The Writing on the Wall

Belshazzar's Feast, written by William Walton in 1930, with libretto arranged from Biblical sources by Osbert Sitwell, must be heard to be truly understood. It is a rich and complex piece that is difficult to describe adequately in words alone, and even with the music in front of me, it was difficult for me to grasp until I had listened several times to a performance recording. After having done so, however, I slowly began to develop an appreciation for the piece and an understanding of its orchestration.

Selected from various passages of the Bible, notably from the Book of Daniel, with some important excerpts from Isaiah and Psalm 137, Belshazzar's Feast tells the tale of the Jewish people during their exile in ancient Babylon, under the rule of the Babylonian king Belshazzar, son of Nebucchadnezzar. It begins with the lamentation of the Jewish people, who have been taken from their homes in Jerusalem and made to serve as slaves to their decadent Babylonian captors. It moves from a mood of sadness to one of anger and outrage as the slaves witness the profane practices of the Babylonain royal court and the desecration of the sacred vessels stolen from the holy temple in Jerusalem when they are used as common wine goblets. This is followed by a brief interlude during which the thousands of Babylonians party hearty and praise their pagan false gods, with fascinating instrumental embellishments: praise to the god of stone is accompanied by a clap-board which simulates the sound of stones striking each other, the god of iron is accompanied by an actual hammer and anvil onstage, while the god of brass is heralded by the horns, along with the gods of gold, silver and wood. It transitions to a quieter, eerie baritone solo in which a disembodied hand is described to mysteriously appear to inscribe words in a foreign language upon the wall. This is, in fact, the origin of the phrase "the writing on the wall."

Although Walton chose to leave it out of the finished work, the story in the Book of Daniel tells of how Belshazzar called for Joseph, known for interpreting dreams and knowledgable in a number of languages, to translate the words. As the libretto continues, the words read "Mene, Mene, Tekel, Upharsin," translated by Joseph as "The days of your kingdom are numbered. Thou art weighed in the balance and found wanting." Belshazzar, naturally, ignores this.

Babylon does indeed fall, to the invading Persian army which marched on the city that night, and Belshazzar himself is slain, as depicted by a sudden and violent exclamation from the chorus in Walton's piece. In the chaos, the Jews escape and are free to return home, amid much jubilation and praise to God for delivering their salvation.

This was definitely a work-in-progress for Walton right up until the night of its premiere at the Leeds Festival in 1931. Originally written as a short work for a small force of instruments and vocalists as commissioned by the BBC, it grew over time as the requirements for telling the tale began to demand more complex orchestration and simply a bigger sound, until it could not longer be performed in a studio nor was it appropriate for broadcast over the radio. The night of its premiere, it is said that conductor Thomas Beecham noted that extra brass instruments were available from a preceding performance of Berlioz's Te Deum, and he suggested to Walton, "As you'll never hear the thing again, my boy, why not throw in a couple of brass bands?" As it turns out, the decision to do so helped make Belshazzar's Feast an instant success, and it has gone on to become one of the most popular works in the English choral repertoire.

I'll admit I didn't like this work at first, because I simply didn't understand it, and my musical background simply didn't prepare me for something this complex. Although the work includes many rather jazzy chords and use of dissonance, as our erstwhile choral preparer Christian Knapp commented, "...this piece doesn't sound anywhere near as avant-garde as it can if it's sung incorrectly." As a result, until we reached the point when we actually sang it more-or-less in the correct key (which, sadly, took a while), I simply didn't understand it. Once we did, though, I got a feel for where Walton was going with it, and I began to see the brilliance behind it. It was definitely an experience I'd want to repeat, and I encourage everyone to read the writing on the wall and see a performance at your next opportunity. I guarantee you won't soon forget it.

Sources:
Writ LargeTony Rogers, Bikwil accessed June 1, 2007
Belshazzar's Feast (Walton)Wikipedia, December 2006

Reviews:
Seattle Times Melinda Bargreen, June 17, 2006

Updated: June 1, 2007
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