Australian Music Centre | Breaking sound barriers

Work Overview

Translations was commissioned by Carrillo Gantner as a birthday gift for his wife, Ziyin Wang Gantner. The 1st and 3rd movements allude to her Chinese heritage (Snow in Beijing) and her notable work in the film industry (I wrote the score for the documentary film, Dream House, which Ziyin directed). The haiku interludes (movements 2 and 5) refer to Ziyin and Carrillo's shared love of the refined aesthetic of Japan and the 4th movement (Wilderness) similarly represents their shared history of long distance hiking across Europe, Asia and Australia. The final movement is a testament to Ziyin's love of family and the joy shared across generations.

This work was written for recorder, erhu and string quartet and presents contrasting solo, duo and quintet subsets of that combination, finally revealing the complete sextet ensemble in the final movement.

Written for Genevieve Lacey (recorder), Hao Zheng (erhu) and Flinders String Quartet, the premiere performance was given by them at the Melbourne Recital Centre on 20 March 2018.

Work Details

Year: 2017

Instrumentation: Recorder, erhu, 2 violins, viola, cello.

Duration: 24 min.

Difficulty: Advanced

Contents note: I. Snow in Beijing (recorder and erhu) -- II. Haiku 1 (solo recorder) -- III. Dream House (erhu and string quartet) -- IV. Wilderness (recorder and string quartet) -- V. Haiku 2 (solo erhu) -- VI. Generations (recorder, erhu and string quartet).

Written for: Flinders Quartet, Hao Zheng, Genevieve Lacey

Commission note: Commissioned by Carrillo Gantner for Ziyin Wang Gantner

First performance: by Genevieve Lacey, Hao Zheng, Flinders Quartet — 20 Mar 18. The Salon, Melbourne Recital Centre