Scherzo

Description

Commissioned by the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra, the opening ideas of this short but lively work call the listener to attention as they build to release a rushing-away line. The elements of this opening—three repeated notes, the falling bass-line and the scurrying string figures—provide the material from which the rest of the piece grows. The strong contrasts of the opening, however, continue throughout the movement, with frequent surprises as textures and surface rhythms change—sometimes surging forward, sometimes held back. But behind this is the steady one-in-a-bar beat of the classical scherzo, providing a background rhythmic continuity to tie the surface contrasts together.