The 1981 world premiere of John Adams' "Harmonium" by the San Francisco Symphony and San Francisco Symphony Chorus, conducted by Edo de Waart, marked the emergence of a significant new talent. This choral symphony, based on poems by John Donne and Emily Dickinson, showcased Adams' attempt to incorporate elements of minimalism into his work to create a unique and rich harmonic language. He recognized that the fundamental elements of music, such as pulse, repetition, and tonality, held the potential to unlock a new musical universe. Although he found the minimalism of Reich and Glass uneventful, Adams was drawn to the genre for its freshness and sought to use its techniques to construct works that could grow and become great pieces. This performance introduced Adams to a wider audience and put him on the map as a composer.
Before he began composing "Harmonium," Adams had a vision of many voices blending together in a harmonious and pulsating fabric of sound. He chose three poems by John Donne and Emily Dickinson to bring his vision to life.
"Negative Love" by John Donne is a meditation on the various forms of love, beginning with the carnal and ascending to the divine. The piece begins with a single note and syllable, gradually building to a euphoric chorus. The initial silence of the music has similarities to the first section of Beethoven's "Ocean Serenity and Happy Voyage," a composer Adams greatly admired.
The two poems by Emily Dickinson present two contrasting sides of her poetry. "Because I Could Not Stop for Death" is a subdued and intimate depiction of Dickinson as she rides in a slowly moving carriage, watching her life pass before her. Adams creates this scene with a slow and otherworldly rhythmic flow.
In contrast, "Wild Nights" captures Dickinson's wild and ecstatic side, full of urgency and longing for a union of eros and death. The music builds in power and speed, culminating in a vibrant and exuberant cacophony.
As Adams explained, "If 'Negative Love' is a contemplation of love, and 'Because I Could Not Stop for Death' is a series of still images about the halting of time, 'Wild Nights' combines these two themes with a passionate and powerful intensity that is both violent and sexual, and full of the desire for oblivion that lies at the heart of all of Dickinson's work.
The poems (from Wikisource):
Negative Love by John Donne
I NEVER stoop'd so low, as they
Which on an eye, cheek, lip, can prey;
Seldom to them which soar no higher
Than virtue, or the mind to admire.
For sense and understanding may
Know what gives fuel to their fire;
My love, though silly, is more brave;
For may I miss, whene'er I crave,
If I know yet what I would have.
If that be simply perfectest,
Which can by no way be express'd
But negatives, my love is so.
To all, which all love, I say no.
If any who deciphers best,
What we know not—ourselves—can know,
Let him teach me that nothing. This
As yet my ease and comfort is,
Though I speed not, I cannot miss.
Because I could not stop for Death — by Emily Dickinson
Because I could not stop for Death—
He kindly stopped for me—
The Carriage held but just Ourselves—
And Immortality.
We slowly drove—He knew no haste,
And I had put away
My labor and my leisure too,
For His Civility—
We passed the School, where Children strove
At recess—in the ring—
We passed the Fields of Gazing Grain—
We passed the Setting Sun—
Or rather—He passed Us—
The Dews drew quivering and chill—
For only Gossamer, my Gown—
My Tippet—only Tulle—
We paused before a House that seemed
A Swelling of the Ground—
The Roof was scarcely visible—
The Cornice—in the Ground—
Since then—'tis centuries— and yet
Feels shorter than the Day
I first surmised the Horses' Heads
Were toward Eternity—
Wild Nights — Wild Nights! by Emily Dickinson
Wild Nights — Wild Nights!
Were I with thee
Wild Nights should be
Our luxury!
Futile — the Winds —
To a Heart in port —
Done with the Compass —
Done with the Chart!
Rowing in Eden —
Ah, the Sea!
Might I but moor — Tonight —
In Thee!
Read John Adams's comments on Harmonium on his website (partly quoted in the above).
Listen to the La Jolla Symphony & Chorus:
Choral Masterworks