Bronius Kutavicius – Last Pagan Rites (2002)

Quote:

“A prolific composer and long-standing dominant figure in new Lithuanian music, Bronius Kutavičius is considered the harbinger of minimalism in Lithuanian music. The way the composer uses many-layered repetitions and reduces the musical material to rather elementary archetypal patterns, may resemble American or early European minimalism, but it sounds quite different. Kutavičius' special kind of minimalism is his own invention, and is rooted deeply in archaic forms of Lithuanian folk music”

A correct observation. This does not at all sound like what we have come to recognize as minimalism. Kutavicius makes use of repetive patterns to create a sense of mystery. And there’s plenty of mystery to be found…listen for example to the highly intruiging third track of “last Pagan Rites”; it’s called “Incantation of the Serpent”. Now, if the makers of the Harry Potter movies didn’t listen to this before they had Harry speak in parcel tongue, they should have done so by all means! Four groups of boys’ voices positioned in four corners of the St. Casimir Church in Vilnius, hissings and whispers embedding a soaring soprano voice, it’s eery; and if no high-tech equipment was used to mix those waves of reptile sounds, the poor boys must have had a hard time getting it right.
Speaking about mystery, how about those strange high-register organ sounds, emerging like flashing fireflies in a dark forest - first track, “Oh You Green Grasshopper”?

Kutavicius was recommended to me by one of our users. There will be another post of this Lithuanian composer shortly: Lokys the Bear, an opera.

performers

1-4.The Choir of the Vilnius Čiurlionis Art School
Romas Gražinis, conductor
Gintarė Skerytė, soprano
Leopoldas Digrys, organ
Mindaugas Budzinauskas, Linas Dakinevičius, Leonardas Gadeikis, Mindaugas Pupeikis, horns

5-8. Kaunas State Choir;
Lithuanian National Symphony Orchestra; Robertas Šervenikas, conductor

Last Pagan Rites (1978), For Choir, Organ and Horns; Text by Sigitas Geda 27'00

Tracklist

Last Pagan Rites

1. On Your Green Grasshopfer 6'07
2. Celebration of the Medvėgalis Hill 3'32
3. Incantation of the Serpent 5'44
4. Celebration of the Oak-three 11'37

Epitaphium Temporum Pereunti (1998); Text by Bykhov Chr., Liauksminas, Geda

5. Introductio. Somnium Gedimini, anno 1323 8'08
6. Passacaglia. Vivat Academia, anno 1579 6'51
7. Trenus Aeternus, anno 1852 10'53
8. Dedicatio Ecclesiae Cathedrali, anno 1988 11'59