I Have Seen

English | Norwegian

Hva er I Have Seen?

Miles Davis sa: Et maleri er musikk du kan se, og musikk er et maleri du kan høre, og slik er det med komposisjonen «I Have Seen».

«I Have Seen» er et audiovisuelt epos – en ode til menneskehetens dårskap og håp. Det er et ord- og lydmaleri, en musikal-lignende skapelse, med både gripende og intense historier og så dramatisk musikk at man ikke vil forbli uberørt.

Dette kunstverk er et samarbeid mellom den engelske dikteren/tekstforfatteren Neville Potter (kjent for sitt arbeid med Chick Corea og Return to Forever med flere) og Michael Strand, norsk komponist, sanger og gitarist.
Nevilles dikt på 23 vers inspirerte Michael til å lage en fengslende komposisjon som på cirka 48 minutter lang. Hans dramatiske lydmaleri støtter og utdyper bildescenene i den poetiske, kraftfulle teksten, og dermed møtes tekst og musikk i et perfekt ekteskap.

Jeg anbefaler å lese teksten nedenfor, før du lytter til musikken. Dette vil gi deg en idé om hva teksten av dette eposet dreier seg om, og også en bedre forståelse for den musikalske "drakten" jeg kledde teksten i.

Når man lytter til musikken, kunne noen føle behov for å sette dens mangesidighet i bås. I mangel av en bedre beskrivelse for det musikalske mangfold kunne man muligens kalle musikken symfonisk rock eller "art-rock".
Andre vil kanskje si – etter å ha lest det første verset og deretter lyttet til ouverturen, at dette er "programmusikk": En udødelig sjel er vitne til universets begynnelse og dets ekspansjon. Etter hvert kommer livet og menneskene til på jorden, osv. ...
Teksten i alle versene lydmales med musikken, og man reiser ut i et fargerikt, levende og spennende lydlandskap.

Open your mind.
Open your ears.
Close your eyes – and see.

Prosjektet I Have Seen

Skapelsen av I Have Seen har gjennomgått flere faser, og begynte med 17 vers. Den andre versjonen hadde 19 vers, og dagens versjon har 23 vers, ouverture, flere instrumentalpartier, og er cirka 48 minutter lang.

Under den kreative fasen har prosessen vekslet mellom komposisjon/arrangement, og når det var nok oppsparte midler, ble musikken spilt inn.

Medvirkende

Komponert, arrangert og produsert av Michael Strand. Kontakt:
– Bortsett for trommene – og bass på noen av versene – er alle gitarene, taleversene, instrumenter, lydlandskap, sequencer-programmering osv. spilt / utført av Michael Strand.

Med på innspillingen er tre fabelaktige musikere:

– Sangeren Anders Gjønnes (https://www.andersgjonnes.com/home)
Her synger han rollen som Robert i musikalen "Kristina frå Duvemåla", av Benny Andersson & Björn Ulvaeus.

– Den fabelaktige Tom Brechtlein (https://www.tombrechtlein.com/) spiller trommene.
For de som ikke kjenner til Tom: Han har bl.a. spilt med Chick Corea, Wayne Shorter, Al Di Meola, Jean Luc Ponty, Robben Ford, Kenny Loggins, Rickie Lee Jones, Natalie Cole, Eric Johnson, m.m.

– Stanley Clarke (https://stanleyclarke.com/stanley/), en av verdens aller beste bassister, har spilt inn bassene på fem av versene.

– Musikken er mikset av Peter Michelsen hos The Norwegian Sound i Mjøndalen.
Michael Strand laget en ny remix for å løfte frem stemmer og fraser, endret på ouverturen, m.m.

Musikken

Fra den 10. Januar 2025, er min musikk tilgjengelig på mange streaming tjenester, f.eks. Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal of mange flere.
Derfor har jeg fjernet lenken til hele I Have Seen med sine 12 deler, men hvis du har en god grunn å lytte til hele komposisjonen, kan du sende meg en epost og be om lenken.
I mellomtiden har du muligheten å få et inntrykk ved å lytte til korte utdrag. Lenkene er i tabellen til høyre.

