Nomade dans les montagnes
Nomad in the mountains
Composer: Zach Cubillas
PREMIERE
16 March 2024, Nanyang Polytechnic
Conductor: Leonard Tan
Performers: Nanyang Polytechnic Symphony Orchestra (NYPSO) @NanyangPolySO
This piece was performed by NYPSO as part of their concert programme for Sinfonia 2024: Unbound Harmonies. Immensely grateful to Dr Leonard Tan and all the wonderful musicians of the orchestra for giving my first orchestral composition its premiere!
COMPOSER'S NOTES
In 2022, I composed Impromptu, a piece written for string quartet. While I was satisfied with the piece, it was rather short, and I was encouraged by my musical peers to expand on it. However, it wasn't until the year after that I seriously considered taking on the task. With the two contrasting musical themes from Impromptu, I decided to challenge myself to compose my first piece for orchestra.
While composing this piece, I fondly recalled my travels to Switzerland in 2019, particularly when I visited the mountainous regions of Zermatt, Interlaken, Matterhorn and Jungfraujoch. Some of the musical influences which shaped my music in this composition include the Impressionist music of Maurice Ravel and Claude Debussy, the film music of Joe Hisaishi, as well as the video game music of Daniel "C418" Rosenfeld.
In this piece, I intended to evoke the image of a wanderer's journey through the mountains. It starts off serene, tranquil, and the nomad enjoys the gentle breeze. Eventually, the trip becomes eventful, such as the harsh wind that suddenly blows in the first section, or the discovery in the middle section that piques the traveler's curiosity. But this is just my personal interpretation; let's leave it to the music to tell your very own unique tale of the nomad in the mountains.
Nomade dans les montagnes was composed in about two months from 26 September to 20 November 2023. The symphonic poem is dedicated to my Impromptu for String Quartet (2022), as well as Leonard Tan, Louis Yeo, Rene Tan, and the Nanyang Polytechnic Symphony Orchestra. Through this piece, I would like to express my gratitude for the opportunities I have been given by the orchestra to help me grow as a musician and realize my passion for music.
11 окт 2024
