related works

Appalachia : for acoustic steelstring guitar and ensemble, 2004 / Giel Vleggaar

Genre: Chamber music
Subgenre: Mixed ensemble (2-12 players)
Scoring: fl-a ob cl perc hp man vl vla vc cb g-solo

Slow : for ensemble, 2004 / Maarten Altena

Genre: Orchestra
Subgenre: Large ensemble (12 or more players)
Scoring: 1111 1110 hp vl vla bc cb

Cassation : voor blazers, harp, celesta en slagwerk, 1983 / Herman Strategier

Genre: Orchestra
Subgenre: Large ensemble (12 or more players)
Scoring: 0022 2221 timp 2perc cel hp

Toe the Line (And Yet it Moves) : for clarinet, bassoon, accordion and string orchestra / Chiel Meijering

Genre: Orchestra
Subgenre: Large ensemble (12 or more players)
Scoring: cl acc fg str

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