CALLIGRAPHY |
|
Year:
|
2002 |
|
Type of Work: |
Ensemble |
|
Instrumentation: |
Flute/alto,
clarinet/bass, violin, cello and vibraphone |
|
Length: |
13
minutes |
|
Commissioned by: |
Concorde |
|
Premiere: |
12 May 2002,
Hugh Lane Gallery, Dublin.
Concorde |
|
|
|
The subtle lower resonance and rich tone of the alto flute with its
transparent accompaniment, firstly featuring vibraphone, then cello and bass
clarinet, shows a controlled gesture with a rich variety of texture and
line. Chordal phrases contrast with dense textural waves of motion while
a flowing vibraphone line reappears later, now harmonically condensed.
Energetic movement dominates the second half as angular unison lines rumble
their way in various directions. A central section gradually accelerates
to a stammering ‘quartet versus vibraphone’ argument. A coda shimmers and
pulses to the end.
The title Calligraphy comes from a quote by the Canadian
writer J E Weaver: “I noticed how the wind changed the colours of the grasses
as it wove them together and moved them in rhythms of line and I saw a tangle
of winter prairie grass making spare calligraphy in the wind”.
Douglas Sealy, Irish Times:
“Elaine Agnew’s Calligraphy clings to the lower registers,
with much use of the alto flute, bass clarinet and cello. The violin and
vibraphone throws gleams into the dark as the melodic line travels through the
shades of the valley, seriously but with an occasional skip and jump, before
emerging on a high plateau for a brief and bright rhythmic interlude. The
angularity of much modern music is absent and the melodic cells develop and
repeat most satisfyingly.” |
|
|
|