Für Alina
Encyclopedia
Für Alina is a work for piano composed by the Estonian
composer Arvo Pärt
. It can be considered as an essential work of his tintinnabuli
style.
in 1976 after a long preparatory period in Pärt’s life as a composer, along with six other works. This concert was the first to introduce his new signature style of composition. It was dedicated to a family friend's eighteen year-old daughter who had just gone to study in London. Its introspection calls to mind a vivid image of youth, off to explore the world.
is written in F clef. Although very simple on paper, achieving purity of sound remains a challenge and demands an accomplished pianist with a good ear to make it sound as graceful as possible.
The score of Für Alina is only two pages long. It is in the key of B minor
, and is played piano (p). As, or in place of, a tempo marking is the direction ‘Ruhig, erhaben, in sich hineinhorchend’, which roughly translates into ‘peacefully, in an exalted and introspective manner’. There is no time signature.
It begins with a low double-octave B, which echoes throughout the whole work (save for the last system); it should be played with the pedal down throughout (a single pedal shift is found before the last four bars). The right hand plays the notes an octave higher than noted. Considering there is no time signature, the tempo is free, yet introspective in a way that allows the player to dwell in his/her own emotions, responding to the notes and occasional dissonance
. Thus the use of rubato becomes essential. Both hands play their single notes at the same time.
Only two types of notes appear in the score: whole notes and stemless black notes (more free as to their duration). It has only 15 bars of written music: the first bar has the low bass octave. From there onwards begins the following pattern: the second bar has one note-head and one whole note, the next bar has two quarter notes and a whole note, and so on until a bar that has seven quarter notes and a whole note. This pattern then scales down again, to one quarter note and a half note. The last bar has two quarter notes and a half note.
If played softly enough, with the pedal down and given enough time, the notes (often resulting in clashes between B and C# or D and E, and other such interval
s) produce a humming of dissonance in the piano’s machinery, only adding to the transcendental nature of the composition.
The entire harmonic structure, save for one note, is constructed so that the left hand part is the highest note in a B Minor chord which is below the melody line; Thus, when the melody is on a C# or D, the left hand is on a B. When the melody is on an E or F#, the left hand is on a D, and when the melody is on a G, A, or B, the left hand is on an F#. The only break from this harmonic structure appears when the left hand hits a C# below an F# in the right hand, synchronous with the release of the pedal.
It is a custom to repeat the piece ad lib. Variations could be also applied from one repetition to the other, like the exact 8ava of the two (melody) hands (stead for the length of each full repetition).
New Series album entitled Alina, recorded in July 1995 and released in 1999. It includes two variations of Für Alina by pianist Alexander Malter, and three versions of Pärt’s Spiegel Im Spiegel
(for piano and violin
, violoncello, and violin, respectively). According to the liner notes, the two versions, sort of like “mood improvisations”, were handpicked by Pärt from a recording that was originally several hours long. The two versions most strikingly differ in the use of rubato and that of the use of the low octave b. Both versions clock slightly under eleven minutes.
Estonians
Estonians are a Finnic people closely related to the Finns and inhabiting, primarily, the country of Estonia. They speak a Finnic language known as Estonian...
composer Arvo Pärt
Arvo Pärt
Arvo Pärt is an Estonian classical composer and one of the most prominent living composers of sacred music. Since the late 1970s, Pärt has worked in a minimalist style that employs his self-made compositional technique, tintinnabuli. His music also finds its inspiration and influence from...
. It can be considered as an essential work of his tintinnabuli
Tintinnabuli
Tintinnabuli is a compositional style created by the Estonian composer Arvo Pärt. He first introduced this new style in two works: Für Alina and Spiegel Im Spiegel . This simple style was influenced by the composer's mystical experiences with chant music...
style.
History of Composition
Für Alina was first performed in TallinnTallinn
Tallinn is the capital and largest city of Estonia. It occupies an area of with a population of 414,940. It is situated on the northern coast of the country, on the banks of the Gulf of Finland, south of Helsinki, east of Stockholm and west of Saint Petersburg. Tallinn's Old Town is in the list...
in 1976 after a long preparatory period in Pärt’s life as a composer, along with six other works. This concert was the first to introduce his new signature style of composition. It was dedicated to a family friend's eighteen year-old daughter who had just gone to study in London. Its introspection calls to mind a vivid image of youth, off to explore the world.
