Ritual Images

This fantastic work conjures images of an ancient tribal gathering. The opening’s mysterious Incantation uses a soft chant-like melody with slight intrusions by the percussion foreshadowing the intense ritual to follow. As the opening builds the driving beat of the ritual takes over with great fire. Percussion infuses this work with relentless energy as the piece draws to a powerful conclusion. Do not miss this one!

Generator was written for Mark Eden and Chris Stell. It was partly inspired by H.R.Giger's paintings of 'bio-mechanoids' hybrids between man and machine which exist in bleak visions of the future. These surreal and often disturbing images were the inspiration for Ridley Scott's movie 'Alien' which earned Giger an Oscar in1980 for 'Best Achievement for Visual Effects'.The piece depicts the birth life and death of one of these bio-mechanoids combining 'human' tonal elements with machine-like percussive sounds and extended techniques. It opens with a mysterious and spacious slow section in which sounds emerge tentatively from silence. A series of mosaiclike ideas partly ordered by the performers accompanies a rising melodic progression with 'electrical sparks' symbolising the machine's creation. Eventually an engine-like rhythm ignites and the music comes to life with vigorous rhythmic energy passing through a series of contrasting musical episodes until the symmetry of malfunction death and decay finally brings the piece to extinction.Along the way Generator showcases the extraordinary array of sounds possible on the guitar and blends them with musical influences both ancient and modern. There are many sources of inspiration which through a kind of musical osmosis have been absorbed into the piece. These include techniques used in electronic dance music urban free running obsessive thoughts cloning the harmonic series and its relationship to the blues scale ritualistic chanting and electric guitar techniques. Both guitars are also re-tuned to B B D F# B and E incorporating elements of renaissance lute tuning and ideas in electric guitar playing. The paintings of Max Escher also influenced Generator via what the artist described as 'rhythmic repetitions'. These can be seen in many of his works where patterns and mathematical tricks and illusions like those used in his famous painting 'The Eternal Staircase' create images and structures that are only possible in two dimensions. The evolution of the piece was also shaped to a lesser extent by the films of the Oscar winning British director Mike Leigh whose scripts are strongly based around improvisation by the

Song of Night-Cantus (terme latin signifiant « chant ») est une œuvre méditative d?une expressivité étonnante une sorte de chant qui incite au relâchement et à l?introspection. Chercher la paix intérieure pour ouvrir une fenêtre sur le Moi quand le quotidien nous éloigne du sens de la spiritualité. Partons en quête du véritable centre de notre être. Les images et les pensées suscitées par cette méditation sont celles d?événements de paysages de situations de vie ou de gens avec qui nous avons tissé des liens étroits. [CD inclus : sons de la mer et du littoral (vagues vent chant des mouettes)]

Les tibe?tains utilisent le mot Dzong pour de?finir un monaste?re-forteresse,En effet, on voit souvent dans les images de ces hauts plateaux de l'Himalaya ces imposants ba?timents, recouverts de chaux blanche, surplombants ine?vitablement le village et lui donnant par la? me?me une impression de force, de se?curite? et d'e?ternite?, C'est e?galement une trace e?ternelle de sa spiritualite?,Ces ba?timents de 2 ou 3 e?tages sont une re?fe?rence a? la possibilite? pour chacun des villageois d'un cheminement spirituel quotidien,Quand Pierre Badol m'a sugge?re? la composition d'une pie?ce pour 2 Cors, Percussions et Orchestre a? Cordes, j'ai imme?diatement visualise? l'expression de cette puissance humaine sortie de terre a? co?te? des sommets environnants,Les deux Cors associe?s a? la Percussion refle?tent cette impression de force, ancre?e dans le sol, et presque immobile que de?gage l'architecture des Dzongs, malgre? les intempe?ries, nombreuses et violentes a? ces altitudes,J'ai de?libe?re?ment travaille? sur un continuum entre les deux instruments a? vents pluto?t que, comme cela peut s'entendre dans les oeuvres du passe?, dans une pre?occupation compositionnelle utilisant l'imitation, l'e?cho ou le jeu question/re?ponse,, / Orchestre A Cordes