| Programme notes: | This work is one in a series of works which delve into the nature of diatonicism. It is also my fourth work to employ the expressive subtleties of the squeaky toy. Each Elemental Homunculus features one of the six basic intervals as a constantly recurring pair of notes (for example, E and F in the first movement) and explores its diatonic possibilities. While the earlier movements are centered around pairs of notes which exist in only a few diatonic scales (e.g., only the C major and F major collections in the first movement), the later movements use recurring dyads that have a wider range of diatonic possibilities.
The idea that a work of music (in particular a short work of music) can represent a persona or personality has been of particular interest to me recently, and these character pieces constitute a part of this stylistic trend. Music is essentially wordless communication; it is accordingly analogous to (and a complex version of) emotional expression ? cries, shouts, laughter, etc. So mood and personality, which are nearly indistinguishable from emotional states, lend themselves to musical exploration. These Homunculi each have their own individual attitudes and hang-ups, and yet they have been cut from the same theoretical mold, and drawn from my own personality by some obscure and elusive process. |
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