The Sinking of the Titanic by Gavin Bryars

[Fiona Nitschke]

I was sure there was previous discussion of this work, but it must've been somewhere else - so here goes. Having just got a working CD player again I discovered some of my old CDs had 'de-laminated' (possibly from boredom at not being used in several years) and had to replace The Sinking of the Titanic by Gavin Bryars. (Gavin Bryars)

Gavin Bryars is probably best known for Jesus' Blood Never Failed Me Yet, and that work was the reason I saw Gavin Bryars and his ensemble at the Melbourne Festival in the 1990s. I enjoyed the program for concert #1 so much that I booked into concert #2 on the spot - and that was the first time I heard The Sinking of the Titanic. Magic stuff. So beautiful, so haunting.

The CD I have now is from a July 1994 recording. I was going to type up some of the notes, but Gavin's site thoughtfully provides background on the work: http://www.gavinbryars.com/Pages/titanic_point.html There's also notes from a performance at Xebec Hall, Kobe, in 1993: http://www.gavinbryars.com/Pages/titanic_xebec.html

Some of the inspiration is from historical information of a now dubious or mythological nature, but that doesn't detract in any way from the experience of hearing the work itself. To me, the complex array of influences informing and changing the work from its premiere in 1969 through to the 1990s, is what makes it my favourite sound / music representation of Titanic.

I'm really enjoying rediscovering this work and was wondering what others thought of it?

 

[Fiona Nitschke]

I was listening to this while reading some of Hans Magnus Enzensberger's cantos on Titanic, and couldn't help but think they were complimentary works. Both have haunting, beautiful and emotive moments that can move me to tears.

 

[Susan Alby]

Hi Fiona,
I cannot believe the music was performed live on a raft in a swimming pool in Brussels. What an amazing site. I think he wanted to get as close as he could to the musicians who were on board the Titanic. Can't wait to get the CD.

Go Gavin!

 

[Fiona Nitschke]

I hope you find the work interesting, Susan. It usually makes me a bit weepy - but for all the right reasons.

 

[Fiona Nitschke]

Just wondering if anyone was fortunate enough to experience this, T.1912 at the Guggenheim: Dominique Gonzalez-Foerster Plows the Guggenheim Into an Iceberg for a Chilled-Out Titanic Resinking Ignore the rather crass headline, the event itself was much more than that. Combining performance installation, lighting and audience participation alongside a performance of Gavin Bryars' The Sinking of the Titanic it would've been - well, a night at the Guggenheim to remember.