Impressionist Graffiti

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 Syrinx, Debussy

I’ve had Syrinx on the brain of late, in part having incorporated it into a collaborative Plastique Animee movement session recently at the Royal Conservatory. Long story short, Dalcroze apparently worked with Nijinsky back in the early part of the 20th Century. What can I say, I’m learning as I go – check out this restaging of L’Apres-midi d’un Faune, which offers a broader context for this period when Debussy likely jotted down Syrinx.

Did you know that Syrinx, Debussy‘s famed work for solo flute, was originally named La Flute de Pan? Kind of cool that it was conceived as incidental music for a staged dramatic poem by Gabriel Mourey named, get this, Pscyche!

How’s that for a title? Here’s the scene: Pan, concealed in the scenery, plays his flute from a hidden grotto as two nymphs chit-chat downstage. That’s why when Syrinx is now performed as part of a formal recital, it’s legit for the performer to situate him or herself offstage in the wings. Or, as in the case of  Louis Fleury (who the piece was written for) to play from behind a screen right on the stage - sounds japonoise, non? I guess this would be a good piece for anyone with stagefright, and maybe a whole recital couldn’t be presented in this manner!?

For me? Shy as I am, I recently returned to my fav urban lair, descending into this peaceful, resonant underground space near Laird and Eglinton, off-stage from rough-and-tumble Toronto. Do you think a modern-day Pan would have been a tag artist? Just possibly, and, yeah, here I go again, tagging with sound! Ah-h, the sweet sound of Impressionist Graffiti!!

A stand-out experience for me of hearing Syrinx performed live was when Barthold Kuijken last visited Toronto as part of a concert series at Trinty St.Paul’s, home of our beloved Tafelmusik baroque orchestra. In the second half of the program, with an electrical storm brewing outside and setting the mood for the evening, Barthold deigned to perform, yes, from the wings, with the lights dimmed. To hear this acclaimed baroque flutist play Syrinx on silver flute as lightning illuminated the interior of the historic church-space – and the empty stage – in soft flashes and as the rumble of thunder mixed with muted street traffic sounds from beyond the stone walls, well this is iconic material for my own personal concert-going mythology!

Note the piles of snow at the base of the columns, as this was a couple of weeks ago, and my music stand, stage right. I had returned here with a videographer friend to do a shoot. Watch for material on YouTube!

And if you want to rub shoulders with Jeanne Lammon, artistic director of Tafelmusik, just drop by L’Espresso on any Sunday when I’m providing live music between 12 and 2.30 for their brunch…believe you-me, the musicians in the house perked up when we see Jeanne walk in!