Score
Dances of life and death : for wind orchestra / Ross Edwards.
Library shelf no. 784.8/EDW 1 [Available for loan]
Work Overview
I. Ecstatic Dance
Ecstatic Dance began life as a miniature flute duet
which I later expanded and arranged for many different
combinations. Radiant and persistently rhythmic, I intended it
simply as a joyful affirmation of life.
II. Chorale
Remote and serene, the Chorale resembles a slow, stately
dance whose pensive melodic line evolves gently over a ground
bass. In versions for string quartet and orchestra it is paired
with the Ecstatic Dance as Chorale and Ecstatic
Dance.
III. The Dance of Life and
Death
This dance, which has
been extracted from my Fifth Symphony, depicts a wild
mythological female dancing naked on a corpse and wielding a
short, curved sword to cut through all conceptual ideas.
Unfettered instinct is at play here - the life force as
represented by such universal images as the dancing Hindu goddess
Kali and the frenzied Dionysian Maenads of Greek mythology -
terrifying symbols of both the fecundity and destructive power of
Mother Nature. A driving rhythm adapted from rock music invites
us to break free and energize ourselves in the ecstatic world of
the senses.
Work Details
Year: 2017
Instrumentation: Piccolo, 2 flutes, 2 oboes, cor anglais, 3 clarinets in Bb (3 doubling bass clarinet), alto saxophone, tenor saxophone, 2 bassoons, contrabassoon, 4 horns in F, 3 trumpets in Bb, 2 trombones, bass trombone, 2 tubas, timpani, percussion (3 players), harp, piano, string bass.
Duration: 18 min.
Contents note: I. Ecstatic Dance -- II. Chorale -- III. The Dance of Life and Death.
Written for: John Lynch, Sydney Conservatorium Wind Symphony
Performances of this work
23 Nov 2019: at Australian Stories (Concordia College Chapel). Featuring Adelaide Wind Orchestra, Bryan Griffiths.
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