Sacred Places IV

SACRED PLACES IV (Preparing to pray) was commissioned by the Ensemble Black Pencil, with financial support from the Performing Arts Fund in the Netherlands. The work exudes an introspective and meditative atmosphere. Seven musical episodes flow into each other without interruption. The unusual combination of instruments inspired the composer to explore new compositional paths. The music remains calm and melodic throughout, with a predominantly consonant harmony. The electronics function as a harmonic space, a kind of musical canvas above which the instruments dialogue. The spatial notation in the score (spatially composed, without bar lines) gives the musicians a great deal of freedom, so that the synchronisation between the instruments is less exact and the music radiates a kind of freedom. Especially for the 21st anniversary of the HERMESensemble in 2021, the composer created a version for flute, clarinet, viola, accordion (or organ), percussion and electronics.