THE SILICON VALLEY May 14, 2028 & nLert ainment Philadelphia Orchestra PerformsTchaikovsky'sSeventh Symphony Computer-Generated Symphony Is Unqualified Triumph Ovation for Software Developer Lasts Twenty-Five Minutes After Performance By BECKY BARNOW SENT1NAL-OBSERVERMUSIC CPKITIC upplcmenL The Philadelphia Orchestra performed the world premiere of Tchaikovsky's Seventh Symphony Thursday at Philadelphia's historic Academy of Music. The computergenerated composition received a wild ovation that lasted twenty-five minutes. Henrietta QueUes was the conductor. Tchaikovsky died in 1893 shortly after the performance of his last symphony, number six, known as the "Pathetique". A somber work reflecting a surrender to fate, the Pathetique has been a orchestral workhorse ever since it was first performed. Some music historians believe that Tchaikovsky committed suicide by drinking choleratainted water after the Pathetique was performed, a suicide forced upon him by fear of having a homosexual relationship exposed. Tchaikovsky's seventh symphony is the work of a computer program called T c ~ o v s K ¥ . The program is the brainchild of musicologist Peter Michovsky, a Russian-born composer, Computer Technologist and music scholar. The purpose of the TCHAIKOVSKYprogram is to emulate the manner in which Tchaikovsky might have composed had his life not been cut short. Michovsky explained the purpose of his computer program in the program notes for the concert: "TCHAtKOVSK¥is the most ambitious effort to date to enable composers to compose long after their deaths. TCr~IKOVSKYencodes literally tens of thousands of rules and principles that have been extracted, mostly by computer programs, from the existing corpus of compositions by our beloved Russian symphonic master. In addition, using inferences drawn from the evolution of classical, romantic and twentieth century composers who did survive to old age, the program tries to anticipate how Tchaikovsky's symphonic style might have evolved had he lived." Acclaim for the new work was universal and ecstatic. Claude Monroe, music critic for the New York Times was clearly moved by what he heard. "I felt and smelled the very breath of the living Tchaikovsky this evening," he told reporters after the concert. "This music was compelling, incredibly emotional. It was definitely consistent with the way Tchaikovsky's music was evolving. This symphony is a remarkable achievement of the human spirit." The Seventh Symphony begins where the Sixth Symphony leaves off. Indeed, the opening chords of the Seventh are an exact quotation from the fading theme at the end of the Sixth. "My intention was to create a resurrection symphony for Tchaikovsky, one which might have been written had he overcome his depression and triumphed over life completely. So, I instructed the program (TcHAIKOVSKY) compose a symphony that to would represent not the triumph of fate, but the triumph of love over fate, love over everything. Almost all of the musicianship belongs to the program. ! set the basic thematic parameters, that this was to be a joyous symphony, the triumph of life over death." After its somber opening chords, the Seventh Symphony rises to a triumphal hymn of impressive dimensions, fully twenty five minutes in length. The orchestral colors are amazing, definitely Tchaikovskyesque in their flavor, but tran- scending anything that Tchaikovsky achieved in his life time. The end of the first movement brought a thundering ovation that lasted for five minutes until conductor Quelles begged the audience to sit down so that the concert could continue. The second movement is a quiet pastoral, as sweet and as lovely as any slow movement that Tchaikovsky ever composed. It owes an obvious debt to the first movement of Tchiakovsky's famous string serenade, and the orchestration barely goes beyond the serenade form, with the woodwinds only occasionally adding their accent to the sweet song of love and peace. The brass and percglssion instruments are not heard until the last few measures of this quiet movement. At the very end of the second movement one hears syncopated beats from the timpanis which suggest a lively dance melody, a celebration following the peaceful reflection, a precursor of the riotous third and fourth movements which fol,low. The fourth movement follows upon the third without a break. The third movement brought the audience to its feet once again with its brilliant synthesis and transcendence of the greatest ballet music that Tchaikovsky ever wrote. It was Swan Lake elevated to transcendent, celestial heights. Clearly, the purpose of these two movements was a celebration of life, the quiet and peaceful reflection of the second movement, giving way to this ecstatic, almost mystical dance. And there was some kind of mystical vision in the center of it all, maintained by rife basses and their slow, persistent melody, almost like a baroque basso continuo, that never varied throughPlease see SYMPHONY, p.17 The Silicon Valley Virtual Opera Companypresents W. A. Mozart's Die ZauberEdte (TheMagicFlute)- starring YOU! Yes, now you can bring down the house playing your favodte role in your favodte opera. Our patented OperaSound virtual reality system puts you center stage in a lavishly staged production, surrounded by our professional cast and orchestra. Only one role has been omitted, and that is whichever one you choose (prices begin at $100). A packed house will thrill at the sound of your voice. Guaranteed! It's thrilling! It's fantastic] It's stupendous and best of all, no one is listening! People who are afraid of heights should not choose the role of Queen of the Night. Sorry, no refunds! The Silicon Valley Sentinal-Observer is created and copyright © 1997 by Richard G. Epstein, West Chester Univ. (PA), epstein@golden,wcupa, edu Computers and Society, March 1997

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