From our garden here at The Black House—pictured is a Black Swallowtail Larva munching on dill in our herb planter—we offer Solstice greetings to all in harmony with the Earth’s seasonal changes! In the Northern Hemisphere we embrace the longest day of the year as sultry Summer begins. Those in the Southern Hemisphere mark the longest night as Winter begins its chill dominion.
Wherever on this wondrous planet you might be, it is always a delight to celebrate the glories of Nature and the abundant pleasures that life offers! Here’s to a splendid new season filled with indulgences galore!
Claude Debussy‘s Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun (written and first performed in 1894) is a truly seminal work in our music history. Here is the composer’s description in an English translation:
“The music of this prelude is a very free illustration of Mallarmé’s beautiful poem. By no means does it claim to be a synthesis of it. Rather, there is a succession of scenes through which pass the desires and dreams of the faun in the heat of the afternoon. Then, tired of pursuing the timorous flight of nymphs and naiads, he succumbs to intoxicating sleep, in which he can finally realize his dreams of possession in universal Nature.”
Premiered in 1912, this deeply sensual work was choreographed and danced by Vaslav Nijinsky, and it caused a bit of a scandal for its eroticism and stylized movements, inspired by Ancient Greek friezes. Below is a link to a video of a recreation of that performance.
May you be inspired by the carnal faun as you listen to this extraordinarily visionary work and indulge in your own lustful Summer afternoon musings!
Hail Summer!
—Magus Peter H. Gilmore