related works
Dead as Disco : for orchestra / Giel Vleggaar
Genre:
Orchestra
Subgenre:
Orchestra
Scoring:
2fl 2ob cl cl-b fg cfg 4h 2trp 2trb trb-b tb 3perc pf hp 2vl vla vc cb
Breathless : for 11 wind instruments, piano and double bass / José-Luis Greco
Genre:
Orchestra
Subgenre:
Large ensemble (12 or more players)
Scoring:
1010 sax-s sax-bar 1330 pf cb(ampl.)
Muziek voor groot ensemble / Will Hoogakker
Genre:
Orchestra
Subgenre:
Large ensemble (12 or more players)
Scoring:
12fl 3ob 3cl 3fg 3tpt 5vl 3vla 3vc
Gadget : for winds and double-bass, 1972-'79 / Will Eisma
Genre:
Orchestra
Subgenre:
Large ensemble (12 or more players)
Scoring:
2231 sax-a 2000 cb
composition
Brave cactus hits the road : for ensemble / Giel Vleggaar
Other authors:
Vleggaar, Giel
(Composer)
Description:
Program note (English): If a comic-strip cactus waking up one morning and deciding to strike out into the world seems ridiculous, then think of the characters in the books of the enigmatic novelist Tom Robbins. Indeed, it is the idea that inanimate objects can take on a life of their own, pack their bags and go is an image Vleggaar borrowed from the book Skinny legs and All, in which a can of beans, a painted branch and a large shell go on an adventure. "Brave Cactus Hits the Road is about liberation--after a big drama, to put the past behind you and strike out on a new trail. It might seem pretty insecure, but still offers a better perspective. It's an absurd image--a cactus going out into the world. Before you know it, he's run over by a car and that's the end of the cactus. But you've got to have guts, as a cactus. But I also want to bring out that it's also an amusing image, one which we can all relate to somehow from our own gut feeling." This is Vleggaar's description of a piece which motors along at high speeds backed by the horsepower of a big band. Destination: freedom, wherever it might be. - TERESA HRON