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I finished EG about 9 months ago, and this past quarter I took a class on 19th century symphonies. We studied of all things, Romeo Et Julliete, by Hector Berlioz, the French symphonist/conductor. It is a dramatic symphony in 7 movements which is based in part on the french translation of the play by Garret (that is, the translation of shakespeare), in part on an English staging of the play, and in part on scenes created by Berlioz or Garret.
It started tumbling around in my head what an interesting subject EG would be for a dramatic symphony (though off limits since the characters are copyrighted of course). Here is the general schema of the Symphony: Ender's Game, as I imagine it might be:
Movement I (overture): "Prologue" C-Minor
a. Earth. An impression of the earth nearing the end of the 21st century. Theme in the clarinets and oboes with the strings playing a restrained marching rythm. b. The bugger hords. screeching presto strikes from the violins and hits from the bass signal the bugger invasion. The picollo is a call to action, and the trumpets, etc lead the humans to battle. The winds gradually die down and are swallowed by the strings, until... c.The Mazer Rackem theme. Rises from an offstage flute, and peirces through the cacophony. All is silent and still, save for a few bleeting calls from the brass.
Movement II(sonata): Allegro, "The Battle School" c-minor a. The Mind Game. Ender's theme always prevelaint in the viola, plays a stilted and quieting lament which is slowly taken up in the orchestra. As the strings join in, the theme sweeps through a number of variations and "conversations" with other sectional soloists. Ender still in the viola, explores the facets of the game, eventually reaching the tower at the end of the world, and meeting with Peter. A short prelude to peter's theme is forshedowed in G-major. b. Bonito de Madrid. E-major Begins with a folk "adelita" type caprice with solo guitar, but is soon joined by a female double chorus. They sing high canonic repititions of "Bonito, Bonito," with other lyrics about honor and loyalty, all in spanish. The "bonito" is also a foreshadowing of the Hegemon theme. c. The Battle Room. This part is the dramatic retornello to the mind game theme, but this time in C-major, with the strings going full tilt. Horns blare and clarinets swing like in a Mahler folk dance, with an abrupt end, and the return, and death of the Bonito theme, now in e-minor.
Short return to the earth theme between movements.
Movement III(freely strophic) Andante: "Arose" a. The Teacher. Rackem and Ender themes form a mini double concerto. b.The Simulator. The jeesh-members represented in the parts of a fugue, imitating the style of Bach's art of fugue. c. The Final Test. The fugue tunes continue, and are met by a return of the bugger horde, this time the jeesh are represented in the winds, except for ender in solo viola. The planet explodes, and the stage falls deadly silent. Rising from the mist is a double men's chorus repeating Bean's part of the fugue lines, but to the text "Oh that I could die for you, oh Absalom my son, my sons."
Mov. IV a. Graff. (as to pere lawrence in RJ). Male Bass soloist, in the tradition of Beethoven's 9th. b. The hive queen. Ender's theme, in the viola again, is joyous at the end of the war, until it mixes with a theme from the end of the world, and then is joined in a soulful duet with the Cello, representing the Hive queen. A full chorus now sings softly "If we had kissed it would have been the miracle to make us human in eachother's eyes, instead we killed eachother." etc. c. The Tomb of the Hegemon. Prefaced by an echo of the "bonito" theme in the sopranos, now changed to "peter, peter, hegemon." The death of the Hegemon mirrors the birth of the hive queen, and the Hegomon and Hive queen theme are joined in F-major to signify peace. The death of the Hegemon is signaled in a mini "dies irae," and onlt the voice of the hive queen remains (or Petra, its both, with a reference to Petra's theme from the simulator)
d. Finale, Now in C major. An elysium theme similar to Brahms 1st or Beethoven's 9th. But this time with a soft ending, in a nice and slow andante which fades to a legetto, and falls to a call sleep.
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Well I think that would be copyright infringment, since the characters belong to OSC. Otherwise I'd devote a year to it.
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It all depends on if you're doing a symphony (i.e., no words) or an oratorio or opera. A symphony based on Ender's Game could not possibly infringe copyright and would only enhance the value of the property.
