Unfettered (2020)
BY Dan Drizlikh
A solo piano work influenced by Debussy, drawing influence from his impressionism while adding twists to the solo. Like his works, the piano will flow freely from passage to passage. Most of this will consist of aspects of his etudes such as moving in certain intervals as well as his preludes. Each section will have a vague sense of key a la Debussy’s writing, which will be mostly prominent in the piece.
Unending Chaos (2020)
BY Dan Drizlikh
A generative work built in Max 8. The name is inspired by the current strange times that have uprooted our daily lives. Unending Chaos aims to bring different sound experiences with the same levels of atmospheric chaos and discomfort each time it is played. The piece’s goal is to convey a sense of chaos, tension and pain, which is achieved using mainly a generative patch in Max 8. It creates several sounds at different rates and sometimes increases and decreases volume. This brings a sense of discomfort to the listener, because at certain instances, the pitches and amplitude will stop at whatever setting they are at to create a drawn out dissonant sound.
Irresponsibility (2020)
By Dan Drizlikh
A solo saxophone piece bearing an influence from Berio’s Sequenzas. Irresponsibility intends to convey an image of atmospheric irresponsibility by playing relatively short passages. Achieving that feeling with the techniques and articulation within the solo as well as the contour of the lines. Techniques include microtones, which are the most prominent, flutter tonguing, a rolled “r” sound, multiphonics, where the fundamental note and partial are heard, falls, which are slight downward pitch bends, and growls produced with the throat. The melody plays a few series of notes with some pauses in between as if it tries to tell a story but keeps stopping. The score is proportionally notated a la Berio’s Sequenza, meaning that there is a sense of freedom in rhythm and time. Irresponsibility allows the performer an opportunity to interpret the piece and freedom to modify it to their own abilities.
Remember (2020)
By Dan Drizlikh
Remember is a vocal quartet for two tenors, baritone, and bass adapted from the Christina Georgina Rosetti poem of the same name. The choir takes a mostly traditional route in terms of harmonic and vocal progression in all four voices. A poem about grieving and remembering the loss of a loved one, accepting the change that happened in the way we mourn our loss. It can be viewed as our journey through a tremendous loss of people and way of life. Acceptance of death and reaching a place of peace while thinking of memories of a long-lost past when things were still in the realm of normalcy.
Seeing our current way of life during the pandemic as a loss of how things were makes us remember the old days when life was “normal”.
Triumphant (2020)
BY Dan Drizlikh
This three-movement work captures a victorious feeling with the harmony of a few woodwinds and strings. The impression given is that one is well on their way to completing a journey. No matter what obstacles they encounter, it wouldn't stop them. While the first and third movements have that feeling, the second movement is the only one set in a more “hopeless” mood, representing a major obstacle that one needs to overcome to reach a more victorious conclusion.
Confusion (2020)
By Dan Drizlikh
Confusion is a skeletal orchestra piece with one of each type of selected instrument from their respective families. It is divided into four sections using different time signatures and tempos to work with each other. Represented is the widespread disorientation which is persistent in the harmony, meaning that whenever the instruments come together, they separate from each other and head to paths different from one another. This piece was written during the summer of 2020, staying at home during Covid-19 unsure of what activity is safe to do, feeling confused of what to trust and what would be the best way to stay healthy, opting to limit my life close to home.
Boredom (2020)
By Dan Drizlikh
The concept of Boredom is taking indoor and outdoor sound effects and combining them into a unique orchestra. Using my recorded sounds taken from everyday things I use or hear. In my house, I went around to find whatever sounds I considered fitting and interesting from individual items such as aluminum foil sheets, sink water, the humming of the refrigerator to modified sounds such as dropping nails in a glass cup, paper shredder, and a hedge trimmer. In the outdoors I recorded a faint train horn with the wind blowing, pouring rain, and a car passing by that creates an authentic doppler effect via automated panning and pitch-shifting. During the composition process, I primarily wanted to bring out certain pitched elements with a few pitchless elements. In a way, it would allow Boredom to bring out some sense of melody, even if only on one or two pitches at a time. This work is divided into three sections, two of which are set indoors, which are largely percussive in nature, and one set outdoors.