Solace

by Matthew Whittall

for piano

Description

Solace is an extended piece written in solitude over the latter half
of 2020. Unable for a long period to connect thoughts into form, I
turned instead to scale, and the most consoling kind of music I knew:
quiet, improvisatory scatterings of notes, aimless, wandering. Starting
from a passage written in the wake of grief, I added a little music
whenever the mood struck, without thought of where it would go next, or
when it might end. Chords chime gently, ritualistically. Notes try in
vain to form melodies. Fragments are turned over repetitively,
obsessively, like shards of memories, or stuck thoughts. One in
particular returns time and again, seeking a way forward – or perhaps
just a way out.

The piece takes its title from a painting by Bridget Allaire, whose
soft contours and muted colors I found very comforting at the time. An
elegy for a year of much loss, Solace is music of sadness and survival,
mourning and meditation, tranquility and transience, written only for
myself – something I realized I’d forgotten how to do along the way.

Instrumentation

pno

Category

Works for Solo Instrument

Premiere

Risto-Matti Marin, May 22, 2022, Helsinki

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