Carl Vine: Defying Gravity (1987)
Date
1987
Authors
Composer: Carl Vine
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Publisher
Canberra School of Music, Australian National University
Abstract
"A recent example of Carl Vine's virtuosic writing for chamber ensemble, Defying Gravity was commissioned with assistance from the Music Board of the Australia Council by the Sydney percussion group Synergy for the first of their 1987 concerts on 20 March in the Broad walk Studio of the Sydney Opera House. As can be seen in the layout diagram reprinted from the score (Figure 7), each of the four Synergy percussionists forms a separate unit comprising three tuned tomtoms and an anvil, two of the players have a single timpano, two a bass drum; all but player 1 have a suspended finger cymbal. Players 1, 2 and 3 move to the centrally placed marimba dming the middle section of the piece and back to their original position for the final section. (In performance it was found necessary to use two marimbas.) Vine's fascination with percussion is evident in earlier chamber works such as Sinfonia (1982), Miniature Ill (1983) and Elegy (1985). For this work, Vine further developed a process of rhythmic polyphony he had employed when writing for a single player: I have always marvelled at the co-ordination and finesse required for even a simple drum roll, while a skilful performance on multiple percussion instruments defies the laws of both probability and physics. In writing for a single percussionist I have always concentrated on producing independent rhythmic lines across several different instruments. In Defying Gravity I wanted to extend this approach so that these lines would appear not only within each part but also across the ensemble as a whole. In live performance, much of the polyphony among the players is visible, and spatial effects such as the division of a rising series of pitches across the ensemble form an important part of the overall effect. For those listening to a recording, it will be helpful to know that pitch relationships between the four units of percussion are a central and unifying part of the compositional process, with a movement from higher pitched instruments (player 1) to lower (player 4). Figure 8 reproduces the composer's instructions on tuning. One might indeed contemplate infinite possibilities: four players with three tom-toms each (high, medium_ and low), four low resonating drums contrasting with the high metallic ping of anvils and the shimmer of finger cymbals stru r with metal beaters, not to mention a variety of stick strokes and the use of the fingertips (see Figure 9). The structure of the piece may be described very simply as a ternary form (ABA). To quote again from the composer's program note: The choice of instrumentation in Defying Gravity helped to determine both the content and structure of the work. The first section uses only tuned tom-toms, which are joined by timpani and anvils in the third and final section. Marimba, entering in the centre of the work, brings with it a new sound world that it eventually dominates as one by one the players explore the delights of this South American invention. The variety of rhythms, textures and tone colours in the first section is remarkable. At first the tom-toms are struck quietly with the fingertips: the combination of shifting metres, repeated rhythmic figures and pointillistic accents across the twelve pitches creates a hypnotic and ritualistic effect. A sudden burst of sticks struck together leads to an extended section where stickwork and fingerwork combine and a number of ostinati arise around which freer rhythmic motifs swirl. After a brief return to the opening material, a clockwork- like ostinato winds the piece up, so to speak: the dynamic level increases steadily, the use of sticks (both on the skins and on the shells of the drums) increasingly dominates and the first section ends in an exuberant display of quasi-rock drumming. Among the comparatively random sounds which follow the climax of the first section is the new sound of he finger cymbal struck by a metal beater. This is, in fact, the beginning of a new accompanying figure for players 2, 3 and 4, while player 1 moves to the marimba to begin the central part of the piece. This accompaniment is so delicate that it retains its profile even after players 2 and 3 have joined player 1 in the stylistic explorations of the marimba music, though eventually the richly polyphonic writing for the three players becomes so dominant that player 4 falls silent. The marimba music is characterised by flowing semiquaver triplets and rapid tremolo chords and it is a massive tremolo chord that marks the end of the middle section, a~ player 4 re-enters the pjece with a forceful drnmming solo that serves as a bridge to the recapitulation of the opening section. The third section contains much that is familiar, though often transformed, and much that is new, notably the anvils and a greater use of beaters. The tempo is quick, and startling contrasts in dynamics and abrupt breaks in the texture bring the work to a satisfying end." -- Brett Johnson
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