Under the title "The Lake in Central Park", as part of the Delian Suite as suggested by Joseph Dillon Ford the moderator and founder of the Delian Society, it was originally a minute-long piano piece. The original file with my original description may be seen and heard on that page:
"The Lake in Central Park" from "Delian Suite"- 1 minute piano pieceCleopatra VII (69-30BC), from the Ptolomaic Dynasty, had nothing to do with this structure which dates from the famous 18th Dynasty, around 461 B.C. (Ramses II may have added to it but Tutmose III was the original Pharoah of the Obelisk.) The inscriptions on it are to their memories.) Though I originally mentioned our New York weather as the cause for the deterioration of the inscriptions, apparently much of this deterioration existed before being sent here.
Tutmose III was the step-son of the female Pharoah, Hatshepsut. My original sentence here was: "After her death, he did everything possible to obliterate Hatshepsut's memory by destroying or removing her name from her monuments." But since her mummy has, apparently, just been found, this appears to be an oversimplification. Please go here for current information.
I am not familiar with Egyptian music and ancient Egyptian music has not come down to us. Yet there are representations of musicians in Egyptian art and we might come to some conclusions from them without knowing what the music actually sounded like.
In writing the music, I tried to give an impression of the immensity of the Obelisk as well as the choreographic character of Egyptian hieroglyphics and the enormous influence of the Nile. There is no intention of being authentic which is impossible, especially in the case of a piano piece.
download mp3 of "The Obelisk." (3.1 MB)To hear the new orchestral version of the Obelisk, either go to the playlist below or go to the Central Park Suite pages.
The Ramble is an extensive section of New York City's Central Park and is known especially for the large number of bird species found here since the Park is under a migratory path.
For a number of years, the nearby lake also had a pair of mute swans who died in 2002 (though a new pair has now appeared as of October 2006!) but there are still many geese and other very exotic species as well including the occasional ring-necked pheasant or red-tailed hawk.
This piece represents a lazy, languid and humid summer day in July or August. Actual birdcalls are heard as well as orchestral instruments imitating them later in the piece.
.myr plug-in page of "The Ramble"..
The newest music in the Central Park Suite is "Angel of the Waters" which is the official name of the Bethesda Fountain.
Bethesda Terrace is a sort of tourist meeting center of the Park where many gather, including musical performers. It has been used in many films and has been most recently and famously associated with Tony Kushner's drama, "Angels in America". It featured in the movie version as well as in many other films.
The sculptor was Emma Stebbins, the first American female sculptor of renown. The Biblical reference is to an angel who "troubled the waters" to create a healing pool and the fountain itself refers to the clean waters of the Croton Reservoir.
I should add that the opening tune is based on two phrases of the chant "Asperges Me" and the first movement, "The Lake", is also quoted both to give the Suite a satisfactory close and to show the proximity of the actual lake to the fountain which it is just back of.
download mp3 of "Angel of the Waters"
myr (mu3) page of the same music.
playlist for all four pieces.
Edward Gold