Post 9: Rothko Chapel

It's one of those pieces, like Ross says, is an event every time it is done. Like The Ring Cycle, or a Mahler symphony, it is always a big deal.
Listening to it in class was cool, following the score, figuring out what was going on. But really this is more than just a music event, but a spiritual one as well. Hearing the clip of Feldman speaking about his work is quite moving. He speaks of it with passion not only as a composer, but as a spiritual man.
I clicked on the link in the blog to WNYC's page about the Musica Sacra concert. I listened to the concert which also included Arvo Pärt's Stabat Mater. It's part of a great series called New Sounds Live. Both pieces are certainly more spiritual than sacred. Sacred tends to imply, for me at least, a worship usage. These "mystical" pieces, as they are described, push themselves off the grid of sacred or art music. Not only does Rothko Chapel stretch the gap between art, the sacred, and the mystical, but so does the Chapel for which it was written. I think it captures is entirely. I'd like to visit one day and know for sure.

Feldman was an Amazing individual and there are a fairly large amount of materials available to learn about his life. One interesting tid bit is a conversation between Feldman and Cage.