Inferno

This is the very last section of Italo Calvino’s novel Invisible Cities. Marco Polo says this to Kublai Khan:

“The inferno of the living is not something that will be; if there is one, it is what is already here, the inferno where we live every day, that we form by being together. There are two ways to escape suffering it. The first is easy for many: accept the inferno and become such a part of it that you can no longer see it. The second is risky and demands constant vigilance and apprehension: seek and learn to recognize who and what, in the midst of the inferno, are not inferno, then make them endure, give them space.”

This piece began with that passage.

As I reflect on the countless deaths, suffering, and farewells caused by wars, plagues, and natural disasters occurring around the world, I realize that their scale is far beyond what I could ever fathom.

In the face of darkness and flames, where not even an inch ahead is visible, I tried to think about how we are to go on living.

Though I am a composer without formal classical training, I would like to express my deep gratitude to Maestro Jaap, who encouraged me from our very first meeting and gave me the courage to take on the challenge of composition.

—Jung Jaeil

Jung Jaeil's new work, Inferno, was inspired by Italo Calvino’s (1923–1985) novel Invisible Cities. The novel describes 55 visionary cities through tales told by the traveler Marco Polo to the emperor Kublai Khan. Jung Jae-il conceived the idea for this piece, Inferno, from the final paragraph of the book.

Inferno consists of four movements in total.

1. Introduction (Maestoso)

A massive gate opens with powerful chords. In the following scene, the strings present a theme featuring two descending fifth intervals. The long-breathed melody expands its range vertically as it builds up in layers. The glockenspiel adds transparent harmonies, while the timpani heightens the tension with a regular pulse. Past the climax, a sudden subito piano brings a wave of tranquility, leaving only the fugue theme lingering like an echo.

2. Allegro e furioso

True to the musical direction furioso (furious, raging), this movement fully unfolds a hellish landscape fraught with chaos. Low-register string instruments tenaciously repeat a jagged, saw-toothed motif hovering around the note C, acting much like a basso continuo. Riding this fierce current, the woodwinds and brass navigate their way through the musical trajectory.

3. Lento e espressivo

This section stands in stark contrast to the explosive rushes. The clarinet leads a lyrical melody, enveloped by the bright, transparent tonal colors of the vibraphone and harp. However, the tranquility gradually collapses, eventually reaching a tragic harmony interspersed with growing dissonances. The moments of outcry evoke the sheer devastation of hell.

4. Lento e espressivo

An eighth-note motif grouped in pairs spreads out like gentle ripples. Over this, notes with longer durations form a stepwise progression; though brilliant leaps or agile rushes are absent, the density of the tone color—gradually shifting along the harmonic trajectory—embodies a dramatic narrative in itself. Intertwined with the music, Calvino's final sentences build up the harmonic tension with every change in the text. Particularly at the moment of reaching the resolution—"seek and learn to recognize who and what, in the midst of hell, are not hell, then make them endure and give them space"—the finally resolved harmony delivers a profound catharsis.

New York Classical Review
"evocative, colorful music ... skillfully written and attractive"

"beautiful craft—a sense of form and balance through which everything felt logical and right"

"full of palpable, communicative expression"

Bachtrack
"an absorbing, beautifully balanced work"