Chamber Music (book)
Encyclopedia
Chamber Music is a collection of poems by James Joyce
, published by Elkin Matthews in May, 1907. The collection originally comprised thirty-four love poems, but two further poems were added before publication ("All day I hear the noise of waters" and "I hear an army charging upon the land").
, this is a later Joycean embellishment, lending an earthiness to a title first suggested by his brother Stanislaus
and which Joyce (by the time of publication) had come to dislike: "The reason I dislike Chamber Music as a title is that it is too complacent", he admitted to Arthur Symons
in 1906. "I should prefer a title which repudiated the book without altogether disparaging it."
Richard Ellmann
reports (from a 1949 conversation with Eva Joyce) that the chamberpot connotation has its origin in a visit he made, accompanied by Oliver Gogarty
, to a young widow named Jenny in May 1904. The three of them drank porter while Joyce read manuscript versions of the poems aloud - and, at one point, Jenny retreated behind a screen to make use of a chamber pot. Gogarty commented, "There's a critic for you!". When Joyce later told this story to Stanislaus, his brother agreed that it was a "favourable omen".
In Ulysses
, Leopold Bloom reflects, "Chamber music. Could make a pun on that."
In fact, the poetry of Chamber Music is not in the least bawdy, nor reminiscent of the sound of tinkling urine. Although the poems did not sell well (fewer than half of the original print run of 500 had been sold in the first year), they received some critical acclaim. Ezra Pound
admired the "delicate temperament" of these early poems, while Yeats
described "I hear an army charging upon the land" as "a technical and emotional masterpiece". In 1909, Joyce wrote to his wife, "When I wrote [Chamber Music], I was a lonely boy, walking about by myself at night and thinking that one day a girl would love me."
, they continue to have - as Joyce hoped - an accessible lyricism which has led to a wide-ranging number of musical adaptations, including pieces by Samuel Barber
, Luciano Berio
, Aleksandar Simić
, Ivan Božičević
, Israel Citkowitz, Robin Williamson
, Dr. Strangely Strange
, Syd Barrett
, Martyn Bates of Eyeless in Gaza
, and Jim O'Rourke
and Steve Shelley
of Sonic Youth
.
In 2008, Fire Records
released a two-disc compilation featuring all thirty-six poems set to music by contemporary alternative acts, including Mercury Rev
, Gravenhurst
, Ed Harcourt
, and Willy Mason
.
James Joyce
James Augustine Aloysius Joyce was an Irish novelist and poet, considered to be one of the most influential writers in the modernist avant-garde of the early 20th century...
, published by Elkin Matthews in May, 1907. The collection originally comprised thirty-four love poems, but two further poems were added before publication ("All day I hear the noise of waters" and "I hear an army charging upon the land").
Summary
Although it is widely reported that the title refers to the sound of urine tinkling in a chamber potChamber pot
A chamber pot is a bowl-shaped container with a handle, and often a lid, kept in the bedroom under a bed or in the cabinet of a nightstand and...
, this is a later Joycean embellishment, lending an earthiness to a title first suggested by his brother Stanislaus
Stanislaus Joyce
Stanislaus Joyce was an Irish teacher, scholar, and writer who lived for many years in Italy. He was the brother of James Joyce. Considered a "whetstone" by his more famous brother, who shared his ideas and his books with him, Stanislaus was three years younger than James, and a constant boyhood...
and which Joyce (by the time of publication) had come to dislike: "The reason I dislike Chamber Music as a title is that it is too complacent", he admitted to Arthur Symons
Arthur Symons
Arthur William Symons , was a British poet, critic and magazine editor.-Life:Born in Milford Haven, Wales, of Cornish parents, Symons was educated privately, spending much of his time in France and Italy...
in 1906. "I should prefer a title which repudiated the book without altogether disparaging it."
Richard Ellmann
Richard Ellmann
Richard David Ellmann was a prominent American literary critic and biographer of the Irish writers James Joyce, Oscar Wilde, and William Butler Yeats...
reports (from a 1949 conversation with Eva Joyce) that the chamberpot connotation has its origin in a visit he made, accompanied by Oliver Gogarty
Oliver St. John Gogarty
Oliver Joseph St John Gogarty was an Irish poet, author, otolaryngologist, athlete, politician, and well-known conversationalist, who served as the inspiration for Buck Mulligan in James Joyce's novel Ulysses....
, to a young widow named Jenny in May 1904. The three of them drank porter while Joyce read manuscript versions of the poems aloud - and, at one point, Jenny retreated behind a screen to make use of a chamber pot. Gogarty commented, "There's a critic for you!". When Joyce later told this story to Stanislaus, his brother agreed that it was a "favourable omen".
In Ulysses
Ulysses (novel)
Ulysses is a novel by the Irish author James Joyce. It was first serialised in parts in the American journal The Little Review from March 1918 to December 1920, and then published in its entirety by Sylvia Beach on 2 February 1922, in Paris. One of the most important works of Modernist literature,...
, Leopold Bloom reflects, "Chamber music. Could make a pun on that."
In fact, the poetry of Chamber Music is not in the least bawdy, nor reminiscent of the sound of tinkling urine. Although the poems did not sell well (fewer than half of the original print run of 500 had been sold in the first year), they received some critical acclaim. Ezra Pound
Ezra Pound
Ezra Weston Loomis Pound was an American expatriate poet and critic and a major figure in the early modernist movement in poetry...
admired the "delicate temperament" of these early poems, while Yeats
William Butler Yeats
William Butler Yeats was an Irish poet and playwright, and one of the foremost figures of 20th century literature. A pillar of both the Irish and British literary establishments, in his later years he served as an Irish Senator for two terms...
described "I hear an army charging upon the land" as "a technical and emotional masterpiece". In 1909, Joyce wrote to his wife, "When I wrote [Chamber Music], I was a lonely boy, walking about by myself at night and thinking that one day a girl would love me."
