Nostalgia

The original version of NOSTALGIA for seven Middle Eastern instruments was composed for the Atlas Ensemble in 2010. Wim Henderickx's fascination with non-Western cultures took him to the Middle East this time. The title of the work refers to the composer's personal experience with music from this region, which often evokes a feeling of melancholy in him. The work is written for seven typical instruments, including the ney, the duduk, the tar, the setar, the santur and the kemençhe. There are seven sections, with one of the instruments taking centre stage in each part. The alternation between quasi-exact notation and improvisation characterises this work, as does the importance of melody and the use of heterophony (playing simultaneous variations on the same melody). The microtonal aspect (melodic intervals smaller than a semitone) and the modal writing give these melodies the suggestion of an oriental world. The work was a preliminary study for Medea for music theatre, which was created in 2011 with actors from the Veenfabriek and musicians from the HERMESensemble, conducted by Wim Henderickx and directed by Paul Koek. As a confrontation, Wim Henderickx also made a version for seven Western instruments in 2011. In 2017, Wim Henderickx created a version for soloists and string orchestra, commissioned by the Boho Strings and conductor David Ramael for the full CD “Nostalgia”. There are also versions for seven Western instruments and harp, for string orchestra, and a version for flute, English horn, cello, harp, clarinet, violin and viola.