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Solo
2021
Vibraphone
- Program Notes
- In the fall of 2019, I began having conversations with composer Kory Reeder about making a piece where every sound was of the same duration. My first instinct for this “whole note piece” was to write it for a chamber ensemble of piano, mixed winds and strings, and a large array of pitched and non-pitched percussion instruments. I reasoned that if rhythmic complexity – a common component of my music at the time – was off the table, I would need many different timbres spread out over a large pitch register for the piece to have any interest. In the spring of 2021, I was sitting in yet another Zoom meeting and was profoundly uninterested in whatever was being discussed. When these situations arise, I like to sketch out musical ideas: on that day, it was a canon at the unison. After the meeting, I played through what I had made, found the results to be satisfactory, and kept going. Realizing that the opening material fit within the range of the vibraphone, I challenged myself to stay in that range for as long as possible. After a while, it became obvious that the “whole note piece” I had been struggling with for two years was for solo vibraphone. All the worries about register and timbre fell away, and the piece took on its identity: one instrument, four timbres, and a lot of patience. 70-75 minutes of quiet, decaying sounds. Structurally, the piece is flawed and fractured. There will be sections that seem to go nowhere. There will be sections that seem to be leading towards a goal only to slip away or take a detour into another idea. A large section of repeated chords (2 – 6 times per chord) will build tension only to break into a long, unrelated progression. Repeated single tones (5 – 12 times per tone) are the only formal markers. These repeated tones serve as moments of rest, of “clearing the air.” The different timbres (mallets, bows, metal beaters, etc.) expand the sonic character of the piece as well as allow for subtle affectations of the duration. Finally, the piece ends with one possibly programmatic component – the act of giving up, of letting go.
- Recording Notes
- Recorded on October 21, 2022. University of Nebraska at Omaha Seth Shafer - Recording, Mastering Executive Producer - Antoine Beuger
- Record Label
- Edition Wandelweiser Records
- Performer Credits
- Anthony Donofrio
- Publisher
- Anthony Donofrio Music
- External Links