brutalist steppes

(2018) 3.2.2.3. 4.2.3.0. timp. 2 perc. strings.

program note:

brutalist steppes was written during my time studying abroad at the Conservatoire National Supérieur Musique et Danse de Lyon.

Sainte Marie de La Tourette is a monastery located just outside Lyon, France. It was designed by Le Corbusier, and Xenakis served as the engineer for the project. When I visited the site, I was captivated by how Le Corbusier worked with concrete. Using plywood molds, he allowed the concrete to ooze out between the pieces of wood in order to create a messy, yet organic effect. I believe this to be a commentary on built forms vs. organicism in architecture. He provided the forms for this building to come into existence but allowed the concrete to settle and dry in whichever way it naturally chose. The monastery is situated on the side of a foothill that overlooks a valley made up of many other rolling hills.

brutalist steppes combines my two areas of study: music and architecture. I use the shape of the hills to inform the shape of some lines within the piece, hence the play on the word steppe. I also use the inorganic/organic concrete lines as the central concept of the piece. To create a similar effect as Le Corbusier, the massive winds/brass chords are written as dyads that contain randomly changing pitches and timbre, so that each attack is unpredictable but within the framework provided.

duration: ca. 3'10"

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