The secret of '' the Execrable Caprice '' the greatest
op.13 Morteza Hannaneh
Written by:
Amirali Hannaneh
The story begun when my father, Morteza, presented and awarded me – Amirali Hannaneh - ‘‘the Execrable Caprice '' childhood. Indeed it was so involving that made me focus on going abroad and begin my academic studies seriously in the field of piano playing at Moscow the city where was known at piano playing school in the world in the 20th century. I was going to be a inter pianist and get the best techniques in that field there. It was my father's wishes and advice to me to do so.
O Lord! I praise you for awarding me such an odd job that no one knows it but an abstemious.
Morteza Hannaneh
June 1983
Morteza Hannaneh died in 1989 24th October.
Morteza Hannaneh gave this opus to me before his death in 1989 September. He had worked on it for 30 years and with a contemplation and art care he finally finished it in 1986.
"The Society of music of Iran" arranged and held a glorious concert in respecting ceremony of my father's memory in his 40th day of death. I was the solist of Overture of ''Hezardasten'' there. Then I performed '' Rondo Capriccioso '' with Tehran symphonic orchestra conducted by “Heshmat Sanjari” the late. It was the first time that I performed on the scene of “Vahdat Hall”. But my mind was full of thoughts of performing Caprice my father's death. I remember the night in 1989 November when Heshmat Sanjari embraced me and said crying:
'' I wish I had died instead of Morteza ''. Hearing that, the audiences were so excited. From that night then the orchestra had no director and conductor for a year. I had no enough techniques for Caprice performing those days yet. In deed I couldn't understand it well. It was natural because my father didn't explain what he did while composing. Execrable Caprice was performed for the third time in the anniversary of Morteza Hannaneh in 1989 October. In this performance, “Taher Jalili” was solist. For a professional musician, it wasn't well enough. If Morteza was’t dead, he may tear it again.
After each bad performance, he thought that it was his fault but in deed, the players were very week to perform the work well. (1)
Making the techniques of the opus clearer, Morteza discovered new things and got new achievements about the modal music of Iran. His method in composing changed and caused the next version become harder than before. It made Hannaneh feel eccentric from the first performance in the ''Art Festival of Shiraz in “Takhte Jamshid” was performed in 1967 by Tehran Symphony Orchestra conducted by Farhad Meshkat. That night Hannaneh tore the partiture of Caprice fully because he did’t he did’t content with the performance.(2) although this work was recorded and Mrs. “Luset Martirusian” played beautifully, Hannaneh believed that the balance of Orchestra was not satisfying and also the recording techniques didn’t weren’t at high quality and fidelity like the European ones. For this reason, he called it '' The Execrable Caprice '' then. Since 92-8-31 gone to Russia, I have encountered many events made me closer to the Execrable Caprice. In deed the Caprice itself made me study in Russia. It was my turn to go on my father's way. Morteza Hannaneh himself had advised me to do so. I couldn't forget his last looking although I could’t grant his wishes very soon since I had no experience at first. I couldt do any thing even though the "partiture" and philosophical of the opus was available 10 meters away in my room. Therefore, I had to study in an unknown land of Russia to get the main point of the work for a long time. I remember going to the North cities of Iran with my father in summers. We went there in the last days of summer. My father first took a rest then we walked together along the seaside. He talked tome about the existence concept,
In 1979 I was taught piano by Taher Jalili. For a few years, he taught me the Beyer, Hanon, and No 229 Czerny books. I had to work on scales by piano all day long. Playing the endless lessons of Beyer was too boring for me to have any creativity. Of course it was not my teacher's fault. It was originated from Educational system of that time in Iran which had stopped me with no progression. For me a pianist should teach his lesson verbally by playing piano instead of talking about it orally. as S. Richter says, ''In this way –playing piano- no body must teach new things except the pedagogue pianists who have past pedagogic courses successfully just like H. Neuhaus, the great teacher of Richter, and E. Gilels, the master of piano playing school in Russia and the world. Between the years of 1986-1992 I was taught at many teachers. Then I have studied piano playing in Russia for 8 years. After that I passed my pedagogue which was very hard too. I took part in different Master classes and Mrs. Nadia Nikolayeva –who inspired me to get essential experiences-classes. That time I had progressed in all of technical ways and I could perform the Caprice technically by heart and also the prepared repertory of mine. In 1999 I remembered the day of 1973 December when my father traveling to Italy. My grandfather, Mirza Mohammad khan e Hannaneh (God bless him) called Morteza in front of the invited guests and audiences at home and said, '' Now that you are going abroad, you should know that who you are, what you are, where you go and what you want. I mean if that country was able to bring up all people as musicians, every sweeper would be a Beethoven. Now that you have decided to go, think on your nobility''. I was thinking about performing and understanding the Caprice then. Thus I left Moscow to Tehran at night in 1999 June. During these days and years in Iran, I have been analyzing and studying new techniques to perform this kind of Iranian Modern music according to my father's personal style (Even Poly phony) for piano and also his orchestration and his special way of composition beside the experience on my father's work and my performed concerts.
