Harry Partch: The Bewitched orig Gate 5 private lp+book

$

140

Harry Partch: The Bewitched - A dance-satire (1955 for ensemble of unique instruments) [excerpted to fit on 1 lp]





label & cat. no.:
Gate 5 Issue E pressed in:
USA date:
1962 format:
LP condition:
Vinyl: vg- (some scuffs and pressing imperfection swashes, none feelable; plays with light surface noise throughout, these were unfortunately not high quality pressings but the frequency range is still impressive with especially great bass)
Cover: vg (front has writing and sticker residue; black marker on front and back)
Book: ex+ (only flaw is small writing on the front) description:
Ultra rare original private issue of this work, released on the composer's own label! This copy includes the impossible to find 16-page insert booklet "Photographs of Instruments Built by Harry Partch and Heard in His Recorded Music." The Bewitched is an intense experimental microtonal "satyr-play" that uses Partch's homemade instruments, presented here in a shortened version to fit on a single lp. The piece is divided into parts with insane satirical names like 'The Romancing Of A Pathological Liar Comes To An Inspired End' and 'A Soul Tormented By Contemporary Music Finds a Humanizing Alchemy.' In the words of the composer, "The Bewitched is in the tradition of world-wide ritual theatre... It is an essay toward a miraculous abeyance of civilized rigidity, in the feeling that the modern spirit might thereby find some ancient and magical sense of rebirth..." Here it's performed by the Gate 5 Ensemble of the University of Illinois conducted by John Garvey, with Freda Pierce as the witch and William Olson as the chorus leader. The Partch instruments surrogate kithara, diamond marimba, marimba eroica, spoils of war, cloud-chamber bowls, harmonic canon, and chromelodeon are featured, and some more traditional classical instruments also make appearances (piccolo, bass clarinet, cello, gongs, and the Japanese koto).

artist info from album notes:
From the late 1930s onward, after living as a transient hobo, Partch developed instruments based on his own revolutionary tuning theories (considered the first in the field since Pythagoras). He composed in isolation within the musical universe he created, but he blazed the same trails as Alois Haba, Julian Carrillo, Ivan Wyschnegradsky, and Charles Ives, drew from percussive eastern music such as gamelan, American folk, Native American, and African music, Hebrew and Christian hymns, and "lumber yards and junk shops," and would become influential to John Cage, Steve Reich, Lou Harrison, La Monte Young, Ben Johnston, Easley Blackwood, Glenn Branca, Alvin Lucier, Pauline Oliveros, Terry Riley, John Eaton, James Tenney, Rhys Chatham, and others from the avant garde; his instruments relate to the 'Structures Sonores' of Bernard and Francois Baschet and the sound sculptures and homemade instruments of Harry Bertoia, Max Neuhaus, Z'ev, Donald Knaack, Paul Panhuysen, and Bill Fontana. Check out my other items for more avant garde/experimental, early electronic/electroacoustic, psych, minimalism, 20th century classical, microtonal, sound effects/field recordings, and artist records. US Shipping - Media Mail is $5.00 for 1-2 single records, then $0.65 for each additional; Priority Mail is also available but pricing depends on zipcode (you can check eBay's calculated shipping price at the bottom of this page); other expedited shipping options and insurance are all available on request. Combine multiple items to save on shipping.
International Shipping - 1 12" lp to Europe/UK/Scandinavia/Asia/Australia is $15.00 for First Class Airmail; to Canada is $8.71 for First Class Airmail; to Mexico is $12.53 for First Class Airmail; other international destinations vary, please email for a quote. 7" records will cost less; heavy box sets will cost more. Insured Priority Airmail with tracking and other expedited methods are also available but pricing depends on destination country and will be calculated after auction closes (or you can email me with your address for a quote). Combine multiple items to save on shipping; I can hold paid records to be combined with a future purchase if desired. Note: I can also offer international buyers the slow but super-cheap M-Bag bulk airmail rate for orders of 8 or more lps; to most destinations this costs $40.00 flat rate for up to 16 lps, a huge per-record savings over standard rates for smaller parcels! Feel free to email with any shipping questions. Payment - I accept Paypal (which allows for fastest possible shipment). Please email with any payment questions. If you are paying by Paypal and have won multiple items, please use a single Paypal payment. I will send an invoice email to all winners shortly after my auctions close, and another email after payment has been received to confirm item shipment. Packing - I pack professionally and with the utmost care drawn from years of experience trading vinyl internationally. I use new record mailers from Cameron Packaging (which I have determined are the best and most protective) reinforced with cardboard inserts and bubble wrap padding. All records are shipped with poly plastic sleeves. All packages are completely sealed with strong packing tape covering all openings. Unless requested, no paper invoice is included in the package, both to save trees and to avoid customs difficulties. If you'd like your package done any differently, just let me know. Other Info - Feel free to email me if you have any questions (need more info, want more pictures, etc.); you can use the 'ask seller a question' link above. Records are visually graded unless otherwise noted; my condition rating scale is M (sealed) / NM (unplayed) / EX (barely used) / VG (some evident wear from prior use but no major flaws) / G (major flaws). All included album inserts are pictured in the listing; what you see is what you get, if I know an insert is missing I will mention it in the description. Satisfaction guaranteed; if you have any problems with your order please contact me directly. Enter your email to join the
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