Partch, Harry
Partch, Harry
Partch, Harry , innovative American composer, performer, and instrument maker; b. Oakland, Calif., June 24,1901; d. San Diego, Sept. 3,1974. Largely autodidact, he began experimenting with instruments capable of producing fractional intervals, which led him to the formulation of a 43-tone scale; he expounded his findings in his book, Genesis of a Music (1949; 2nd ed., rev. and aug., 1974). Among new instruments constructed by him were elongated violas, a chromelodeon, kitharas with 72 strings, harmonic canons with 44 strings, boos (made of giant Philippine bamboo reeds), cloud- chamber bowls, blow-boys (a pair of bellows with an attached automobile horn), etc. Seeking intimate contact with American life, he wandered across the country, collecting indigenous expressions of folkways, inscriptions on public walls, etc., for texts in his productions. T. McGeary ed. a vol. devoted to Partch as Bitter Music: Collected Journals, Essays, Jntroductions, and Librettos (Urbana, III, 1991).
Works
17 Lyrics by Li Po for Voice and Adapted Viola (1930–33; San Francisco, Feb. 9, 1932); 2 Psalms for Voice and Adapted Viola (1931; San Francisco, Feb. 9,1932; rev. 1941); The Potion Scene from Romeo and Juliet for Voice and Adapted Viola (1931; San Francisco, Feb. 9, 1932; rev. 1955); The Wayward Barstow: 8 Hitchhiker Inscriptions from a Highway Railing at Barstow, California for Voice and Adapted Guitar (1941; N.Y., April 22, 1944; rev. 1954); U.S. High ball: A Musical Account of a Transcontinental Hobo Trip for Voices, Guitar I, Kithara, and Chromelodeon (1943; N.Y., April 22, 1944; rev. 1955); San Francisco: A Setting of the Cries of 2 Newsboys on a Foggy Night in the 20s for 2 Baritones, Adapted Viola, Kithara, and Chromelodeon (1943; N.Y., April 22, 1944); The Letter: A Depression Message from a Hobo Friend for Intoning Voices and Original Instruments (1943; N.Y., April 22, 1944); Dark Brother for Voice, Chromelodeon, Adapted Viola, Kithara, and Bass Marimba (1942–43); 2 Settings from Joyce’s Finnegans Wake for Soprano, Kithara, and 2 Flutes (1944); Yankee Doodle Fantasy for Soprano, Tin Flutes, Tin Oboes, Flex-a-tones, and Chromelodeon (N.Y., April 22, 1944); 11 Intrusions for Large Ensemble of Original Instruments (1946–50); Plectra and Percussion Dances for Voices and Original Instruments (1949–52; Berkeley, Calif., Nov. 19, 1953); Oedipus, dance music for 10 Solo Voices and Original Instruments, after Sophocles (1951; Oakland, Calif., March 14, 1952; rev. 1952–54); 2 Settings from Lewis Carroll for Voice and Original Instruments (Mill Valley, Calif., Feb. 13, 1954); Ulysses at the Edge for Alto Saxophone or Trumpet, Baritone Saxophone, and Original Instruments (1955; adapted to The Wayward)) The Bewitched, dance satire for Soprano and Ensemble of Traditional and Original Instruments (1955; Urbana, 111., March 26, 1957); Windsong, film score (1958; rev. as the ballet Daphne of the Dunes, 1967); Revelation in the Courthouse Park for 16 Solo Voices, 4 Speakers, Dancers, and Large Instrumental Ensemble (1960; Urbana, 111., April 11,1962); Rotate the Body in All Its Planes, film score (Urbana, III, April 8, 1961); Bless This Home for Voice, Oboe, and Original Instruments (1961); Water! Water!, farcical “intermission” (1961; Urbana, 111., March 9,1962); And on the 7thDay Petals Fell in Petaluma for Large Ensemble of Original Instruments (1963–66; Los Angeles, May 8,1966); Delusion of the Fury: A Ritual of Dream and Delusion, dramatic piece for Large Ensemble (1965–66; Los Angeles, Jan. 9,1969); The Dreamer That Remains: A Study in Loving, film score (1972).
Bibliography
G. Hackbarth, An Analysis of H. P’s “Daphne of the Dunes” (Ann Arbor, 1979); T. McGeary, The Music of H. P.: A Descriptive Catalog (Brooklyn, 1991); B. Gilmore, H. P.: A Biography (New Haven, 1998).
—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire