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Going With The Grain
Conductor's score and parts on hire
978-0-19-355617-1
27 February 1992
Price: Available on request
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for solo marimba and ensemble
Conceived as a mini concerto for solo marimba, the work is a study in cooperation. At no point does the ensemble challenge the marimba's prominent role; rather, it complements, accompanies and imitates it. This treatment gives the piece a mellow, relaxed, distant quality. Forces or CategorySolo marimba & ensembleDuration19 minutesDifficultyModerately difficult to
DifficultOrchestrationmba solo, fl (+picc), cl (+bcl), vln, vla, vcProgramme NotesGoing With the Grain was commissioned by Lontano with funds provided by Greater London Arts, and was completed in November 1991. It was conceived as a mini concerto for solo marimba and small ensemble in order to repay an old debt to the percussionist, Martin Allen, who taught me practically everything I know about percussion instruments during our days together at the Royal Northern College of Music.
I see the piece as a study in cooperation. Most concertos explore a range of different relationships between
soloist and orchestra - the one and the many. Going with the Grain tries to stick to one - a harmonious, equal sharing. At no point does the ensemble really challenge the marimbas prominent role; rather, it complements, accompanies and imitates it. Occasionally it is forced to try and be a kind of giant marimba itself. This extreme kind of treatment, I hope, lends the piece a certain mellow, relaxed, distant quality.
It is cast in three movements. The first is by far the most energetic and spunky although its repetitive, syncopated patterns constantly interact with lyrical, modal lines reminiscent of folksong. The second, entitled Mandolin Lullaby, is nocturnal in character and exploits both the dark, rich sound of rolled marimba chords and more delicate pizzicato textures.
At the end of this movement is a strange, quiet little dance, seeming to come from nowhere and stopping abruptly. This coda is really an introduction to the last movement, Lontano, which is a short, hushed moto perptuo, recapitulation elements of the first movement, and eventually unravelling itself into a slow, sad chorale.
© Martin Butler, 1991
Reproduced by permission of Oxford University Press
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Martin Butler (b.1960) Martin Butler was born in Romsey, England, in 1960 and studied at the University of Manchester and the Royal Northern College of Music. In 1983 he received a Fulbright Award for study at Princeton University, USA, where he was resident until 1987. From 1998-1999 Martin was Composer-in-Residence at the Institute for Advanced Study at Princeton in the United States. He is currently Professor of Music at the University of Sussex.
Butler's works are widely performed and broadcast both in the UK and abroad.More on Martin Butler from the British Music Information Centre
Martin Butler at the University of Sussex
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""...the piece sounds impressive: imaginative, unusually appealing solo marimba writing in true chamber music dialogue with the ensemble." (Stephen Johnson, The Independent)"
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The specification in this catalogue, including without limitation price, format, extent, number of illustrations, and month of publication, was as accurate as possible at the time the catalogue was compiled. Occasionally, due to the nature of some contractual restrictions, we are unable to ship a specific product to a particular territory. Jacket images are provisional and liable to change before publication.
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