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JOYCE BEETUAN KOH
MUSIC • SOUND
THAT SUNNY FEELING
for soprano, counter tenor and baritone is a musical response to the 1950 oil painting 'Burong Hitam, Matahari Manusia' by Indonesian painter, Affandi.
Commissioned for the Pictures @ Southeast Asian Exhibition 2021,
National Gallery Singapore.
Duration: c. 5 minutes
Commissioned for the Pictures @ Southeast Asian Exhibition 2021,
National Gallery Singapore.
Duration: c. 5 minutes
BUDDIES
for viola, saxophone, and percussion.
Falling, rising, chasing
I skip, slide; you flutter.
Tossed, all three stacked.
Off we go, moving, listening.
Bear a part, banter,
weep, every grief,
in heart, sorrowful
Buddies, I know.
Commissioned by Christoven Tan.
Duration: c. 6 minutes
Christoven Tan, viola,
Samuel Phua, saxophone
Cheong Kah Yiong, percussion
Falling, rising, chasing
I skip, slide; you flutter.
Tossed, all three stacked.
Off we go, moving, listening.
Bear a part, banter,
weep, every grief,
in heart, sorrowful
Buddies, I know.
Commissioned by Christoven Tan.
Duration: c. 6 minutes
Christoven Tan, viola,
Samuel Phua, saxophone
Cheong Kah Yiong, percussion
ISSKIMMER
for sheng, percussion, yangqin, guzheng and double bass is a collection of six movements ranging from 20 seconds to 2 minutes. Isskimmer, means “shimmering ice” in Swedish.
The creative impulse is to combine specific tone colours of the five instruments to produce distinct sonic characters. Along the compositional process, the visual imagery of different ice states revealed itself.
The tranquil chords from the Sheng and the Gu Zheng with the resonance of the Da Luos are suggestive of ice shards in movements 1, 3, and 6. The resultant timbre of the membrane of the Hua Pen Gu and the pizzicato of the Double Bass is evocative of the crackling sound of walking on hardened snow in movement 2. Coloured by the Wind Gong's fluttering whispers, the Yang Qin's tumbling figure is reminiscent of the downward trail of a sledge in the snow in movement 4. Finally, the shimmering rhythmic cymbal underlaid by an unsuspecting talea in the Yang Qin is expressive of the frosted ground in movement 5.
1. Isskärva 1Skare
2. Isskärva 2
3. Kälke
4. Tjäle
5. Isskärva 3
Commissioned by Ding Yi Ensemble 2020.
Duration: c. 6 minutes
The creative impulse is to combine specific tone colours of the five instruments to produce distinct sonic characters. Along the compositional process, the visual imagery of different ice states revealed itself.
The tranquil chords from the Sheng and the Gu Zheng with the resonance of the Da Luos are suggestive of ice shards in movements 1, 3, and 6. The resultant timbre of the membrane of the Hua Pen Gu and the pizzicato of the Double Bass is evocative of the crackling sound of walking on hardened snow in movement 2. Coloured by the Wind Gong's fluttering whispers, the Yang Qin's tumbling figure is reminiscent of the downward trail of a sledge in the snow in movement 4. Finally, the shimmering rhythmic cymbal underlaid by an unsuspecting talea in the Yang Qin is expressive of the frosted ground in movement 5.
1. Isskärva 1Skare
2. Isskärva 2
3. Kälke
4. Tjäle
5. Isskärva 3
Commissioned by Ding Yi Ensemble 2020.
Duration: c. 6 minutes
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