These four pieces by Platform 4 composers were written during the summer of 2014 as a response to paintings by artist Lisa O'Brien, and were broadcast on radio Resonance 104.4fm as a part of the Remote Performances project:

http://www.thisisliveart.co.uk/projects/remote-performances-online/

Remote Location 1 by Tom James

'Barn Dance' for wind quintet (2017)

Performed by Ensemble 360 during the Music in the Round: Russia in the Round festival at the Crucible Studio, Sheffield May 2017.

Commissioned by Music in the Round.

Recorded live in the Crucible Studio.

Barn Dance - Tom James

These four pieces were composed by Platform 4 for the Passepartout Duo and were performed by the duo as part of a concert recorded at Upper Chapel, Sheffield on 20th April 2018.

Platform 4 collaboration / live performance  20th April 2018

The Time-Traveller's Hymn - Tom James

Mimesis - Jenny Jackson

In To Stellar Cast: Rework - Chris Noble

Face - Tom Owen

(2018) a short suite for wind instruments

1. Purge - Jenny Jackson (flute solo)
The benefit of being the first composer to start working on the suite was that I had complete freedom over what I wrote, albeit with the knowledge that I needed to create something with enough character to suggest possible ways forward. I decided to make the flute material robust and blatantly aggressive in a way that would capture attention, using the voice extensively to augment and compound the breathless and relentless outpouring. It has been fascinating to see how the others used this material to create their own pieces, like a game of musical consequences.

This is the first time that Platform 4 has collaborated on a suite that is supposed to be performed as a single consecutive entity. We have achieved this by writing the movements in the order they were to be performed, passing the scores on to each other, and in turn deciding which material from previous movements would survive in to the next. Hence, the suite has a unique structure. We decided to start with a piece for solo flute and add an instrument per movement, ending with the full quartet. A fifth (or rather, a first) composer is also involved, and appropriately for today's programme, it's Monteverdi. A rather diva-ish quotation from his Lamento d'Arianna infiltrates the suite during the second movement, and comes to dominate by the Finale.

Platform 4 Melodrama

Purge - Jenny Jackson

(2018) a short suite for wind instruments

3. Dirge / Dart - Chris Noble (flute, clarinet, horn & bassoon)
Dirge / Dart spends half of its time darting and half of its time dirge-ing, not unlike Italian opera. The piece reflects some of the more dramatic mood swings one can reasonably expect from your typical opera sera, or indeed, opera buffa. Along the way there is a nod to Jenny’s flute fireworks, and also to Tom (Owen’s) sparse bassoon bass line, as well as a quote from the powerful Te Drum at the end of Tosca’s first act. The result is something of a (deliberate) farce.

This is the first time that Platform 4 has collaborated on a suite that is supposed to be performed as a single consecutive entity. We have achieved this by writing the movements in the order they were to be performed, passing the scores on to each other, and in turn deciding which material from previous movements would survive in to the next. Hence, the suite has a unique structure. We decided to start with a piece for solo flute and add an instrument per movement, ending with the full quartet. A fifth (or rather, a first) composer is also involved, and appropriately for today's programme, it's Monteverdi. A rather diva-ish quotation from his Lamento d'Arianna infiltrates the suite during the second movement, and comes to dominate by the Finale.

Dirge / Dart - Chris Noble

(2018) a short suite for wind instruments

4. Dance (death) Tom James (flute, horn & bassoon)
Dance (death), is my attempt to summarise my fellow composers’ movements, binding the suite together sufficiently while still showing my own hand. The beginning is from Jenny’s opening flute gesture, and leads to a dark little dance formed from fragments of the other movements. Monteverdi wins out, though, and the final quotation gives a sombre end to the work. We hope this suite provides an entertaining counterpoint to the other lighter works in the programme!

This is the first time that Platform 4 has collaborated on a suite that is supposed to be performed as a single consecutive entity. We have achieved this by writing the movements in the order they were to be performed, passing the scores on to each other, and in turn deciding which material from previous movements would survive in to the next. Hence, the suite has a unique structure. We decided to start with a piece for solo flute and add an instrument per movement, ending with the full quartet. A fifth (or rather, a first) composer is also involved, and appropriately for today's programme, it's Monteverdi. A rather diva-ish quotation from his Lamento d'Arianna infiltrates the suite during the second movement, and comes to dominate by the Finale.

Death (dance)- Tom James

(2018) a short suite for wind instruments

2. Splurge - Tom Owen (flute & bassoon)
Splurge is in two sections: first, a passionate arioso shown from two different perspectives at once, with the flute and bassoon describing the same curved lines in opposite directions. This section exploits the register that is common to both instruments, where the flute sounds warm and mellow but the bassoon sounds more shrill. The second section is a highly condensed Passacaglia, with the bassoon playing a three-note pattern while the flute tries to piece something together out of the 'embers' of Jenny's piece, eventually arriving at the Monteverdi quote: 'Lasciatemi Morire' ('let me die’).

This is the first time that Platform 4 has collaborated on a suite that is supposed to be performed as a single consecutive entity. We have achieved this by writing the movements in the order they were to be performed, passing the scores on to each other, and in turn deciding which material from previous movements would survive in to the next. Hence, the suite has a unique structure. We decided to start with a piece for solo flute and add an instrument per movement, ending with the full quartet. A fifth (or rather, a first) composer is also involved, and appropriately for today's programme, it's Monteverdi. A rather diva-ish quotation from his Lamento d'Arianna infiltrates the suite during the second movement, and comes to dominate by the Finale.

Splurge - Tom Owen

Four Sheffield-based composers showcasing their work and bringing contemporary music to a wider audience.

Platform 4

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