TYRANNY OF DISTANCE – SYMPHONY #6 - PROGRAMME NOTE
listen
to the interview with Andrew Ford on Radio National October
17
http://www.abc.net.au/rn/musicshow/stories/2009/2713126.htm
and
article
in The Age by Michael Shmith October 14
http://www.theage.com.au/news/entertainment/arts/together-in-perfect-harmony/2009/10/13/1255195783341.html
read review in Reviews page or
http://www.theage.com.au/news/entertainment/arts/journey-of-high-note/2009/10/18/1255800500071.html
Premiere - Saturday October 17th at Hamer Hall, Melbourne
as part of the Melbourne International Festival of the Arts
(see News)
Melbourne Symphony Orchestra conducted by Warwick Stengards
Merlyn Quaife, soprano; Jida Gulpilil, didgeridoo; Tim
Gruchy, live visuals
Photo by Tim Gruchy
©2009
Rumour
has it that the American inventor Samuel Morse said that he
had overcome the ‘tyranny of distance’ when asked to
appraise his invention of the telegraph and Morse Code and
the revolutionary effect it had on communication in America
in the mid 19th
century.
However, most Australians would be more familiar with the
phrase, the
tyranny of distance, as
used by historian Geoffrey Blainey in 1966 to explain how
Australia’s geographical isolation contributed to our
economic and social development and the title of my piece
came from reading this book as a young history student.
It is now the 21st
century
(2009 as I write this) and distance no longer has the same
repressive connotations that it did in Morse’s time
(1830s-40s) or even in the mid 1960s. Our technological and
travel advances mean that we can overcome distance easily:
an e-mail with video, a mobile phone call from most parts
of the world or a trip to anywhere by car or plane in
hours!
My Tyranny
of Distance is a
work of many resonances but is essentially an expression of
two parallel journeys, of an individual and a ‘land’. It is
a philosophical journey that engages with our mortality and
our submission to life. It is an optimistic and positive
journey from ‘dissonance to consonance’, from uncertainty
to acceptance and hope.
Tyranny
of Distance is not
just about the ‘distance’ between countries or cities or
the physical space between us, nor is it about the vastness
of Australia as such, although there are clear references
to the nature of the ‘land’ and the ‘continent’, both
textually and musically. For me, the word ‘distance’ has
other, more pertinent meanings:
•
the
tyranny of the distance of time as it applies to our
mortality and acceptance of what life is about;
•
the
tyranny of physicality and the fragility of our bodies (our
ability and dis-ability – a theme I have explored in other
works);
•
the
tyranny of individual isolation in a sea of humanity – our
island existence;
•
and the
tyranny of intellectual and philosophical distance. In
spite of overcoming the tyranny of distance, our global
community has not overcome, what I would call,
the
tyranny of difference.
Instead of cooperating with each other to meet global,
local or individual challenges, we still kill, fight and
argue over religion, race, politics and territory. We have
learned very little since the first settlers came to
Australia and invoked the tyranny of difference with our
indigenous landowners!
In
addition to the orchestra, there are several other key
contributors to this piece:
The
didgeridoo soloist
has an important role in the work as protagonist,
representative of ‘the land’. It serves to act as a foil to
the orchestra, to engage with it, rather than assimilate
with it. For me, it is an instrument that does not easily
fit into the Western orchestra. Its sound, method of
playing and cultural syntax are so different, that to try
and make it ‘fit’ into a contemporary western piece is to
do just what this piece is alluding to! So, I have tried to
make it co-exist, to function within its own parameters –
the soloist improvises in response to the orchestra – to
battle with the orchestra (in the first movement), to
interact with the journey (in the second) and eventually to
anchor the piece at the end. The land remains, long after
we have completed our journey.
The
soprano soloist’s
role is also paramount, representing the ‘island’, the
individual, the continent; that which stands alone. In the
first and second movements, individuality is implacably
maintained. In the third, the soprano eventually
assimilates.
In the first movement the
choir is the
aggressor, the cause of confusion and uncertainty. In the
second, it is a part of the journey but often expresses
doubt and ambivalence. In the third it reaches some form of
resolution with the soprano and didgeridoo. The choir also
freely vocalizes and plays small percussion instruments.
What is especially exciting for me, as a composer, is to
work with a visual/video
artist on this
piece. I spent a day with Tim Gruchy discussing the nature
of Tyranny
of Distance and I am
very excited to see how he reacts and performs ‘live’ to
the music and to see how his visual creativity merges with
it. To work in this way – to collaborate and cooperate -
also reinforces the intent behind the piece: a co-existence
of difference and distance.