Alt etter setting og budsjett kunne «I Have Seen» fremføres med 6–8 musikere, eller med band og orkester.
Verkets fremføring kunne også ha potensiale for å bli et multimedia sceneshow med lysshow, videos, animasjon, sangere, dansere, osv.

For de som er interessert, her er lenken til Performance Instructions i begynnelsen av partituret; den og notene for alle instrumenter blir produsert senere.

I Have Seen – The Lyrics

1. I have seen the dawn of the universe,
   standing, bold and proud.
   The game to end all games, they laughed,
   then wrapped it in a bitter shroud.
   While the horsemen of the Apocalypse
   rode swiftly o'er the crowd,
   and you'll likely feel I'm a foolish man
   to tell this tale out loud.
2. I've seen the eyes of a soul in pain,
   distraught by the wrath of fools;
   entrapped by aesthetic promises;
   laced with the stings of the cruel,
   wondering why he left his home
   to taste their bitter gruel.
   Hoping that someday, somehow,
   he'd overcome the tyrants' deadly rule.
3. I've seen the glow of a bright new star
   reflect in a stagnant pool;
   dimmed by the mindless bigotry
   dressed in the words of a fool.
   So adamant in her view on life
   that no one stemmed her fuel.
   Hoping that through trust and love
   could come to shine a better world renewed.
4. I've seen the building of the pyramids,
   to hide the treasure rare.
   Entombment of the living flesh
   to serve the pharaoh's lair.
   Visitations in the night,
   creating a great despair.
   A million violations of a caring being
   and no one seemed to care,
   and no one seemed to care.
5. I've seen a knight scale battlements
   no mortal man could climb,
   to rescue from that cruel black prince,
   a princess pure and kind;
   and seen him smote an evil spell,
   that through their hearts had been entwined.
   To live to share an honoured life
   in which themselves they'd find.
    
   [ Premonition (instrumental) ]
6. I've seen conquistadors embark
   to conquer unknown lands.
   I've seen them sell their souls for gold
   abandoning all pious stands
   defenceless in their faithless faith.
   So, retribution now demands
   that all be made to pay a price
   for wasted hope and bloodstained hands.
7. I've seen the hurricane awake
   on a golden balmy day;
   to punish all but stoutest barks
   who deep within its jaws did stray,
   with black-green walls of sea and spume
   like devil's armies on display.
   But there were always fearless men
   who'd never yield to dark dismay.
8. I've seen the tempest's anger pound,
   upon a hull of oak.
   I've heard its timbers creek and moan,
   as the violent sea inflicts its stroke.
   And many ships have failed to see
   the welcome dawn unfold its cloak.
   They only live as legends now,
   but of them a thousand tales are spoke.
9. I've seen a thousand armies bold
   a marching off to war:
   Byzantine, Persian, Mongol hordes.
   And each one felt he knew the score,
   but all who won and all who lost,
   are marching bold no more.
   And silence stalks the battlefields,
   wondering what it all was for.
    
