Musical Compositions

Dialogues Fragiles (Fragile Dialogues)

17 Dialogues Fragiles

Setting Prepared solo violin.
Period of creation 2011-04-02 to 26, revision: 2011-09-26 to 2011-10-05.
Duration 8 min.
Commission / occasion Commissioned by the violinist Peter Shep­­pard Skærved (Gbr).
Publisher BabelScores.

The main idea behind the piece is the creation of dialectic situations within the mon­o­phon­ic limitations of solo music. Dif­fer­ent pairs of timbral elements on a prepared vi­o­lin enter into continuous dialogues, which may be perceived as frag­ile.
Five sound materials are arranged in the or­der from continuous, sus­tained to dis­con­tin­u­ous, per­cus­sive sounds:

  1. Twittering: High fast downwards ricochet notes and high upwards glissandi with harmonic fin­gering.
  2. Yowling: Low (dirty) single notes and downwards glissandi with normal fingering.
  3. Whistling: Fingernail pizzicato (left hand) together with high (harmonic) “screw fingering”.
  4. Pecking: Screw, plug and rapid fingertip pizzicato with low fingernail fingering.
  5. Dabbing: Legno battuto gettato alongside the fingerboard, partly with dampened strings.

The piece undergoes a clear formal development starting with material 1 in a high den­sity with low dynamics. Soon ma­te­ri­al 2 enters in a low density with high dy­nam­ics, creating an inequal, imbalanced dialogue. Both materials develop in op­po­site di­rec­tions: whilst material 1 reaches a low density and high dynamics before dis­ap­pear­ing, material 2 moves towards high den­si­ty and low dynamics.
Now material 3 enters into a similar dialogue with material 2, the same procedure is then repeated between materials 3 and 4 as well as 4 and 5. When material 5 dis­ap­pears, the fragile dialogues have come to an end.

2019-01-31 Miako Klein
23rd Composers’ Forum Osnabrück, at the Gartenhaus (Garden House) / Concert Hall of the Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences (Ger) – amplified
2018-09-16 Barbara Lüneburg
OpenDays Festival, at the Utzon Center in Aalborg (Den) – amplified
2017-09-13 Miako Klein
Broadcast on SR P2 / P2 Live (Swe) at 19.03 h, live recording from 2017-03-24 (New Directions Festival), with an introduction by Märet Öman including an interview (excerpt) with Pär Freij
2017-03-26 Miako Klein
Art exhibition Bricolage (vernissage), at the Palais für aktuelle Kunst in Glückstadt (Ger), lecture-performance
2017-03-24 Miako Klein
New Directions Festival, at the Studio Acusticum / Main Concert Hall in Piteå (Swe), radio recording by SR P2
2015-11-01 Mira Benjamin
Ingensteds (Brenneriveien 9) in Oslo (Nor)
2013-08-31 Hibiki Oshima
Concert series Ars Nova Choele Choel in Choele Choel / Rio Negro (Arg), at the Biblioteca Popular Nicolás Avellaneda
2013-08-19 Hibiki Oshima
Festival Bienal Música Hoje in Curitiba (Bra), at the Capela Santa Maria / Espaço Cultural
2013-01-09 Peter Sheppard Skær­ved
Internationales Künstlerhaus Villa Concordia in Bamberg (Ger)
2012-11-02 Peter Sheppard Skær­ved
Holywell Music Room in Oxford (Gbr)
2012-03-25 Peter Sheppard Skær­ved
Nor­we­gian Academy of Music in Oslo (Nor)
2011-11-15 Peter Sheppard Skær­ved
Connect Festival in Malmö (Swe)
2011-05-10 Peter Sheppard Skær­ved
Royal Academy of Music in London (Gbr)
2011-05-05 Peter Sheppard Skær­ved
Malmö Academy of Music (Swe) – world premiere

20% Shortlisted (Swe) for the ISCM World Music Days 2018, 12/60 (2017-12).

Peter Sheppard Skærved (vl);
Malmö 2011 & Oslo 2012;
bars 1-8, 47-51, 83-87, 95-98;
duration: 2 min 14 sec.


Peter Sheppard Skær­ved (vl);
Malmö 2011-11-15;
bars 1-8, 52-55, 83-87, 95-99;
duration: 2 min 8 sec.