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Maria Grenfell  

A Feather of Blue

Duration: 09' 00" Year: 2000
for piano trio

  • Programme Note

    Commissioned in 2000 by the NZTrio, A Feather of Blue takes its title from a phrase in a poem called A View From A Window by New Zealand writer Kevin Ireland. I have always admired the wry humour and brightness of Kevin Ireland’s writing and many years ago set three of his poems for soprano and mixed ensemble. As a kind gesture Mr Ireland sent me a copy of his book of poems Skinning A Fish, and I was particularly struck by the imagery of colours, flowers, feathers and birds in this poem, which illustrates rain pouring down a window pane and giving way to a burst of sunshine after a storm.

    Maria Grenfell

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Martin Lodge  

Aequora tuta silent (all the sea was quiet)

Duration: 06' 00" Year: 2006
for viola, alto saxophone and electronic effects

  • Programme Note

    When Virgil penned his great story of national mythology for the Roman state and empire, he called it The Aeneid, since the poem recounts the travels and adventures of Aeneas, a latter day Ulysses. As Aeneas and his fleet are sailing from Carthage toward Italy they encounter a violent storm and seek shelter in the protected harbour of a small island off the coast of North Africa. Here rocky outcrips provide a haven. Aequora tuta silent Virgil writes – the water is calm and silent.
    Friendly sounds echo back and forth across the water between the cliffs.

    Notes taken from Toru, Atoll CD (ACD 143)

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Mike Nock  

An Accumulation of Subtleties

Duration: 07' 04" Year: 2008
for jazz trio

Yvette Audain  

An Irksome Vengeance

Duration: 05' 00" Year: 2009
for clarinet and cello

  • Programme Note

    “I enjoyed playing the first performance of ‘An Irksome Vengeance’ with Yvette. The piece explores quite complex rhythmic patterns at a high level of expertise, calling to mind jazzy and folk-type drive with well-executed lyrical connections. The audience seemed to relate warmly to the work, so I think it is well deserving of future airings." – Katherine Hebley, cellist, Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra and 175 East

    This piece was largely informed by my involvement in the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra’s Remix the Orchestra courses, during which fascinating syntheses of classical and hip-hop musics are created.

    I have an all-encompassing view of music and have never shied away from influences outside the ‘classical’ genre: in this short work can also be heard a fleeting post-grunge-informed bassline and maybe, even, a slight tinge of progressive rock.

    It recently occurred to me that many of us have a rap song from our formative years to which we know, if not ALL the words, at least most (often entirely despite ourselves!). Upon rediscovering Monie Love’s It’s a Shame (chorus originally recorded by the Spinners and written by Stevie Wonder), the phrase ‘an irksome vengeance’ jumped out at me from the lyrics.

    Upon catching up with a former mentor prior to the composition of this work, I was reminded of the concept of a ‘groove-based’ piece, and to this end I have tried not to let the basic pulse abate for too long at a time, so as to create as much continuity as possible.

    Yvette Audain

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Rachael Morgan  

...and yet, not

Duration: 08' 00" Year: 2005
for flute and cello

  • Programme Note

    Angst: an acute but non-specific sense of anxiety or remorse (Collins Concise Dictionary). This is not intended to be an easy-listening, carefree piece. I wanted to portray a deep-seated sense of angst, creating a feeling of uneasiness in the listener. The flute and cello bear a similar angst, at times dealing with this independently, yet always returning to share in their anxiety. Quarter-tone inflections disconcert the harmonies, with tremolo, flutter-tongue and a recurring minor ninth adding to the tension. The material gradually unravels, only to fold in on itself again, remaining unresolved.

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Peter Scholes (composer)  

Antikythera

Duration: 06' 00" Year: 2006
for flute, 2 bass clarinets and double bass

  • Programme Note

    Antikythera is an island between Greece and a larger island called Kythera. It is the site of a very significant archeological find in 1901. The object was a complex piece of clockwork machinery designed to calculate astronomical positions It has been dated to 150-100 BC.

    The device is remarkable for the level of miniaturisation and complexity of its parts showing a craftsmanship comparable t that of 18th century clocks.

    The music seeks to convey the interaction between the components of the clockwork mechanism and the idea that this think has lain dormant for 2000 years and has been carefully reconstructed.

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John Key  

Barristers of the Blues

Duration: 06' 00" Year: 2004
for jazz band

Mike Nock  

Beautiful Stranger

Duration: 07' 29" Year: 2008
for jazz trio

Jeff Henderson  

Beyond Reason

Duration: 09' 00" Year: 2001
for alto sax, acoustic bass and drums (semi-improvised)

Jeff Henderson  

clums

Duration: 09' 27" Year: 2001
an improvisation by sync / shed with vocal, chamber ensemble and electronics