It was Mozart's boast that he could master any composer's style within a week and by the end of that time compose in it adeptly enough to deceive experts. Lou Harrison has something of that virtuosity himself." ...... Virgil Thompson

More importantly, Harrison can absorb a particular music style from a culture other than his own (often an Eastern culture), and use elements of that music style freely in his own compositions. Examples of elements from Indian ("Round" from "Serenade for Guitar"), Turkish ("Usul" from the same composition), and various European music ("Canon" and "Sonata" once again from the same composition) can be found in his music written for guitar, and in compositions by Harrison that are often transcribed for guitar, such as his music for harp. Above all, Harrison considers himself a "melodicist", and his compositions can often be described as having beautiful melodies over simple and open textures.

Harrison was born in Portland, Oregon in 1917, and lived in California most of his life. After living in New York City from 1943-1953, he returned to California and eventually settled in Aptos, which remained his residence for the remainder of his life. He died in 2003 en route to a festival in his honor at Ohio State University at Columbus.

Harrison studied and composed music alongside prominent musical figures such as Arnold Schoenberg, Henry Cowell, John Cage, Harry Partch, Virgil Thompson, Alan Hovhaness, and numerous others. Conductors Dennis Russell Davies and Michael Tilson Thomas have championed his works, and performers such as Yo-Yo Ma, Keith Jarrett, and Ursula Oppens and have presented his music in performance and on recordings. Classical guitarists David Tanenbaum and John Schneider have both had working relationships with Harrison which have resulted in new music for the guitar, and composer-approved transcriptions of music for harp and keyboard.

Two of Harrison's compositions for solo guitar bear the title "Serenade". The first is a short, one-movement composition written for Frank Wigglesworth, and was given to him as part of a personal letter in the 1950's. The second "Serenade" is a five-movement work written in 1978 and published by Peer International. I have heard guitarists informally refer to them as the "Little Serenade" and the "Big Serenade". (The larger Serenade as an optional percussion part.) Harrison also wrote numerous compositions for harp which have been transcribed for guitar, some of which can be found in the Lou Harrison Guitar Book, which is edited by David Tanenbaum and published by Columbia Music Co.

His last and most unusual composition for guitar is Scenes from Nek Chand. Written for National Resophonic steel-string guitar(!), Scenes from Nek Chand is inspired by the Hawaiian steel guitar music Harrison heard on the radio as a child, and by the sculpture and architecture of Nek Chand in Northern India. That the piece is to be played on a resophonic steel-string guitar (a guitar with one or more speaker cones built into it) renders all but unplayable by other than the most determined classical guitarist. Harrison chose this guitar over a traditional nylon string classical guitar because it can sustain notes longer. Schneider and Tanenbaum have both risen to this challenge and present the work on the instrument for which it was written.

Perhaps the most important point for guitarists to consider when playing Harrison's music (and a difficult matter to reconcile) is Harrison's exclusive use of just intonation and tuning systems other than equal temperament. The frets on most guitars are placed for equal temperament, while Harrison conceives of his music in specific tuning systems other than equal temperament. Thus, playing Harrison's music in equal temperament is a decision to play the music with a significant change from what the composer intended. This has become common practice among guitarists as it is impractical to have one's fingerboard replaced to play different pieces of music. However, John Schneider performs Harrison's music on guitars with replaceable fingerboards, and has released several recordings of Harrison's music played in the tuning Harrison intended. Tanenbaum, too, when performing Scenes from Nek Chand, plays on a resophonic guitar with the frets on the fingerboard placed for the tuning which Harrison indicates.

Harrison's music for guitar and music transcribed for guitar has been recorded by many guitarists, and is often heard in recitals. We are fortunate to have in our repertoire this collection of music that is beautiful, creative, and enjoyable. To read more about the life and music of Lou Harrison, "Lou Harrison: Composing a World" by Leta E. Miller and Fredric Lieberman (published by Oxford University Press) is the most comprehensive and authoritative book about him to date. Recordings of his music by John Schneider and David Tanenbaum are available on the New Albion, Bridge, and Etcetera labels.

--Robert Vierschilling is a freelance guitarist living in Seattle where he teaches at the Music Center of the Northwest.