“La Scène Miniature, a work depicting the murder scene from Albert Camus’s “The Stranger”..re-recreated the narrative in a visceral way, generating sounds ranging from groans and sighs to insects buzzing and aircraft diving.”
“exoticism, and sheer infectiousness”
La Scène Miniature (2009/2017)
Quartet version for Flute (or Violin), Tenor Saxophone (or Bass Clarinet), Cello (or Musical Saw), and Piano. 7 minutes.
Premiered by Either/Or on May 23, 2009 by Jennifer Choi violin, Michael Ibrahim saxophone, David Shively musical saw and Richard Carrick piano.
Performed by Either/OR at the Library of Congress, February 18, 2017 with Margaret Lancaster flute, Vasko Dukovski bass clarinet, John Popham cello and Richard Carrick piano, when the final score was prepared for PSNY publication.
Performed with alternative instrumentations by Argento New Music Ensemble, SOLI Chamber Ensemble, Ariana Kim and colleagues and others.
Score published by and available from PSNY
Commercial recording available from New Focus Recordings.
Program Note:
La Scène Miniature refers to the crucial scene in Albert Camus's l’Étranger, where protagonist Meursault's impulsive action unleashes a series of unforeseen consequences.
This tormented murder scene takes place on a beautifully calm Algerian beach, beginning with a man on the rocks calmly playing the same three notes on a flute over and over as the protagonist approaches. How can music capture the external beauty of this scene, (the wind, sea, birds, and unforgettable sun), alongside the internal conflict both Meursault and his opponent are experiencing (or in Meursault’s case, not experiencing)?
As the title suggests, La Scène Miniature is a descriptive work condensing narrative events of an imagined opera scene into shortened instrumental passages. Quite different in approach to my recently completed Flow Cycle (where musical ideas evolve, transform, and reappear from one composition to the next over the course of an hour), la scène miniature quartet does away with development in favor of capturing precise musical moments.
This is an intimate work where each instrumental grouping depicts a different musical character. The flute and piano play light and quickly embellished melodic figures while the bass clarinet and cello glacially transform sounds into gestures. They eventually come together on a twisted version of a Algerian melody (pulled from Bartok's field work in 1913) which ends with a dizzying North African dance blended with soaring microtonal lines above with static, bell-like chords in the piano.