Listening to Thought:
The Awakening of the American Voice
Thomas Hampson was the inaugural Mary and James G. Wallach Artist-in-Residence during the New York Philharmonic Orchestra’s 2009-2010 season.
Video below in four parts:
- Part 1: In his introduction to his lecture “Listening to Thought: The Awakening of the American Voice,” Thomas Hampson discusses the notion of the “informed performance” and the theme of his lectures for the 2009-2010 season at the New York Philharmonic. He introduces Walt Whitman as the subject of this lecture: his life and how he became who he was.
- Part 2: In this section, Hampson discusses Walt Whitman’s early literary life and his “singing years.” He brings up the influence of opera and concert music on Whitman’s poetry and the effect that figures such as Marietta Alboni, George Sand, and Giuseppe Verdi had on Whitman’s writing. The clip ends with Hampson’s introduction to Henry Burleigh’s song “Ethiopia Saluting the Colors.” (The recording of the song is not included here due to technical problems during the presentation. To hear a recording of the song, please visit the Song of America website.)
“Walt maintained that poetry should not explain. It should suggest.” - Part 3: In this section, Hampson discusses Walt Whitman’s influence in Europe, his importance as an international literary voice, and settings of Whitman’s poetry composed by Europeans. You can hear excerpts of songs by Paul Hindemith (“Schlagt! Schlagt! Trommeln!”) and Kurt Weill (“Dirge For Two Veterans”) during this clip. Hampson also addresses Whitman’s life during the Civil War, especially his work in the Civil War hospitals. Hampson sings Charles Naginski’s “Look Down, Fair Moon” at the end of this clip.
- Part 4: In this section, Hampson discusses composer John Adams’ setting of Walt Whitman in Adams’ piece “The Wound Dresser.” Hampson also addresses Whitman’s time working in a Civil War Hospital and role of the performer in presenting such powerful and emotional text. He finishes the lecture by performing Leonard Bernstein’s song “To What You Said,” a setting of an unpublished Walt Whitman poem.
Leinsdorf Lecture, Part 1 of 4
In his introduction to his lecture “Listening to Thought: The Awakening of the American Voice,” Thomas Hampson discusses the notion of the “informed performance” and the theme of his lectures for the 2009-2010 season at the New York Philharmonic. He introduces Walt Whitman as the subject of this lecture: his life and how he became who he was.
“No artist ever has the right to mislead their audience.”
Leinsdorf Lecture, Part 2 of 4
In this section, Hampson discusses Walt Whitman’s early literary life and his “singing years.” He brings up the influence of opera and concert music on Whitman’s poetry and the effect that figures such as Marietta Alboni, George Sand, and Giuseppe Verdi had on Whitman’s writing. The clip ends with Hampson’s introduction to Henry Burleigh’s song “Ethiopia Saluting the Colors.” (The recording of the song is not included here due to technical problems during the presentation. To hear a recording of the song, please visit the Song of America website.)
“Walt maintained that poetry should not explain. It should suggest.”
Leinsdorf Lecture, Part 3 of 4
In this section, Hampson discusses Walt Whitman’s influence in Europe, his importance as an international literary voice, and settings of Whitman’s poetry composed by Europeans. You can hear excerpts of songs by Paul Hindemith (“Schlagt! Schlagt! Trommeln!”) and Kurt Weill (“Dirge For Two Veterans”) during this clip. Hampson also addresses Whitman’s life during the Civil War, especially his work in the Civil War hospitals. Hampson sings Charles Naginski’s “Look Down, Fair Moon” at the end of this clip.
Leinsdorf Lecture, Part 4 of 4
In this section, Hampson discusses composer John Adams’ setting of Walt Whitman in Adams’ piece “The Wound Dresser.” Hampson also addresses Whitman’s time working in a Civil War Hospital and role of the performer in presenting such powerful and emotional text. He finishes the lecture by performing Leonard Bernstein’s song “To What You Said,” a setting of an unpublished Walt Whitman poem.
The Wound-Dresser
Read the text and German translation of “The Wound-Dresser” here.
