October 2024: to Trinity Laban Conservatoire for preliminary work with Head of Keyboard Ji Liu on my recent Bach reworking.
Partita Weaving uses materials from the first five Bach keyboard Partitas: the Prelude and Allemande from No. 1 in Bb; the Sinfonia from No. 2 in C minor; the Sarabande from No. 3 in A minor; the Overture from No. 4 in D; and the Praeambulum and Gigue from No. 5 in G. These materials are very extensive – significant portions of, or even whole, movements rather than brief quotations – and the result is a combination of medley and mashup with movements flowing into and out of each other (hence ‘weaving’) and frequent superimpositions. Musical ‘re-engineering’ aside, my aim in this piece has been to create only gentle disturbances in Bach’s originals; even when the right hand of one dance is superimposed on the left hand of another (as in the Prelude and Allemande from No. 1) my ear was guided by combinations that were almost plausible or plausible for just long enough before clearly departing from Bach’s harmonic world. I am not interested in modernist shock tactics nor postmodern irony and Partita Weaving joins a number of reworkings of mine – such as JPR, Distant Beauties and Tanzë – that stand as homages to their original creators.
It was exciting working with Ji on this music. He is the kind of pianist who regularly throws off Rachmaninov concertos or programmes of all Chopin’s Études and the range of colours he can bring to the keyboard through his formidable technique is vast. Even on a preliminary play/read-through the potential was there for a really special premiere. But Ji is a lot more than a virtuoso performer; I first encountered him as external examiner for his PhD on programming Schubert’s unfinished piano sonatas and Ji continues to investigate, though his pianism, ways of reinvigorating the contemporary piano recital. He is also a composer – for the piano, of course, but of orchestral music too. I look forward to working with Ji further before the new piece is unveiled.
