Thome, D :: Bright Air/Brilliant Fire

Diane Thome's Bright Air/Brilliant Fire, for flutist doubling alto flute and electronics, is a brilliant electronic showpiece in three sections.

From the composer:

'At times my initial compositional impulse is connected with poetic metaphors. Such is the case with Bright Air/Brilliant Fire, which was suggesetd by a quotation from the 6th Century Greek philosopher of mind, Empedocles: 'For by earth we see earth, by water water; by air bright air, and by fire brilliant fire.'

The flute and tape parts are shaped as complementary and contrasting partners in a continuously unfolding sonic structure that moves through time in three overlapping sections. The electronic music opens the pieces very slowly in an ethereal, airy, deliberate manner with the flute responding to its mysterious ambiance in a series of separate phrases.

The electronic music of the second section is articulated through a long succession of slowly changing harmonies. The flutes provides a constant line of ebullient patterns that bubble irrepressibly on the surface of the much more slowly change tape music. The climax dissolves into a descending glissando in the tape, signaling the start of the third and final section of the piece. The third section is the only one to utilize alto flute.

p>Duration: 11'. For advanced players.