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- Ross Edwards
Chorale and Ecstatic Dance (1993)
(for String Orchestra)- Wise Music G. Schirmer Australia Pty Ltd (World)
Chorale and Ecstatic Dance is in two movements, each of which may be performed separately. There are two versions, one for string orchestra, the other for full orchestra, The serene Chorale is composed in medieval European modalities with East Asian inflections; the Ecstatic Dance is radiant and insistently melodic.
Programme Note
Chorale and Ecstatic Dance presents an immediately attractive surface to the listener. The first movement – simple, austere and drone-based – inflects mediaeval European church modes with South East Asian colours. The second, Ecstatic Dance, originated as a duo for flutes which Edwards contributed to a garland of miniatures by Australian composers in celebration of Peter Sculthorpe’s 50th birthday in 1979. A revised and expanded version was later incorporated into Ecstatic Dances (1990), composed for the flautist Geoffrey Collins. Radiant and insistently melodic, as befits its original celebratory function, Ecstatic Dance subtly blends pentatonic modes with sparkling cross rhythms and has become one of Edwards’ most popular compositions. An orchestral arrangement can be found in volume 13 of the Hush Music Foundation’s collection of music on CD, sales of which benefit Australian children’s hospitals. Chorale and Ecstatic Dance also exists in arrangements for string quartet, string orchestra and full orchestra.