Zodiac Turbulence
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YouTube Video of the Entire Performance (L) Please view the video from 18:00 to watch the performance of Zodiac Turbulence from the Throbbing concert, performed by the Sydney Conservatorium Modern Music Ensemble with Anthony Clarke conducting. Soundcloud Excerpt (R) |
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Programme Note
The Zodiac is a cycle used to map the path of the sun and stars across the "heavens", and was used by the ancient Greeks and Babylonians. It contains 12 divisions, and was the basis for the modern calendar and seasonal division.
As the Zodiac was originally devised to divide the heavens of the ancient world, which is now understood to be the universe, Zodiac Turbulence depicts the turbulence found within the universe. This exists in many forms such as gravitational pressures, solar winds, black holes and the constant, unstoppable expansion of the universe.
Musically, this concept is depicted by applying turbulence to the fundamentals of western tuning, which uses 12 pitches. This is done by the use of microtonal pitches, thus expanding musical possibilities. The structure of the work is palindromic and uses 12 sections that each contain a series of tone colours realised by the ensemble. Each is distorted by a process of some kind; this could be a gradual retuning of the harmony over time, a gradual change of register by transposing parts up or down, or even a rhythmic distortion by expanding or contracting the overall length of a texture.
Instrumentation: Fl, Ob, Cl (doubling bass), Tpt, Tbn, 1 Perc, Pno, Vln I, Vln, II, Vla, Vc
Performances of this work:
10 Sep 2010: "Throbbing", Sydney Conservatorium of Music. Featuring Sydney Conservatorium Modern Music Ensemble and Anthony Clarke.
Programme Note
The Zodiac is a cycle used to map the path of the sun and stars across the "heavens", and was used by the ancient Greeks and Babylonians. It contains 12 divisions, and was the basis for the modern calendar and seasonal division.
As the Zodiac was originally devised to divide the heavens of the ancient world, which is now understood to be the universe, Zodiac Turbulence depicts the turbulence found within the universe. This exists in many forms such as gravitational pressures, solar winds, black holes and the constant, unstoppable expansion of the universe.
Musically, this concept is depicted by applying turbulence to the fundamentals of western tuning, which uses 12 pitches. This is done by the use of microtonal pitches, thus expanding musical possibilities. The structure of the work is palindromic and uses 12 sections that each contain a series of tone colours realised by the ensemble. Each is distorted by a process of some kind; this could be a gradual retuning of the harmony over time, a gradual change of register by transposing parts up or down, or even a rhythmic distortion by expanding or contracting the overall length of a texture.
Instrumentation: Fl, Ob, Cl (doubling bass), Tpt, Tbn, 1 Perc, Pno, Vln I, Vln, II, Vla, Vc
Performances of this work:
10 Sep 2010: "Throbbing", Sydney Conservatorium of Music. Featuring Sydney Conservatorium Modern Music Ensemble and Anthony Clarke.