Book Review: “A Round of Rounds for the 52 Weeks of the Year” by Brien Masters

Reviewed by Debbie Barford, Chicago, IL

By itself, the title of this gathering of musical offerings portends already the excitement of moving from one to the many. A ‘round’ in music, also referred to as a ‘perpetual canon’ is a single line of music written in such a way that it can be sung with different voices coming in at separate times, layering the sound (and harmony) from one to a second and third, and in the case of this collection, as many as five, or more. Imagine that Brien Masters then, after living many years with Rudolf Steiner’s 52 Soul Calendar verses, which follow the soul’s changing relation with the moods of the earth and nature through the round of the year, was inspired to compose these little rounds and accompanying verses, out of his experience of Nature in his own country.

Each round has a verse in English and German, so that the rhythm is gently altered where needed for each language. As one might imagine, there is a great variety from one week to the next. To help with imagining how to flesh out these single lines, there are rehearsal suggestions, and index of lines in both languages, and an index of rounds by the number of voices suggested. In the forward, Brien Masters also imagines a grand performance of all 52 rounds, one after the other, for a full experience of the year in song and verse.

There is much to enjoy and learn for both the singer and the lyrist. One can attempt to play one or more lines on the lyre while singing another, for a 2- or 3-part line. Or simply play and sing the single line and add in chords where it is feasible. Very enjoyable even in the very distanced singing and playing in these uncertain times.

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