Of course it was very hard because Morteza had encoded his scripts to make understand his thought and philosophy. Indeed all of them had own special passwords which I had to decode to get the main point. In order to understand special subject and the way of Caprice composition I had to study his whole life exactly from A to Z. That is I read his notebooks in which so many codes were seen and very time-consuming to be decoded.
Among these researches I found out a terrible story happened for him in 1957. It was a real event and of course a secret one that I'll try to explain it briefly.
Morteza, the music teacher of conservator worked as a music teacher of Noorbakhsh high school in Tehran. His friendship With “Gholamhossein Qarib” from one side, and the fall days of 1957 happened between them from the other side made my father find out an unexpected bitter truth. After six years, Morteza met all of sudden the common close friend of his and Qarib in the Roma Tramway. She who had shocked Morteza before told him the truth that time in Tramway; so every thing was cleared for him. This caused Morteza to begin thinking about creation of an opus like Caprice. Indeed a high love had defeated him terribly and had been changed into an Execrable passion that Hannaneh never talked about it even though his soul was captured by it for 33 years.
During my researching, I found accidentally a song of “Moieny Kermanshahi” (a famous Iranian poet) which cleared me many new facts about the poet and my father. In deed they were co-work at Farabi Orchestra. His '' Nefrin ''or '' Damnation '' song indicated the mentioned subject-the Execrable passion-(Morteza's own life) which was the result of his terrible defeat ness in the Roma in fall of 1956 that made him begin his greatest opus with high motivation.
Hannaneh and Qarib had been set off to some schools from the Head of Music Office in the Culture Ministry of that time. They also practiced at Tehran Symphonic Orchestra in afternoons. Tehran Symphonic Orchestra was founded by endeavors of Hannaneh, Qarib, some students of conservator and especially Mr. Parviz Mahmood.
Morteza Hannaneh has been the first Horn player of Tehran conservator from 1952 -62 for 10 years. Then he had appointed as the first player of Horn in Tehran Symphonic Orchestra since 1956.
As you see, he had passed the different levels of progression gradually. At the same time, he studied in the field of composition with Parviz Mahmood. Setting off Parviz Mahmood and Rubik Gregorian, Morteza was elected as the conductor of Tehran Symphonic Orchestra in 1962. He worked on there for 2 years. In a concert 1000th anniversary of "Avicenna" he succeeded to get traveling fellowship of Italy granted him by Italy ambassador of that time.[5]
In addition to study in Italy, he studied at the Vatican Conservator as a part time member. He studied there the theory of ancient Greek music. According to the left documents in the Vatican library he found out the common base and origin of Iran and Greek theory of music. It was a wonderful a great discovery (no pain no gain). Traveling to Italy he had written a letter to his closed friend - Qarib – in which I saw many concepts and meanings. In deed as a researcher I realized them as a part of movements of Caprice.
