ALI for 12 instruments

Info: Written for the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia (Italy) with support of Casa de Velázquez, Académie de France à Madrid (Spain)

Instrumentation: Fl.; Ob.; Cl.; Bn.; Hn.; Tbn.; Pn.; Perc.; String Quartet

First Performance: Rome, Teatro Studio Borgna, Auditorium Parco della Musica, “La Nuova Musica”, 2016.06.07, Ensemble Novecento, dir. Carlo Rizzari

Duration: 10’

Program notes:

[ENG] The Italian word Ali (Wings) inspired and gave me the motivation to work on this sound world that I present now. In this piece the most microscopic actions have a natural reaction from all performers. On the basis we can feel the driving force on the brass section. This synthetic dialogue between the french horn and the trombone is a reference for all reactions around. When everything takes the direction to vanish, the warm air comes to take the sound to a new state. This happens during the entire piece and the succession of sections are constructed with material that comes from the previous one – normally, material with affinities with percussive ideas; gestures with energy to go forward by themselves.

This way of build up it is my reference to the mountains that I imagine in this musical travel. During the entire piece we can feel different height points and suddenly we go into the relaxed situations – this is a kind of imaginary bird route that let it going at the mercy of the wind.

This instrumentation represented an interesting challenger in order to balance the ensemble. I divided it in three classic quartets: woodwinds, strings and two brasses together with piano and percussion. Different balances inside of an altogether sound. This instrumental option was previous attributed by a comity and this duration reflects the necessary time to present and play with the different materials.

Summarizing, the poetic idea of flying it is the most important line on my approach to this work and sustain it from begin to the end.