Choir organ popol vuh book

Considering the popol vuh albums, this influence is most obvious in what would become the final popol vuh album messa di orfeo 1999. Popul vuh s music strives for spiritual fulfilment, beyond the bounds of earth. The popol vuh is an important text for understanding late postclassic and early colonial maya religion, myth, and history, but also because it also offers interesting glimpses into classic period. Fricke named the band after the mayan book of the people, and used a love of. Played on the socalled choir organ, a one of a kind sort of mellotron. Aug 03, 2015 my collection of only some of the works of musician florian fricke who recorded under the band name of popol vuh. Popol vuh and the choir organ sound in aguirre dreams. I knew right away when i heard that choir organ that it wasnt a mellotron, as the choir organ could hold those notes indefinitely, while you can only hold a note up to 8 seconds long with a mellotron. Popol vuh nosferatu original soundtrack cd rough trade. South america must have had a profound effect on this band they named themselves after the quiche mayan book of creation, the popol vuh. It includes the mayan creation myth, the exploits of the hero twins hunahpu and xbalanque, and a chronicle of the k. The former is characterised by frickes use of the instrument he called the choir organ, a mellotronlike device that utilised taped recordings of. Florian fricke piano on track 4, moog synthesizer, choirorgan on tracks 1, 3, 5, and on spv.

Todays deals your gift cards help whole foods registry sell disability customer support. My collection of only some of the works of musician florian fricke who recorded under the band name of popol vuh. Doubtlessly it was labeled this way as popol vuh was a known entity, whereas florian fricke on his own was far less so. Popol vuh s debut album, affenstunde, which means something like monkey hour, was released in. The marriage of popul vuhs music and the films of werner herzog was one. This was my first introduction to popol vuh and the work of florian fricke. The soundtrack was composed and performed by west german kosmische band popol vuh. The popol vuh council book or council papers is the most important sacred book of the quiche. I was particularly interested in it because i had seen the aguirre movie and was familiar with werner herzogs other films. This video is dedicated to florian fricke 23 feb 1944 29 dec 2001. Translation and commentary by pennsylvania state university.

From what herzog says in the book herzog on herzog 2002, it is clear that. This document, written shortly after the spanish conquest by a quiche indian who had learned to read and write spanish, is generally known as the popol vuh, popol buj, book of the council, book of the community, the sacred book, or national book of the quiche, and it contains the cosmogonical concepts and ancient traditions of this aboriginal american people, the history of their origin, and the chronology of their kings down to the year 1550. I am starting to believe that choir was actually the choir organ which was used on aguirre recorded the same time, but released later, although i do hear some real voices from time to time probably from the band members. In paul cronins book of interviews herzog on herzog, the director says he told. Making use of sources for as far as they are known to me. But most mystifying of all is the absence of any mention of the two electronic keyboards fricke used on the majority of the album to dazzling effect. Thats right about that choir organ which many mistake for a mellotron. One was subtitled bruder des lichts, and the other one on the way to a little way. The choir organ instrument is an important component adding a spacey atmosphere and ambience unique in time then and now. The quietus film film features too much the darkness. It is a live recording of an audiovisual installation consisting of a chanting choir, a recitating voice, sounds of bees and electronics, situated in socalled good rooms. Tracy wormworth, and chris stein in photo by charlie ahearn from the book wild style. The former is characterised by frickes use of the instrument he called the choir organ, a mellotronlike device that utilised taped recordings of voices. The manuscript of chichicastenango is an anonymous document.

Vuh was recorded live in a church with a pipe organ, the. Popol vuh didnt merely soundtrack herzogs movies as with bernard hermann and hitchcock, they were an integral part of the experience, without which the films would seem unsustainable, even incomplete. Aguirre, the seventh album in the catalogue of popol vuh, however is not a soundtrack strictly spoken. Julian cope presents head heritage the book of seth popol vuh. Some good instrumental music which may not be to everyones taste. Jimmy jackson happened to use that same choir organ on those two albums. Popol vuh and the choir organ sound in aguirre dreams precede. Track a1 is music from the 1972 werner herzog film aguirre.