Morteza Hannaneh and Qarib was classmate from primary school to (being graduated from) music conservator in Tehran.
His suite of '' coral city '' or '' shahre marjan '' was based on a story written by Qarib related to the mentioned defeated love.
This suite provides him an adventure traveling to Italy. He arrived in Rom after a month traveling. The eternity traveling of Morteza Hannaneh in deed. He arrived in Rom in about 1955 February. At last I could get the information and the real awareness through reviewing the fuggy years of 1957-1963, the event of foundation of Tehran Symphonic Orchestra and being appointed as conductor of Tehran Symphonic Orchestra and the event which caused to create Caprice. I found that I had been captured by another sorrow which the orchestras conductors didn’t aware of it. Of course it was not their fault. Performing the Caprice again, I will explain all of my researches for them sincerely.
Now I see what code he had given me. Hannaneh rejected the second version again although the famous pianist “Nabukoff” accepted it. As if he had no way but rejecting the performance. The last version of Caprice got to its climax from 1974-1986. It was the most perfected opus which unfortunately hasn’t been recorded yet. Indeed, we have not still a well performance of it although I have performed and recorded its solo part at the recoding studio. At present there is no interested conductor who would like to spend his time on understanding and mastering Hannaneh's thoughts and his opus. This of course is very hard for the own conductor from one side and difficult to transmit it to the members of orchestra from the other side.
This opus is including of '' polymodes '' and '' poly contremodes''. I mean it is not necessary to combine a modal with its own contra mode. In fact we can use freely a combination of some different modes at the same time. In this state we can use contra modes as many as modes. The harmony playing role between these couples (modes and contremodes) is called '' Even harmony ''. The factor of interval hasn’t the first role except the 4th interval and the 4th degree of scale to add and increase the credit of modality in the couple system. It is better to say that we change the mode into scale in other condition which can be composed with creativity. It doesn’t increase the nobility of modality. In this method the Iranian theme can create a kind of ideal special counterpoint, while keeping their nobility in both their modes and rhythms in their contra modes. Selecting the intervals of our accords, if we apply the first, second, fourth and the six intervals, our proportion is more completed; and we can understand its role. Here the factor of interval is not the main subject because we can say the odd interval is the converse of the even interval. The subject is Marriage of modes and contra modes which their 4th degree is the same sound(note).That is, modes and contra modes must be centered on their dominant or stop.
You see Caprice is very difficult to explain personally and philosophically because the nobility of rhythm has been added to it and has made it very harder to be understood and performed; in deed it had thrown us at the deep end. Here the main pain and problem of being low technique of Iran present music and the pain of modernity –understanding the independence of notes and new sounds (note the new intervals)-have disturbed and teased the great musicians in the world. How can a pianist perform a piece of music who has not understood it? How can a conductor conduct the orchestra who is not able to understand and know the opus of caprice? So we must try hard. Of course, I do not want to criticize any body but the terrible situation of the art environments like symphonic orchestra may disappoint the solist (pianist) who must have the most concentration on performing such this work. I mean the solist hasn’t been respected among the whole members of orchestra. He must be happy on the contrary to be an allowed in performing a work by a conductor. How about a universal Iranian musician who has improved very much and has gotten to the climax of progression? What can he do in such situation?
