Apophenia
Peter Meechan
Ensemble: Wind Orchestra
Solo Instrument: Trumpet
Grade: 5
Duration: 15:00
Year of Composition: 2008
Publisher: Peter Meechan
Year of Publication: 2008
Publisher Catalog Number: PMM046
Available: Yes
How to Acquire: Publisher, Purchase
Links:
Solo B♭ Trumpet (Flugelhorn, Piccolo Trumpet)
Piccolo
Flutes 1,2
Oboe
Bassoon
B♭ Clarinets 1,2,3
B♭ Bass Clarinet
E♭ Alto Saxes 1,2
B♭ Tenor Sax
E♭ Baritone Sax
B♭ Trumpets 1,2,3
F Horns 1,2,3,4
Trombones 1,2
Bass Trombone
Euphonium
Tuba
Drum Set
Percussion 1 (Xylophone, Tubular Bells, Suspended Cymbal)
Percussion 2 (Vibraphone, Bass Drum, Suspended Cymbal, Bongos)
Dedicated to Rex Richardson. Adapted by the composer from the original version for trumpet and brass ensemble.
In three movements.
Program Notes:
“Apophenia is the experience of seeing patterns or connections in random or meaningless data.”
Apophenia is a trumpet concerto in three movements written for American trumpet virtuoso Rex Richardson. Each of the three movements features a different instrument: Movement 1 is for the Bb trumpet, the second is for flugel horn and trumpet, and the third is for trumpet and piccolo trumpet.
Each of the three movements of Apophenia relate to the phenomenon of viewing Dark Side of the Rainbow – a name used to refer to the act of listening to the 1973 Pink Floyd album The Dark Side of the Moon whilst watching the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz, producing moments where the film and the album appear to correspond with each other.
Movement 1 is a fast and furious movement. Solo and ensemble interact at high tempo, swapping and creating new ideas, leading each other in new directions. Aside from the trumpet soloist, the kit player also acts as a quasi soloist. The second movement takes its musical inspiration from the Pink Floyd song "Us and Them". It is during this segment of the film that some of the most amazing moments of connection happen. The final movement is a dance – and a tour de force for the soloist, who begins on the Bb trumpet before switching to the piccolo trumpet (or Eb trumpet) for the fast and furious finale. Many of the coincidences from Dark Side of the Rainbow relate to dancing; however, as long as a piece of music is the same tempo as the original, and the time signature is a regular one, this could be the case across most films. So the composer chose to write a dance that wouldn’t synchronise to too many existing dance scenes!
(Peter Meechan)