Tyranny
of Distance is in 3
movements, each linked by the didgeridoo:
1.
Island. The text
is taken from John Donne (English poet 1572-1631) and
alludes to the ‘old country’ and a bell motive signifies
death and ‘invasion’. The mood is harsh, confused, angry
and desolate.
•
No
one is an island... everyone
is a piece of the continent, a part of the
main…anyone’s death
diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind; and
therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it
tolls for thee.
2.
Journey.
The text
is taken from various cultures and eras and expresses an
unswerving and unstoppable progression culminating in a
near euphoric dance before trudging to the end of the
journey.
•
There
is no path to truth . . . you must set out on the uncharted
sea and the uncharted sea is
yourself. (Jiddu
Krishnamurti, Indian philosopher 1895-1986)
•
To
know the road ahead, ask those coming
back.
(Chinese proverb)
•
Rise
up nimbly and go on your strange journey to the ocean of
meanings. (Mevlana
Jelalu'ddin Rumi: Persian poet 1207-1273)
•
We
cannot change the direction of the wind, but we can adjust
our sails. (Anon)
•
The
real voyage consists not of seeking new landscapes but in
having new eyes.
(Marcel Proust, French novelist 1871-1922)
•
To
get through the hardest journey we need take only one step
at a time, but we must keep on stepping.
(Chinese
proverb)
•
A
journey of a thousand miles begins with a single
step.
(Lao-tzu, Chinese philosopher 604 BC-531 BC)
•
Life
is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by
the moments that take our breath away.
(Anon)
•
Let
your mind start a journey through a strange new world.
Leave all thoughts of the world you knew before. Let your
soul take you where you long to be. Close your eyes let
your spirit start to soar, and you'll live as you've never
lived before. (Erich
Fromm, German philosopher 1900-80)
3.
Home. Again
the text is taken from various cultures and eras and simply
asserts that it is only the journey that is important.
•
Every
day is a journey, and the journey itself is
home. (Matsuo
Basho, Japanese poet 1644-1694)
•
Life’s
a voyage that is homeward bound (Herman
Melville, American novelist 1819-1891)
•
The
only journey is the one within.
(Rainer Maria Rilke, Czech/Swiss poet 1875-1926)
•
The
journey is my home.
(Muriel Rukeyser, American poet
1913-1980)
Tyranny
of Distance is
dedicated with love and appreciation to my parents and
family.
My
sincere thanks to:
Trevor
Green and Huw Humphreys of the MSO for their encouragement,
trust and support.
Professor Glyn Davis, The Vice Chancellor of the University
of Melbourne, for his role in commissioning the work
through the Vice Chancellor’s Fellowship program.
Brett Sheehy, Director of the Melbourne Festival for his
encouragement and courage to program new Australian music.
Tim Gruchy for his insight and inspired visuals.
Merlyn Quaife (soprano), Jida Gulpilil (didgeridoo),
Jonathan Grieves-Smith (MSO Chorus Master) and Warwick
Stengards (conductor) and for their wonderful musicianship,
advice and support.
The amazing Melbourne Symphony Orchestra and the MSO
Chorus.
Alastair McKean for his always helpful and ever willing
assistance.
My wonderful children, Matthew, Taryn and Callan, and my
family.
Tyranny
of Distance
Instrumentation:
Piccolo
2 Flutes
2 Oboes
Cor Anglais
2 Clarinets in Bb
Bass Clarinet
2 Bassoons
Contrabassoon
4 Horns in F
3 Trumpets in C
3 Trombones
Tuba
Timpani X 5
Percussion 1: suspended cymbal, bell tree, wood block,
medium cowbell, maracas, crotales, shaker, medium gong, 2
bass drums (small and large), 3 bongos
Percussion 2: suspended cymbal, sizzle cymbal, sand block,
rain tree, triangle, tambourine, shaker, maracas, medium
gong, tam-tam, 3 congas (or similar)
Percussion 3: triangle, tambourine, guiro, sand block, wood
chimes, shaker, tam-tam, maracas, low cowbell, small bass
drum, 3 tom toms
Percussion 4: marimba, glockenspiel, vibraphone, chimes
(tubular bells)
Soprano
S A T B Choir
Didgeridoo
Piano/Celesta
Strings
Duration c.38’