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Nimrod vs Lux Aeterna


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11 hours ago, Hrothgar15 said:

What about the Crown 1996 "Nimrod"-based fast-paced closer? I thought that worked well musically.

Sounds more like Variation 14 to me. And I <3 that closer (and the rest of the show).

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I liked Phantom's version in 2013. I saw it early season when they were in New England and was blown away, but when I saw them late season in Allentown and Indy, I was less moved by it. I think that "Enigma Variations" is a nice piece of music, but it gets old fast.

Regarding the "Lux Aeterna," the lyrics were not part of the original score and the lyrics were added in 1996 by choral arranger John Cameron (at least according to a CD jacket), which I personally put in the same category as "Nella Fantasia" which adds lyrics to "Gabriel's Oboe" from "The Mission," potential vehicles for Il Volo, Sarah Brightman, and crowd, but not true to the composer, though in "Nella's" case the composer was alive so perhaps he liked it or at least permitted it. That being said, "Lux Aeterna" and "Nimrod" may be the same melody, but with lyrics are different pieces, so the lyrics would not have worked in shows that used the music in the past, assuming they used the lyrics.

Edited by Tim K
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1 hour ago, Tim K said:

I liked Phantom's version in 2013. I saw it early season when they were in New England and was blown away, but when I saw them late season in Allentown and Indy, I was less moved by it. I think that "Enigma Variations" is a nice piece of music, but it gets old fast.

Regarding the "Lux Aeterna," the lyrics were not part of the original score and the lyrics were added in 1996 by choral arranger John Cameron (at least according to a CD jacket), which I personally put in the same category as "Nella Fantasia" which adds lyrics to "Gabriel's Oboe" from "The Mission," potential vehicles for Il Volo, Sarah Brightman, and crowd, but not true to the composer, though in "Nella's" case the composer was alive so perhaps he liked it or at least permitted it. That being said, "Lux Aeterna" and "Nimrod" may be the same melody, but with lyrics are different pieces, so the lyrics would not have worked in shows that used the music in the past, assuming they used the lyrics.

not about the lyrics at all.  it's about the music and the instrument. quite honestly i could  not care less about the lyrics in the case. the vocal ensemble manages to bring life and expression to music that's just missing in the other ensembles -- even the CSO version (which is far more expressive than any drum corps version fielded to date).  

imo it's akin to Rocky Point Holiday but in that case it was the drum corps version that brought the original to life.  

which is kind of why i posted this in the first place.  it's always good to hear to an ensemble make a piece theirs.  IMO the Voces8 interpretation soars above any of the instrumental versions.   while the piece may have been born in the orchestra,  it only realizes it's true nature in that arrangement.  

btw this is quite contrary to the ordinary course of things for me -- i usually find brass choirs to bring new life to many pieces.  

not looking for controversy -- just wondering if anyone else heard things the same way.

Edited by corpsband
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17 hours ago, garfield said:

Sorry, BK.  Too fast, and not dramatic enough.  Bombs were falling...

 

Agree. I was fine with BK's tempo up to the climax, but they needed to pull back more leading into the big hit, and then the big hit needed to pull back A LOT.  Very well played, though.

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Some pieces of music simply work better due to type of instrumentation and orchestration.  In this case, I've always preferred strings or voice.  Scoring NIMROD out for a large brass ensemble, or even concert band, just doesn't fully grab me.  Some corps have done it well.  A few bands have too.  But I can listen to that vocal arrangement all day. Same with strings.

Some music simply does not translate to field or to a brass/percussion ensemble.  

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2 hours ago, corpsband said:

not about the lyrics at all.  it's about the music and the instrument. quite honestly i could  not care less about the lyrics in the case. the vocal ensemble manages to bring life and expression to music that's just missing in the other ensembles -- even the CSO version (which is far more expressive than any drum corps version fielded to date).  

imo it's akin to Rocky Point Holiday but in that case it was the drum corps version that brought the original to life.  

which is kind of why i posted this in the first place.  it's always good to hear to an ensemble make a piece theirs.  IMO the Voces8 interpretation soars above any of the instrumental versions.   while the piece may have been born in the orchestra,  it only realizes it's true nature in that arrangement.  

btw this is quite contrary to the ordinary course of things for me -- i usually find brass choirs to bring new life to many pieces.  

not looking for controversy -- just wondering if anyone else heard things the same way.

I'll have to admit, this is a subject where I am admittedly contradictory. I do not like lyrics added to Nimrod, but Elgar who was Catholic and by some accounts was rather religious may not have minded the Latin hymn set to his music. I will claim composer's intention when I don't like something, but Beethoven did not intend for his 9th Symphony to be "Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee" yet I find it a nice accessible hymn. I have no problem with Aaron Copland borrowng "Simple Gifts" for "Appalachian Spring" but spare me from singing "Lord of the Dance" one more time.

For me, the title is important. If for example Phantom used the title "Lux Aeterna" in their 2013, it would throw me off, especially with how they used the music visually. A warrior woman about to slay her enemy is hardly resting in peace. To use another example, if Crown called its finale in 2015 "Joyful, Joyful," instead of Beethoven's 9th, it would throw me off again since the majority of characters in the show have no reason to be joyful, whereas Beethoven's 9th would remind me of Dante's triumph. 

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On 5/6/2017 at 4:04 PM, corpsband said:

ive always been bored, bored, bored by Nimrod.

What is ‘really’ boring is that many fans of drum corps shows today have the attention span of toddlers desiring only fast paced, dizzying, 208-bpm movement all the time with no love/patience for glorious musical respites such as Nimrod.

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