Georgia Kalodiki

Composer

Echo and Variations (2003)

for percussion, cello, piano

Duration: 7 min

In acoustics, when a frequency source creates a sound wave in space, an obstructive physical surface may throw it back without having absorbed it. The reflection thus created causes the continuous recurrence of the sound until finally fades away. This repetition is called "echo" and it depends on the sound volume and the ability of the space to absorb the sound waves.

Echo and Variations (E&V) for piano, cello and percussion, is a non-thematic musical elaboration of the echo phenomenon. This piece has been focused towards an aesthetic exploration of the echo sound, and the echo idea is used as a starting point in conceptualizing the general character of the piece. By and large, E&V contains a continuously transforming process based on progressively recurring segments and more extended gestures built from irregular rhythmical cells and incessant harmonic modifications. Thus, using more and more rhythmically complex timbral and intervallic alternations, the periodic succession of events is gradually blurred via this variation-based method.

To be more specific, the development of the echo process in this work takes place on three different levels:

• Timbral echoes are to develop repetitive gestures coloured by alternating instrumental combinations.
• Distorted echoes are produced when the primary musical scheme begins to change in terms of its pitch and rhythm.
• Cycling echoes are the impression of an endless repetition through the gradual proliferation and expansion of fragmentary musical components.

Mp3 sample: SOOZVUK ensemble, Ostrava festival (Chech Republic)