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 | Conference in HuddersfieldSat 25th April 2009 - 8:00amTickets Centre for Research in New Music, University of Huddersfield Nothing new? Understanding newness in medieval and contemporary music 25-26 April 2009 Plainsong and Medieval Music Society Centre for Research in New Music University of Huddersfield Including: The use of found material in Sciarrino's Lucie mie traditrici and my own Madrigali in Twelve Parts for Three Trombones By Edward Caine Abstract: "Salvatore Sciarrino's chamber opera Luci mie traditrici (1998) is based around a play by Giacinto Andrea Cicognini(1606-1650) in turn based on the turbulent life of Renaissance composer Carlo Gesualdo (1566-1613), who infamously murdered his wife and her lover. Threaded through the opera as three intermezzi are a series of variations on a chanson, "C'est devenu ce be oeil" by Claude le Jeune (1530-1600), in its original harmonization for three voices. The treatment of the three variations shows a marked shift toward emphasizing sonority as an integral part of the musical structure, as opposed to treatment of pitch. The intermezzos enhance the plot, giving the impression of returning to the same music, each time "marked by the wounds of time" (Sciarrino). This paper explores the methods and reasoning behind the construction of the intermezzi and their use of "found" material in relation to the le Jeune. I argue that such use of found material and structural sonority is an emerging trend in contemporary music. My own piece Madrigali in Twelve Parts for Three Trombones also explores this issue and is based on the popular Renaissance folk tune, "Une jeune Fillette", which I came across in a set of Fantasies by Eustache du Caurroy (1549-1609). This paper will explore how I used the found material to structure pitch, and yet sonority and "extended" technique remain the key structuring points of the piece." more info |
 | Black Hair Ensemble Residency ProjectTue 11th November 2008 - 4:30pmTickets Free Entry Sir Jack Lyons Concert Hall, University of York This was a project put on by the Black Hair Contemporary Music Ensemble. The performance was called "Staring" and involved a number of (mainly improvised) pieces that were developed over 3 weeks. The workshop was for postgraduate performers and composers at the University of York Music Department. It included the first improvised mock-up of "Deep Throat" - a new piece I am writing for solo cello/throat singer, percussion, 'cello, bass clarinet and 4 throat singers. more info |
 | Chimera Concert: Contemporary Music from HungaryFri 20th June 2008 - 6:30pmTickets £6; concessions £5; students £3; u16s free The Jack Lyons Concert Hall, University of York György Ligeti - Chamber Concerto György Kurtág - Grabstein für Stephan '..in Kurtág I had found a musical travelling comrade ... our friendship has remained absolute.' (Ligeti, 1999) The final Chimera Ensemble concert of the season combines works by composers at the University of York with music by the two most highly regarded Hungarian composers of recent years - György Kurtág and György Ligeti. Highly concentrated and evocative, Grabstein für Stephan sets a solo guitar against a scattering of instrumental ensembles with sparse but striking results. Ligeti's Chamber Concerto (1970) is often seen as a summation of his previous decade of work, from the 'mikropolyphonie' of Atmosphères and Lontano to the mechanical approach of Poème Symphonique for 100 metronomes. ... Also includes Edward Caine conducting Ligeti's "Aventures"!! more info |