Polyglot

Solo Trumpet and Wind Ensemble
[fl/picc, ob, cl, bs. cl, bsn, 2 a.sx, tr.sx, br.sax, tpt, hn, 2 tbn, timp, 4 perc]
2023
11’

Written for Valentin Garvie and the Georgia Southern Symphonic Wind Ensemble (Michael Thomas, Cond.)

First Performance: February 2023 (Savannah Cultural Arts Center – Savannah, GA)

Notes

Polyglot was inspired by the diversity of sounds found across spoken languages (and addressed by the «speaking trumpet») as well as by the abundant sonic possibilities offered by the chosen instrumentation (a reduced version of a symphonic wind ensemble) and thus the idea of communicating across languages is also applied to musical styles –in fact, the main inspiration for this piece was the dedicatee’s endless skill at moving from one style to another in an always fascinating manner. And so, as the piece unfolds, the soloist engages different groups and soloists «in their own language» (i.e.. in the duet with a percussionist playing a Persian Darbuka, or the many exchanges with other percussionists, the brass choir, and the ensemble as a whole).

Like a distant brook that appears and disappears once and again throughout a hilly landscape, the micropulse that is heard as this work begins is obscured, sometimes in a subtle manner, sometimes more forcefully, by a pale shroud made up of air, key clicks, and other sounds. Sometimes, the micropulse disappears altogether, leaving only the reverberation of distorted sounds (scraped metal, rubbed drums skins) that create a resonant void. When the micropulse is not obscured, however, different parts join in to make it bolder, louder, brighter, as it reveals a new feature: a metric grouping characterised by its ever changing asymmetry. And so it goes. The pulsating energy that propels the music forward is, after all, a mere excuse for the polyglot in this piece to serve as a sort of bridge between the many sonic worlds that live within this ensemble.   – MG