Whirled Music (for bass clarinet & 5-oct marimba)

Description

SCORE DETAILS

Composer: Matthew Orlovich | Date of Composition: 2013; Arr. 2015 | Instrumentation: B-flat bass clarinet and 5-octave marimba | Duration: c. 12 minutes | Composed at the invitation of: Bryan Hummel (Percussionist, USA) | Publisher: Waratah Music | Formats: Score & Parts – Printed Edition (WM 003/ISMN 9790720215044) & PDF Digital Download (WM 003e/ISMN 9790720215051| Edition: 9 September, 2019

COMPOSER’S NOTE

Whirled Music (for B-flat bass clarinet and 5-octave marimba) was arranged in 2015 upon the invitation of American percussionist Bryan Hummel for performance during his tour of the USA in 2016. The original score (for E-flat alto saxophone and 5-octave marimba) was commissioned by Translucent Duo (Bernard Lagana & David Lockeridge) for premiere performance at the Australasian Saxophone & Clarinet Conference 2013, held at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, Sydney, NSW, Australia.

Scored in three movements (A-B-A), Whirled Music hits the ground running at a speed of around 120 crotchet beats per minute, faster still if the performers let it have its head. Fuelled by a high octane blend of semiquavers and chromaticism, the music shifts through gears while negotiating twists, turns, dips, climbs and spirals in a virtuosic display of highly energised unison bebop-like arabesques, fast rumba-like grooves and glimpses of clear, delicate lyricism.

During the second movement, the bass clarinet finds itself travelling on a not-too-bumpy, not- too-smooth marimba highway of gently pulsating tuplets, all the while issuing forth a bravura tale which takes us deep into tense, cadenza-like territory and back out again.

The third movement comes to life in musical ‘fits and starts’ before sending us whirling back in time via a shortcut through Movement 1, then on to a brief coda and a race to the finish line.

I extend my thanks to Patrick Englert (bass clarinet) and Bryan Hummel (marimba) for giving the world premiere performance of this arrangement on the 24th of March, 2016 at the Recital Hall, School of Music, Arizona State University, USA. – MO.

SCORE SAMPLE

SOUND BYTE

Title: Whirled Music (for B-flat bass clarinet and 5-octave marimba) – Excerpt
Composer: Matthew Orlovich
Performers: Patrick Englert (bass clarinet) & Bryan Hummel (marimba).

PERFORMANCES

Some of the known performances of Whirled Music (for B-flat bass clarinet and 5-octave marimba) include:

March 2016 – World Premiere Performance
Performers: Patrick Englert (bass clarinet) & Bryan Hummel (marimba).
Venue: Recital Hall, School of Music, Arizona State University, Arizona, USA.