've heard so far. But I'm not stopping... :)

[looney1023]

what do those small notes at the befinning mean (the ones in the left hand)

[akamarutv]

I don't understand how that sheet music is what I'm hearing because I see an octave or something and see 17 ties!!

[akamarutv]

This will be normal 50 years from now

[TheGuyWhoJustShotYou]

@akamarutv maybe 100....

[MusicaRicercata]

Hey baby, I heard you like Cowell. Why don't we head over to my place and have some Dynamic Motion... and Four Encores?

[machtrebel]

@MusicaRicercata HÆHÆ

[PrettyGoodies1]

Very happy to find this piece! I was reading about Cowell tonight.

I like it. Very smart and very moody. Of much power and interest!

Perfect performance. Thank you for this upload!

[shadowknight132]

hmmm The tone clusters reminds me a lot of Nancarrow. Although, Nancarrow did read Cowell's New Musical Resources.

[kuglagerfeld]

fantastic piece!

[fhood]

This piece reminds me of my ex-girlfriend.

[Pianoplayer002]

@fhood She liked to bang a lot?^^

[Und1ne]

@Pianoplayer002

LOL

[Theonedue]

Was she like this in bed too?

[santoReska]

@fhood I hope not your next girlfriend!

[EclecticFilms1]

itz like the longest craaappp

[openmindspace]

i dont like it.

[colourmegone]

If you didn't like this try 'The Tides of Manaunaun' and if you don't like that then leave it alone, at least for a few more years.

[systemlink93]

This sounds a lot more modern than 1916... hah.

[lovesGenet]

It is not solely about ear -idea.Linguistics.Philosophy.T­hat is how u push " music beyond the ear!

[kastlesucksTDOTS]

the ending BLEW MY MIND!

not my type of music though, i draw the line at rudepoema...

[richragsdale]

fantastic piece

great to follow along with the score as well

thanksfor posting

[chocolateman235]

this terrible! yes i said it ! in my opinion music in general began to fall off as whole.. what happened to the genius of Chopin! ..

[HHFOV]

I don't think you get it.

[chocolateman235]

I believe i do, But i still think its terrible this is why this guy music is not as famous as rachmaninov Liszt Chopin Debussy. Because this composers music not pleasant to the ears. As an artist you are inclined to relate to your audience in some way. He missed the mark for the vast amount of people in that audience. He may be technically brilliant but not musically, sorry our opinions are just gonna have to differ here.

[twooffour]

@chocolateman235

I'd generally stay away from any argument having to do with fame, because then I can say that Justin Timberlake is even more famous :)

Sorry, but there is a whole bunch of Baroque and Classical composers not "as famous as Mozart" as well...

[nmitchell076]

I'm sorry, but an artist's FIRST responsibility is to himself. How could you have missed that?

Cowell was of a different age then Chopin, his music is no less personal. Thats like comparing a football player to a film critic, and saying that the film critic is better.

Both do what is in themselves first, thats all any human being can do.

[nmitchell076]

So don't tell me Chopin's music is better, because both are equally representative of the composer's spirit. What you can say is "I don't relate to it" or "the composer didn't express himself well" surely, whether or not this music is pleasant to the ear does not take away from the composer's ability to express himself.

The fact that he does in fact express himself makes him equal to anyone who does this same, no matter how "pretty" the piece may be

[swordfish585]

@nmitchell076 I completelly agree with you. I would say that the terms pleasant or pretty may not be in the aim of the composers to get fame or the hit parade number one. They are taking their inspoiration off and we, as educated listeners, try to feell the final work

I love to listen this piece and read the score.

[marshalsea]

@chocolateman235 I think it depends on what you're looking for in a piece.

Chopin is amazingly melodic in his compositions.

Cowell is much more abrasive in his approach.

It's not for everyone, but yes, you're allowed your opinion like everyone else, and I'm quite impressed that you don't have a stream of abuse.

Not sure I can listen to this for long.

[dondaa1]

weird music ...

[Tokkemon]

*Sigh*

More organized noise.

[SingHouse]

@Tokkemon *sigh* Your comment is just more organized letters to me and means nothing.

Maybe educate yourself a little about american radical composers such as Cowell, Charles Ives and others. Then, I hope, you'll learn to listen to music outside of the box you have created in your mind. Maybe then you'll be ashamed you called this organized noise. At least, I hope so.

[GrandpasPictureParty]

So good to see the score. Music has always been partly visual to me. What I mean is, I always appreciate seeing what interesting shapes and patterns it takes on when translated into printed notation.

[pocoapoco2]

I think if the dynamic markings were performed literally then all that should be left at the end of the performance is a heap of lumber and miscellaneous, unrecognizeable metal pieces.

[Sorcerer88]

2:25, 5 forte's, quite peculiar, when even 4 f's are ultra rare. i'd interpret that as standing up and throwing all your body at the keys with maximum velocity, because i don't know how on earth you can possibly top 4 f's. it seems like this performer wanted to risk neither his health nor the instrument though ;) interesting indeed.

[ddsoco]

Sorcerer88: Careful not to think of the entire history of written music as one. Over the centuries, more and more refinement/detail has been added to notation. Where Beethoven may have only gone as high as fortissimo, others have tried to indicate more detail in the dynamics. Rather than thinking of Cowel's fffff as so much louder than a Beethoven ff, think of it as the same as Beethoven's ff, with f, ff, fff, and ffff as precise gradations in Cowell's piece.

[ddsoco]

Don't forget, Tchaikovsky has pppppp in the bassoon part of the Pathetique Symphony.

Also, I'm not implying that Cowell's dynamic subtlety is 'better' or 'more advanced' than other, older composers - it's just different. (And deeply awesome, IMHO, FWIW).

[Alu10000]

With the arms

[silensen]

interesting

[addeex1]

use the arm..... xD

[Kalen1457]

How do you read that?!!!

[HandyTheXxxX]

It's a harmonic chord; in essence a chord that is silently depressed.

Being a recording, It's quite hard to hear the sound achieved.

[figaromagniffico]

1:30 sounds like a metal breakdown haha

[nik19910204]

this is.....interesting...personal i think this is just organize noise but this is just my opinion... i feel sorry for the poor piano :)

[showboater6767]

What do the square notes that make no sound mean exactly?

[Quirkulous]

The pianist holds down those keys of the piano without making a sound and while holding them down, plays other chords. When s/he plays the other chords the vibrations cause those strings of the silently held notes to vibrate creating harmonics which are difficult to hear in recordings.

Fab piece btw.

[UKpiano]

To play those massive chords, I am guessing one has to put there arms on the piano laying flat to cover all the notes. Then again I dont really understand some of the notation used in this piece anyway.

[John11inch]

Hey hex, you oughta upload the "Four Encores to Dynamic Motion"; those are some pretty interesting scores.

[sanctusignis]

This is an amazing piece. By chance to you plan to upload his Encores to Dynamic Motion?

[sanctusignis]

By chance, do*

[qtpipi]

Nothing beats Cowell's recording

[SCOREdom]

fantastic upload!

[simon7342]

wow it's like debussy got really pissed off with his piano one day! seems like tone clusters mean you can be atonal/"avant garde" without sacrificing melody

[saladshootavvv]

So are you saying that there is no such thing as an atonal melody? And what exactly do you mean by melody? Are you defining a melody by the traditional lyrical lines in baroque/classical/romantic music that create tension and resolution in relation to the tonic, or are you just talking about expressive lyricism and motifs?

Do I even know what I'm talking about? lol

[MagicDonDino]

Oh my God From 1:10 to 2:00 it sonds so TERRIFIC!!!!!