Ok, so it’s the day before the sketches are due for the next weekend. I have sketches for 3/4 different types of material which I’m slowly evolving. I forgot about this, but I also have material which I didn’t get ready in time for the last weekend, which I may take as well just as a matter of interest (although my thoughts have moved on somewhat since then).

I’m finding it difficult not to just write for strings - the ensemble has a very rich combination (Vln, Vla, Vcl. Dbl Bs) and string writing is a bit of a comfort zone for me at the moment. I have some exciting material for strings and winds though which is based on my recent piece for Trio Atem (Sop. Fl. Vcl. Atem). Not to mention the difficulty of incorporating the plucked instruments. It’s also very difficult not to think of the groups as blocks - it’s undoubtedly easier to write for them that way! I was encouraged not to last time though so I should adhere to that notion!

So I’m at a point of indecision with one bit of material - I have some very nice, lush string writing which I’d like to leave intact, but if I do so I feel I really wouldn’t be taking advantage of the ensemble for what it is. Happily, this week I had a seminar at York given by Joe Cutler, and the nature of juxtaposition in his pieces was an interesting compositional idea - I might take that as a cue as to how to structure the slower string material...

It’s very difficult to make a decision at this point though! I’d much rather write my blog, or go and buy more coffee, or spend time on twitter (@eddjc).

I guess another thing to think about at this point, and it’s something I’m finding hard to get my head round, is the fact that what we’re producing is sketch material. In some ways it should make writing it easier - If for example I don’t like the juxtaposed material over the strings then I can always take it out later. This should be quite liberating, but I really am beginning to feel the pressure of needing to produce a final piece, and also to make the best use of my time when I’m out there i.e. utilising the whole group.

All in all I’m beginning to wish I had a couple more weeks to do this! Better get back on with it...

Edd Caine

 Well, it’s about time I started properly getting down to some work for the next Nieuw Ensemble weekend in Amsterdam. The deadline for sketches to be sent out to Amsterdam is the 15th May - scarily close! In the meantime I have also been chosen for Sound and Music/Cheltenham Festival opportunity to write a piece for Danish Accordion Duo TOEAC, which will be running at the same time - I go out to copenhagen to work with TOEAC *the week before* I go out to Amsterdam!

After the last time I stayed up all night typesetting a late submission (about 2 weeks ago) I told myself I wouldn’t do this again! Doh! In my defence, I have been very busy with my Late Music duties, and various bits of typesetting and website work.

So, here we go again. I thought I’d write this blog entry as a prelude to doing some actual work to get my head back into what I am composing. So, apologies - the next bit may seem like I’m planning my work (mainly because I am):-

What worked well from last time:-

The pitch material all seemed quite appropriate and did what I wanted it to do. It’s a good starting point. The string material also worked very well, and will make for a good start to some slow moving material.

The wind and plucked material didn’t work so well. I did realise however how I should be thinking of them in the context of the wider ensemble as a colour, so that’s a good starting point for both the ensemble writing and the plucked instrument writing. One texture in the wind involving “beating” did work pretty well though and I should explore that further.

The best bit of the whole experience was in my arrangement of the source material - this worked very well and clued me in a lot into the layout of the ensemble and what I can do with it. I should revisit it a bit and pull out the best bits.

To focus on for this time:-

At this stage, everything should be full ensemble. I should also work to incorporate Piano and Percussion. I have been working with a fantastic percussionist (Enrico Bertelli of Brake Drum Percussion on a film score project recently so I might call on his help beforehand. I have some ideas for the piano as well. I find piano particularly difficult to write for because I am a pianist. Also it doesn’t quite fit with the texture again. I think I should be thinking of it more in the same terms as the plucked instruments.

Hmm. Lots to think about! At the moment, I have two main textures in mind that might make it into different movements.

I won’t lie - I’m very nervous about this second weekend! Time to get down to it.

Edd Caine

Seeing as Edd has done such a fine job in summarizing the weekendʼs activities, I will briefly draft a few personal responses to the first Amsterdam events.

Admittedly, I had a somewhat of a crisis before making the trip. It had been many years since I had the chance to write for so many instruments (a trio being the largest ensemble I have written for in the last 3 years!) – having all those sound possibilities at your disposal isnʼt as luxurious as one might think!

Additionally, my high regard for the Nieuw Ensemble compounded my anxiety; I felt the pressure of the ʻthis piece needs to be amazingʼ-syndrome.

Well, that caused all sorts of problems! Personal drama aside, I eventually did get a few morsels of material scribed, I thought they had potential to be stretched and explored in a workshop.

Satisfyingly, the first dayʼs workshop was a real success for me. The sounds produced were interesting and the players seemed to be authentically engaged with the material and possible extensions of it. Looking back, Iʼm also very pleased with how I led the workshop too - quite a miracle considering how anxious I was that week
before!

As Edd has mentioned, Pat and I stayed in that night and furiously produced some material for the next day. Our thoughts were along the lines of: ʻif the Nieuw Ensemble is at your disposal, make the most of it!ʼ I think Steph and Edd had focused on this before the workshop, impressively producing considerable amounts of work. I also admired how Pat quickly rendered something strikingly cohesive and assured for Sundayʼs session.

I went away from the workshop feeling galvanized. Jöel had been generous to us all in his comments. I was personally heartened and encouraged by what he had said. I have been thinking about the work to be done since the workshop, ideas since then have been multiple and disparate: Iʼm intrigued to see how things (un)fold. The main thing that I think needs addressing is form: how to enable the evolving material to have multiform applications within the (probably tiny) space that I delineate for the sounds themselves.

Finally, I know Pat and I (perhaps Edd and Steph too?) feel that having now met some of the players that will be playing our music, we feel that there is a connection established. I hope that there is a feeling that we are working together to create something; Iʼm writing for them now, not blindly to some imagined figure as before the first workshop. The fact that they were also so understanding, open and genuinely enthusiastic is extremely beneficial for any composer willing to take risks and extend themselves; Iʼm certainly willing to fail whilst attempting!

Johnny Herbert