HELLO NZTRIO!

Dear Ashley, Somi & Amalia, thanks for engaging with the possibility of collaborating on a commission together.

Here’s a page for you to skim through and get a feel for my music.

First up are some snippets from the 2023 Composer Woodshed sessions (with “you-but-not-you” because Amalia & Somi were sick).

Second there are a few pieces I’ve written before. A couple of duos, a very old piano trio written during a gap year before completing my Masters, and a couple of things for orchestra and sinfonietta, because they’re pretty contrasting in style.

Feel free to give a stylistic steer, if you feel so inclined. You can order up something more snappy (like in the orchestra piece Here Goes… or the Dance movement of Everything Feels Different Now), or something lyrical/ethereal/celestial like in Matariki, or tense like in Ascension, or anything in between. Ashley might want to ban or encourage multiphonics, depending on how he felt about them during our composer woodshed explorations! Talking of felt - we also explored some prepared piano - and it would be good to have your view on excluding or including that, considering the logistical implications for performances and recording.

That’s all…looking forward to hopefully writing for you in 2025!
Linda

NZTRIO/CMNZ Composer WOodshed (2023)

Snippets of the soundscapes we explored.

Matariki (2022)

For marimba and violin [15’]. Commmissioned by the Chamber Music New Zealand Trust. Performed by Ensemble Gô.

Programme Note

Matariki explores the unique role and significance of each star within a Māori understanding of cosmology, as outlined by Rangi Matamua in the book ‘Matariki – The Star of the Year’. The work comprises nine movements, representing each of the stars in the Matariki (Pleiades) star cluster.

This work is the result of the composer winning the inaugural Chamber Music New Zealand Commission Prize. The composer expresses her gratitude to Chamber Music New Zealand, and performers Monique Lapins and Naoto Segawa for their supportive collaboration during the compositional process.

Media

Recording by Radio New Zealand.

The Score is available here

ASCENSION (2020)

For alto flute and viola [7’]. Commissioned by Ensemble Klangrauschen. Supported by Creative New Zealand. Premiered by Yale School of Music.

Programme Note

Ascension is a piece in two movements, entitled Chorale and Madrigal, for alto flute and viola. It has been commissioned and premiered by Ensemble Klangrauschen and supported by Creative New Zealand. The composer would like to thank members of Ensemble Klangrauschen Elizabeth Farrell and Marie Yamanaka for their collaboration during the compositional process.

The Score is available here

Media The second movement ‘Madrigal’ starting at 4:23 in the video below is the suggested spot to listen from if your time is limited.

SÉRIE ANTIBES (2016)

For piano trio [8’]. Composed for the B3: Brouwer Trio. Premiered during VIPA new music festival, Valencia, Spain 2016.

Program Note

Série Antibes is comprised of four movements, drawn from the composer’s experience during an artistic residency in Vallauris, on the French Riviera. The nearby town of Antibes captivated the composer and became a source of inspiration for the piece.

I. Impression - Première

II. Magique

III. Who Are You and What Is This

IV. Expectative Waiting.

Note: To listen an excerpt (only), please choose movement II and the first part of movement III below.

The Score is available here

HERE GOES…(2021)

For Orchestra [9.5’] 3.3.3.3 - 4.3.3.1. - Timp+3Perc - Pno - Harp - Strings. Recorded by the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra as part of the 2021 NZ Composer sessions.

Programme Note

Here Goes... was written for the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra Composer Sessions 2021. Having relocated to the US in August 2019 to complete a Master of Musical Arts at Yale School of Music, Linda also gave birth to her son, Charlie, there near the end of her first semester. The piece captures Linda’s reflection on some of the excitement and ordeal of those moments.

The Score is available here

EVERYTHING FEELS DIFFERENT NOW (2022)

For Sinfonietta [10’]. Premiered by Stroma. Supported by the Nicholas Tarling Charitable Trust.

Programme Note

Everything Feels Different Now is a whimsical and varied impression of everyday life during the pandemic. Different moods encompassing a subtle array of human emotions from anxiety, unease, monotony, to joy and nostalgia, are conjured.

Movements:

I - Dance
II - Disruption
III - Dispersion
IV - Disaffection

The Score is available here