New Music Edmonton presents Through Closed Doors – Ukrainian New Music – a portrait of some of the incredible new work being created by composers of the Ukrainian descent diaspora. Zoltan Almashi is still in Ukraine. In one way or another, their works reflect on, or are influenced by, the current and past history of Ukraine, and of Ukrainian culture. They suggest that art and creativity are a central, crucial voice in ensuring an ongoing, robust identity. Led by violinist Viktoria Grynenko, this all-star ensemble of some of our city’s finest string players will interpret these amazing works for various strings configurations, including electronics. Based around reactions to invasion and war, reflections on the Revolution of Dignity, this will be a profoundly moving, absorbing look at what it can mean to create art with intense resolve and belief.
Viktoria Grynenko and Vladimir Rufino (violin), Fabiola Amorim (viola), Amy Nicholson (cello), Guillaume Tardif (violin). Compositions by Anna Pidgorna, Boris Loginov, Zoltan Almashi.
Content warning – sleep during insomnia has sounds of air raids and explosions.
Through Closed Doors is a clandestine dialogue between two people trapped on opposite sides of a closed door. The definitive version of the score is inscribed on a restored antique door, which was once hacked with a hatchet, leaving a jagged hole. This disturbingly fascinating wound inspired the dramatic conception of this piece and some of its musical gestures. The phrasing draws loosely on speech and song patterns, while the work’s structure grows around the door, guided by its various panels and defects. The graphic notation, designed specifically for this piece, eliminates accents, dynamics, and bow pressure markings by incorporating them directly into the staff lines. The wavering staves resemble natural wood patterns and invite the performers to approach the score intuitively. The layout of the musical lines on the door guides the physical manifestation of the drama being played out in the music. This work was commissioned by Thin Edge New Music Collective and premiered by Ilana Waniuk and Suhashini Arulanandam in 2014, in Toronto, Canada.
Duo for Two Violins, No. 1 – Composed in 2007 and revisited in 2022, this work was commissioned by Anna Savytska and Jakub Dzialak, a violin duo known for their performances of experimental music. Almashi knew the musicians, however, as virtuoso violinists with great richness of sound, which inspired him to write Duo for Two Violins, No. 1. He aspired to create a piece that allowed the duo to exploit the violin’s conventional range of sound: “I was sure that deep inside, they [Anna Savytska and Jakub Dzialak] wish for a contemporary piece where one can simply play with a beautiful sound, play sincerely and expressively”.
sleep during insomnia – The impulse to create sleep during insomnia originated in the composer’s need to “do something” at the beginning of the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine. This piece for string quartet and electronics is inspired by various forms of sleep and insomnia.
According to Loginov, at the start of the all-out war, everyone was “… sleeping and awake at the same time, we [Ukrainians] could sleep very little, or not sleep at all, or sleep but wake up several times, night or day, constantly waiting for bad news, or even worse news”. His creative process began by experimenting with sounds recorded prior to the Russian invasion, such as his wife’s breathing, the rumblings of an old garage door, and stones clashing or falling. The piece unfolds around the funeral song referred to as “eternal sleep” from Sergei Ta
Through Closed Doors (2014) – Anna Pidgorna
Duo for Two Violins No. 1 (2007-2022) – Zoltan Almashi
sleep during insomnia (2022) – Boris Loginov
Green Sonata – Zoltan Almashi