Godowsky Java Suite: The Bromo Volcano and the Sand Sea at Daybreak (Caleb Hu)

Written by Leopold Godowsky (1870-1938) in 1924.

"Reaching the Sand Sea from Tosari, the most famous mountain resort in Java, we crossed the sea of sand, perhaps the vastest amphitheater in the world, arriving at the Bromo crater at dawn."

"A marvelous sunrise enhanced the terrifying hugeness and transcendental grandeur of the awe-inspiring panorama. The boiling, roaring, rumbling, subterranean forces, seething and spouting up from abysmal depths, the sulphurous vapors and dense clouds, spreading steadily and menacingly over the horizon, suggested scenes from Dante's Inferno, and brought to realization the fact that cataclysmic activities, everlasting fires in the bowels of the earth threaten all that is alive. The appalling thought of the frailty of all human institutions was overwhelming. Cui Bono?...."

"But the bright sun, shedding its glorious light and dispelling all fear and gloom, changed the feeling of a crushing futility into an ecstatic triumphal ode. The mere consciousness that such elemental powers exist alleviates the pain of living. An overpowering feeling of humility, of compassion and tenderness towards all things alive, a passionate adoration for the unknown source of all consciousness, filled the soul. And then we returned...."

—Leopold Godowsky

This is a live recording from my senior recital.

For the nerds, here's an explanation of my difficulty rating system:
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My guide to Romanticism in music:
https://sites.google.com/view/romanti...

My guide to the great classical pianists:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1a...

Classical music iceberg chart:
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