But the piece you describe is choral, and the words would indeed present the voice of various characters. Thus you would need permission. And for that, you'd have to impress the owner of the rights with your composing talent <grin>.
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I don't believe there's anything illegal about composing music inspired by or in tribute to someone else's work. It's still your music, right? The copyright infringement only occurs when you call it "THE Ender's Game Symphony".
On a side note, I'm extremely impressed by your imaginitive and detailed outline for the composition. I'm just finishing up my arranging & orchestration class, and I find it incredible that you can 'hear' all of these ideas in your head. I compose a bit too, but only for piano--I'm jealous of your creative ability.
On another side note, does OSC have anyone in mind for the EG movie score?
Edit! It seems Mr. Card and I were posting at about the same time. He beat me to the answer!
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quote:Originally posted by Orson Scott Card: It all depends on if you're doing a symphony (i.e., no words) or an oratorio or opera.
That's interesting. I know very little about classical music, so it's news to me. Does this mean that Beethoven's 9th isn't, technically, a symphony?
Posts: 16059 | Registered: Aug 2000
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Almost makes me want to drop the projects I'm currently working on to write "Ender: The Musical!"
I can see it now.
There's plenty of background characters constantly around Ender to make for a good Chorus. And there is constant movement through much of the work, so choreography shouldn't be a problem. Graff can do a number of extreme stage right soliloquays under a spotlight, occasionally joined by Major Anderson to add some two-part harmony. It practically writes itself.
Oh the wheels are turning...
Posts: 21898 | Registered: Nov 2004
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quote:Originally posted by Orson Scott Card: It all depends on if you're doing a symphony (i.e., no words) or an oratorio or opera.
That's interesting. I know very little about classical music, so it's news to me. Does this mean that Beethoven's 9th isn't, technically, a symphony?
Yes and no. The format for Beethoven's Ninth is considered an original idea because it actually follows the romantic Beethovinian format for a symphony, with a major exception. The last movement is a hybridized cantata with solo and choral sections, making it the first cantata movement in a romantic symphony. If you consider it to be a movement in a symphony, then the 9th IS still a symphony, but a new interpretation of the definition of Symphony. Basically it is way more like a symphony than anything else.
As for later choral/orchestral works, there are very few which have been called "symphonies" by their composers. One is Romeo Et Juliette by Berlioz, but this is even farther removed from the Beethovinian symphony, and a world away from the mozartian format. The most successful choral/orchestral symphonist after Beethoven was Mahler, though Brahms did enjoy acclaim for his attempt. Shubert and Shumann never really lived long enough to take on the task of competing with the ninth symphony, although if either had lived longer, it is likely they would each have tried.
Since the early twentieth century however, the point has become moot, because the Sonata allegro form of the symphony was largely abandoned by composers in favor of different forms. There do remain a large number of orchestral/choral works which owe their genesis in Beethoven, however few are "symphonies," anymore.
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On a side note, I'm extremely impressed by your imaginitive and detailed outline for the composition. I'm just finishing up my arranging & orchestration class, and I find it incredible that you can 'hear' all of these ideas in your head. I compose a bit too, but only for piano--I'm jealous of your creative ability.
Thanks LW, (my initials by the way). I haven't taken my orchestration series yet, but i'm looking forward to it in a big way. I'd say if you'd like to get a little more practical experience with formating ideas and outlining themes, take a survery class of the Romantic symphony, if such a class is available to you. The romantic symphony offers the most evolved formal structures that music has ever produced; and at no time in history did form achieve support for such an exquisitely balanced breadth and depth of ideas and drama. There just hasn't ever been a 2 hour peice of music that was able to stay unified and present the number of themes and motives that a Mahler symphony can attain, without exploding. Later on, naturally, anything trying to be bigger did explode the form, and so it faded away.
Posts: 9912 | Registered: Nov 2005
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quote:Originally posted by Orson Scott Card: But the piece you describe is choral, and the words would indeed present the voice of various characters. Thus you would need permission. And for that, you'd have to impress the owner of the rights with your composing talent <grin>.
I'll have to think about that in the coming months. Posts: 9912 | Registered: Nov 2005
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