Embedded Files
Solomon's knot
Solomon's knot
"Solomon's knot" - for prepared grand piano and percussion, 2023.
Recorded by Jérémy Gohier (piano) and Paul Gohier (percussion) during June 2023 at the Conservatory of Aulnay-sous-Bois.
Dedicated to Jérémy Gohier and Paul Gohier.
Based on the biblical tale of the "Song of Songs", this piece puts into dialogue the piano and the percussive instruments through a curious interwoven pattern that constitutes the score. The piano is prepared with a variety of things (screws, E-bows, ...) but mostly with "bows" throughout the lower register which, when played, can produce a beautiful texture of harmonics and multiphonics that provide the background on which the percussion adds subtle layers of additionnal monodic touches.
"Solomon's knot" is the first of a series of score that put into perspective on a symbolic level the meaning of the music which is played and how it is written out on paper.
CLOUDS
CLOUDS
"CLOUDS" - for piano, 2023
Dedicated to Manon Hévin and Colin Roche
Second composition of the series of visual scores, this particular composition explores horizontality both in a melodic way - as the whole composition is based on monody only - as well throughout it's layout as the score is 7.8 meters long.
The idea was to have a single melodic line without any interruption whatsoever layed out in front of the eyes of the interpreter.
The piece is composed through an alternation of passages with no pulsation and others that must be played at a specific speed.
Silence is an important aspect as well of this particular score, as through the playing techniques, it is required to go into deep "pianissimo" nuances - almost close to "al niente".
Et la lumière luit...
Et la lumière luit...
"Et la lumière luit..." - for piano, 2023.
Based off the prologue of Saint John, 1:5 - "the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it" - this score's purpose was to go to the utmost essential and minimalistic way of writing music.
Here, nuances are indicated not by their usual names (pp, mf, ff, ...) but throughout the spectrum of the presence of 'light', thus giving this score a strong visual character. The more the music is visually present, the louder it should be played. The less the music is visually present, the more softer it should be played. Thus is given musically the rendition of the presence of light and darkness.
The Book of Colours
Visions of the Unconscious
"The Book of Colours - Visions of the Unconscious" - studies for prepared piano, 2024-2025
Intended as a book of small miniatures for prepared piano, this collection of works has the particularity of being inscribed upon colorful paper. Each study has its own color based on a particular dream of the composer that contained that color within it. The color of the notations on the score is the one that is opposite of that of the paper.
Each minitiature has a particular - but short - preparation of the piano: screws, superballs, bouncing balls within the chords, percussive mallets, wooden clothing pegs, ...
Thus the attention of the interpreter is fully focused on one single preparation and method of playing.
The studies use a variety of alternating textures and sounds that reflect the weird nature of the dreamlike world: the scenes that happen here do not seem not to be logically intertwined, and one can go from one scene to another without much coherence. The meaning with which one is left with is however a strange sense of cohesion, as though the absurd after all was structured with some hidden foundations that one was unaware of. It is important for the interpreter to reflect this dreamy state of consciousness in which one is almost witness to what happens.
Penrose's Triangle
Penrose's Triangle
"Penrose's Triangle." - for violin, 2024
"Penrose's Triangle" is a three-dimensional score based and written on the impossible object and optical illusion of the same name. Though it bears the name of the mathematician and Nobel Prize laureate Roger Penrose, it was first created by the Swedish artist Oscar Reutersvard in 1934 and was later on much popularized by the works of dutch artist M.C. Escher.
The object itself is a visual paradox and an impossible object. Visually, looking down from a certain angle, the Penrose Triangle seems to form a solid three-dimensional object, yet its construction is impossible. The edges and vertices appear to connect seamlessly, forming a continuous loop that cannot exist in the physical world. Exploiting the perception of perspective and depth, it thus creates this apparent paradox.
"Penrose's Triangle" is made of three bars, each of the following dimensions: 100 cm x 18 cm. As one moves around the object, at a certain angle one can start to notice the sudden emergence of the "Penrose Triangle" where the three seemingly banal bars seem to merge into one another and form the visual illusion of a triangle where height, length and depth are connected. By the visual illusion of the three bars merging into one another, a hidden triangle emerges. This triangle can only be played at this particular angle as it is the only point of view where the different sides of that triangle are combined into a singular coherence. Thus is a two-dimensional triangle projected onto a three-dimensional triangle.
Penrose's Triangle is constructed on the 31-Tone Equal Temperament (31-TET or 31-EDO). This tuning system divides the octave into 31 equal parts. This means each step or "semitone" in the 31-TET system is approximately 38.71 cents.
Musically speaking , the score is constructed on several factors:
- the opposition between white noise and full sounding notes.
- the opposition of extreme nuances.
- the transition between white noise and full sounding notes.
- short phrases that use open strings contrasting with higher melodies in 31 TET.
- the choreographical relationship of triangular gestures of the bow with the object.
- transitions of the bow between "col crini" and "col legno e crini" and from
"molto sul ponticello " to "ordinario".
Alessandro Librio performing the world premiere of an excerpt of "Penrose's Triangle" during the end of the residency at "Projet Bloom" during the month of June 2024 in the french department of the Corrèze.
The object being a three-dimensional score with the music inscribed on all its facets, there is the necessity for the interpreter to move around it in order to play the music. As such, the interpreter will have a choreographical impact on the representation that must be taken into consideration for the interpretation.
Each time the interpreter will have finished playing a certain facet, there will be a certain silence during which one will move in space around the object and place oneself in front of the next facet. With some facets being inscribed either vertically or close to the ground, the body will from time to time move away from the standard playing-position, being slightly tilted on a horizontal axe or a vertical axe.
Axis Mundi
Axis Mundi
"Axis Mundi." - for saxophone quartet, 2025-...
Work in progress
In the continuation of "Penrose's triangle", this project touches upon another aspect of a three-dimensional score but this time based upon the puzzle of the "Rubik's Cube". Four cubes are inscribed with the music, each for one instrument of the saxophone quartet.
Die Nacht der zwei Silbernen Monde
"Die Nacht der zwei Silbernen Monde." - for piano, 2024
Written for the Mauricio Kagel Composition Competition 2024.
"Die Nacht der zwei Silbernen Monde" has a duration of about 7"30 min-8 min.
The piece is constructed by a succession of musical events that are displayed on the pages in a discontinuous way and which are connected with each-other through a red thread.
This red thread guides one through the pages from the first event until the last one.
This is done so as to present in a visual manner the dreamlike state where successive events are linked with eachother through the sole coherence that it is a dream.
The piece requires a light preparation of the piano and uses some extended techniques.
Nocturnal Incantations
"Nocturnal Incantations" - for piano, 2025
Written for the Bela Bartok Composition Competition 2025
Based on a painting by Salvatore Rosa, this piece explores dark and onimous sounds from the lower register in order to paint a portrait of a witches sabbath.
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