The piece "And God Created Great Whales" incorporates actual recorded whale-songs, primarily from humpback whales, into its orchestral framework.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Alan Hovhaness, the composer, aimed to create music for all people that was beautiful and healing, aspiring to what old Chinese painters called 'spirit resonance'.
Composer Biography
Hovhaness was profoundly touched by Schubert's music as a child, which instilled in him a penchant for pleasing melody and harmony.
Compositional Technique
Hovhaness frequently used complex rhythmic schemes, such as patterns of 7, 13, or 17 beats, which could be challenging for Western musicians to perform.
Composer Biography
Hovhaness's father fostered his love of nature through lengthy hikes in mountainous areas, which later influenced his reverence for mountains as symbols of man's attempt to know God.
Compositional Technique
In "And God Created Great Whales", musicians, especially string players, are given freedom to improvise in rhythm or modality, making each performance unique.
Compositional Technique
Hovhaness's music often incorporates elements from various foreign cultures, but his melodies and rhythmic patterns are almost always his own, rather than genuine folk materials.
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