Located in the UK
Located in the USA
Located in Europe
- Kevin Volans
The Partenheimer Project (2007)
- Chester Music Ltd (World)
Commissioned by the Ikon Gallery, BCMG and the Deustches Kunstmuseum
Dedicated to Jurgen Partenheimer
- 001(bcl)0/2(2Wtba)210/perc/pf/str(0.0.2.2.0)
- 43 min
Programme Note
The structure and scale of this piece was inspired by the spaces of the Ikon Gallery and the Kunstmuseum in Bonn. The Partenheimer exhibition was to be spread over a number of rooms, so I decided to do the same with the music – 3 ensembles playing in 3 different spaces, but each able to be overheard by the others. This presented me with a few coordination problems, as each ensemble plays at a different speed and I was concerned not to let one ensemble obscure the material of another. Also I decided to write quite different material for each ensemble, only allowing one or two moments when they would come together.
To begin with, I wrote the music of one ensemble from beginning to end, then cut it up and stretched it out to 150% of its length. Then I composed the music of the other two ensembles around this, with long gaps where they didn’t play. In this way I tried not only to avoid filling up the space with sound, but also to draw the listeners from one space to another – to entice them to move around the galleries. The three different ensembles (chosen to give me a maximum contrast of texture and material) also reflects Partenheimer’s use of different media: works on paper, paintings, and sculpture (including ceramics).
Kevin Volans
Performance note
The musicians are divided into three ensembles. Each ensemble should be separated spatially from the other as far as possible, preferably in three separate but interconnecting rooms. There should be audience seating in each space, but the public should be free to move from one space to another.
Ensemble 1: cl(bcl)/2hn(2Wtba).2tpt.tbn
Ensemble 2: 2va.2vc
Ensemble 3: pf/perc
To begin with, I wrote the music of one ensemble from beginning to end, then cut it up and stretched it out to 150% of its length. Then I composed the music of the other two ensembles around this, with long gaps where they didn’t play. In this way I tried not only to avoid filling up the space with sound, but also to draw the listeners from one space to another – to entice them to move around the galleries. The three different ensembles (chosen to give me a maximum contrast of texture and material) also reflects Partenheimer’s use of different media: works on paper, paintings, and sculpture (including ceramics).
Kevin Volans
Performance note
The musicians are divided into three ensembles. Each ensemble should be separated spatially from the other as far as possible, preferably in three separate but interconnecting rooms. There should be audience seating in each space, but the public should be free to move from one space to another.
Ensemble 1: cl(bcl)/2hn(2Wtba).2tpt.tbn
Ensemble 2: 2va.2vc
Ensemble 3: pf/perc