For Strings and Hammers

Transcription

1 1 4 Joonas Pohjonen For Strings and Hammers iano (our hands) 010 / 01

2 Coyright by the Comoser All Rights Reserved No art o this ublication may be coied or reroduced in any orm or by any means without the rior ermission o the comoser Distribution: Music Finland Music Library Urho Kekkosen katu C, th loor FI Helsinki Finland musiclibrary@musicinland.i Helsinki, 017

3 Joonas Pohjonen For Strings and Hammers iano (our hands) (010 / 01) 1. Rainbow Bridge. Cygnus Loo. Metamorhic Rock 4. Sevenths' Heaven

4 For Strings and Hammers For Strings and Hammers is scored or iano, our hands. Yet, the work diers rom the standard "iano duet" by the distinct roles o the two ianists. One o the layers oerates the keyboard while the other stands at the crook maniulating the strings with various techniques. The roduction o secial timbral eects requires recise coordination between the layers. The work was irst erormed by Emil Holmström and the comoser on 7 Setember 010 at Sibelius Academy Concert Hall, Helsinki. The Instrument The work is rimarily intended or erormance on a Steinway Model D concert grand. Nevertheless, it is layable on most grand ianos equied with a sostenuto (middle) edal. Constructional dierences o various instruments may necessitate alterations or which some suggestions are given as ossias. Prearation or Perormance In order to amiliarize with the construction o the instrument at the concert venue, amle time should be given or stage rehearsal. To identiy the strings, labels should be laced on damers and/or beyond the ins at the bridge. Nodal oints or harmonics must also be marked on the strings e.g. with small stris o masking tae. Dierent colors may be used to hel orientation. Instructions Keyboard The dynamics reer to the orce o execution. The actual sound volume may dier considerably when string techniques are used. The edal instructions must be recisely ollowed. The sostenuto edal is marked (una corda) may be used occasionally according to the ianist's discretion.. The sot edal Diamond noteheads ( ) indicate deressing the keys silently. Ties beore notes imly the notes may be reared in advance. The trill interval is always a semitone. s Strings Use o earlugs is strongly recommended due to exosure to high sound levels. Because o the reversed orientation, the uer sta is layed with the let hand and the lower sta with the right hand. Plucking the strings is marked izz. The erormer may choose whether to use the ingernail or the lesh o the ingerti. The strings should be lucked near the center unless the instruction sul onticello (near the bridge) is given.

5 Diamond noteheads indicate touching the string(s) at a seciied oint. Touching at the end o the string (marked "+") roduces a muted tone (étoué) while touching at a harmonic node (seciied with encircled numerals) roduces a harmonic (lageolet) when the corresonding key is struck. The nodes are located at ractions along the length o the string, e.g. the node or the ourth harmonic is ound at a quarter along the length. Muted tones and harmonics are usually reared beorehand, as indicated with ties beore notes. Double harmonics on searate strings o the same itch are marked with numerals groued with brackets. Cross-shaed noteheads ( ) indicate damening the string(s). Three dierent objects are needed to maniulate the strings: 1) An object (e.g. a roll o masking tae) used as a weight on the strings to roduce a distorted, "overdriven" sound. The object should have a lat surace at least cm wide and be heavy enough to stay on the strings when the keys are struck. ) Another object used as a weight, relatively heavy, reerably o metal, with a lat surace at least 10 cm wide (e.g. an unoened ood can), roducing a snaredrum-like sound when the corresonding keys are struck. The itch should be almost indeinite, ree o the undamental itch o the string and its harmonic overtones. In addition, a iece o elt may be used to damen unwanted vibrations. ) Any object that can be used as a "rd bridge", i.e. to divide the vibrating length o the string in two searate arts, such as a chisel or the handle o a table knie. The object is ressed irmly against the string and moved along the string to roduce a itch-bend eect. Table o Harmonics: Actual sound: Actual sound: The harmonics in arentheses are ound only in ossias.

6 4 For Strings and Hammers iano (our hands) 1. Rainbow Bridge Actual sound: Joonas Pohjonen (010 / 01) Strings 11 7 Keyboard Rubato (semre ) Sound: () 9

7 Sound: (semre ) 11 9 gliss. along string gliss. along string esante simile () m 7

8 Sound: Sound: Ossia: *) gliss. (ingernail) Ossia: *) Allegro raido s *) The ossia is to be layed i a crossbar o the steel rame revents the execution o the downward glissandi.

9 gliss. with ingernail *) Ossia: **) 7 s Ossia: **) Ossia: **) Ossia: **) s *) Sna the ingernail against the string and immediately swee along the string with the ingernail. **) See revious age.

