I made a Spotify playlist to listen while watching Jupiter and Saturn’s ‘cosmic kiss’. With the selection of music, I portray the conjunction as a love affair.
Ik heb een Spotify-afspeellijst gemaakt bij de zeldzame ‘kosmische kus’ van Jupiter en Saturnus. De geselecteerde muziek volgt de beeldspraak van een liefdesaffaire.
Ēriks Ešenvalds
Stars
For a cappella choir and six water-tuned glasses (2011), lyrics by Sara Teasdale (1930).
| Alone in the night On a dark hill With pines around me Spicy and still |
| And a heaven full of stars Over my head White and topaz And misty red; |
| Myriads with beating Hearts of fire The aeons Cannot vex or tire; |
| Up the dome of heaven Like a great hill I watch them marching Stately and still |
| And I know that I Am honored to be Witness Of so much majesty |
Brian Eno
Stars
From the soundtrack ‘Atmospheres and Soundtracks’ for the documentary ‘Apollo’, later entitled ‘For All Mankind’ (1983).
Gustav Holst
Jupiter and Saturnus
Two movements from his orchestral suite ‘The Planets’ (1916), portraying the planets as gods and heroes from Roman mythology: ‘Jupiter, the Bringer of Jollity’ and ‘Saturn, the Bringer of Old Age’.
Hildegard von Bingen
Karitas habundat
Antiphon, to accompany a psalm (12th century).
| Karitas habundat in omnia, de imis excellentissima super sidera atque amantissima in omnia, quia summo regi osculum pacis dedit. | Love abounds in all, from the depths exalted and excelling over every star, and most beloved of all, for to the highest King the kiss of peace she gave. |
Daniel Herskedal
The Mistral Noir
A dark, majestic wind translated into sound by composer and tubist Daniel Herskedal (2015).
Pale Honey
Lay All Your Love on Me
Cover of the ABBA classic by Swedish rock band Pale Honey (2017), originally written by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus (1981).
| I wasn’t jealous before we met Now every woman I see is a potential threat And I’m possessive, it isn’t nice You’ve heard me saying that smoking was my only vice But now it isn’t true Now everything is new And all I’ve learned has overturned I beg of you |
| Don’t go wasting your emotion Lay all your love on me |
| It was like shooting a sitting duck A little smalltalk, a smile and baby I was stuck I still don’t know what you’ve done with me A grown-up woman should never fall so easily I feel a kind of fear When I don’t have you near Unsatisfied, I skip my pride I beg you dear |
| I’ve had a few little love affairs They didn’t last very long and they’ve been pretty scarce I used to think I was sensible It makes the truth even more incomprehensible ‘Cause everything is new And everything is you And all I’ve learned has overturned What can I do |
Röyksopp
You Know I Have to Go
Featuring Jamie Irrepressible, from ‘The Inevitable End’ (2014).
| You know I have to go There’s nothing more to say ‘Cause you’re better off alone It’s got to be this way You know I’ve got to go There’s nothing more to say Surely you will know In the light of day |
| I’ve learnt how to stay gracious in defeat ‘Cause I’ve never been victorious And now you offer me to feel complete You’ve given me your trust ‘Cause I wanna give the honesty you need Nothing false or dubious I want us to be all that we can be I want this for the two of us |
| Wish I had the courage to explain To let myself be heard I wish there was a way to break the chain But I struggle with the words Say you wanna take me to your bed But it’s hard to know Maybe it’s because we’re off our heads Maybe this is love |
György Ligeti
Atmosphères
The lovers’ ways are separated again, leaving a space that only seems empty, but is full of meaning and memory. Ligeti’s ‘Atmosphères’ (1961) is the same: the musicians play tiny repeated motives, together creating a rich texture that is static and dynamic at once.
Henk Vogel 