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Tehom for bass clarinet, cello and trombone

Tehom for bass clarinet, cello and trombone (258)

This work (commissioned by the Elision Ensemble, Australia) further develops my research into the relationship between compositional processes, notation and interpretation, seen as form-building elements. The work is scored for three predominantly bass instruments (specifically one from each family; wind, strings and brass), the individual characteristics of which, in terms of timbre, articulation, playing techniques, etc, form important aspects of the material, from which the compositional process is developed.

My starting point always involves detailed research into the instruments and their potential as material. I incorporate extended playing techniques as an integral part of the musical fabric, as opposed to effects in themselves. In the context of this work, dense combinations of techniques, specific articulations and dynamic profiles articulate an unfolding formal structure of complex textures, separated by more soloistic music which highlights the individual characteristics of each instrument.

A fundamental part of this research resides in the notation of any given event, through strategies which aim to question the often naïvely-assumed link between the performer, the notation and instrumental technique. The intention is to stress the fictionality of the work in terms of what can or can’t be directly transmitted, creating a new interpretational context. The notation itself, therefore, is seen as a vital part of this discourse, articulating the tensions between notation and performance as material.

These relationships derive directly from the compositional process, which unites the various parameters and materials, and their levels of interaction, through the use of multi-layered generative processes that shape the final gestural nature and surface structure of the material.