Adagio for Glass Harmonica, K 356, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)

Adagio for Glass Harmonica, K 356, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)

Dennis James, Glass Harmonica

Sweet Philomela

Friday, September 22, 2017 at 7:30 pm

Zilkha Hall, The Hobby Center For The Performing Arts, Houston, Texas

Opening night of our 2017/18 season of Artful Women features exotic musical works inspired by Philomela, mythical princess of Athens, whose transformation into a nightingale has fascinated poets and musicians for centuries. Soprano Sherezade Panthaki returns to the Zilkha Hall stage for evocative arias from Handel’s L’Allegro, il Penseroso, ed il Moderato and Johann Adolph Hasse’s lyric cantata L’Armonica, while Dennis James makes his Ars Lyrica debut on the glass harmonica, an instrument whose ethereal sounds fascinated both Hasse and Mozart. The ensemble of strings and winds soars as well, with one of C. P. E. Bach’s vibrant symphonies for twelve obbligato instruments.

ARTISTIC PERSONNEL

Matthew Dirst, Artistic Director, conductor, harpsichord
Sherezade Panthaki, soprano
Dennis James, glass harmonica

VIOLIN 1: Elizabeth Blumenstock, Maria Lin, Oleg Sulyga, Hae-a Lee
VIOLIN 2: Alan Austin, Noel Martin, Nadia Lesinska, Matthew Detrick
VIOLA: Erika Lawson, Yvonne Smith
CELLO: Barrett Sills, Eric Smith
VIOLONE: Deborah Dunham
TRAVERSO: Colin St-Martin, Alaina Diehl
BAROQUE OBOE: Meg Owens, Pablo Moreno
NATURAL HORN: Paul Avril, James Wilson
BASSOON: Benjamin Kamins

Video and Audio produced by Runaway Productions LLC

[riparianlife]

If you have a bad cough, go to a music recital. It's really the best thing.

[scot]

I never would have guessed this dude was such a cool guy, he did a video with a YouTuber showing his Armonica and how it worked and he came across as very charming.

[georgelloydgonzalez]

"When I open it and it's not broken, it's like Christmas!"

Thank you Dennis.

[raymondabella]

Ben Franklin and Mozart!!! 2 geniuses make beutiful music together!!!

[Avidcomp]

The glassharmonica was very popular from the start. 400 works were composed for it, some unfortunately now lost, and probably about 4000 instruments were built in 70 years. The instrument, adored or hated, roused passion. Paganini said “such a celestial voice”, Thomas Jefferson claimed it was “the greatest gift offered to the musical world of this century”, Goethe, Mozart, Jean-Paul, Hasse, Theophile Gautier praised it. A dictionary of instruments mentions that the sounds ‘are of nearly celestial softness but can cause spasms”, In a Treaty on the Effects of Music on the Human Body by J.M. Roger, 1803, we can read that “its melancholy tone plunges you into dejection ( ) to a point the strongest man could not hear it for an hour without fainting”. True, some interpreters ended their lives in mental hospitals, among them one of the best, Marianne Davies.

In his Method to Teach Yourself Armonica (1788), J.C. Miller retorts- “It is true that the Armonica has strange effects on people . If you are irritated or disturbed by bad news, by friends or even by a disappointing lady, abstain from playing, it would only increase your disturbance”. The Armonica was accused of causing evils such as nervous disorder, domestic squabbles, premature deliveries, fatal disorders, animal’s convulsions. The instrument was even banned from a German town by police decision for ruining the health of people and disturbing public order (a child died during a concert). Franz Anton Mesmer, a Vienna doctor known for his experiments (Mesmerism) and for using hypnosis to treat his clients, would condition them by playing the glassharmonica for them. He was expelled from Vienna after a blind pianist, Marie Paradies, recovered sight but to the detriment of her mental health. Spread by rumor, this contributed to the death of the Armonica considered in 1829 as “the fashionable accessory of parlors and sitting-rooms”.

– from THE GLASS HARMONICA by Thomas Bloch (Translation to English by Michelle Vadon

[halfabee]

The wonders of YouTube being able to bring too our attention such an wonderful instrument. Never seen such an instrument before.

[Thousand_yard_King]

Thank God for Music, and for Ben Franklin 🙏!! Thank God for Mozart, and you sir!

[kennyhagan]

The glass harmonica was the electric guitar of its' day, and Mozart was the guy to write music for it. This is just soooo nice.

[bigo]

I'm just thinking about the fact that this is an instrument invented by Benjamin Franklin and somehow it was used and respected enough for both Mozart and Beethoven to compose music for.

[GeminiDolly]

Your casing or stand is beautiful.  I have never seen one of these with a case surrounding it like that.  You play it so well.

[michellekempfsu]

There is something sweet and relaxing about the sound this very unique and challanging instrument makes.

[Samantha-vlly]

Listening to this while you want to sleep again in the early morning is soothing🌿

[aliciacodurasmartinez]

A precedent of the mellotron and syntethizers. So unknown ... People should amaze that it was created and used by Mozart genious and others ...Bravo, master

[SummerAlleriaWindrunner]

Dennis James is one of, if not the, most talented players out there. Tysm.

[ire]

It's the first time I've learned about glass harmonica, and the first time I've heard of it.
Very good!

[francismccarthy]

I only just learned what a glass harmonica was. what a beautiful instrument. And I imagine it took much work to master that instrument.

[timheavner]

Very musical! I love the use of the pedal to adjust the rpms to create crescendi and diminuendi, beautiful Mozartian phrases... Most recordings I've heard of this, the performers seem content to just play the notes and rely on the novelty of the instrument, but they tend to lack nuance. It's really nice to hear someone make real music out of this piece.

[OpenmusicEs]

Amazing work and great performance by Dennis James, congratulations!

[misssophie]

Conductor Gustavo Dudamel once said what Mozart gave in his last year (1791) showed how big his soul was. This piece certainly is no exception. Intersting fact: the harmonica virtuoso whom it was written for and who premiered it was blind.

[cryptohelperofficial]

That's good soothing for ears .... just loved this sound ...i will recommend all to use earphones and listen to it while sleeping for better sleep