Using the noble and original Iran folklore themes also plays a great role in composition of this work. Creation based on '' Maqam '' of Iran music:
(A+B+C+D) (A+B) (C+D)
(Polymodality + contre polymodality)+ (polyrythmique + polythematic)
For more information about the ''Even Harmony'' and ‘‘even poly phony '' and also being more familiar with this modern language, you can see my full paper researches with special diagrams and examples kept with me calling on 00989126953878. Recently I myself had been witness of the performances of many Iranian composers except Morteza Hannaneh's. I ask myself why? Some people say that he was hot tempered a nervous man and was very serious. I ask them, shouldn’t he have been so? Do they mean he should have been very happy to perform such a time consuming work which have been searched for 30 years? For me it is impossible. A brief analyzing of overture to solo of piano:
In the ''Execrable Caprice'' all of philosophies and thoughts of the composer have been completed extremely. Since analyzing the previous works, we may see using a mode and contra mode in it and the rhythm may be more limited. But in Caprice ( couple counterpoint) the philosophy of mode marriage –using some modes and their contra modes –is really the result of “even harmony system '' which is indicates new coloration of Iran music such as its beginning ('' Isfahan '' and '' Shur '' and their contra modes) in the 7th scale which is dominant of ''4-gah'' in the right hand and its counterpoint in the left hand with opposite movement. This time the ''couple counterpoint '' causes '' even harmony ''. It depends on the own composer to select the desired notes with desired intervals in their accords. But using the ''Even intervals'' (1-2-4-6-8) had been the base of this system. Here freedom in selecting the accords is seen clearly because the other bases have been fixed and completed more. We can call this ''Coupling of Modes'' – the MARRIAGE OF MODES which is new theory that I have it by standing my father's last works.
I am also writing it and willing God I am going to complete it.
This work which is a combination of Iran and the world music is based on the modes structures combined of two tetra chord which is my own work. Indeed it is a modern with more conceptual and universal view.
No one will forget him even if his works have been performed nowhere. He believed in an opposite determinism moving toward him and his thoughts. He said that ''This determinism likes me not to reveal my works''. Even he sometimes felt mourning and was depressed while being involved in a philosophical and absolute disappointing atmosphere. Even we can hear this sorrow and disappointing thoughts in his musical works. He always thought about the eternity instead of the own eternity but this fact itself made him eternal for ever.
In 19 I tried to convince “Fereydoon Nasseri” to perform and record the Execrable Caprice by Tehran Symphonic Orchestra but he rejected it because of technical problems of orchestra members. So I had to perform the ''Fa Minor'' concert of Bach on notes. It was very interesting for me to see the people who were struggling on using pedal in Bach's work while playing piano. They believed they shouldn’t have used pedal at playing Bach's works. It means we are playing the young John Sebastian Bach's works by a frocked and old harpsichord in the 17th century.
Some weeks ago, I bought a CD that was the recorded overture of ''Hezardastan'' performed by Hungary Symphonic orchestra conducted by Manoochehr Sahbaiey. Comparing it with the origin overture, I found out he had changed some parts of structures of harmony, thinking it was the best orchestral setting. Of course he knows my father's work more than the other Iranian conductors and willing God I will talk with him about it.
Some friends and students of mine think it is better to perform an Iranian work by a foreign orchestra; but I 'm not agreeing about it because in a native performance the thinking of composer will be eternal. By the way each performance is different from the other. Hence ''thesis'' is more important than ''antithesis'' I think it is better for them to these non professional discussing because they made every one upset. Talking with Morteza Hannaneh, Mr. Cheknavarian said, '' He was a genius but it was impossible for him to perform his work by grand orchestra.'' This said of Mr.Cheknavarian apparently is right but unfortunately, it makes an ambiguous for us. Even it had caused a misunderstanding atmosphere among the art and musical societies. Sometimes
My students ask me ''Can Mr. Hannanaeh affords to perform his work in a foreign country? Some of them feign not to know him because they hadn’t seen his recorded works in CDs in Europe (good for them!). They say that all musicians had recorded their works in CDs there. I have explained this matter over and over my dear friends that it was impossible for Morteza Hannaneh to perform his work because the loss of technique of our grand orchestra which is very much painful for us. He himself was too sad. He even didn’t perform (his works) [7] by Farabi orchestra while respecting the members of them. In deed, he wished to perform and record the Execrable caprice by Tehran symphonic orchestra. Unfortunately he couldn’t see his desired day. He had told me before the moment of his dieing, '' You are allowed to remove the title of ''Execrable'' from caprice if you can grant my wish''. Here, I ask and please Mr. Sahbaiey and the other composers to try this work. I am ready to present him all of my researches on this work sincerely. I hope this great work is performed in Iran very soon after being solved the present technical problem in our orchestra to step toward modern performing and new view in Iran music. At the end of this research, I wish for myself to perform and record the Execrable caprice to make known the Hannane's works to the present generation young. So far I have published some CDs via '' Mahoor '' in this field that all of them have been recorded and performed in Iran. They are of course very precious historically. I wish also his scripts such as '' Iran music theory '', ''the even harmony theory '' and the top script of even harmony and his work partitures to be published very soon. I have devoted my life in this way to grant my father's wishes. Unfortunately the publication of ''Chang'' hasn't published the '' Sharl Kooklen orchestration” which was to publish it since 1978. Of course the mentioned work has been forgotten so far. Hannaneh's piano works are very beautiful that must be published very soon which willing God I am serious at it.
