Search - Charles Ives, Gerhard Samuel, Cincinnati Philharmonia Orchestra :: Ives: Universe Symphony/ Orchestra Set 2/ Unanswered Question

Would Charlie have approved?

Bob Zeidler | Charlton, MA United States | 09/14/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"A "conditional" 4 stars for the mere existence of a recording of any realization of the Universe Symphony, a work that Charlie Ives never lived to complete (and never expected to complete, even had debilitating illnesses not overtaken him in the second half of his life).



Ives's Universe Symphony - extant only in incomplete sketches by him - would have been a vast undertaking by several composers, let alone Charlie all by himself. Begun in earnest - as best as can be determined - in 1911, it was essentially abandoned by 1915, when he was past 40 and at a point in his life when his health began its final, if slow, decline.



Destined to be his 5th Symphony, the work - or what of it actually exists - was written largely during his summer vacation sojourns over the 1911-1915 period in the upper Adirondacks (mostly Saranac Lake and Keene Valley), a region that to him was what Walden Pond was to Henry David Thoreau.



As transcendentally visionary as his completed 4th Symphony was (and I personally consider the Ives 4th "The Great American Symphony"), the Universe Symphony would have been truly immense had it ever been completed by him. The inspiration came to him from contemplating the views of the surrounding Adirondack mountains from his summer cottage on the "plateau" of Keene Valley. He envisioned a work in three major parts - the past, the present and the future - in which three separate orchestras (and, likely, additional forces) arrayed on these mountains would send forth an Ivesian "impressionistic" picture of "geological and fauna history in music," with, in the third part, a peek at a transcendent future as only he could have imagined.



A tall order indeed for any single human being! Had his health not failed him, perhaps - just perhaps - Ives would have been up to the task. And, while it remained incomplete, Ives - egalitarian that he was - on various occasions put forth the thought that the effort actually be "a living work," to be added to by anyone who chose to. I can imagine a few after-the-fact "converts" to the vision and brilliance that was Ives undertaking such a joint effort: Henry Cowell, Elliott Carter, Lou Harrison, John Cage; even possibly Aaron Copland (who, over a period covering several years, flip-flopped in his estimation of Ives, eventually giving him the credit due him).



In all fairness, I don't think that Larry Austin - largely by himself - was properly up to the task, at least as represented by this recording. (There is a second "realization" of the work, already performed but so far unrecorded, by Johnny Reinhard. Having read about it, but not having heard it, I can't fairly tell whether Reinhard's vision is superior. But it "reads" as if it might be.)



In the Ivesian spirit of egalitarnianism, Austin provides his own additions and interpolations in places where he believes there is music missing. (Others - including Reinhard - believe that the score is substantially complete. While I personally doubt this claim, Reinhard is probably closer to the spirit of a "performing version" than to a "realization" such as Austin's.)



The first part of the Universe Symphony is an extended movement for percussion only (meant to represent the rhythms of the universe). The rhythmic complexity is well beyond imagining, and it is just here where I think that Austin sets a foot wrongly. To better synchronize the bewildering complexity of the percussion rhythms, Austin utilizes a "click track" so that each percussionist can achieve what is written in the score. Which brings me to my opening "Would Charlie have approved?" I think that Ives would have said "No way!" It was part-and-parcel of the Ives style and philosophy to render in "art music" what he heard throughout his life in "vernacular music," including off-tune singing and playing and arhythmic beats of amateur musicians, to him the most important musicians of all. The click track would, to Ives, have been yet another manifestation of "increasing mechanization and industrialization," something that was anathema to him. Had he been a conductor (and, unfortunately, he never was), I'm pretty sure his after-the-fact comment to an (unsynchronized) percussion battery would have been along the lines of "Great! That's a take!"



The rest of the work is "of a piece" with these percussion comments. What comes through, incontestably, is that this is music of Charles Ives, imperfectly realized, but realized nonetheless. The playing of this (student) orchestra is fine, and the sound is finely-detailed, particularly considering its complexity. This recording, therefore, to me represents something that any Ives "compleatist" should have in his or her library, if for no other reason than it is a representation - however flawed - of what might have been.



The recording also contains truly excellent performances of Ives's Second Orchestral Set and "The Unanswered Question" (likely, his most famous - and - prescient - work).



But the true unanswered question remains: What if Charlie had been able to complete this work by himself? Fascinating food for thought for all Ivesians.



Bob Zeidler"

Brilliant!

Bob Zeidler | 06/16/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Ives' Universe Symphony is a

"... piece in two parts, but played at the same time - the lower parts (the basses, cellos, tubas, trombones, bassoons, etc.) working out something representing the earth, and listening to that primarily - and then the upper parts (strings, upper woodwind, piano, bells, etc.) reflecting the skies and the Heavens."

[from Memos]

The piece was unfinished by the time of Ives' death, but the composer left sketches and a memo which could be used by another composer to finish the piece. This realisation of the Universe Symphony reveals the true extent of Ives' modernity in its use of microtones and complex overlapping rhythms (realised in this recording with the aid of a click track). The piece starts on percussion and in the lower register, with the instrumental lines starting at different points and at different intervals in a kind of uneven and overlapping counterpoint. This reaches over the full spectrum of the orchestra by the middle of the piece and fades gradually with more emphasis on the higher pitched instruments towards the end. This is probably my favourite of all Ives' pieces (albeit by a very small margin), and is joined on this CD by another two of my favourites, although the version of "The Unanswered Question" presented here isn't quite as good as some of the others I have heard."

Only realization recorded means...Get It!

jh | Mexico | 08/19/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"For those of us who love Ives finally hearing the Universe Symphony in any guise whatsoever is a great treat. Although in another review my learned friend seems to think Ives would have objected to using clicktracks, Ives was notorious for changing his mind from one extreme to another when it came to ANY realizations of his work...so predicting Ives reaction would be at best a long shot. For we mere mortals who remain, we have only the results to go on, and I for one was fascinated by Larry Austin's realization of the score. The work is long, dense, hypnotic, and annoying like all of Ives best work. I only regret Ives wasn't well enough to make it even longer and more of the above.

The Orchestra and all participants play this difficult music well.

From what I can gather there is another recording of this work but it appears to be another version (unheard by me) of Austin's Realization with the Saarbrucken Radio Symphony Orchestra; Michael Stern conducting....and Mr. Austin participating. This is on Col Legno records.

So this is a must for all Ives fans...If there is another version of the Ives Universe Symphony I hope it gets recorded soon.

"