Bolcom: Songs of Innocence and of Experience (Live)

Featuring

Leonard Slatkin
Ilana Davidson
Carmen Pelton
Linda Hohenfeld
Joan Morris
Measha Brüggergosman

Thomas Young
Peter Madcat Ruth
Nathan Lee Graham
Jeremy Kittel
Marietta Simpson
Matthew Dievendorf
Christine Brewer
Nmon Ford
Julius Abrahams
University of Michigan Symphony Orchestra
University of Michigan Orpheus Singers
University of Michigan Chamber Choir
University of Michigan University Choir
Michigan University Musical Society Choral Union
Michigan State University Children's Choir
William Bolcom

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Composer's Artistic Vision

Bolcom's work is inspired by William Blake's principle of contraries, which states that "Without Contraries is no progression."

Recording & Production

This recording of William Bolcom's "Songs of Innocence and of Experience" was made live at Hill Auditorium in Ann Arbor, Michigan, on April 9th and 10th, 2004.

Historical Context

William Blake's "Songs of Innocence and of Experience" were created during a turbulent period in English and American history, when the United States was in its infancy.

Composition History

William Bolcom's "Songs of Innocence and of Experience" took 25 years of his compositional life to complete, with parts dating back to 1956.

Composer Biography

William Bolcom, the composer, has taught at the University of Michigan since 1973 and received the 1988 Pulitzer Prize for Music for his "12 New Etudes for Piano."

Compositional Technique

Bolcom's musical settings for "Songs of Innocence and of Experience" range from intense dissonance to folk, rock, and reggae, reflecting Blake's diverse poetic styles.

Instruments

The orchestra for this work includes instruments unusual to a standard symphony orchestra, such as saxophones, expanded percussion and brass, and electric instruments.