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The association and rich sounds of a Malay gong, Korean gong, small Japanese gong, Japanese bells (like large sleigh bells), small Chinese gong, a necklace of very small bells worn in the Chinese dragon dance, tubular bells, tamtam and piano (inside out), form the basis for Gong Agong. Many of the instruments were collected in Hong Kong and Malaysia.

The Gong Agong is the large gong in the Malaysian Terengganu Joget Gamelan. It literally means ‘King gong’ and the instrument plays an important structural role in gamelan music, marking off the largest sections. This role is retained in Gong Agong. Rhythmically and texturally, the piano reflects and imitates some of the CD sounds before embarking on an interlocking section which draws on fragments of a Malay Terengganu gamelan piece ‘lagu’ Perang.

The percussive and digitised sounds were created from recordings of improvised performances by the composer which were edited in Protools, convolved and mutated with piano impulses in SoundHack then imported back into Protools for compositing. This process was repeated until a structure was created which was then used as impetus for the piano composition. From then on in, the process became very collaborative with the two composers editing their components as required. Gong Agong was one of the three finalists in the Music Nova International Electroacoustic Music Competition in 2006 (Category B: Compositions for acoustic instrument/voice/ensemble and electroacoustic media).

Sounds for the soundbed (CD) were originally recorded in the Main Studio, Music Area University of Western Sydney, Australia.

• Blom: Gong Agong; electroacoustic part 

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• Blom: Gong Agong; computer-set  Year: 2009 

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• Diana Blom: Gong Agong 

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A medicine bundle is part of the traditional teachings and practices of the First Nations peoples of North America. The title of the first Medicine Bundle piece, which I wrote as one of the many invited composers worldwide to contribute a piece for pianist Ananda Sukarlan’s Concerts for Bali commemorating the Bali bombing of October 2002, was my response to an article published in the Toronto Star, where an elder of the Six Nations Reserve of southern Ontario spoke of a “medicine bundle” found within each of us; a place of healing and transformation which we can tap into in times of strife and need. I envisaged the bundle in the three previous Medicine Bundle pieces as consisting of a bundle of notes from which the performer(s) can freely bring their own sensitivities, experiences and responses to the work’s realisation. Unlike my other medicine bundle pieces however, this Medicine Bundle does not allow for different realisations of the score – instead, the focus is on the different voices “speaking together” in a common tongue.

‘Medicine Bundle’ was first performed in a version for solo piano by Ross Carey at the Dunedin Composers’ Group concert in August 2005.

• Carey: Medicine Bundle (No. 4); facsimile 

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Two Soviet Love Songs for Vocalizing Pianist were composed in December 2003. The idiosyncratic mannerisms of performers have long fascinated me. Often I find myself guilty of habits potentially disturbing a performance. The unconscious movements or noises one makes while performing, however, are inevitable and, perhaps, better not to be avoided. They are there for a good reason. It would be unthinkable if Glenn Gould were asked to play without humming of gesticulating. In fact these two pieces were inspired to some extent by watching a video tape of Gould’s performance, as well as hearing the composer-pianist Frederic Rzewski performing his The Road. The pieces were originally meant for the private entertainment of accomplished pianists who also like to sing, but, as I played them after their completion, I felt that their theatricality seems to demand an audience.

The two Soviet tunes are something I grew up with. They are still extremely popular in China and often heard in karaoke houses. In Katyusha, besides the tune itself, I also quote Shostakovich’s Tenth Symphony (the Scherzo movement) as well as a familiar American show-tune which Shostakovich himself once arranged for orchestra.

Gao Ping, Gao Ping – Chamber Music, NAXOS

• Gao: Two Soviet Love Songs for Vocalizing Pianist; facsimile 

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• Gao Ping: Two Soviet Love Songs for Vocalizing Pianist; video 

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• Gao Ping: Chamber Music  Year: 2006 

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