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Underground > Radio & Music >

Guild of Funerary Violinists

  
 
Chiropteran
17:22 / 06.06.06
"Founded in 1586, the Guild of Funerary Violinists is not only Britain's oldest surviving artisans society, but also the first to be granted national status in a Royal Warrant from Queen Elizabeth I. Dedicated to the promotion and execution of the art of Funerary Violin: a tradition once placed at the very heart of our notions of mortality, but now sadly neglected, if not forgotten altogether..."

I came across the Guild just this morning, and I am thoroughly enchanted - I'm a violinist myself, and I have performed many times as a guest of The Friends of Pine-Hill Cemetery (in the cemetery chapel, not at graveside), so the idea of a centuries-old tradition of funerary violining has built-in appeal for me.

The music itself (there are numerous samples on the site-see below) is lovely, with a spare, even stark quality that puts me in mind of the more somber sonatas by Heinrich Biber. The website also provides a brief history of the funerary violin tradition, and two of its better known (relatively speaking) luminaries. There is also a book coming in the Fall of 2006, written by Guild President and music-historian Rohan Kriwaczek.

Kriwaczek himself has recorded two albums of funerary violin music, but more exciting to the scholar are the historical albums reconstructed from wax cylinder recordings by the last of the funerary violin masters. The sound on these latter is somewhat thin, but the hiss of the cylinder gives them a startling immediacy.

I have to admit, I'm so taken by this whole grand construction that I'm seriously considering buying the book of scores (in its less expensive electronic format) - it might be just the thing for the Friends of Pine-Hill.

Of course, some have denounced the Guild, and indeed the entire proud tradition of funerary violin, as nothing more than a hoax. I think they're rather missing the point, don't you?
 
 
Chiropteran
15:18 / 07.06.06
There are a couple of interesting essays at the Guild's myspace page - "On the Difference Between Cleverness and Art" (which is quite interesting, and though I do not agree with every point I find myself very sympathetic to the overall thrust), "Notes On the Death of Harmony," and two historical essays about funerary violin.

I'm curious how people feel about the "European Funerary Violin Tradition" project, in terms of "legitimacy" or "honesty" in music and music history - the "hoax" issue, in other words, or "does something have to be factual to be real?" We're deep in PDQ Bach territory here, but without the obvious jokes - unlike Peter Schickele, Kriwaczek plays the Guild completely straight (I wrote to him yesterday and his reply was entirely earnest and in character). If it's not comedy, is it still a kind of satire?

As I mentioned in my previous post, some people have been responding indignantly - "It looks like someone is making fun of people who have a sincere interest in music and funerary history" - and dismissed Rohan and the other musicians involved as "megalomaniacal co-conspirator[s]." Is this kind of fictional history "good art," or are people being lied to? It's not as though the "hoax" itself holds up to even mild scrutiny (e.g. the "real" Rohan Kriwaczek was born in 1968, the "character" Guild President Rohan Kriwaczek's C.V. says he graduated from the conservatory in 1972, etc.), so that while it can be said that a lot of work went into constructing the history of the Guild and the "rediscovered" documents and recordings, not much effort was directed towards actually fooling anybody.

Some people feel that Kriwaczek crossed the line into either deception or shameless self-promotion when he posted a wikipedia entry for funerary violin (it was deleted when he was found out). Somewhat separate from the question of whether this was a misuse of wikipedia (which, by the TOS, I think it was), is whether seeking to further "authenticate" the fiction in this way was a legitimate* artistic move, or if the boundary between fiction and non-fiction was being inappropriately breached. Did he go too far?

Am I the only one fascinated by all this? Entirely possible, I suppose. I think the whole thing is marvelous, and the serious tone only makes it that much more enjoyable for me.

*I'm using words like "legitimate" advisedly, in hopes of inviting further discussion of what we mean by them in an artistic context - see also the current discussions of "honesty/realness" in popular music.
 
 
Ticker
16:58 / 07.06.06
This was quite delightful to find as a topic.
I am right this moment listening to a piece of The Guild's via myspace and find it quite lovely.

though I do agree that a Wiki should not be used for such things....
 
 
Feverfew
18:14 / 07.06.06
I am such a... sucker seems like a derogatory word given the context, but I really am such a fool for these things. I have downloaded a lot of the music offered on their site, and I find it very, very evocative.

It also gives a good incentive to find out more about the traditions involved.

Since I joined - in fact slightly before I was invited to join - Barbelith, I swear my exposure to more random, more interesting music has increased fiercely.

So... Thank you for bringing this to attention. You've made my evening.
 
 
Chiropteran
17:51 / 08.06.06
Glad you like it.
 
 
Chiropteran
01:32 / 26.12.06
I'm bumping this because I just got the book for Christmas! Anyone else read it?
 
 
Chiropteran
00:23 / 28.12.06
The book is great.

To understand the true essence of the tradition, let us consider for a moment what a Funerary Violinist whould have actually done, not from a practical but from an emotional perspective, for though manners and ideologies may have changed considerably over the years, emotions are unchanging, death remains death, and man's concern with it is unerring. The key to this is spiritual sensitivity. The chapel of rest, church or graveside is filled with strangers (to the violinist), all in a highly emotional and sometimes desperate state; the coffin containing their loved one is laid out at the front, and whilst everyone is still stirring, the violinist takes up his bow and begins the ritual. This moment is crucial, and if misjudged can lead to disaster.

In his tone the violinist must first convey the deep grief that is present in the gathering, and then transform it into a thing of beauty. By the time he is finished, a deep and plaintive calm should have descended, and the bereaved should be ready to hear the eulogy. The achieve this, the music must be simple. Any hint of flashiness, even the slightest breath of ego, will destroy the spell. This is music as magic, with the ability to transform the mood and perceptions of the audience in a way far beyond what is possible in the concert hall - and it only works on such a deep level because the audience is in a heightened emotional state. The violinist's is a position of great responsibility, akin in many ways to that of a priest or shaman, and should not be taken lightly.

The book contains not only history and theory, but also sheet music. Merry Christmas, indeed.
 
  
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