Edgard Varèse – Ecuatorial
Ecuatorial for bass voice (or unison male chorus), brass, organ, percussion and theremins (revised for ondes-martenots in 1961) (text by Francisco Ximénez) (1932–1934)
Corrections from the original manuscript by Chou Wen-Chung)
Kevin Deas, bass
ASKO Ensemble
Riccardo Chailly
Edgard Varèse completed Ecuatorial in 1934, a work for orchestra, bass singer, electronic instruments, and an augmented percussion section. This is one of the few works by Varèse that was inspired by something extra-musical. For the most part, his titles came to him only after he was well into the writing of a composition. In this case, a book by the composer’s friend got him interested in capturing some of the atmospheres within the text. The book, Legends of Guatemala, is by Guatemalan author Miguel Angel Asturias, who had also written an admiring article about the composer. When the French translation of the book appeared in 1932, Asturias sent Varèse a copy, who was struck by the inclusion of Mayan holy texts, taken from the Popol-Vuh, which inspired the composer. It was a specific supplication prayer from these excerpts that he decided to set to music, but, because his own command of Spanish was strong, he chose to work with that language rather than the French translation.
In Ecuatorial, the composer was after the elemental spiritual health of the text’s message and the sense of tragedy at its intended audience’s downfall as a civilization. It is a prayer requesting peace, a good harvest, and children. A direct, ancient feel was also part of what he wanted to capture in the manner of a dramatic incantation. During its composition, Varèse relocated to the United States, after a few years moved again to Paris. The orchestration of Ecuatorial was frequently revamped. At first, the voice was scored for a chorus of bass voices, or a solo bass voice performed through a megaphone. Both approaches were considered before the non-amplified solo voice was settled on. Just as crucial to the voices was the scoring for electronic instruments. This also went through different versions, as the composer waffled between the use of the Ondes Martenot and the theremin. The problem was in finding an instrument that would work properly, which was difficult in the 1930s because the instruments were still in their infancy. In an important edit by the composer’s long-time friend and associate Chou Wen-Chung, one Ondes Martenot and one theremin were decided as the ideal combination, taking into consideration the peculiarities of the work’s orchestration and the improvements of both instruments since the death of Varèse in 1965. The most immediate benefit of these electronic instruments is that they can produce higher notes than even the piccolo. Another is the connotation of the purity of electronic sound, which amplifies the primitive, rough-hewn quality of the vocal line. The overall impression depicts a pre-Columbian sculpture, majestic and mysterious, and with a fecund spirituality.
The first performance of Ecuatorial took place on April 15, 1934, in New York. Town Hall was the venue, Slonimsky conducted, and the soloist was Chase Baromeo. Generally, the audience and critics were baffled, and there was no subsequent performance for the next twenty-five years. It is not a frequently performed work, but it successfully captures the complex quality of ancient, exotic prayer that the composer was after, to a sublime extent. Many listeners feel that Ecuatorial does credit to both twentieth-century music and the text, and this successful juxtaposition of an ancient holy text and electronic sound renders the music timeless and eternal. This work was dedicated the composer’s wife, Louise. [allmusic.com]
Art by Louis Dodd
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