Editing Henry Cowell (section)

===Time at Halcyon===

Cowell soon returned to California, where he had become involved with [[Halcyon, California|Halcyon]], a [[Theosophy (Blavatskian)|theosophical]] community in Southern California. Cowell joined the commune after befriending [[Irish Americans|Irish-American]] [[poet]] and former Menlo Park resident [[John Varian|John Osborne Varian]].<ref name=h13>Hammond, p. 13</ref> Cowell's connection to Irish folk music from his father meant he was instantly drawn to Varian, [[Irish nationalism]], [[Irish mythology|Celtic legends]], and theosophy more broadly. Although the residents at Halcyon embraced a tolerant and [[communism|communist]]-leaning lifestyle, their music preferences were considered quite conservative for the time. Varian described it as "sangtified [[ragtime|raggtime]] [sic]" and, "rehymnified hymn music [sic]." Cowell managed to convince members to embrace his music, and wrote incidental and programmatic music to be performed at Halcyon.<ref name=h13/> In 1917, Cowell wrote the music for Varian's stage production ''The Building of Banba''; the prelude he composed, ''[[The Tides of Manaunaun]]'', with its rich, evocative clusters, would become Cowell's most famous and widely performed work.<ref>Hicks, p. 58</ref> Irish symbology later became a broader theme in his music, as an unwitting extension of the [[Celtic Revival]] movement of the 20th century.<ref>Lichtenwanger, pp. xxvii-xxviii</ref>