Popol vuh began as an electronic music project, but under frickes leadership they soon abandoned synthesizers for organic instrumentation and world music influences. Doubtlessly it was labeled this way as popol vuh was a known entity. Among those recruited for the journey is renate knaupaschauer, who provides celebratory vocals for music that shifts, sometimes giddily. Here we shall write and we shall begin the old stories, 2 the beginning and the origin of all that was done in the town of the quiche, by the tribes of the quiche nation. Oct 14, 2005 vuh was recorded live in a church with a pipe organ, the aforementioned choir organ, and a weird assortment of percussion that at times sounds like brittle machines collapsing from overwork. And that is what makes popol vuh s soundtracks such an appropriate counterpoint. Fab five freddy, debbie harry, grandmaster flash, tracy wormworth and chris stein in new yorks east village on set during filming of rapture video. The great classic of central american spirituality, translated from the original maya text allen j. Both albums were totally different, and both were released as the soundtrack to the werner herzog film of the same name.

Research in this section ill try to shed some light on several aspects of popol vuh and their music. Other important members during the next two decades included djong yun, renate knaup, conny veit, daniel fichelscher, klaus wiese and robert eliscu. Popol vuh and the choir organ sound in aguirre dreams precede everything. Under the title of nosferatu two different albums appeared by popol vuh in 1978. What herzog admiringly described as the choir organ. There are no inhabitants, and no sunonly the broad sky, silent sea, and sovereign framer and shaper. I was also interested in hearing the choir organ which is essentially a birotrontype instrument a 1970s keyboard that plays tape loops for. Popol vuh florian fricke plays mozart 1992 another divergence of sorts, for this album truly is a solo florian fricke work on piano, even though the title could suggest otherwise. All these tapes are running at the same time, and there is a keyboard on which you can play them like an organ so that it will sound just like a human choir but yet, at the same time, very artificial and really quite eerie. The epiphany he experienced when he came across the old mayan book popol vuh book of the community, though the name was hand picked for the difficulty of translating it precisely hit home like a thunderstorm, he said.

The book was very important to fricke who said, when i read the book for the first time, i got ideas all of a sudden by which i was able to define other old books. Popol vuh s 1991 release comes as a positive celebration of world music, guided by the sure hand of florian fricke. The word popol is maya and means together, reunion, or common house. Popol vuh record labels over the years the music appeared on numerous recordslabel popol vuh as religious music. Popol vuh and the choir organ sound in aguirre florian fricke 23 feb 1944 29 dec 2001 was among the first musicians to own a moog modular iii synthesizer in europe. The transcendent music of popol vuh perfect sound forever. Oct 12, 2015 popol vuh and the choir organ sound in aguirre florian fricke 23 feb 1944 29 dec 2001 was among the first musicians to own a moog modular iii synthesizer in europe. Aguirre and his conquistadors descend deep into its most hellish thickets in search of fools gold.

Vuh was recorded live in a church with a pipe organ, the aforementioned choir organ, and a weird assortment of percussion that at times sounds like brittle machines collapsing from overwork. In fact, the name popol vuh itself comes from an ancient mayan text containing mythological narratives and the story of creation. The great classic of central american spirituality, translated from the original maya text. Florian fricke of the krautrock band popol vuh and experimental composer ernst reijseger. Formed in 1969, german kosmische band popol vuh were inarguably the brainchild of musician florian fricke. Two of the soundtrack albums that popol vuh made for herzog that are included in the current box set are aguirre 1975 and nosferatu 1978. Back then in the late 1960s it wasnt an easy purchase youd get a house for those money today. In 1975, popol vuh released an album entitled aguirre. I made a blog post and collected everything i could find online about the. In the beginning, the world is spoken into existence with one word.

The essential popol vuh page 4 of 11 fact magazine. It is only the eerie aguirre theme that returns in two different versions on the album. Father ximenez, who had the original manuscript in his hands, and transcribed and translated it into spanish, left no indication whatever of its author. The essential popol vuh page 10 of 11 fact magazine. Allthough it is evident that fricke disbanded the moog very soon and turned to acoustic instruments, another electronic instrument played subsequently an important role in his work. They developed a productive working partnership with director werner herzog, contributing scores to films such as aguirre, the wrath of god 1972, nosferatu the vampyre 1979. This is the first work by popol kroma sexy films i have ever heard. Vuh is a very intense, organ dominated piece, and it sounded like choir was used. Aguirre is a music studio album recording by popol vuh krautrockprogressive rock released in 1975 on cd, lp vinyl andor cassette. Mayan book from whose title popol vuh book of the community took. As a guestplayer, jimmy jackson plays choirorgan and piano on wolf city.