Music Finland Core

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The title is paraphrased from a quote by the poet Bashō, "When you depict a pine tree, you must become the pine tree," referring to the Zen concept of non-duality between object and observer, or the dissolution of the self into the wider continuum of creation. Bashō's point was that a painting of a tree must not be a faithful graphic representation of it, but rather a timeless distillation of the being of that tree in its surroundings, independent of any pre-existing concept of "tree". Simply put, to paint a thing must be to know it, and to know is to be. Thus, an artistic presentation of a thing becomes a devotional act, like meditation. Applying this to an instrument was a logical extension of the idea for me as a musician: to try to portray the instrument's "truth" through the process of composition, to know it on an essential level, to in fact become it. The accordion was an especially attractive vehicle, with its implicit physical connection to breathing, the most basic ritual act in meditation, as well as its sonic resemblance to the Japanese sho, a mouth organ played in gagaku music whose characteristic sound became the starting point for the piece. The form and duration of the piece are largely dictated by the instrument itself, specifically the space of time it takes to extend or close the bellows completely, in the manner of deep, calm breaths.As one might expect from the above, the music is extremely, predominantly slow; it is marked by long pauses and contains few notated rhythms, though this came about for a more explicit reason. The extraordinary musicianship of Veli Kujala, the commissioner and dedicatee of being the pine tree, had already inspired other composers to the heights of transcendental virtuosity. I had thought to write him something along similar lines, but what eventually sparked my imagination was the intensity and commitment of his live performances, which seemed to have a parallel in meditation. I began to imagine what it would be like to turn that intensity inward, slowing down his virtuosity infinitely, reaching toward a pure state of awareness and focus, and bring the performing experience closer to the searing clarity of what, for lack of a better term, one could call enlightenment.© Matthew Whittall

Year of composing

Arranger

Movements

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Abbreviation	Instrument
Woodwind
acl	alto clarinet
afl	alto flute
arec	alto recorder
asax	alto saxophone
barsax	baritone saxophone
barhn	baritone horn
bcl	bass clarinet
bfl	bass flute
bob	bass oboe
bsax	bass saxophone
bsn	bassoon
cbsn	contrabassoon
cl	clarinet
ehn	English horn
fl	flute
hn	French horn
ob	oboe
pic	piccolo
rec	recorder
sax	saxophone
srec	soprano recorder
ssax	soprano saxophone
trec	tenor recorder
tsax	tenor saxophone
Brass
ahn	alto horn
atrb	altotrombone
barhn	baritone horn
btrb	bass trombone
cornet	cornet
euph	euphonium
fhn	flugelhorn
hn	French horn
tba	tuuba
thn	tenor horn
trb	trombone
trp	trumpet
Percussion
dr	drums
glock	glockenspiel
mar	marimba
perc	percussion
timp	timpani
vibr	vibraphone
xyl	xylophone
Strings
db	double bass
gamba	viola da gamba
str	strings
vla	viola
vlc	cello
vln	violin
Other
acc	accordion
cel	celesta
cemb	harpsichord
chords	chords
elbas	electric bass
elg	electric guitar
elorg	electric organ
elpno	electric piano
guit	guitar
harm	harmonium
hca	harmonica
hp	harp
instr	instrument
kantele	kantele
keyb	keyboard
live electr	live electronics
mand	mandolin
mel	melody
org	organ
pno	piano
synth	synthesizer
tape	tape
Vocal
alto	alto
baryt	baritone
basso	bass voice
ch	choir
chc	childrens choir
chf	female choir
chm	male choir
chx	mixed choir
cten	countertenor
mezzo	mezzo-soprano
sopr	soprano
speaker	speaker
ten	tenor
voc	vocal

Symphony orchestra
2222 4331 11 1, str = 2 flutes, 2 oboes, 2 clarinets, 2 bassoons, 4 French horns, 3 trumpets, 3 trombones, tuba, timpani, one other percussionist, harp and strings
Wind band
2252 3 423 21212 3 = 2 flutes, 2 oboes, 5 clarinets, 2 bassoons - 3 saxophones - 4 French horns, 2 trumpets, 3 trombones - 2 cornets, alto horn, 2 tenor horns, baritone horn, 2 tubas - 3 percussionists
Big band
221 4 4, pno, guit, db, dr = 2 alto saxophones, 2 tenor saxophones, baritone saxophone, 4 trumpets, 4 trombones, piano, guitar, double bass, drums
Additional codes
+	fl+pic = flutist doubles on piccolo
/	pno/org = can be played on either piano or organ
lib	ad libitum
obl	obligato
str	str: 65432 = specified number of string players
str min	str min: 65432 = at least 65432
str max	str max: 65432 = not more than 65432
solo	vln solo = violin is the solo instrument in a work not obviously for solo violin