related works
Effusion : for soprano saxophone and piano / Brendan Faegre
Genre:
Chamber music
Subgenre:
Saxophone and keyboard instrument
Scoring:
sax-s pf
Resonant Mandala #1 : for percussion and live electronics / Ruud Roelofsen
Genre:
Multimedia
Subgenre:
Percussion with multimedia
Scoring:
perc tape
Opus Focus : for percussion and electronics / Amos Elkana
Genre:
Multimedia
Subgenre:
Percussion with multimedia
Scoring:
perc tape
Bee Cult : for marimba (with shaker and bass drum) / Yannis Kyriakides
Genre:
Multimedia
Subgenre:
Percussion with multimedia
Scoring:
mar (elec)
composition
Gods of Bird : for 3 percussionists and electronics / Brendan Faegre
Other authors:
Faegre, Brendan
(Composer)
Description:
While walking through Joep van Lieshout's atelier, looking for musical possibilities in his sculptures, I stumbled upon his Early Bird from 2015. A few taps on the surface and I was enchanted. Each of its 100 flat metal surfaces rings out a clear, unique pitch. It's like a beautiful, bizarrely-tuned, three-dimensional, 4-meter tall vibraphone.
The percussionists play the role of three gods, descending from the heavens to help guide the four terribly lost Early Birds. Each bird believes itself to be a solitary genius, forging ahead in its own direction while climbing the rusty corporate ladder of late-stage capitalism. The birds are unaware of the fact that we are all welded together.
As the piece unfolds, the gods grow weary, finding the Early Birds completely unreceptive to their advice. The gods eventually resign and then die, as the humans kill their own gods by killing themselves (the death of the dreamer kills the dreamed).
Brendan Faegre