Ruggles Sun Treader

 Day 191

Ruggles Sun Treader

Cleveland Orchestra

Christopher con Dohnányi

Ruggles was one of the most self-critical composers. In a very long life (1876-1971) he wrote only a dozen or so pieces - most of them lasting less than 15 mins. I came across a couple of his pieces years ago and rather enjoyed Angels for six muted trumpets. Sun Treader , completed after 5 years work in 1931, is Ruggles’ longest piece. It uses a large but not enormous orchestra. What struck me how ‘normal’ the piece was. There was none of the experimental textures or allusions to popular music that you find in Ives, the mad rhythms of Antheil or the tone clusters of Cowell. Instead this is a serious piece of music firmly in the European tradition. At times is could be mistaken for pre-Serial Schoenberg or even Hindemith. It had an impressive seriousness with some clear building blocks - particularly the opening drum motive which returns at key points in the score. 

I was impressed by the seriousness of the score and can well imagine it making a good impression in performance. It is far more than simply an experiment or a creation of sensation for the sake of it. 

Ruggles by all accounts was an unpleasant individual who held some very unsavoury views. But he clearly was a composer who knew exactly what he was doing.