Music Finland Core

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Every once in while, you get asked to write for a combination of instruments so bizarre that they shouldn’t even be in the same room, let alone the same piece. A duo for bass clarinet and acoustic guitar is about as weird and problematic as it gets, and my first instinct was to refuse. But an ensemble with few (if any) precedents, of a completely open field, can be a powerful lure. The title as such doesn’t have much to do with the music, referring more to the potential for discord and imbalance implied by the combination rather than any real conflict. Rather, my goal was to create a mutually supportive, easygoing back-and-forth, one that brings the instruments as close together sonically as possible and bridges the huge gap – dynamic, timbral, intonational and textural – that exists between them, which meant resorting to some extremes. The guitar part requires two instruments, both retuned to different versions of the bass clarinet’s standing key of B flat. At the outset, the bass clarinet intones a slowly evolving, chant-like microtonal melody in its highest register, playing as quietly as possible, its power contained, while the guitar provides a static harmonic impulse for its long-breathed phrases. The music gradually works itself into a groove, still predominantly quiet, which grows into a more equal, bluesy exchange, rarely straying from the diatonic mode in which the piece began. After a field of minimalist pulses that gradually builds to a climax, the second guitar returns to the microtonal world of the opening, this time bowed, with the bass clarinet using its full length as an overtone resonator. Here the electronics kick in, amplifying and refracting the improvised riffs of the duo, binding the two instruments together in a kind of singularity. For the first time, the bass clarinet can truly let loose, the amplified guitar finally able to join in at high volume. The piece ends with a brief return to the opening tune and a long dissolution into silence.Matthew Whittall

Year of composing

Arranger

Movements

Availability

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

A fragile peace