   [ "Battlefield Elegy" (instrumental) ]  †† 
   – The painting "Seeking Happiness"/"Suche nach Glück"
   by Carl Röhrig was the inspiration for this instrumental piece.
10. I saw a young boy lose his dog
    and fight to hide his tears.
    I saw him search and search the land,
    till darkness swamped his fears.
    With blooded feet he walked the land,
    his purpose strong and clear:
    to find a friend, who for him
    was something more than dear,
    was more than dear.
11. I've watched a young girl shed the bonds
    of a repressive company.
    And overcoming fierce reproach
    to her unquestioned right to be.
    But there still lurks the wrath of those
    who sight a pious blasphemy
    when faced with loss of specious powers,
    and fear of spirits being free.
12. I saw a gentle man shot down,
    that made me feel unreal.
    I cried for those whose pain is such
    that they no more can feel.
    In times of hate I searched for love,
    in famine searched for meal.
    And even though he died with naught,
    I saw a man refuse to steal.
13. I saw a mighty river flood;
    I watched it taunt the morning dew.
    Upon a golden throne I sat,
    holding orb and sceptre too.
    I've given knighthoods, taken heads,
    and watched as discontentment grew.
    I faced the pain at Agincourt,
    when stronger men they all but flew.
14. I've seen an empire built and lost,
    while most men sat and wondered why.
    Not one man stood to boldly ask,
    why empires strongly built must die.
    But it was clear when screams of terror,
    filled the crimson sky,
    that having more but serving less
    brings mighty kings to cry.
15. I've seen false prophets take their toll *
    on men who seemed so strong.
    Misled by leaders' frantic cries,
    and so fanatically being wrong.
    But there are those who won't accept
    that fatalistic throng;
    who won't succumb to fixed ideas,
    as puppets fed a battle song.
16. I've seen the books of wisdom burned *
    by men who claimed to know
    what minds should see,
    what minds should read,
    what seeds a man should sow.
    I've yearned for knowledge as for love.
    'T was always such a blow
    to feel suppression's mindless bonds,
    while wanting so to fully grow.
17. I've seen once more the mushroom clouds
    that sent a shiver through my spine,
    and breathed for those who breathed the dust
    that permeated such a crime;
    and screamed for those who could not scream,
    through throats that burned like lime;
    and wept for those who could not weep.
    They never had the time.
18. I've seen a man who dreamed a dream
    that all mankind could share,
    who taught that truth and love could win,
    where lies and hate had built a snare.
    Then seen him left by those he helped
    who somehow seemed to dare,
    to throw his dreams back in his face,
    and leave him hanging bare,
    and leave him hanging there.
19. I've seen the hope of a wistful child,
    exuberant with joy,
    and felt the warmth of a love so pure,
    that no man could alloy.
    I saw him drink the morning sun,
    that quadrillion-year-old boy,
    and gazed upon the Milky Way,
    as if it were his favourite toy.
20. I watched a galaxy unfold
    felt wonder as it grew.
    I've seen the universal hope
    in a newborn's smiling eyes of blue.
    But there are some who'd cloud those eyes
    and visions of the few,
    who dare to look beyond this world ‡
    for other worlds to view.
21. I've seen this solar system's mass
    from every point of view,
    from Venus, Pluto, Saturn, Mars
    and even asteroids I knew.
    But Earth impacts and Earth detracts,
    the visions of the few,
    who dare to look beyond this world,
    for other worlds to view.
22. I've seen a wild rose bring to life,
    a wretched desert stark and burned,
    for eons fraught with dust and drought,
    a host of rainbows now returned.
    A place where songs of hope are sung,
    where once survival's voice was spurned.
    The dawning of a brand-new world
    where life's true lessons can be learned.
23. And now I've seen the key to life
    unfold before my eager eyes.
    The mysteries of the universe, revealed,
    emblazoned across our skies.
    And all we have to do is want to see
    and wish to shed the lies.
    To find a better way to live,
    to set the goals, reach for the skies.
    ||: Let's find a better way to live
    let's set the goals and reach the prize. :||
24.  

Comments

†† The Battlefield Elegy could just as well be named Elegy for Our Times, and be performed as a separate piece in a different setting than in the concert version of I Have Seen. Maybe I'll arrange this elegy with a pipe organ.
Taken into consideration that there constantly is war some place on our beautiful planet, "our times" could be any time – mine, your's, our grand parents' our children's ...
Anyway, war is a big atrocity, aberration, and abomination.
To quote Mahatma Gandhi, Non-Violence in Peace and War:
What difference does it make to the dead, the orphans and the homeless, whether the mad destruction is wrought under the name of totalitarianism or the holy name of liberty or democracy?

* Verse 15 (I've seen false prophets take their toll ...): Taken into consideration what happened in the USA and Washington in January 2021, this painting by Neville Potter is a good illustration to verse 15. (Its original title is Vietnam.)

* Verse 16 (I've seen the books of wisdom burned ...)
When I first read the lyrics to verse 16 (verse 15 was written later), I was inspired to put a kind of music to this verse, which resembles Argentinian tango. Back then I neither did know about Argentinian tango music, nor about book burning in Argentina.
Later I got confirmation of the validity of the musical framework to this topic.
In the first demo version of "I Have Seen" you can still hear the original arrangement of the music to the lyrics "I've seen the books of wisdom burned ...", which I since have used for the new verse 15, while verse 16 got a bit more of a tango mood to it.

