BY CATHERINE LIKHUTA AND STEPHANIE ESLAKE
One evening in 2006, Catherine Likhuta read Ukrainian author Nikolai Gogol’s short story Diary of a Madman. Born and raised in Ukraine, the composer was well familiar with Gogol’s most popular works, but less-so with this one.
“I didn’t expect much of it,” she says. “Ten pages later, I was in a state of shock, amazed by how Gogol was able to pack such an intense drama into such a short story. That same night, I decided that one day I would write an oratorio based on this work.”
“In 2015, after nine years of keeping this idea in a special corner of my heart and mind, I commenced work on Scraps from a Madman’s Diary.”
Now a year on, Catherine’s work will have its world premiere performance at the Queensland Conservatorium on October 14. Commissioned by the Queensland Con, with support from the Sydney Conservatorium and the University of Georgia (U.S), the oratorio will be performed by The Australian Voices and the Conservatorium Wind Orchestra conducted by Peter Morris. That’s a total of almost 90 performers, and Catherine hasn’t shied away from getting to know each of them as she co-directed rehearsals and planned staging and acting ideas (as well as the music and lyrics. What a power woman, don’t you think?).
Though her work is based on Gogol’s story, Catherine admits she hardly remembers his words which she read so long ago. “I did, however, remember all the emotions Gogol evoked in me, as if it happened yesterday,” she says.
“I decided not to re-read the original story while writing the oratorio, as I was afraid that I might find it underwhelming the second time around. Instead, I decided to come up with my own plot and use Gogol’s work as the source of inspiration and point of reference.”
It’s darkness, it’s tragedy, it’s an “imaginary world”. So we chat further with the Australian-based composer, pianist, and recording artist about the way she has brought it to life.
How did you find the experience of co-directing the rehearsals to your own premiere?
Attending rehearsals is one of my favourite parts of the job as a composer. I learn a great deal from hearing all the different colours and getting to know more and more specifics of every instrument. I have worked with Peter Morris and his orchestra last year, when they gave an Australian premiere of the band version of my piece Me Disagrees. I attended all of their rehearsals back then. There is only so much a composer can put into the score, so I’m always eager to attend rehearsals and talk musicians through my music. Most of the players were first- and second-year Conservatorium students. They are fantastic, and they showed a great deal of respect for the composers and the repertoire. They seemed quite excited about the composer’s involvement in the rehearsal process, and we really clicked! They had great fun playing Me Disagrees and knew at the time that I was commissioned to write the oratorio for them for the following year, which resulted in a lot of good energy around the Conservatorium in anticipation of this project. I think it’s safe to say that we’ve developed a special bond (there are nearly 60 of them, and I know them all by name and love working with them all). Peter Morris is the best collaborator one could wish for: very supportive of my ideas, very well-organised and passionate about this project. His support and excitement inspired and stimulated me to write the best piece I was capable of writing.
Additionally, as this is the first time I’m writing for choir, I asked Gordon Hamilton if I could attend some rehearsals of The Australian Voices before commencing work on the oratorio. This was to acquire some insight and inspiration, and also to get to know the particular choir that I was going to write for. Gordon welcomed me straight away, and I became a regular at TAV’s rehearsals for a month or two, before closing myself in my studio and writing the piece. Now, being in the rehearsal space with these same singers but working on the oratorio is a special experience, and I’m very grateful to them for becoming a part of this project before I even started composing.
This piece has a lot of logistics, and as it is innovative, there are things in it that haven’t been heard of or done before. We are trying all of my ideas as we go; luckily, most of them work exactly as I imagined. But in a way, my constant presence at the rehearsals for the world premiere is a necessity. Having said that, I am thoroughly enjoying every minute of this exciting process!
Did you have a lot of experience in the past with staging and acting ideas, or was it this work that inspired you to start delving into this side of the production as well?
I had absolutely no experience with acting or staging until this project. I remember just before starting to write Scraps (that’s what we call this piece in rehearsals), I had gone to several concerts at the Conservatorium Theatre. And every time, instead of just enjoying a performance, I would start picturing how Scraps was going to look on that same stage. I remember the main thought going through my head over and over again was: ‘I need to make sure this piece is not underwhelming’. I think this constant chanting of my brain inspired me to dare and go into this area I haven’t been familiar with.
Originally, my plan was to write Scraps as a band concerto-variations, with choir being there for texture and timbre only (no lyrics, no story). However, Peter Morris’ complete support inspired the daring, the subject matter inspired the plot, which inspired the lyrics and the music, which in their turn inspired the acting and staging ideas. So I ended up with a half-oratorio, half-movie. The singers have to go to new places as well, having to double as actors. The Australian Voices is the perfect choir for the task! It is really embracing this challenge.
