for String Orchestra. 6 mins 30 secs.
Variations on Three Themes by Cecilia Anne Walshe. Composed in Tartu, Estonia, August 2024.
Programme Note:
This piece developed after my wife Celia asked me how could I turn a simple theme into an orchestra piece. So I responded by asking her to make up three short themes by singing short melodies to me. She’s not a musician, so it was an interesting challenge!
She came up with the three themes that are heard at the beginning of the piece and then I developed a minimalistic string orchestra piece from them. We were in Estonia at the time for a performance of one of my guitar quartet pieces at a festival. Before composing this piece, we had just attended a concert of Arvo Part’s music, so his influence is certainly heard in this almost tintinnabulation-focused piece.
This piece awaits a premiere.
