G. I. Gurdjieff & Thomas de Hartmann- Oriental Suite: The Complete Orchestral Music (1923-24)

Looks like my birthday came early this year. Thanks to Owl over at Holywarbles, and some other kindly soul named Biyda, I just got my digital paws all over Basta Music's rare and expensive G.I. Gurdjieff & Thomas de Hartmann- Oriental Suite: The Complete Orchestral Music box set. (Sans the book, obviously) Today has been an auspicious day. Methinks the GC owes those folks some serious solids in return for the blogspot debut of this neat little artifact. Read On...

From BastaMusic.com:

Between 13 and 25 December 1923 the Gurdjieff Institute gave a series of eight public demonstrations of the Sacred Gymnastics and Movements at the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées in Paris. The music, composed by Gurdjieff to accompany these dances, was orchestrated by Thomas de Hartmann and performed by an orchestra of thirty-five musicians.

In January 1924, Gurdjieff and his pupils sailed to America for a series of public demonstrations in New York, Boston, and Chicago.

At Gurdjieff`s request, de Hartmann adapted the full orchestral scores for a smaller ensemble that would accompany the demonstrations there.

The four CDs enclosed with this book contain both the Paris orchestrations and the American versions, all recorded for the first time by the Metropole Orchestra and the Little Orchestra. An addenda section features music intended for Gurdjieff ’s unfinished ballet The Struggle of the Magicians.

In order to complete the reconstruction of the orchestral Gurdjieff/ de Hartmann music, the Oriental Suite, compiled by de Hartmann in 1956, is included as well.

The 256-page book is profusely illustrated with many new photos and unique historical documents. It further contains recollections of people who were present when these demonstrations were given, as well as a sampling of the extensive press coverage generated by the Gurdjieff Institute during its first—and final—public appearance.

With recollections of

Mary C. Bell

J. G. Bennett

E. C. Bowyer

Raymond G. Carroll

Megaupload Links: G. I. Gurdjieff & Thomas de Hartmann- Oriental Suite: The Complete Orchestral Music (1923-24)
CD I – The Paris Demonstrations: Metropole Orchestra
CD II – The Paris Demonstrations: Metropole Orchestra
CD III - The American Demonstrations: The Little Orchestra
CD IV – The American Demonstrations: The Little Orchestra

Total duration 240 minutes


CD I – The Paris Demonstrations: Metropole Orchestra.

SET I:
1: N1 (First Obligatory, Throwing Out Arms)
2: N2 (Second Obligatory, First March, Salute)
3: N3 (Third Obligatory, March Forward, Arms Forward)
4: N3bis (Fourth Obligatory, Counting)
5: N4 (Fifth Obligatory, Note Values, Sun)
6: N5 (Sixth Obligatory, Mazurka)
7: N6 (Central Group, Old Group, Initiation of a Priestess)

SET II:
8: N7 (Dervishes with Hatchets, Ho-Ya)
9: N8 (The Great Prayer, The Big Prayer, Dervishes with Counting)
10: N9 (The First Dervish Prayer, Camel’s Step)
11: N10 (Trembling Dervish, Warrior Dervish, Vertical)
12: N11 (Funeral of a Dervish, Funeral Ceremony)
13: N20 (Big Group)
14: N21/ N21bis (The Big Seven, Canon of Seven, 7)
15: N27 (Turning)

CD II – The Paris Demonstrations: Metropole Orchestra.

SET III:
1: N18 (The Spinners)
2: N19 (The Shoemaker)
3: N26 (Rugs, Rug Weaving #2, Carpet Weaving)
4: N12 (The Sacred Goose, Geese, Swans)
5: N13 (Oriental Dance, Woman’s Dance in A - minor)
6: N14 (Essentuki Obligatory, Prayer No. 1, Chords)
7: N14bis (The Waltz)
8: N15 (Essentuki Women’s Dance in G Minor, Women of Essentuki)
9: N23 (Greek Chorovod, Music for the Greek Round)
10: N24 (Big Chorovod, Women’s Round Dance, Caucasian Round)
11: N25 (Pithia, Pythoness)

Here ends the program from the Théatre des Champs - Élysées.

ADDENDA
12: N0 (Marche, Entrance March + Chords)
13: N10 1/2 (Introduction)
14: N16 (Les Automates)
15: N17 (The Fall of the Priestess, Polyrhythms)
16: N22 (Round Dance in G – minor, Wine Dance)
17: N25bis (Clapping)
18: N27 1/2
19: N28 (Lezginka)
20: N29 (Armenian Dance ‘Lily’)
21: N30 (Black Magician)
22: N31 (Tempo di Valse)
23: N32 (Pilgrims)
24: N33 (Arabian Dance)
25: N34 (Untitled Dance)
26: N35 (Turkish Dance)

CD III - The American Demonstrations: The Little Orchestra.

SET I:
1: N1 (First Obligatory, Throwing Out Arms)
2: N2 (Second Obligatory, First March, Salute)
3: N3 (Third Obligatory, March Forward, Arms Forward)
4: N3bis (Fourth Obligatory, Counting)
5: N4 (Fifth Obligatory, Note Values, Sun)
6: N5 (Sixth Obligatory, Mazurka)
7: N6 (Central Group, Old Group, Initiation of a Priestess)

SET II:
8: N7 (Dervishes with Hatchets, Ho-Ya)
9: N8 (The Great Prayer, The Big Prayer, Dervishes With Counting)
10: N9 (The First Dervish Prayer, Camel’s Step)
11: N10 (Trembling Dervish, Warrior Dervish, Vertical)
12: N11 (Funeral of a Dervish, Funeral Ceremony)
13: N20 (Big Group)
14: N21/ N21bis (Canon of Seven, The Big Seven)

CD IV – The American Demonstrations: The Little Orchestra.

SET III:

1: N27 (Turning)
2: N12 (The Sacred Goose, Geese, Swans)
3: N13 (Woman’s Dance in A - minor, Oriental Dance)
4: N14 (Essentuki Obligatory, Woman’s Dance #2)
5: N14bis (The Waltz)
6: N15 (Essentuki Women’s Dance in G Minor, Women of Essentuki)
7: N18 (The Spinners)
8: N19 (The Shoemaker)
9: N26 (Rugs, Rug Weaving #2, Carpet Weaving)
10: N23 (Greek Chorovod, Music for the Greek Round)
11: N24 (Big Chorovod, Women’s Round Dance, Caucasian Round)
12: N25 (Pithia, Pythoness)

Here ends the program from the American demonstration.

ORIENTAL SUITE (1956) –Metropole Orchestra
13: I - Song of the Aïsors
14: II - Seid Dance (a.k.a. Caucasian Dance, Sayyid Dance)
15: III - Song of the Fisherwomen
16: IV - Bagpipe Music (a.k.a. Duduki)
17: V - Tibetan Masked Dance (a.k.a. Tibetan Masks No. 2)