The key idea behind the staging is that the entire choir first represents the Madman, but then halfway through the piece it becomes the representative of two segments of the Madman’s mind. The first segment is the ‘normal one’, and the other segment is the one mutating as a result of his illness (think ‘voices in his head’). There is also a designated singer who represents the Madman himself. As the piece progresses, the ‘normal’ part shrinks, and the ‘ill’ part grows. The Madman observes this, growing increasingly anxious, then starting to panic as the voices in his head become aggressive towards him. Eventually, the voices become empathetic and help him accept his new sad reality…
What were the challenges – or benefits! – of working with such a large-scale group of 90 performers?
It’s fantastic to work with 90 performers, especially when you pretty much know all of them by name and know that they are all wonderful musicians. It makes you feel welcome and valued in your musical community. I think one of my strongest impressions thus far was on the night of the first joint rehearsal of the orchestra and choir. Upon arrival at the Conservatorium that night, I came to the orchestral hall where nearly 60 students were warming up in preparation for the rehearsal. Then I went to the foyer to meet the choir and take them to the rehearsal space. There were 30 of them, and they flooded the foyer. At that point it hit me: all these musicians are here to perform my piece! It felt grand and wonderfully overwhelming.
All the involved musicians seemed very keen to work on this project. As they were learning the music, their excitement was gradually growing as they could enjoy the piece more and more. The main challenge is making parts! It is very painful and there is no way to avoid it or have someone else do the job for you. It just has to be done.
Musically, the main challenge was to balance the 30-piece choir with the 60-piece wind orchestra. It was my decision to use only 30 people, as I wanted the audience to connect with the individuals in the choir rather than see them as a mass of people. A somewhat intimate experience. So when the choir is singing, the orchestral part has to be somewhat sparse and supportive. Both have to be, in a way, incomplete on their own, so that when they are combined they come together like two parts of a big puzzle and complement each other. In the case of our particular orchestra, the added challenge was in the fact that we had six (!) horns and six (!) trumpets who wanted to be involved in this project, and that is a lot of powerful sound! Plus heaps of woodwinds and percussion. The task of finding the right balance between all this amazing force and only the 30-piece choir (with very challenging parts) was intimidating at first, but I think it worked out very well in the end. Probably because I constantly thought about this issue…
Any parting words before we see the performance?
I am very grateful to Queensland Conservatorium for commissioning this piece and for its support and promotion of new music. There is so much talent at that institution, and there is no other place I would rather collaborate with on this world premiere. Special thanks also go to the two schools who supported this project as consortium members: Sydney Conservatorium (John Lynch, conductor) and University of Georgia, U.S. (Cynthia Johnston Turner, conductor). Both of them are strong advocates for new band music, which I really value. They are both planning performances of Scraps for 2017, which is very exciting, of course.
I must admit I feel sad that this project is coming to a close. I will surely miss working with all the outstanding people involved in it (all 90 of them). I find consolation in the many inspiring commissions and collaborations coming up in 2017 right here in Australia. In particular, I am honoured to write a piece for the new group, Ensemble Q, which will be ensemble in residence at Queensland Conservatorium starting next year. The piece will be premiered at their launch concert in April 2017. Watch this space: It promises to be one of the best ensembles in the country!
See Catherine’s work premiered at the Queensland Con at 7.30pm October 14. For tickets, book here. Keep up to date with Catherine’s projects on her website.
About Catherine
Catherine Likhuta (born Kyiv, Ukraine) is an Australian-based composer, pianist and recording artist. Her works have been commissioned and performed throughout North America, Europe and Australia by many prominent soloists and ensembles, such as Paul Dean, Peter Luff, Adam Unsworth, Griffin Campbell, Ronald Caravan, HD Duo, Atlantic Brass Quintet, Best of Brass, Collusion, Barega Saxophone Quartet, Queensland Symphony Orchestra Horns, U.S. Army Fields Band Horns, Cornell University Wind Ensemble and Wind Symphony, Queensland Conservatorium Wind Orchestra, and the Orchestra of the National Radio of Ukraine. Her music has been performed at several international events, including the International Horn Symposium (2014, 2015) and World Saxophone Congress (2015). Her concertino for five horns Hard to Argue won the 2014 International Horn Society Composition Contest, virtuoso division.
Catherine holds a Bachelor’s degree in jazz piano from Kyiv Glière Music College and a five-year post-graduate degree in composition from the Tchaikovsky National Music Academy of Ukraine (Kyiv Conservatory). She is currently pursuing a PhD in composition at the University of Queensland under the supervision of Robert Davidson. She has delivered presentations on her work at a number of institutions, including Cornell University, Ithaca College, Arizona State University, Syracuse University, Bowling Green State University, Queensland Conservatorium and the University of Queensland. Catherine enjoys participating in the performances of her works as a pianist. In particular, she was the soloist on the premiere, as well as the CD recording of Out Loud, her piano concerto commissioned by the Cornell University Wind Ensemble. She was the pianist on Adam Unsworth’s CD Snapshots (which featured two of her works) and has played recitals with Adam Unsworth at Cornell University, University of Michigan, and Queensland Conservatorium. Her music can be heard on Albany and Equilibrium Records.
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