Decay is a piece inspired by an earlier piece I composed. The past piece, named A Once-Oiled Machine tried to tell the story of a machine slowly falling into disrepair. Despite this clear link to the original piece, this piece does not focus on just machinery as people, places, nations and ideas themselves can all decay, and be changed. The piece achieves this goal by reducing the piece’s speed throughout. This then gives more emphasis to the polyrhythms and interesting rhythmic contrasts within the piece which work to undermine and tear the piece apart.

Decay

Arc is a piece based on and named after one melodic idea. This melody changes
from moody, violent, contemplative, distant to even playful as it reacts and
interacts with the countermelodies and harmony around it. As such, I feel the
melody has its own arc as it moves away from what it once was while still being
irreversibly connected to the opening melody.
A vital component of the piece is its use of 3/8 and 5/8 time signatures. These
allow for less standard phrase lengths and more interesting metric and rhythmic
development. This development combined with the various tonal centres the
piece travels through allow the piece to remain engaging while still tied to the
same melody.

2nd Year RCS Portfolio

2019

The Return is the first piece I have written for brass in three years. This was the main reason
I wrote the piece for, as a trombone player, it gave me a chance to return to my roots. To 
write something better and more mature for my first and favourite ensemble. 

The protagonist remerges from his defeat, stronger and wiser so he may succeed where he 
once failed. This ‘return’ is the inspiration for my main melody, something heroic yet flawed.
Tragic and yet triumphant. The melody is mainly harmonised by minor chords or open 5ths
yet listen out for midway in the piece where it is accompanied by a much more positive
sounding Lydian harmony. 

The techniques and traditions of the past are rediscovered. Arvo Pärt helped bring the early
renaissance technique of the mensuration canon into the twentieth century with his piece
Cantus in Memoriam Benjamin Britten. I too have used this returning technique within my
piece, however I have applied it to a chorale I harmonised and arranged for brass. This
combination of taking traditional techniques and applying them in a more modern context
was the final reason behind the name of my piece.

1st Year RCS Portfolio

The Return

Old and new. Ice and fire. Negative and positive. The world is full of disparity, opposites everywhere and in
everything. This was the main influence of this piece, to write something new that looked back at the old.
To be in the grey between the two, bound to both yet belonging to neither.
The piece features two main melodies; a modal song-like melody that features near the beginning of the
piece and a minor melody that is featured after the first main mood change. The melodies are often played
over each other and are normally harmonised by chromatic chords, diatonic chords or both.
I would like to dedicate this work to my brilliant pianistic friends, Milly and Douglas, who have helped
shaped the piece into what it is now.

Disparity

The text for this piece comes from The Menologium, a traditional religious Old English
poem that summarises the key events in a calendar year. The excerpt chosen talks of
‘wintres dæg’ meaning winter’s day and the destructive power winter has. From the
seizing or snatching of autumn to the fettering of green fields with frost, this excerpt is
very melancholy and very evocative. I came across this text while ice and snow seized
Glasgow this winter and I was inspired to set it to music. The piece features a through
composed form as well as a balance between more contemporary harmony and aspects
of harmony which would have been used when the poem was originally written.

Wintres Dæg

‘Sonic Events’ was a working title of this piece. A piece that focused on the resonances of different
moments of sound, hence Shadow of the Sound.
I initially chose this orchestration of guitar, piano and percussion to explore a quite rhythmically driven
piece. However, I became interested in writing something based more in musical colour instead,
leading me to write a piece that is different from anything I have written before.
As said before, the piece focuses on the different resonances of the instruments and the interplay
between these sounds. Colour and texture have been prioritised over harmony and melody with certain
sonic events becoming both the melodic motifs and the basis of what harmony there is. The result is a
piece that stretches across seven octaves and focusses on the interesting timbres of all the instruments
involved.

Shadow of the Sound

The Storm King is a piece based around the saying that it is better to be
feared than loved if you cannot be both, and follows the journey of a newly
coronated ruler who tries to consolidate his power with grandiose regal
displays and extravagant balls. Despite this as his influence wains until he
sacrifices his subjects to gain control over even the weather.
The three movements refer to these acts. The first movement is a
fanfare-like and extravagant, the second playful and sprightly and the third
dissonant and unsettling. Additionally, as the piece progresses, it’s style
becomes less tonal and more modern. This modernisation intertwines with
the role of monarchies becoming more ceremonial over time and gives
context to the authoritarian acts the king must commit to keeping his
kingdom an absolute monarchy.

The Storm King

Lilting is a piece that should never feel too stable. It balances tonality, rhythm
and tone to try to evoke both past and present, old and new. The piece is
heavily inspired by Spain and its varied history as both Al-Andalus and España.
 
The two movements are made to contrast each other. The first is inspired by a
slow and steady western renaissance dance, with hints of its contemporary
nature somewhat hidden. The second, however, is made more modern, with a
swift tempo for contrast and its Morrish influence inspiring the ornamented 
melodies and rich vibrato of the movement.

Many thanks to Juliet Evans and the Aurai Recorder Ensemble for their help in
the creation of the piece and helping me approach writing for recorder. I have 
thoroughly enjoyed it, and I hope for another opportunity to work together!

Lilting

This piece was written for the GAIA duo and to be featured in the (now canceled) PLUG 2020 concert series.

When I heard I would be writing for GAIA, I immediately thought about how I could play a part in the duo’s primary mission, amplifying women’s voices. As such, the works of Kassia and Sappho, both Greek poets, who lived a thousand years apart in the Aegean Sea, inspired my piece and gave it its name; Αιγαίο or Aegean.

Musically the piece aims to explore many disconnected ideas, akin to travelling between the Aegean islands, before returning home to the starting material. By combining aspects of contemporary music with ideas from the same ages as the texts, I hope to achieve this journey. Most striking is the use of voice, allowing the text that inspired me to become part of the piece. Additionally, approximations of antiquated modes, including quarter tones, help reinforce how much harmony has changed over time.

Αιγαίο

Hi, my name is Kassia. I write contemporary classical music that explores the past and our relation to it. Inspired by music ranging from sea shanties to medieval plainsong to jazz standards, I create music that blends familiar and unique.
Based in Glasgow and London, I am currently studying under Oliver Searle, in my fourth year at RCS (The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland). During this time I have featured in the past 2 PLUG concerts and worked with the GAIA duo.
Check out my website for a more detailed bio and an overview of my work!

Kassia Bailey