Charlemagne Palestine - Schlingen-Blängen (rec. 1988, rel. 1999)

We've had a few minimalist organ works on these pages already, but none so minimal as this single drone, developed by Charlemagne Palestine during the 70s by holding down notes on the organ with pieces of cardboard and then gradually expanding the sound solely through use of the organ stops.  Schlingen Blängen (a meaningless title invented by the composer) could therefore last indefinitely if desired, and was sometimes performed for up to six hours.  This 1988 performance in a village church in Farmsum, Groningen (which had previously played an important role in the development of the piece) is a more manageable 71 minutes in length.

This is a work that rewards concentration for its full duration, to let the initially static-seeming piece reveal all its subtle changes.  Different frequencies are periodically introduced and collide against each other, creating an oscillating feeling of rhythm amidst the giant, unchanging sustained chord.  After ramping this up as far as it can go, the gradually quietening ending is just as stately.

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Previously posted at SGTG: Strumming Music

Charlemagne Palestine - Strumming Music (1974)

Chaim Moshe Tzadik Palestine, better known as Charlemagne, and also known for performing lengthy, minimal keyboard works surrounded by stuffed animals, is a relatively new discovery for me.  Active since the 60s, most of his recordings have only been released in the past couple of decades.

This album was one that did see limited release soon after its conception, on the French label Shandar who were also responsible for some of Philip Glass' early exposure.  When it comes to Strumming Music, any Glass comparisons (or indeed Steve Reich comparisons) are only helpful on the surface - this might be a fifty-minute minimalist piano work, but by focusing on texture rather than strict notation it's arguably more affecting and engrossing over the course of its extended length.  Starting from just a couple of notes, and building up into only slightly more complex clusters, Strumming Music is all about the gorgeous grand piano sound ringing out in bell-like tones, or sometimes like the strumming sounds that gave it its title, with the piano's sustain pedal hammered down throughout.

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