On speaking a hundred names (2010)
Instrumentation: Bassoon
Electronics: Yes
Duration: 9'
Commissioned for Rebekah Heller, as part of ICElab.
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On speaking a hundred names is inspired by the singularly multifarious sound of the bassoon, and its ability to deconstruct and elucidate its own overtone structure. There are many fingerings for most notes, each offering a different color. And producing a single note requires taming its natural predilection for playing a dense collection of pitches. In exploring the instrument and writing the piece, I was reminded of the practice common to many religions of giving many names to a single deity. Generally descriptions of attributes - and sometimes contradictory - these lists strive to represent aspects of an entity too complex to be defined. Reciting names is a meditative practice in some traditions, and this piece is a meditation of sorts, with the angularity of a mind at times struggling with the process. It was written for Rebekah Heller and receives its world premiere tonight.