related works
Farewell Songs : for countertenor, Baroque ensemble, and Chinese instruments / Edward Top
Genre:
Vocal music
Subgenre:
Voice and instrument(s)
Scoring:
zang suona 2erhu saxkbut perc cemb vn vc db
Madness and the moonwoman : for orchestra, 1992 / Vanessa Lann
Genre:
Orchestra
Subgenre:
Orchestra
Scoring:
2333 4221 perc hp str(14.12.10.8.6.)
Orkeststuk : 1921 / Jeanne Beyerman-Walraven
Genre:
Orchestra
Subgenre:
Orchestra
Scoring:
4334 4341 timp 3perc 2hp cel str
De mei plaisant : variaties voor orkest, april 56 / O. van Hemel
Genre:
Orchestra
Subgenre:
Orchestra
Scoring:
2222 4330 timp 2perc hp/pf str
composition
Helix (2022 revision) : for orchestra / Edward Top
Other authors:
Top, Edward
(Composer)
Description:
Helix consists of a single motive that occurs in five different speeds. At the opening of the work it can be heard on its own - slowly - in the horn and strings, followed by denser sections where the music intensifies through diminution (the motive in faster appearances), spiralling in and out of the different speeds. An echoing technique derived from electronic delay as found in rock music emphasizes this spiralling. This echo can be heard throughout the six-minute composition, but starts right at the beginning as a layer in bassoons, percussion, harp and piano. The work shifts through different diatonic modes where Corellian suspension chains in the strings, again, underscore the spiralling motion. These elements combined result in a weightless twirling that eventually gravitates towards a more grounded climax.