Commissioned by the Pittsburgh New Music Ensemble

Program Note

After composing a series of works with rather generic, abstract titles, Labyrinth marks a return to more programmatic music. Cast in a single movement lasting approximately thirteen minutes, Labyrinth falls into a four part structure. As the title suggests, someone gets caught in a maze, though I think it's open to interpretation whether that someone is the audience or the performers. In my sketches, I refer to the trapped entity as the 'searcher.' The searcher and the labyrinth each have their own pitch material. This is most clear during the first section, where the pulsating and repetitive material of the labyrinth lures the more melodic searcher material into a trap. The second section finds our searcher exploring the labyrinth, looking for an escape with increasing exasperation. From this point on, the respective pitch materials are very much intertwined. The musical labyrinth is comprised of many abrupt changes of texture, meter, and tempo. The third section begins when the searcher reaches a peak of frustration and the whole ensemble bursts into frantic octaves. Gradually, the texture thins out - our searcher calms down and gains a degree of determination with which to start the final section. This begins with material hinted at earlier, which is developed along with variations of other previous material, building to a head, until, with a final flurry, our heroic searcher escapes the evil labyrinth (I think...).

Perusal Score