Interior Landscapes
Ernest Ebell
Performed by the Playground Ensemble at the Colorado Composers Concert 12, at the King Center in Denver, Colorado.
Interior Landscapes
About this piece:
"Interior Landscapes" began life as a composition project at Metropolitan State University of Denver, and was shepherded into existence under the watchful eye of Dr. Leanna Kirchoff. The piece was deemed to be good enough to submit to the Playground Ensemble for their annual Colorado Composers Concert. The Playground Ensemble is known as one of the premiere chamber ensembles in the Rocky Mountain states, and for their championing of new works for the contemporary concert hall. Happily, the piece was accepted by the ensemble, and performed at their Colorado Composers Concert 12 in 2018.
"Interior Landscapes" is an exploration of five emotions: "Reeling," an almost dizzy or falling feeling one has when overwhelmed. "Trepidatious," the uneasy feeling one has when trying to move forward, but fearing some unknown thing will spring out at any moment from some unknown place. The remaining three emotions, "Startled," "Angry," and "Sorrowful," are as one would expect.
The instruments may be thought to represent the subconscious mind, churning through emotions constantly. The Soprano represents the conscious mind, with the emotions only occasionally surfacing from the subconscious. Even then, the conscious mind cannot clearly define the emotions.
The Playground Ensemble