10 8 gliss. along strings gliss. along strings Rubato (non cresc.) esante simile Sound:

11 9 Sound: 9 9 Allegro 9 9 m

12 10 gliss. along strings gliss. along strings Rubato ( ) esante simile Sound: ()

13 11 Sound: 11 9 Sound: 9

14 1 Sound: 11 7 gliss. (ingernail) (semre ) s Sound: gliss. s rallentando

15 . Cygnus Loo 1 Lento, molto rubato izz. m s Lento, molto rubato *) Ossia: Ossia: gliss. on strings 4 tremolo with ingernail **) s izz. m ***) *) Release the sostenuto edal and immediately deress the damer edal. A drumlike sound is roduced by all the damers hitting the strings simultaneously. **) Flick the ingernail back and orth (like a mandolin tremolo) ***) I any o the harmonic nodes are inaccessible, the chord should be layed an octave higher and iano (no harmonics). m s ***) m

16 14 izz. *) **) s m m *) m Ossia: Ossia: **) gliss. along strings gliss. along strings m *) See revious age. **) The strings are muted exactly on the beat (i.e. not reared beorehand).

17 izz. Execution: gliss. m *) s gliss. izz. **) izz. gliss. izz. s 1 izz. m molto rubato, quasi imrovvisando, oco a oco iù mosso ***) s semre legato *) A continuous glissando over the strings is intended. The glissando segments may vary according to the location o the crossbars. Execution on a Steinway Model D is shown above. **) To create a metallic buzzing sound, bend an adjacent string to touch very lightly the vibrating string. ***) Silently deressed chromatic cluster.

18 1 (semre izz.) m () s oco a oco cresc. m Ossia: s m m

19 17 *) (B ) (quasi doio movimento) m s rallentando Temo rimo izz. m gliss. izz. izz. gliss. izz. Temo rimo s s *) On most Steinway models the F natural is accessible at the end o string (having crossed the wound bass strings). On other instruments the note may be omitted.

20 18 Sound: Ossia: izz. sul onticello izz. (ord.) 4 izz. (ord.) izz. sul onticello ord. s m m s Ossia: 4 gliss. along strings gliss. along strings m m

21 Sound: 19 Ossia: 4 4 m (stand u) izz. m (come sora) izz. m (sit down) s

22 0. Metamorhic Rock lace weight (1) on the strings Allegro molto ritmico Allegro molto ritmico m m s remove weight s s

23 1 7 Sound: () ()

24 Sound: Sound: simile

25 Sound: 4 leggiero simile lace weight () on the strings

26 4 m keyboard lid *) l r l r l r l r l r l r underside o the keyboard *) crossbars **) ***) *) Ta the keyboard lid (the curved art) and the body o the instrument (the bottom surace) with the alm o the hand. **) Hit the crossbars o the steel rame with the alm o the hand. The uermost line reresents the treble-most crossbar. ***) Hit the strings with the alm o the hand. The itch range is aroximate.

27 remove the weight oco a oco cresc.

28 *) 4 Sound: s **) rall. 4 Sound: rall. a temo s *) Touch the strings very lightly to make a gradual transition rom normal tones to harmonics. **) Continue when the chord o harmonics starts to emerge.

29 Sound: 7 4 a temo s rall. Sound: 4 7 molto rall. a temo s

30 8 Sound: simile Ossia 1: Ossia : simile or the next our bars *) meno mosso, oco a oco accelerando m (m) *) I all the harmonic nodes cannot be reached simultaneously with the let hand, either o the ossia versions is layed. The resulting sound is identical in all versions.

31 9 Sound: (Temo I) m leggiero m m m m m

32 0 m move to keyboard () () lay on keys (while standing) oco a oco cresc.

33 oco a oco cresc. 1 con (oco a oco di iù) move back to crook cresc. senza

34 *) lace weight (1) on the strings **)s *) Damen the string immediately ater it has been layed to roduce a very dry staccato sound. **) Damen the strings by hitting with the alm o the hand. Let the hand stay on the strings.

35 4. Sevenths' Heaven Sound: (remove weight) 7 Ossia: Andante (Temo di Blues) m s Ossia: () (m) () s Sound: 7 s *) For an ossia, see two bars earlier. *) 10 7 *) s

36 4 Sound: *) s s Sound: Ossia: Ossia: s s *) For the ith harmonic, it may be more ractical to use the node at / along the string.

37 Sound: *) (vibrato) (vibr.) (vibr.) (vibr.) Sound: (vibr.) s (vibr.) (vibr.) (vibr.) legatissimo *) A vibrato is roduced by varying the inger ressure eriodically. On some instruments the eect is hardly noticeable and thereore may be omitted. s

38 Sound: legatissimo Sound:

39 7 rd bridge *) gliss. izz. between rd bridge and the ins m s oco a oco cresc. s vibrato **) cresc. izz. between rd bridge and the damers s (B ) m *) The rd bridge is moved along the string to roduce the given itches when the string is lucked. Considerable ressure is needed to avoid buzzing. I the entire assage cannot be layed on the A lat string, another string may be used instead. **) The rd bridge is moved near the ins or a very high-itched note.

40 8 Sound: simile gliss. across strings *) oco a oco cresc. (F, G, B, D ) (F, A, B, C ) (F, G, B, C ) s s (F, G, B, D ) (F, G, B, D ) (G, A, B, D ) (G, A, B, C ) *) Swee across strings with three or more ingers. Use the lesh o the ingertis.

41 9 (G, A, B, C ) (G, A, B, C ) (F, A, B, C ) (F, A, C, D ) s Rallentando *) *) (F, G, B, D ) Rallentando s *) Beyond the ins, i.e. the "wrong" side o the bridge.