source file: mills2.txt Date: Mon, 24 Feb 1997 15:08:33 -0800 Subject: Elsie Hamilton, etc. From: John Chalmers I'd like to add a few comments to Brian Lee's post about Elsie Hamilton. I had been searching informally and unsuccessfully for her music since I first read "The Greek Aulos." Then last November, I saw a note on a USENET newsgroup from Brian requesting information about her or her music.I replied and we began following up his lead that EH was an Anthroposophist. This was a real breakthrough, to say the least. At the moment I am awaiting a letter from the music archivist at the Steiner center in Dornach, Switzerland about obtaining photocopies of the half dozen or so of EH's scores in their collection. These pieces are chamber works for violin, voice and lyres. I would imagine the last parts could be played on harps as KS refers to harps in her list of EH's performances in England. The tuning would appear to be the diatonic harmoniai, but now given planetary names (Venus scale, MD 24 or 12 species, etc., her diatonic Phrygian.) So far, neither of us have been able to locate the score of AGAVE (a mystical pantomime), the piece quoted by Kathleen Schlesinger in TGA. Neither have we found SENSA (a drama about Ancient Egypt) nor THE SEVEN SCORPIONS OF YSIT, works also mentioned, but not quoted. These pieces were incidental music to dramatic and/or dance productions staged in London in 1924,1919, and 1929. We would appreciate any information anyone else may come up with. The author of Agave was Eva Papp. Sensa was written by Mable Collins and Maude Hoffman and Seven Scorpions by Terence Gray, choreographed by Ninette de Valois and produced at the Court Theatre. Agave was "given three times in Madame Matton-Painpar'e's studio." Sensa was performed at Etlinger Hall, Paddington. Alas, further details are unknown to me at this time. ('e is e with an acute accent.) Hamilton's Septet for Violins, viola, cello, flute, oboe and horn was performed in 1917 at Steinway Hall by members of the Queen's Hall and London Symophony Orchestras. Other works in 12-tet of EH's were also performed then and in 1918. Apparently, Hamilton had some success as a composer. According to KS, EH also trained musicians in Stuttgart, Germany in 1935 to play in the harmoniai. Performances were also given in Freiburg-in- Breslau Hamilton returned to Australia, probably in the 1950's, and possibly to Adelaide. As Brian suggested, it might be productive to search there as well as England. Apparently other composers and instrument builders associated with Steiner's group have also used KS's "harmoniai." I came across a Hans Friedrik Berg on the WEB some weeks ago, but have been able to discover nothing (including an address) beyond what was on the page (in Swedish). Berg has constructed a collection of lyres tuned to the harmoniai. Heiner Ruland has published a book and given a videotaped lecture/demo (in German) on tuning, his instruments, etc. The book has been translated into English under the title "Expanding Tonal Awareness." However, it is available only from the Rudolf Steiner Press and is somewhat pricey. (I haven't seen it.) Other Anthroposophists who may have worked with the harmoniai are Anny von Lange and Marja Slotemaker. Steiner and von Lange associated planets and scales, an attribution dating to Classical times (Greek theorists, etc.), though I don't know if the correspondences are the same. --John Received: from ns.ezh.nl [137.174.112.59] by vbv40.ezh.nl with SMTP-OpenVMS via TCP/IP; Tue, 25 Feb 1997 03:02 +0100 Received: by ns.ezh.nl; (5.65v3.2/1.3/10May95) id AA20298; Tue, 25 Feb 1997 03:02:45 +0100 Received: from ella.mills.edu by ns (smtpxd); id XA20296 Received: from by ella.mills.edu via SMTP (940816.SGI.8.6.9/930416.SGI) id SAA23354; Mon, 24 Feb 1997 18:01:10 -0800 Date: Mon, 24 Feb 1997 18:01:10 -0800 Message-Id: Errors-To: madole@mills.edu Reply-To: tuning@ella.mills.edu Originator: tuning@eartha.mills.edu Sender: tuning@ella.mills.edu