Amirali Hannaneh
In memory of my darling mother Mrs. “AzarMidokht Azima” who understood my father all years long in their common life and suffered and tolerated many troubles.
In memory of “Shahin Hannaneh” who supported me until the last moments of her life.
God bless her.
In memory of Heshmat Sanjari the late who embraced me at the final minutes of Tehran Symphonic Orchestra conducting in 1989 November who was crying and very sad.
God bless him.
I thank Mr. Fakhreddini by my heart that he is in memory of my father and speaks about him to his students. In fact performing my father's works by National Orchestra, he has become eternal. I love him very much my father had told us interesting memories about him.
"Why my elder brother Mahdi must have been died at 48 because of Execrable disease of cancer and my younger brother died at 28 in a terrible car accident. Am I responsible for anything? Are my scripts precious and valuable culturally"
A part of bitter and painful memories of Morteza Hannaneh
In 1983-6-3.
Amirali Hannaneh the end of research 2008 October.
In memory of Morteza Hannaneh.
GOOD BYE my darling father.Be calm forever because I HAVE SENTENCED THE EXECRABLE CAPRICE.
Footnotes:
1- It was because besides working on Caprice, he was studying and researching on Iran modal music simultaneously.
2-In his said in the first performance in ''Takht e Jamshid'' in 1967, he expected to hear an interesting different things but Unfortunately it didn’t become so he rejected the performance.
Any way this opus was very interesting for the audiences.
In this performance, “Luecet Martirussin” was the solist and Farhad Meshkat was the conductor of orchestra.
3-''Virtuoso'' or style player. Every year in Moscow the best pianists are known and introduced to the world.
4-After meeting in Rom Tramway they met each other in a place called Portafortuna, a strange place. The word of Portafortuna is seen many times strangely and mysteriously in my father's notes.
5-Tehran Symphonic Orchestra was conducted by Morteza Hannaneh at 18 o'clock Thursday 1953-4-8 in the first part was including of:
The Fidelio overture by Beethoven, No. 40 Mozart Symphony, Finlandia by sibious and at the end the suite of "Shahre Marjan" or "The coral City" by Morteza Hannaneh is performed which the time ambassadors of Italy Mr. Cherulli awarded him a one-year fellowship.
But Hannaneh had to return to Tehran to continue his studying in 1968 after setting off to Italy. That caused his study traveling to be continued from 1954 -62.
6- In the created ''even Harmony'' system, it is the scale
Which has been made based on ''Maqam or Dastgah''.
In this state ''Do-gah'' or ''Shur'' has been defined in
The system of 12 chromatic scale.
Contra mode: contra mode is the opposite scale of mode from the all different aspects. There must be the content on sounds which aren’t in the main mode in the opposite direction of mode (the opposite mode) i.e. the system of 12 chromatic.
7- When I talk about ''the works'' of Hannaneh I mean The works of his which have “opus”. Indeed except for the film music and the settings his opuses are 20.
"contact to me: alihananne@rocketmail.com"
