flute and orchestra
“[…] Most recently, the nature of the materials that I use is opening up and changing quite a bit. For example, in my work Catacombs (for flute and orchestra), the source material is drawn from a large number of orchestral and solo literature for the flute. By using an ever-growing amount of source materials, I think my pieces are starting to become overloaded with the content itself, which is somewhat counterintuitive to what many of us are taught about being economical and honing, clarifying, refining ideas. However, not just the quantity of materials has increased, but the emotional palette. Up until about 3 years ago, I didn’t think that I could write humourous music, and I think the truth was that I had not found the way to express humour or whimsy in my music. It also interests me that the more one has put in, the more difficult it is to create an identity for what the work is. As such, I find that work in that vein has an innate ability to renew or refresh itself with repeated hearings, and it becomes a goal to build this element into the music in such a way that I can surprise myself even.[…]”
(Excerpt from an interview with Paul Steenhuisen)
- Score available at CMC National (bureau à Toronto).
- Recording: available at SMCQ’s office