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Eve de Castro-Robinson  

At water's birth

Duration: 10' 00" Year: 2008
for piano trio

  • Instrumentation
    violin, cello, piano (some preparation required); all performers required to speak

    Piano preparation: the strings between c’’’ and a’’’ need to have a flat metal object laid on top to achieve a bright, jangly ringing sonority (especially from mm 26-37). This/these to be removed by the pianist in the section from m 45.

    The three strings F, G, A flat, should have firm rubber wedges between them to create a dull thuddy sonority (for the section at m42), but with a still discernible pitch
  • Programme Note

    At water’s birth is a meditative, ritualistic work, whose sonic palette includes prepared piano sonorities and some vocalising from the players, including whispering, spoken words and whistling.

    The pushing out of the boundaries of the conventional instrumental sounds is something I have employed in other works such as the whistling and knocking on the piano lid in small blue for piano and the bell and tamtam playing in Ring True. The meandering sections of the music suggest a relationship with the forces of water, its depth, currents and undercurrents and there is a sense of ritual in some of the chant-like rhythms.

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John Rimmer  

Fragile Earth

Duration: 10' 00" Year: 2004
for oboe and string trio

Score Sample
  • Instrumentation
    oboe, violin, viola, cello
  • Programme Note

    Fragile Earth

    Fragile Earth is a conservationist’s lament and was inspired by the anti-nuclear poem “No Ordinary Sun” written in the early 1970’s by the celebrated poet Hone Tuwhare.

    The piece presents a brooding chant which undergoes variation by means of rhythmic and textural contrasts, organic growth and fragmentation.

    Fragile Earth was commissioned by Tom and Anne Morris for the Ensemble Philharmonia and first performed on 20 November 2004 at the Auckland Public Library auditorium.

    Fragile Earth

    Fragile Earth is a conservationist’s lament and was inspired by the anti-nuclear poem “No Ordinary Sun” written in the early 1970’s by the celebrated poet Hone Tuwhare.

    The piece presents a brooding chant which undergoes variation by means of rhythmic and textural contrasts, organic growth and fragmentation.

    Fragile Earth was commissioned by Tom and Anne Morris for the Ensemble Philharmonia and first performed on 20 November 2004 at the Auckland Public Library auditorium.

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Dorothy Buchanan  

Late Song

Duration: 08' 00" Year: 2001
for flute (doubling piccolo/narration), clarinet, piano and narrator

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Gillian Whitehead  

Piano Trio

Duration: 20' 00" Year: 2005

Score Sample
  • Programme Note

    One winter morning, a short walk from the marae at Waihi, on the southern shore of Lake Taupo, I stood on the shore to watch the sun rise. Behind me, a waterfall lead to a small stream that flowed into the lake, imposing its own patterns on those of the lake. The water was uniformly grey, but as the sun rose, for a moment the tops of the ripples were golden, with darker valleys between, before the whole area was flooded with light. So the ideas behind this trio have to do with the changing perspectives of patterns in water – in the bubbling of streams, the tumble of a waterfall, in the spiralling eddies where stream meets lake at sunrise.

    In the opening movement, a group of short themes and ideas initially form a mosaic-like section, which recurs in developed and varied forms around more reflective passages. The second movement reverses the first, in that slow, sustained sections are interrupted by more energetic material, and the final movement draws all the previous ideas together.

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Robin Toan  

Twitter

Duration: 09' 00" Year: 2008
for flute, two saxophones and piano

Score Sample
  • Programme Note

    Twitter portrays the sounds of birds that I heard in Western Park, Freemans Bay while running my dog. In this heightened reality you can hear a plethora of birds, ranging from small chirpy sparrows and mynahs to large more sonorous pigeons and magpies. Often the exuberant character of my dog slips in as well while he chases after birds. Throughout the piece I have used chromatic melodies and added note chords to depict the diverse pitches made by birds and syncopated rhythms to reflect the erratic nature of bird song.

    The first movement has a bouncy feel to it. There is a reoccurring motif played by the soprano saxophone that is present much of the way throughout the movement. The added note chords and syncopated rhythms give off a jazzy vibe towards the end. I imagine the birds to be having a good time despite being teased by my Yorkshire terrier.

    I have titled second movement the birds at at dusk. The movement opens with birds twittering which is characterized by flutter tonguing and sustained notes. Out of this comes a languid melody played by the saxophone. As time progresses the melody is passed around the instruments and the supporting notes grow into chords. The movement ends as the birds roost.

    An active and insistent character saturates the final movement. The birds are darting around in all directions fighting over crumbs left by school kids at lunchtime and my buoyant companion is never out of the action chasing after them as they take flight. The movement is dominated by florid runs by the entire ensemble and syncopated rhythms that provide an unsteady platform for the pandemonium.

    Robin Toan

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