Work
Wakatipu
for violin
Borrow/Hire:
To borrow items or hire parts please email SOUNZ directly at info@sounz.org.nz.
About
View score sample here.
Commissioned by the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra for the 2009 Michael Hill International Violin Competition, Wakatipu is a virtuoso romp around the violin, employing angular driving rhythms and unusual scales built on minor seconds and minor thirds.
The title of the piece refers to Lake Wakatipu in Queenstown NZ, and the Maori legend behind it.
One of the great mysteries of the lake is that its level rises and falls every few minutes. Scientists explain that it is due to changing atmospheric pressure - but the legend has it that this fluctuation is caused by the beating heart of a giant demon.
Long ago, the demon abducted the daughter of a local Maori chief and took her to his home in the heights of the ice clad mountains. After the long climb he became tired and lay down to sleep - however, the girl's lover had followed close behind them all the way, and set the giant on fire as he lay sleeping. His burning flesh carved into the ice and snow and created a huge lake - but his heart remained indestructible, causing the rising and falling of the water level to this day.
Commissioned note
Commissioned by the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra for the 2009 Michael Hill International Violin Competition
Performance history
04 Jun 2009: Michael Hill 2009 International Violin Competition
28 Jun 2010: Špaček & Houstoun: Invercargill
06 Jul 2010: Špaček & Houstoun: Palmerston North
08 Jul 2010: Špaček & Houstoun: Auckland
11 Jul 2010: Špaček & Houstoun: Nelson
18 Jul 2010: Špaček & Houstoun: New Plymouth
26 Apr 2015: Ben Baker and Robert Thompson, Violin and Piano (Oxford)
30 Apr 2015: Ben Baker and Robert Thompson, Violin and Piano (London)
07 Jun 2019: 2019 Organ Fundraiser Concert Series | Martin Riseley in Concert
28 May 2020: CSO Studio Series | The Art of Solo Violin
13 Oct 2022: At the World's Edge Festival 2022 | Sei Solo
Performed by Yoo Jin Jang at the 2009 Michael Hill International Violin Competition, winning a special prize for the performance of this work.