Output details

Hunshigo

Hunshigo is a large-scale work for violin and piano. It is 45 minutes long in a single movement and was commissioned by Darragh Morgan. It was premiered at The Queen’s University of Belfast in 2009. The work was the main item on a CD dedicated to my music that was released by the American label, Altarus. It is commercially available in many countries and has received reviews in a number of periodicals including Tempo magazine and the Journal of Music In Ireland.

Research Goals

1) To develop an approach to the creation of musical ideas that are derived from multiple concepts of consciousness and memory.

2) To explore the implications such ideas have for form, specifically a concept of form that may be described as non-linear.

3) To investigate to what extent non-linear form can generate a memorable climax.

Methodology

• To investigate numerous concepts of consciousness from scientific, philosophical and comparative religion perspectives; to reflect on the manner in which constructs of belief systems have always impacted on musical structures; and to develop musical ideas that reflect the results of this investigation/reflection

• Extensive precompositional sketching and testing of the resulting ideas to establish a working framework for their interaction in a large-scale form. As mentioned in the research goals, this particular focus generated a highly complex ‘non-linear’ form.

• To analyse both models of forms that are non-linear (Feldman’s works in late 1980s) and also the establishment of climaxes (models including Messiaen, Boulez, Sorabji), and to develop a synthesis.