The Four Elements

THE FOUR ELEMENTS are four duets entitled AIR, WATER, FIRE and EARTH, accompanied by live electronics. They can also be performed separately. Natural elements are expressed in four movements for mezzo-soprano and soloist, with electronics playing a prominent role. The musical material is based on solos from the 2007 opera Void (Sunyata). The dignified AIR for mezzo and flute seeks to evoke purity and a higher consciousness. From noise, the two voices evolve into tonality, only to dissolve back into noise. In the energetic FIRE, the electronics represent the wood on which the mezzo-soprano and cello duo burn musically. The splashing WATER for mezzo, clarinet and electronics was constructed in a circular form, suggesting an infinite continuum. The pure and at the same time raw EARTH for violin and mezzo is carried by bursts of sound from stones striking each other in the electronics. Earth represents a foundation, a solid and static basis. The Four Elements was also recorded on the CD “Disappearing in Light” by HERMESensemble in 2011.