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Four Shakespeare Songs is a blend of Renaissance poetry and contemporary music. It is my first really serious choral work, having been preceded by Kolme romanttista laulelmaa (1982), a set of three rather unoriginal Romantic partsongs, and Come Live With Me. Like its predecessors, this work was written for the Savolaisen Osakunnan Laulajat student choir, which I sang with from 1982 to 1987 and returned to conduct from 1988 to 1993. It should be said, though, that the premiere of the work stretched the choir’s resources to their limit at the time. The choral writing is varied and demanding, although the music never strays very far from traditional tonal harmony. The texts are songs from Shakespeare’s plays, which I was studying in depth at the time of writing this music, in connection with my intermediate-level university studies in English.Come Away, Death (Twelfth Night) is a lament of unhappy love, typical for Renaissance lyrics: the narrator begs his friends to bury him, as he has been killed by the coldness of the ‘cruel maid’ that he loves. The falling figure on the repeated word weep towards the end echoes madrigalesque word-painting.Lullaby (A Midsummer Night's Dream) is sung by fairies to their Queen; it is a soft and tranquil mood piece in siciliano rhythm.Double, Double Toil and Trouble (Macbeth), on the other hand, is a sort of Medieval cookery programme. The three witches, or weird sisters, chant the ingredients of a magic potion that they are brewing. This is the potion that the witches use later in the same scene to prophesy to Macbeth that he will become King of Scotland. The text is rather wild, and the music uses a wide range of devices up to and including speech choir. Full Fathom Five (The Tempest) is a comforting yet ghoulish description of how the body of a drowned man is transformed into treasures of the sea and how mermaids ring funeral bells for him.Four Shakespeare Songs was premiered by the Savolaisen Osakunnan Laulajat student choir conducted by Martti Nissinen at the 80th anniversary banquet of the Savolainen osakunta (Savo student nation) of the University of Helsinki in February 1985.© Jaakko Mäntyjärvi, 1999Four Shakespeare Songs on yhdistelmä renessanssilyriikkaa ja tämän vuosisadan musiikkia. Se on oikeastaan ensimmäinen vakavasti otettava kuoroteokseni; sitä edelsivät harjoitelmaksi vielä luettava Kolme romanttista laulelmaa (1982) sekä Come Live With Me. Edeltäjiensä lailla tämä teos on kirjoitettu Savolaisen Osakunnan Laulajille, jossa olin laulajana 1982-87 ja jota sittemmin johdin 1988-93. On tosin todettava, että teoksen kantaesitystä valmisteltaessa liikuttiin kuoron silloisen suorituskyvyn ylärajoilla. Teoksen kuorosatsi on monipuolista ja vaativaa; sävelkieli pysyttelee kuitenkin lähellä tonaalista perinteistä harmoniaa. Laulujen tekstit ovat peräisin Shakespearen näytelmistä, joihin olin tutustumassa läheisesti noihin aikoihin englannin opintojeni II vaiheen (ent. cum laude) yhteydessä.Come Away, Death (Tule, kuolema; näytelmästä Loppiaisaatto) on renessanssirunoudelle tyypillinen onnettoman rakkauden valitus: laulaja pyytää ystäviään hautaamaan hänet, koska hänen rakkautensa kohde, “julma neito”, on surmannut hänet kylmyydellään. Loppupuolen laskeva kulku sanalla weep (itkeä) on madrigaalimaista sävelmaalailua.Lullaby (Kehtolaulu; näytelmästä Kesäyön unelma) on keijujen kehtolaulu kuningattarelleen: hiljainen, siciliano-rytmissä pehmeästi keinuva tunnelmakappale.Double, Double Toil and Trouble (Kaksin verroin työtä, vaivaa; näytelmästä Macbeth) taas on eräänlainen noitien Patakakkonen: kolme noitaa esittelee tekeillä olevan taikakeitoksen aineksia. Tämä keitos on se, josta myöhemmin samassa kohtauksessa Macbethille ennustetaan, että hänestä tulee Skotlannin kuningas. Teksti on hurjanpuoleista, ja kappale käyttääkin laajoja keinovaroja aina puhekuoroon asti.Full Fathom Five (Viisi syltä syvällä; näytelmästä Myrsky) on yhtä aikaa lohdullinen ja karmiva kuvaus siitä, kuinka hukkuneen ruumis muuntuu rikkaiksi meren antimiksi, ja kuinka merenneitojen kellot soittavat hänen hautajaisiaan.Four Shakespeare Songs -teoksen kantaesitti Savolaisen Osakunnan Laulajat Martti Nissisen johdolla Savolaisen Osakunnan 80-vuotisjuhlassa helmikuussa 1985.© Jaakko Mäntyjärvi, 1999

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Abbreviation	Instrument
Woodwind
acl	alto clarinet
afl	alto flute
arec	alto recorder
asax	alto saxophone
barsax	baritone saxophone
barhn	baritone horn
bcl	bass clarinet
bfl	bass flute
bob	bass oboe
bsax	bass saxophone
bsn	bassoon
cbsn	contrabassoon
cl	clarinet
ehn	English horn
fl	flute
hn	French horn
ob	oboe
pic	piccolo
rec	recorder
sax	saxophone
srec	soprano recorder
ssax	soprano saxophone
trec	tenor recorder
tsax	tenor saxophone
Brass
ahn	alto horn
atrb	altotrombone
barhn	baritone horn
btrb	bass trombone
cornet	cornet
euph	euphonium
fhn	flugelhorn
hn	French horn
tba	tuuba
thn	tenor horn
trb	trombone
trp	trumpet
Percussion
dr	drums
glock	glockenspiel
mar	marimba
perc	percussion
timp	timpani
vibr	vibraphone
xyl	xylophone
Strings
db	double bass
gamba	viola da gamba
str	strings
vla	viola
vlc	cello
vln	violin
Other
acc	accordion
cel	celesta
cemb	harpsichord
chords	chords
elbas	electric bass
elg	electric guitar
elorg	electric organ
elpno	electric piano
guit	guitar
harm	harmonium
hca	harmonica
hp	harp
instr	instrument
kantele	kantele
keyb	keyboard
live electr	live electronics
mand	mandolin
mel	melody
org	organ
pno	piano
synth	synthesizer
tape	tape
Vocal
alto	alto
baryt	baritone
basso	bass voice
ch	choir
chc	childrens choir
chf	female choir
chm	male choir
chx	mixed choir
cten	countertenor
mezzo	mezzo-soprano
sopr	soprano
speaker	speaker
ten	tenor
voc	vocal

Symphony orchestra
2222 4331 11 1, str = 2 flutes, 2 oboes, 2 clarinets, 2 bassoons, 4 French horns, 3 trumpets, 3 trombones, tuba, timpani, one other percussionist, harp and strings
Wind band
2252 3 423 21212 3 = 2 flutes, 2 oboes, 5 clarinets, 2 bassoons - 3 saxophones - 4 French horns, 2 trumpets, 3 trombones - 2 cornets, alto horn, 2 tenor horns, baritone horn, 2 tubas - 3 percussionists
Big band
221 4 4, pno, guit, db, dr = 2 alto saxophones, 2 tenor saxophones, baritone saxophone, 4 trumpets, 4 trombones, piano, guitar, double bass, drums
Additional codes
+	fl+pic = flutist doubles on piccolo
/	pno/org = can be played on either piano or organ
lib	ad libitum
obl	obligato
str	str: 65432 = specified number of string players
str min	str min: 65432 = at least 65432
str max	str max: 65432 = not more than 65432
solo	vln solo = violin is the solo instrument in a work not obviously for solo violin