Hemiplegia Joyce and Heaney

I call the series Dubliners to betray the soul of that hemiplegia or paralysis which many consider a city James Joyce in a letter to Constantine Curran in 1904 Metamorphoses for Two Clarinets (cca 7) I. II. III. Waltz Kafka Postlude

Based on Francis Poulencs Sonata for Two Clarinets, composed in 1908, and the opening of Kafkas Metamorphosis, written three years earlier, explores the relationship between two identical instruments timbres, as well as the cadence and tonality of speech. Quintet for Strings and Guitar (cca 13) I. II. III. Introduction Space Song

In this short, non-programmatic piece, the classical guitar, added to the string quartet, explores a wide range of unusual sonorities and techniques, often bringing it closer to the unfretted strings through the use of a slide or to the sound of a quickly moving bow. In the opening, two central motivic cells are introduced, and these are then moved through various contexts, from more traditional-sounding ones to the quarter-tone landscape of the second movement. Hemiplegia for Singer, Two Narrators and Ensemble (cca 40) based on the writings of James Joyce and Seamus Heaney I. II. III. IV. The Sisters Araby A Painful Case Eveline

A look into the dreary urban world of Joyces Dubliners, interspersed with a healthy dose of Heaneys rural mythology. The Irish tunes that inspired some of Joyces writing, interrupted by blasts from the chamber orchestra. Two narrators, working with and against a single singer, who takes on the roles of an operetta singer, a middle aged lady, or a school-aged boy. These are some of the ways in which Hemiplegia seeks to look at the stories in Dubliners from different perspectives. This reinterpretation is a necessary outcome of setting texts to music, but it is possible to push the narrative in a set direction, both through the use of other texts and with the aid of an all-encompassing musical polystylism in which nothing is out of bounds and the music can serve a direct, semantic purpose. In The Sisters, the singer takes on the role of a young boy, while the narrators act out the characters around him, of whom Joyce gives us but a fleeting look the boys aunt and uncle; a family friend. A priest who had been friendly with the boy has just died from paralysis, and the entire story is conducted in the hushed atmosphere of the limited point of view of the boy, but throughout, some

dark secret about the priest to which he is oblivious is alluded to. After the boys account of the priests funeral, the singer presents an outtake from Heaneys poem Funeral Rites, about the importance of age old tradition in leaving the dead behind. In Araby, the same uncomfortable ellipses accompany the child-protagonist, again represented by the singer. The boys wish is to go to Araby, a temporary bazaar set up in Dublin, to get a present for a girl he is infatuated with. During dinner, his uncle gets home drunk, and has forgotten about the boys visit; the paralysis is referred to more clearly in this movement, through the extended use of scraping from the string section. The boy finally does arrive in Araby, just as it is closing, only to angrily realise the depth of his vanity. A Painful Case is a story about Mr Duffy, a lonely, middle-aged man, whose only joy is to attend concerts, primarily of Mozarts music. At one of these, he meets the slightly older Mrs Sinico, and they strike up a conversation both characters represented here by the singer, in true Mozartian style. Their relationship develops, they discuss books, theories, and ideas; until one afternoon, Mrs Sinico attempts to touch Duffys cheek. He terminates the relationship immediately, reading about her drunken death in a train accident only a few years later. Heaneys North, an ode to the prosaic history and geography of the Irish coast, leads Duffy directly into his final, lonely epiphany. Eveline is perhaps the most touching story in Dubliners. The music opens with a setting to words of the traditional song Eveleens Bower - there is convincing evidence that Joyce based the story on this song. Eveline, a girl with an unenviable life with a drunken father, demanding job and a home to run, is courted by a young sailor. He takes her to the theatre; makes her feel unusual, occasionally makes her blush by singing The Lass That Loves a Sailor to her, used extensively here, and finally invites her to go to Argentina with him. As much as she wants to, at the harbor, she is paralysed, and all she can do is send a cry of anguish amid the seas. Heaneys Bogland brings the poem to a resigned conclusion, followed by a serious of Joyces memorable epiphanies. Her eyes gave him no sign of love or farewell or recognition. Singer: Michal Turek Narrator I: Logan Hillier Narrator II: Louis Armand First violin: Matj Vlk Second violin: Anna Fliegerov Viola: Kristna Kolov Violoncello: imon Marek Clarinet: Ji Mrz Acoustic guitar: Tom Mika Double bass: Ondej Komrek Drum Set: Petr Mike Second clarinet: Ale Hustoles (in Metamorphoses for Two Clarinets) Classical guitar: Ian Mikyska (in Quintet for Strings and Guitar) Light design: Kristian Kott Ian Mikyska would like to thank: Logan Hillier, Tom Plka, Louis Armand, the English College in Prague, ZU Music Art Barrandov, James Joyce and Seamus Heaney, and above all, the musicians.