Book burning, and art destruction has happened many time throughout history, both because it might have similar cultural, religious, or political connotations, and because in various historical cases, books and artworks were destroyed at the same time.

I found out that in 1979, a people's library in Buenos Aires was attacked by masked men who burnt 8 000 books. No official information was given about this event. The most notorious book burning occurred at the Centro Editor's.
Another interesting fact about "forbidden books" is that the Argentinian artist Marta Minujín has used 100,000 prohibited books to construct a replica of the Parthenon in Athens on a Nazi book-burning site in Kassel, Germany.

‡ Verses 20&21 ... the visions of the few, who dare to look beyond this world, for other worlds to view: I came across the engraving called The Flammarion, which I think is a great illustration for these lyrics.
It goes without saying that these lines do not only talk about the physical universe, but also non-physical dimensions, the spirit realm, parallel universes, astral and causal plane, multiverse, or what you want to call it.
 

I Have Seen – omtaler

Stanley Clarke, bassist, composer and founding member of Return to Forever: If this was recorded with an orchestra for a record and submitted for a Grammy, I think it would do very well. There's nothing quite like this!

Tomas Linnes, NXN A&R / Label Manager https://www.nxnrecordings.no/:
This is an impressive and extensive project you have initiated, ...

Carl W. Röhrig, Painter of fantastic naturalism, https://roehrigart.com/en/:
Du har lykkes med å komponere et fremragende stykke musikk!
Ang. album cover: Selvfølgelig kan et verk av meg være et godt visuelt tillegg. Jeg ser et sfærisk romlig motiv som fanger atmosfæren i dette musikalske verket i farger og overlater til betrakteren å tolke noe.
Hvis motivet er utformet for å være for illustrativt og realistisk, kan ikke mangfoldet i musikken og dens innhold ytes rettferdighet. Så målet måtte være å skape et sfærisk ekspresjonistisk maleri.

Frøydis Alvær (norsk barnebokforfatter, teaterpedagog og barneteaterinstruktør):
Nå har jeg kost meg, det vil si, jeg har blitt kastet ut i en mektig strøm av klang, rytme, desperasjon, vemod, håp og mange andre følelser. Hjertelig takk for lyttingen!

Helge Flatland, Kongsberg kulturskole / Kongsberg VGS Musikklinja:
… Det må for øvrig nevnes at musikken var helt storartet!

Arne Kjeldsen:
Her er mine refleksjoner etter å ha hørt musikkstykket. I hodet mitt putter jeg musikkstykket i båsen for “symfonisk rock”. Den første assosiasjonen min gikk til den første LP’en jeg kjøpte på 70-tallet av Jan Akkerman.
Jeg hadde også idoler som Rick Wakeman, Yes, Genesis og gjerne Pink Floyd som ofte laget album som bare bestod av en melodi/et tema som de improviserte rundt gjennom hele albumet. Jeg tenker på mye av det samme da jeg hørte verket ditt.
Det er ikke ofte vi hører slike verk i dag. Nå skal alt gå kjapt, og være over etter 3,5 minutter, som du kanskje kan sammenligne med en notis i avisen. Det du har laget er mer å sammenligne med en dybdeartikkel hvor du får muligheter til å vise spennvidden både i musikken og i ferdighetene dine, spesielt på gitar.
Jeg synes du mestrer dette godt, og står ikke mye tilbake for de jeg har nevnt over.
Håper du får til det multimediashowet du skriver om. Det ville jeg glede meg til å se. Dette er et spennende prosjekt som jeg ønsker deg all lykke med.

Josan McDermott Singer/songwriter:
Michael, you are quite a magician! I have listened to you composition several times. Your music certainly does make one "see".
There is much movement in it, and dynamism. It flows and unfolds on an inner plane.
And texture, You can almost chew it in places. And the melodies and soundscapes re-invent themselves in an intriguing way as they roll out.
It's also very easy to listen to, meditative.
The vocalist's voice is beautiful and a perfect companion to the music. He so well complements and contrasts the soundscape with his expression.
This is quite a piece of work you have created. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to listen to it.
Congratulations.