Andrew Toovey - to Sappho for piano (Finnissy)

to Sappho (1993) is a short, frantic cluster piano piece played with wonderful energy by Michael Finnissy. Most of the poems surviving from the ancient greek work of Sappho are in small fragments, so I decided to take just one basic idea (clusters - chords, in this case, that encompass all the chromatic notes within a perfect fifth) and combine two rhythms in a constant onslaught of sound and energy.

[@moonjunsu]

So cool! Thanks

[@iknowyourerightbut4986]

Stunning

[@robertnettleship5467]

Ahhhh I've finally found it :D I love it xxx

[@Xardan]

This is actually very good music :)

[@AlonMusic]

It looks more like a circuit diagram than sheet music.

[@jessicaeskebk5945]

They were roommates?…. /ref

[@CatkhosruShapurrjiFurabji]

Based

[@jameslorenz3718]

Edit: this text is in the place of the original text. There are two opposing ideas that are rationalised in the thread below. Readers might find it as an interesting exchange to consider in whole.

[@zgart]

Um define music

[@jameslorenz3718]

@@zgart music is a pleasing arrangement of sound. This is dissonant to the point of fault. There is an art to dissonance. Beethoven used it, Rachmaninoff used it, Shostakovich used it, and many others:Prokofiev, Stavinsky, Chopin, Bach, and many more. Although, some of the names I mentioned have gone too far with dissonance in some of their music. The dissonance here is not used tastfully, it is random pitches that do not sit right in the brain. There may be some discernible pattern to give it "order" But that would mean I could hit random keys and as long as they are in some kind of pattern that it is music. The harmony of the music is equally important as the order of it, I will prove it. If all that matters is if it has pattern than if three people talked on the phone within hearing distance of eachother, and they just so happened to do it in a way that their dissonant pitches had order when they finished, than music would be achieved, by three unrelated phone calls. Talking on the phone has pitches, but three people talking on the phone in an "order" of sound doesn't make music, because there is no harmonic assonance. This is why harmony matters just as much as musical form. The sounds in the above video may have "order" but it is harmonically random. It actually uses musical pitches unlike the three people talking on the phone, this makes the brain want to find a harmonic pattern when there is none, and thus tricks some people into thinking it is music when they are not hearing any harmonic pattern, there are no harmonic patterns, and they are deriving no pleasure from it. This is why this isn't music.
However, I have no right to control your free time. Do what you will.
This is a long comment and there is a reason for it, you asked me to "define music".

[@zgart]

@@jameslorenz3718 That's an interesting take. I personally disagree, because I feel like my brain doesn't really "seek" a harmonic pattern. I don't really find a point in defining music, because by your definition, that means music is completely subjective. "pleasing" sounds are very subjective. I think three people talking on the phone can count as music if someone wants to call it that, will it get much attention? probably not. I personally tend to enjoy dissonant music more than some (emphasis on some, I do really enjoy bach, chopin, and the rest of the famous) tonal music because I find it more appealing emotionally. Like ligeti requiem, I have yet to find a tonal piece more powerful than that (that resonates with me) besides maybe Bach's chaconne in D minor. Same goes for Penderecki st luke passion. Thanks for your opinion! It's hard to find civil discussions around these topics.

[@jameslorenz3718]

@@zgart I think the things you said make sense rationally, I will let them roll around inside my head before I decide if I agree or not though. I will also change my definition to "an arrangement of sound that is pleasing in a harmonic sense" to distinguish between sounds that are pleasing like a ping pong ball getting bounced and a chord. My opinion may change, or it may not, I will have to think on it longer, you have given me very, very interesting ideas to digest. I also think this was a valuable exchange and wish you the best. (:

[@sebastianzaczek]

Is there a Video of the actual Performance?

[@AndrewToovey]

Sadly no, but I'll try and get Michael to do another performance soon and film it - thanks for the interest.

[@takureido3122]

@Schoenberg is my daddy oh hi

[@takureido3122]

@Schoenberg is my daddy bruh

[@sneddypie]

@Franz Liszt no czerny etude is harder

[@AsrielKujo]

oh hi

[@jameslorenz3718]

This is what it sounds like when I get annoyed practicing.

[@elektrachord5068]

Yeah, Girl in Red is a pretty good song at all, but this is the real lesbian anthem

[@WEEBLLOM]

?????

[@zgart]

@@WEEBLLOM sappho is lesbian icon if thats what ur asking