Structure, How To Play & Sound
The piece appears very simple on the page, and could be played by any person willing to spend a little time with a piano. It has both the left and right hand written in G clef and only the echoing bass octaveOctave
In music, an octave is the interval between one musical pitch and another with half or double its frequency. The octave relationship is a natural phenomenon that has been referred to as the "basic miracle of music", the use of which is "common in most musical systems"...
is written in F clef. Although very simple on paper, achieving purity of sound remains a challenge and demands an accomplished pianist with a good ear to make it sound as graceful as possible.
The score of Für Alina is only two pages long. It is in the key of B minor
B minor
B minor is a minor scale based on B, consisting of the pitches B, C, D, E, F, G, and A. The harmonic minor raises the A to A. Its key signature has two sharps .Its relative major is D major, and its parallel major is B major....
, and is played piano (p). As, or in place of, a tempo marking is the direction ‘Ruhig, erhaben, in sich hineinhorchend’, which roughly translates into ‘peacefully, in an exalted and introspective manner’. There is no time signature.
It begins with a low double-octave B, which echoes throughout the whole work (save for the last system); it should be played with the pedal down throughout (a single pedal shift is found before the last four bars). The right hand plays the notes an octave higher than noted. Considering there is no time signature, the tempo is free, yet introspective in a way that allows the player to dwell in his/her own emotions, responding to the notes and occasional dissonance
Consonance and dissonance
In music, a consonance is a harmony, chord, or interval considered stable, as opposed to a dissonance , which is considered to be unstable...
. Thus the use of rubato becomes essential. Both hands play their single notes at the same time.
Only two types of notes appear in the score: whole notes and stemless black notes (more free as to their duration). It has only 15 bars of written music: the first bar has the low bass octave. From there onwards begins the following pattern: the second bar has one note-head and one whole note, the next bar has two quarter notes and a whole note, and so on until a bar that has seven quarter notes and a whole note. This pattern then scales down again, to one quarter note and a half note. The last bar has two quarter notes and a half note.
If played softly enough, with the pedal down and given enough time, the notes (often resulting in clashes between B and C# or D and E, and other such interval
Interval (music)
In music theory, an interval is a combination of two notes, or the ratio between their frequencies. Two-note combinations are also called dyads...
s) produce a humming of dissonance in the piano’s machinery, only adding to the transcendental nature of the composition.
The entire harmonic structure, save for one note, is constructed so that the left hand part is the highest note in a B Minor chord which is below the melody line; Thus, when the melody is on a C# or D, the left hand is on a B. When the melody is on an E or F#, the left hand is on a D, and when the melody is on a G, A, or B, the left hand is on an F#. The only break from this harmonic structure appears when the left hand hits a C# below an F# in the right hand, synchronous with the release of the pedal.
It is a custom to repeat the piece ad lib. Variations could be also applied from one repetition to the other, like the exact 8ava of the two (melody) hands (stead for the length of each full repetition).
Availability
An essential release, and in fact endorsed by Pärt himself, is the ECMECM (record label)
ECM is a record label founded in Munich, Germany, in 1969 by Manfred Eicher. While ECM is best known for jazz music, the label has released a wide variety of recordings, and ECM's artists often refuse to acknowledge boundaries between genres...
New Series album entitled Alina, recorded in July 1995 and released in 1999. It includes two variations of Für Alina by pianist Alexander Malter, and three versions of Pärt’s Spiegel Im Spiegel
Spiegel im Spiegel
Spiegel im Spiegel is a piece of music written by Arvo Pärt in 1978, just prior to his departure from Estonia. The piece is in the tintinnabular style of composition, wherein a melodic voice, operating over diatonic scales, and tintinnabular voice, operating within a triad on the tonic, accompany...
(for piano and violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
, violoncello, and violin, respectively). According to the liner notes, the two versions, sort of like “mood improvisations”, were handpicked by Pärt from a recording that was originally several hours long. The two versions most strikingly differ in the use of rubato and that of the use of the low octave b. Both versions clock slightly under eleven minutes.
External links
- The whole Arvo Pärt catalogue on ECM Records
- An Arvo Pärt information site at arvopart.info
Sources
- This article draws some facts from the liner notes of the ECM album Alina, an essay White Light written by Hermann Conen and translated into English by Eileen Walliser-Schwarzbart.