Back at the piano mill this year to play music by Erik Griswold, Michael Hannan, and Beatrice Tomlinson. An experimental piece of mine, using elements of the Australian birdsong from Messiaen's Canyon to the Stars (1974) was premiered.
We had 14 pianos playing the score; each section lasted about 2 minutes and each performer played the rhythms of the section twice over that time using improvised pitch, but using the visual guidelines on the score. After our rehearsals, section 4, the Magpie, was shortened to one minute with free repetitions, with section 5 rhythms being played just once over two minutes. This worked a bit better.
We had 14 pianos playing the score; each section lasted about 2 minutes and each performer played the rhythms of the section twice over that time using improvised pitch, but using the visual guidelines on the score. After our rehearsals, section 4, the Magpie, was shortened to one minute with free repetitions, with section 5 rhythms being played just once over two minutes. This worked a bit better.
