CHAMBER WORKS
a dance with a jelly-fish (2022)
For mezzo-soprano and cello.
Duration: 2' (approx.)
Composed for Jenny Duck-Chong and James Larsen, in conjunction with Halcyon's First Stones Vocal Writing Intensive Program.
dance with a jelly-fish celebrates the luminescent grace of these underwater creatures. When I was composing this work I imagined a child, perhaps at the beach or the aquarium, seeing one of these bulbous glowing jellies for the very first time. dance with a jelly-fish seeks to embrace one's curious and playful side.
Silver Shrike (2022)
For string quartet.
Duration: 6'30" (approx.)
Originally composed as an art song for soprano and piano from the song cycle Leaving the Nest (2021), I had a lot of fun arranging this piece dedicated to the Grey Shrike-Thrush into a lively string quartet!
The Power of Stillness (2022)
For string quartet.
Duration: 7' (approx.)
The Power of Stillness was inspired by the music of Arvo Pärt, particularly his use of the tinntinnabuli method seen in works such as Für Alina (For Alina) and Fratres (Brothers).
The tinntinabuli method is a compositional device combining two types of voices: one which uses notes solely of the tonic triad, and the other moving diatonically in stepwise motion.
As a result, Pärt's works often have a meditative, static effect. When I first heard Fratres, I felt compelled to sit still and rest in the harmonic echoes - a mindful, cathartic moment in time.
In The Power of Stillness, I wanted to express a deep sense of radical acceptance in the face of emotional pain. I explored elements of the tinntinnabuli method to establish the foundation of the work, a recurring theme that grows into different emotional states of being.
Leaving the Nest (2021)
Song cycle for soprano and piano, with words by Grazia Marin.
Duration: 20' (approx.)
Leaving the Nest is a personal response to encounters had with three unique Australian birds whilst out bushwalking around my parents property in Seaview, West Gippsland Victoria.
1. Jitter Cry (for the Superb Lyrebird)
2. Aquila Audax (for the Wedge-tailed Eagle)
3. Silver Shrike (for the Grey Shrike-thrush