| Commissioned | The University of Helsinki |
| Text | Cia Rinne |
| Category | soloist, choir and orchestra |
| Year | 2022 |
| Duration | 20 |
| Orchestration | counter tenor, mixed choir (SATB) and orchestra (1111-1100-perc-strings) |
| Publisher | Gehrmans Musikförlag |
Program note
Science Frictions is a cantata in seven movements, composed to a multilingual text written by the poet Cia Rinne. My music is inspired by the overwhelming excitement, by the frustration and by the eternal questioning which is part of what infinite and multifaceted knowledge entails.
As a soloist, I have chosen David Hackston, whose fantastic countertenor has such an incredibly wide range which fits well with the theme of knowledge, which by definition should be wide. The actual sound of the voice, owing to its large range, sounds in my opinion gender neutral which is an important aspect for me regarding education and knowledge, that knowledge and education should belong to everyone. This piece was commissioned by the University of Helsinki to celebrate its Conferment Jubilee in Spring 2023.
Science Frictions – Listen on Youtube
Reviews
Cecilia Damström’s seven-part work Science Frictions (op. 84, 2022), commissioned by the University of Helsinki in honour of the Jubilee Year of the Conferments and premiered in March 2023, to a text by poet Cia Rinne, successfully refreshes a long-standing continuum of conferment cantatas. It is recommendable that the cantata should also be performed at non-university events in the future.
Although it is a commemorative poem for a conferment act, its message is universal: the role and importance of science in society is not only for university students, but for all of us.
The Science Frictions cantata, scored for countertenor, choir and orchestra, could be dramaturgically conceived as a journey in which the researcher engages in an endless, cyclical dialogue with the scientific community. In a speech on the website of the conferment’s anniversary year, Rinne describes the character of Olympe, the cantata’s soloist, as a kind of seeker who “embarks on a Faustian expedition in search of language, logic, science and consciousness – while the choir comments on and encounters these discoveries”.
Damström’s musical language and Rinne’s text material, which includes nine different languages, emphasise playfulness and inventiveness, language games and paradoxes, and a balanced dialogue between the soloist and the choir.
The philosophers quoted in the text, from Socrates to Hannah Arendt and Paul Valéry, also engage in dialogue. In this sense, the cantata gets to the heart of science: knowledge is built together, in polyphony and in interaction with others.
The canon successfully weighs up universal issues such as the nature and ethics of scientific knowledge and the relationship between man and community, without being frivolous, platitudinous or pompous. It is typical that an interesting and evocative work of art will tempt you to experience it again and again, and this is also the case with this conferment cantata.
The wonder of discovery and exploration is present in the work: the ear always picks up something new and interesting from the multilayered texture.
Science Frictions’ rich soundscape and the varied characters of the sections contain, in miniature, all the wonder and anguish of science – from the pressure and thumping of Arguing with Logics to the mysterious harmony of the spheres of the second and sixth movements, which peer beyond empiricism. Both the ideals and the harsh realities of the scientific world are revealed, and the future and responsibilities of the scientist are weighed. Damström’s musical intertextuality is very elegant, with stylistic references in the conferment tradition, from church music to fanfares and the student song fragments of the last movement.
The role of Olympe was written for David Hackston’s expansive countertenor voice, which sounded magnificently in the University’s Great Hall. Hackston’s vocal instrument is used to its full potential in the cantata, ranging from spoken “sprechgesang” and “vocal fry” to soaring glissandos. In her introduction text, the composer says that the broad ambitus and the countertenor vocal range also expresses the important point that science belongs to everyone – regardless of gender or background. The interpretation by the Dominante choir, prepared by Seppo Murto, and the Helsinki University Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Aku Sorensen, in my opinion conveyed an enthusiastic impression, although the acoustics of the Great Hall has some issues, particularly with regard to balance when performing from the gallery.
In terms of form, Science Frictions could be described as symmetrical or cyclical, which fits perfectly with the harmonious and carefully thought-out sequence of steps in the conferment act.
For example, in the second movement the downward sliding whole tone scale in the woodwinds – like a cosmic nebula – is mirrored in the penultimate movement, where it starts to ascend again from below, perhaps towards Parnassus. Or is it the stone of Sisyphus, which is again being rolled towards the summit? In any case, the final movement, which fades into a luminous C major harmony, leaves the listener feeling hopeful: at last, Science Frictions is driven by a joyful and outward-looking science, the joy of discovery.
Particularly in the current climate, where the prestige and funding of research are at stake, this message seems exceptionally valuable.
Nuppu Koivisto – Helsingin Sanomat 26.5.2023
It can be said that the text [by Cia Rinne] places the work in a pan-European intellectual context; this is not some backroom Finnish blustering, but a universal avant-garde. For this reason, the work could be presented anywhere in Europe – and hopefully it will be.
Damström’s music is a clever combination of references to the cantata tradition or a similar monumental choral style. The very beginning is like a reference to Stravinsky’s Oedipus Rex with the rhythmic ostinato of the low strings. But then it transforms into a texture on the verge of tonality. Overall, the texture of the music is colorful and witty avant-garde, without rendering the listener. Damström is already known for her skill in handling vocal material. But she is moreover a master of expressive orchestration. As a whole, Science Frictions radically renews the cantata genre, but at the same time stays within its limits.
With her work, Damström has claimed her place as one of our leading young modernists. The piece is a refreshing experience and makes you want to hear it again.
Eero Tarasti, Amfion 22.3.2023
Performances
2023 March 20th World premiere at Conferment Jubilee of the University of Helsinki – More info
2023 May 19th Conferment Celebration of the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine at Helsinki University
2023 May 26th Conferment Celebration of the Faculty of Arts at Helsinki University
2023 June 16th Conferment Celebration of the Faculty of Law at Helsinki University