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Pieces No. 80, 81 and 82 |
The set of pieces I've been working on recently (including Piece Number 80 which was premiered in November 2005) go towards the making up of what I think of as the Violin Concerto Project. Many short works will form this ‘concerto' and they may well be used but only in the guise of many different chamber ensembles. Different violinists will perhaps take the solo role in different places over a span of several years. The ‘concerto' may never be assembled to make a conventional structure but always remain in pieces. Piece Number 80 was scored for violin, keyboard, piano, percussion and electronics, and numbers 81 and 82 are for quite different ensembles again. Piece Number 81 has a recorder, guitar, harpsichord and cello besides the violin, and Piece Number 82 is for as many string players as possible and a selection of drums and ‘non-instruments'. As always, my approach to composition follows a pattern and rarely changes. The pieces are rough-hewn and messy to start with, and the music is found very gradually by chipping into the material like a sculptor, eventually bringing the form to the surface. © Diana Burrell