Musical adaptations
Today, although the individual poems of Chamber Music are less frequently anthologised than the later Pomes PenyeachPomes Penyeach
Pomes Penyeach is a collection of thirteen short poems written by James Joyce.It was written over a twenty-year period from 1904 to 1924 and originally published on 7 July 1927 by Shakespeare and Co. for the price of one shilling or twelve francs...
, they continue to have - as Joyce hoped - an accessible lyricism which has led to a wide-ranging number of musical adaptations, including pieces by Samuel Barber
Samuel Barber
Samuel Osborne Barber II was an American composer of orchestral, opera, choral, and piano music. His Adagio for Strings is his most popular composition and widely considered a masterpiece of modern classical music...
, Luciano Berio
Chamber Music (Berio)
Chamber Music is a composition in three sections for female voice, clarinet, cello and harp by the Italian composer Luciano Berio. It is a setting of three poems from the collection of poetry Chamber Music by James Joyce, whose work was to be a frequent source for Berio...
, Aleksandar Simić
Aleksandar Simic
Aleksandar Simić is an accomplished Serbian composer; according to the US State Department website, he has established a reputation as one of the leading classical composers of the late 20th and early 21st centuries...
, Ivan Božičević
Ivan Bozicevic
Ivan Božičević is a Croatian composer, pianist, organist and jazz musician.-Biography:Božičević was born in Belgrade. After initial piano studies, joins the composition class of A. Obradović at the Belgrade Faculty of Music. Graduates in 1984, earns a Master's degree in 1989...
, Israel Citkowitz, Robin Williamson
Robin Williamson
Robin Williamson is a Scottish multi-instrumentalist musician, singer, songwriter and storyteller, who first made his name as a founder member of The Incredible String Band.-Career:...
, Dr. Strangely Strange
Dr. Strangely Strange
Dr. Strangely Strange were an experimental Irish folk group, formed in Dublin in 1967 by Tim Booth , vocals and guitar, and Ivan Pawle bass and keyboards.-Career:...
, Syd Barrett
Syd Barrett
Syd Barrett , born Roger Keith Barrett, was an English singer-songwriter, guitarist, and painter, best remembered as a founding member of the band Pink Floyd. He was the lead vocalist, guitarist and primary songwriter during the band's psychedelic years, providing major musical and stylistic...
, Martyn Bates of Eyeless in Gaza
Eyeless in Gaza (band)
Eyeless In Gaza are a Post-punk musical duo of Martyn Bates and Peter Becker, based in Nuneaton, Warwickshire, England. They have described their music as "veer[ing] crazily from filmic ambiance to rock and pop, industrial funk to avant-folk styles." Formed in 1980, the group went into hiatus in...
, and Jim O'Rourke
Jim O'Rourke (musician)
Jim O'Rourke is an Irish-American musician and record producer. He was long associated with the Chicago experimental and improv scene...
and Steve Shelley
Steve Shelley
Steven Jay Shelley is an American drummer, best known as the drummer of alternative rock band Sonic Youth.-Biography:...
of Sonic Youth
Sonic Youth
Sonic Youth is an American alternative rock band from New York City, formed in 1981. The current lineup consists of Thurston Moore , Kim Gordon , Lee Ranaldo , Steve Shelley , and Mark Ibold .In their early career, Sonic Youth was associated with the No Wave art and music scene in New York City...
.
In 2008, Fire Records
Fire Records (UK)
Fire Records is an independent record label in London, England. The label was founded by Clive Solomon in 1986 and is currently run by James Nicholls.-Current roster:*Giant Sand*Guided By Voices*Howe Gelb*Josephine Foster*Wooden Wand*Bobby Conn...
released a two-disc compilation featuring all thirty-six poems set to music by contemporary alternative acts, including Mercury Rev
Mercury Rev
Mercury Rev is an American alternative rock group, that formed in the late 1980s in Buffalo, New York. Original personnel were David Baker , Jonathan Donahue , Sean Mackowiak, a.k.a...
, Gravenhurst
Gravenhurst (band)
Gravenhurst is a vehicle for the music of the singer-songwriter, record producer and multi-instrumentalist, Nick Talbot, who lives in Bristol, England and is signed to Warp Records.-History:...
, Ed Harcourt
Ed Harcourt
Ed Harcourt is an English singer-songwriter. To date, he has released five studio albums, two EPs, and thirteen singles. His debut album, Here Be Monsters, was nominated for the 2001 Mercury Prize...
, and Willy Mason
Willy Mason
Willy Mason is an American singer-songwriter.- Early life :He was born in New York, the son of Jemima James and Michael Mason, both folk singers. When Mason was five, he and his family moved from New York to West Tisbury, Massachusetts on the island of Martha's Vineyard...
.
External links
- Poems and Exiles at themodernword.com
- Complete online version of the text
- Joyce, J. Chamber Music, Elkin Mathews, London, 1907, a digitized copy at Internet ArchiveInternet ArchiveThe Internet Archive is a non-profit digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It offers permanent storage and access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, music, moving images, and nearly 3 million public domain books. The Internet Archive...
.