Program Note:
As a child, I was educated in Yeshiva to seek divine meaning by unpacking the enigmatic language of the Talmud. I found great pleasure in this as a type of repetitive, obsessive meditation on viewing the same material from multiple perspectives. A Thing is a Hole in a Thing is Not re-imagines this devotional action as a means for making sound. The same 64 seconds of sound act as a devotional ‘text’ to be iterated according to changing constraints in each movement of the cycle. As the composer, I act as a sort of scribe (sofer), faithfully transcribing the ‘sacred’ text whose logic you cannot see, but rather, hear.
I (string quartet), Mivos Quartet |
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II (bass flute + piccolo, violin, and cello), Ensemble Pamplemousse |
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III (bass flute + piccolo, bass clarinet, viola, cello, piano, and percussion), Ensemble Adapter |
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IV (bass flute + piccolo, cello, piano + electric organ, percussion, and electronics), Ensemble Pamplemousse |
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V (cello solo), Severine Ballon |
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VI (euphonium solo), Weston Olencki |
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VII (2 celli), Severine Ballon and Jessie Marino |
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VIII (violin solo), Marco Fusi |
*** The cycle is conceived as an evening length performance, though individual works in the cycle are available for programming as stand-alone works. ***