Search Music:

This piece was inspired by Plato’s allegory of the cave in which he describes humankind as existing in a world where truth is merely a shadow.

…above and behind them a fire is blazing at a distance, and between the fire and the prisoners there is a parapet; and you will see, if you look, a low wall built along the way, like the screen which marionette players have in from of them, over which they show the puppets. …they only see their shadows, or the shadows of one another, which the fire throws on the opposite side of the cave.

I have used Plato’s allegory more as a point of departure and as an occasional reference point rather than a literal representation of the story. However, there are instances where I have deliberately tried to capture the character of the marionette players, the fire and the shadows.

The purpose of the digital effects, are twofold. Firstly, the delay and reverb should at times create a nebulous quality in which motifs become slightly blurred and imprecise. Secondly, with the aid of amplification and effects, the more intimate colours of the piano strings being stroked or violin and cello pizz are given more presence.

Michael Williams
Notes taken from Ahi – The Ogen Trio, Atoll Records ACD108

• Williams: Behind the Parapet; computer-set 

  Full score | Pdf - computer set
  

• Williams, M.: Behind the Parapet; computer-set 

  Full score | Hardcopy - computer set
  
  $11.50
  • • Quantity:
  • Borrow

• Ahi - The Ogen Trio  Year: 2008 

  CD
  
  $30.00
  • • Quantity:
  • Borrow

• Jonathan Besser and Andrew Pask: Griffith Park  Year: 2005 

  CD
  
  $30.00
  • • Quantity:
  • Borrow

• Jonathan Besser and Andrew Pask: Griffith Park  Year: 2005 

  CD
  
  $30.00
  • • Quantity:
  • Borrow

• Jonathan Besser and Andrew Pask: Griffith Park  Year: 2005 

  CD
  
  $30.00
  • • Quantity:
  • Borrow

• Jonathan Besser and Andrew Pask: Griffith Park  Year: 2005 

  CD
  
  $30.00
  • • Quantity:
  • Borrow

• Jonathan Besser and Andrew Pask: Griffith Park  Year: 2005 

  CD
  
  $30.00
  • • Quantity:
  • Borrow

• Jonathan Besser and Andrew Pask: Griffith Park  Year: 2005 

  CD
  
  $30.00
  • • Quantity:
  • Borrow

• Jonathan Besser and Andrew Pask: Griffith Park  Year: 2005 

  CD
  
  $30.00
  • • Quantity:
  • Borrow

For several years I had been promising Andrew a new piece for bass clarinet, and previously worked in Vancouver with Barry Truax’s POD system to produce some intriguing granulation files derived from notes played by Andrew. These languished unused until 2003 when I heard some wonderful frogs singing in the middle of the night at Chulalongkorn University of Bangkok, and managed to get some recordings. These two sources, plus some transformed temple bell recordings and a mad chorus of police whistles in evening traffic, provided the source material for the soundscape. I began writing the music for bass clarinet around this soundscape.
Much of the bass clarinet part is composed using a synthetic scale which is different in each octave. Although the end result is an arbitrary invention which pleased me, the original inspiration came from exploring the relationship between the Thai seven note scale and pentatonic scales. I had originally been thinking that Thai percussion instruments might be appropriate for the percussion part, but have since decided that the any available instruments may be used. The first performance used a mixture of ‘junk’ percussion (e.g. bowls, cans and flower pots) and bongo drums, but any experiments are welcome.

• Elmsly: Nocturne; electroacoustic part 

  Part - recorded | CD
  
  $10.00
  • • Quantity:

• Elmsly: Nocturne; computer-set 

  Score and parts | Pdf - computer set
  
  $20.00
  • • Quantity:

• Elmsly: Nocturne (clarinet part only); computer-set 

  Parts - written | Pdf - computer set
  

• Elmsly: Nocturne; computer-set 

  Score and parts | Hardcopy - computer set
  
  $20.00
  • • Quantity:

• Elmsly: Nocturne; computer-set 

  Full score | Pdf - computer set
  
  $15.00
  • • Quantity:

• Elmsly: Nocturne; computer-set 

  Full score | Hardcopy - computer set
  
  $15.00
  • • Quantity:
  • Borrow

• John Elmsly: Nocturne; audio 

  Media on Demand | Embedded
  

• Two Works by John Elmsly 

  CD
  
  • Borrow

• Psathas: One Study One Summary; computer-set 

  Parts - written | Hardcopy - computer set
  

• Psathas: One Study One Summary; computer-set 

  Score and parts | Hardcopy - computer set
  
  $70.00
  • • Quantity:

• Psathas: One Study One Summary  Year: 2008 

  Part - recorded | CD
  

• Psathas: One Study One Summary; computer-set  Year: 2008 

  Full score | Hardcopy - computer set
  
  • Borrow

• John Psathas: One Study One Summary; video 

  Media on Demand | External - video
  

• John Psathas: Ukiyo  Year: 2010 

  CD
  
  $30.00
  • • Quantity:
  • Borrow