related works
Sonate : voor piano, 1997 / Edward Top
Genre:
Chamber music
Subgenre:
Piano
Scoring:
pf
Largo en scherzo / Andries de Braal
Genre:
Orchestra
Subgenre:
Orchestra
Scoring:
2323 3231 timp perc hp str
Theseusfantasie : voor orkest, 1984 / Kees Olthuis
Genre:
Orchestra
Subgenre:
Orchestra
Scoring:
3343 4331 timp 4perc 2hp str
Intrada reale e sinfonia festiva : (1964) / Bertus van Lier
Genre:
Orchestra
Subgenre:
Orchestra
Scoring:
4222 4233 2crt timp 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.