CHAPTER 58
Icons in Sound: Tavener and Postmodern Orthodoxy
OVERVIEW
This chapter explores the subject of twentieth-century minimalism, with a focus on the spiritual
minimalism of John Tavener. Tavener’s Hymn to the Mother of God illustrates his blending of
minimalist procedures with the mysticism of Greek Orthodox spirituality.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
1. To understand the stylistic hallmarks of minimalism and its turn from the complex and
intellectual music of the early modernists
2. To understand the style of spiritual minimalism as one marked by nonpulsed musical events
and a simplified approach to organizing musical content
3. To recognize in Tavener’s Hymn to the Mother of God the blending of spiritual minimalism
with the mysticism of Greek Orthodox spirituality
LECTURE SUGGESTIONS
1. To introduce students to the minimalist style, play excerpts from Terry Riley’s In C. Have
students take notes as they listen on the aspects of minimalist style they hear in this piece.
Ask students to consider how each of the musical elements (melody, harmony,
rhythm/meter, timbre, texture, form, and expression) undergoes a treatment of
minimization.
2. Building on your students’ knowledge the minimalist aesthetic, play Tavener’s Hymn to the
Mother of God and have students describe not only the minimalist treatment of the musical
elements but also how Tavener applies the spiritual minimalist style (for example, drones;
static modal harmony; and short, repeating musical ideas).
3. Have students connect the formal design and changing musical elements to the text of
Tavener’s Hymn to the Mother of God. Recall the formal and stylistic elements of
medieval and Renaissance sacred music from Chapters 13 (chant), 16 (Josquin), and 17
(Palestrina), and discuss their connections to Tavener’s approach.
ASSIGNMENT SUGGESTIONS
1. Minimalist music was in part inspired by the work of “minimalist” visual artists, such as
Frank Stella, Piet Mondrian, and Mark Rothko. Compare the work of these artists and
describe how each applies a minimalist aesthetic. What connections can you make between
the minimalist qualities of these visual artworks and the music of Tavener?
2. Tavener’s spiritual minimalism was influenced by his study of and eventual conversion to
Greek Orthodox Christianity. To what extent is the minimalist aesthetic compatible with
spiritual, religious, and/or liturgical contexts? Why? Do any examples of sacred music from
previous centuries embrace a minimalist style? Which ones? Why are they most appropriate
for sacred and religious contexts?
TEACHING CHALLENGES
This chapter refers to older music and modality, presenting a challenge if your class has long since
moved past these subjects from Parts 1 and 2. A review of this material may help bring Tavener’s
spiritual minimalist style into clearer focus.
SUPPLEMENTAL REPERTORY
Pärt: Berlin Mass
Górecki: Symphony No. 3 (Symphony of Sorrowful Songs)
SUPPLEMENTAL BIBLIOGRAPHY
Tavener, John. The Music of Silence: A Composer’s Testament. London: Faber & Faber, 1999.
Tavener on his musical philosophy as formed after his conversion to the Greek Orthodox faith.
CHAPTER OUTLINE
Icons in Sound: Tavener and Postmodern Orthodoxy (Chapter 58)
I. Minimalism
A. Repetition of melodic, rhythmic, and harmonic patterns
1. consonant, tonal music changes slowly, little variation
2. hypnotic effect, “trance music”
3. turned away from complex modernists’ style
4. influences: music of India, African cultures, jazz, pop, and rock
5. significant force in music since 1970s
6. prominent composers: Terry Riley (b. 1935), Steve Reich (b. 1936), Philip Glass (b.
1937)
B. “Spiritual,” or “holy” minimalism
1. nonpulsed music: religious inspiration
2. chains of modal or tonal progressions
3. developed by European composers
4. composers: Henryk Górecki (b. 1933), Arvo Pärt (b. 1934), John Tavener
II. Tavener and Greek Orthodoxy
A. John Tavener (1944–2013)
1. English composer, prominent exponent of spiritual minimalism
2. mid-1970s converted to Greek Orthodoxy
3. combined spiritual messages of many faiths
4. style: elements of neo-Romanticism, devout spiritualism, sacred music draws on
Greek Orthodox chant, aims at timelessness
5. works: settings of Greek Orthodox rite, choral works on broader sacred themes,
instrumental compositions based on images from Orthodox Christianity, dramatic
works on sacred themes
B. A Hymn to the Mother of God
1. for two six-voice choirs
2. performed on Sunday in Great Lent
3. 8th-century text by Saint John Damascene
4. influences: medieval and Renaissance polyphony
5. short repeating ideas, recalls organum and minimalism
C. Listening Guide 47: Tavener, A Hymn to the Mother of God (1985)
1. Greek Orthodox hymn, A-B-A´ form
2. mystical, chantlike
3. drones, harmonies based on Greek Orthodox modes
4. distinctly modern harmonies, dissonances
5. alternates homophonic and polyphonic passages
6. slow-moving counterpoint, static effect