In 1961 and 1962 Butterley travelled from Australia to Europe and the Middle East. He primarily visited sites of religious significance before going to London to study composition. He wanted to study with Michael Tippett, who was not taking students. Tippett recommended South African-born British composer Priaulx Rainier. Rainier was a highly disciplined composer and expected as much from her students. She did not impose a particular style or idiom on her students, but she was hard on anything she considered lazy. Every note, every gesture, every new idea had to be justified by its contribution to the whole work.
One of the skills Butterley gained was a mosaic approach to composition. A signature feature of his compositions throughout his creative life has been to start with small, seemingly unrelated fragments that coalesce into bigger ideas as the music progresses.
Returning to Australia in 1963, Butterley had an epiphany and conceived a work of chamber music. The concept was to depict in music, his experience of four churches he had visited. That work is Laudes, meaning praises. At its premiere at the Adelaide Festival in 1964, it established Butterley as one of the leading new composers in Australia. The four movements and their corresponding inspiration are as follows:
The Basilica of Sant' Apollinare Nuovo, Ravenna
(sixth century)
The mosaic procession of Virgin Martyrs, serene, bright, calm, joyous, singing, resplendent in white, gold and green. A crisp, snowy Sunday morning. The gentle sound of bells.
The Apse, Norwich Cathedral
(twelfth century)
Norman pillars and arches, strong, dark, massive. Christ the Rock is the foundation.
King's College Chapel, Cambridge
(sixteenth century)
The vaulted ceiling, veiled in a fading autumn afternoon. The rich red and blue of stained glass yielding to the gentle persuasion of candlelight. The praises of angel trumpeters carved high above the organ.
The Church of Reconciliation, Community of Taize, Burgundy
(twentieth century)
Renewal bringing freedom and joy. Praise expressed in involvement, compassion and unity. The bold strength of abstract stained glass.
Click on the audio controls to listen to the first movement. Keep in mind those images, the mosaics, crisp snow and gentle bells. Listen also for fragments of the Te Deum shared between piccolo, clarinet, horn and trumpet in the second half of the movement.
