Winterstate (2013)

Instrumentation: Piano trio.

Duration: 9-10 minutes

Premiered:Nonsemble trio (Flora Wong, Briony Luttrell, Sam Mitchell) at Dots+Loops Drones concert, SYC Studios Brisbane, 3 July 2014.

Additional Performances:Flora Wong, Briony Luttrell, Sam Mitchell, at MONA, April 2015;Flora Wong, Briony Luttrell, Cara Tran, at Sonic State: Indieclassical, MetroArts, June 11 2016

Program Notes

Having come to composition from a background of rock and electronic music, I often go for unusual instrumentations, combining traditional classical instruments with drums, guitars, synths or samplers. Winterstate is my first attempt at the traditional and well-defined form of the piano trio - piano, violin, and cello. This enjoyable challenge was enriched as I developed the work with the Nonsemble trio in mind; I could play on what I love about the unique styles and skills of these three excellent players.The work was inspired by a solo road trip through the picturesque U.S. state of Vermont. Its melodies and textures pivot meditatively around sets of single repeated notes in the cold and stark high register of the piano. The three movements exhibit a kind of symmetry, with the sparse beginning and ending movement bookending a more fluid and active central movement.