John Stump

John Arthur Stump (March 24, 1944 – January 20, 2006) was an American music engraver and composer.[1] He is best known for his satirical compositions which feature a variety of musical notation jokes, including most prominently Faerie's Aire and Death Waltz (from "A Tribute to Zdenko G. Fibich") (1980). Those works have become well-known among musicians and have been distributed widely, often as posters in rehearsal spaces.[2][3] Stump was extremely shy,[1][2] and his identity as the author of Faerie's Aire was not publicly established until after his death.

John Stump

Early life

Stump was born on March 24, 1944, to Homer and Mildred Stump of Kansas City, Missouri.[2] He grew up in Lakewood, California, and attended Long Beach City College, where he studied composition and orchestration, and California State University, Long Beach, where he played French horn.[2]

Career

Stump obtained a music typewriter and began a career as a music engraver in 1967.[2][4] He briefly sold mail-order copies of Faerie's Aire and a companion piece, but was otherwise reluctant to share his compositional work more widely.[4] In the early 1990s, he switched careers and began working for a friend's consulting company.[4] c. 1992, he began contributing to the events calendar section of the Glendale Focus, an occupation that lasted until his death.[4]

Death and legacy

Stump died of atherosclerosis on January 20, 2006.[4] His remains were cremated, and a memorial service was held at the Vedanta Society of Southern California.[4]

Although Stump identified himself as the composer of his works, his otherwise low profile led to widespread speculation that "John Stump" was a pseudonym.[4] In 2010 and 2012, his nephew published posts on his music blog providing details of Stump's life.[2][4]

Compositions

Stump composed a variety of both serious and humorous pieces over the course of his life.

Faerie's Aire and Death Waltz
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Faerie's Aire and Death Waltz

Stump's best-known work, Faerie's Aire and Death Waltz (from "A Tribute to Zdenko G. Fibich"), is a 1980 satirical composition that features a variety of musical notation jokes. The subtitle possibly refers to Czech composer Zdeněk Fibich.[5] The piece claims to have been "based on a Cro-magnon skinning chant" and "Arranged by Accident". The sheet music contains many very dense clusters of notes, with many extremely short and so high- or low-pitched they reach into the staff above or below them. It is filled with musical directions that serve as non sequiturs, such as "insert peanuts", "release the penguins", and "like a dirigible".

Tom Johnson of Finale described the composition as "perhaps one of the most widely distributed pieces of music notation on the Internet".[6]

The piece is generally thought to be unplayable. However, there have been various attempts to transcribe it into electronic music notation software[7] or to perform it.[8][5]

Other works
  • Prelude and the Last Hope in C and C# Minor from the Opera Marche de I'Oie (March of the Ducks) (satirical, 1971)[2]
  • And Death Shall Have No Dominion (non-satirical, based on the poem by Dylan Thomas, 1994)[4]
  • String Quartet No. 556(b) for Strings In A Minor (Motoring Accident) (satirical, 1997)[2]
  • A Suite for Four Trombones and Four Trumpets (non-satirical, unknown date)[2]

Personal life

Stump was a passionate fan of the Beatles, and once corresponded with their publicist to note minute errors in their published collection.[2] He also created stippling artwork.[2]

References
  1. Kemper, Gary (February 13, 2006). "In Memorium: John Stump". Glendale Focus. 3 (2). p. 3. Retrieved November 27, 2020.
  2. Stump, Greg (March 13, 2010). "John Stump, composer of Faerie's Aire and Death Waltz". Lost in the Cloud. Retrieved November 27, 2020.
  3. Jonette (December 2, 2016). "When Sheet Music Goes Viral". Social News Daily. Retrieved November 27, 2020.
  4. Stump, Greg (January 20, 2012). "Death Waltz Day". Lost in the Cloud. Retrieved November 27, 2020.
  5. Gersten, Jennifer (September 25, 2017). "4 More Unplayable Works (That Were Eventually Played)". WQXR. Retrieved November 28, 2020.
  6. Johnson, Tom (December 15, 2009). "The Mystery of Faerie's Aire". The Finale Blog. Retrieved November 27, 2020.
  7. Doctorow, Cory (March 17, 2015). "Playing the unplayable Death March (but not releasing the penguins)". Boing Boing. Retrieved November 27, 2020.
  8. Lucarelli, Fosco (May 19, 2012). "The Unplayable Score: Faerie's Aire and Death Waltz – John Stump". Socks. Retrieved November 27, 2020.
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