Commissioned by Alexander Balanescu

  • Violin
  • 27 min

Programme Note

· Michael Nyman
· Zoo Caprices: for solo violin
· The Lady in the Red Hat 2
· Swan Rot 4
· Up for Crabs 6
· Car Crash 6
· Bisocosis Populi 8
· Venus de Milo 10
· Angelfish Decay 11
· Vermeer's Wife Watches Prawns 12
· Time Lapse 14

A transcription of a work for small orchestra (the score for Peter Greenaway's film A Zed & Two Noughts) for a solo violin may seem a foolhardy proposition were it not for the stunning virtuosity of Alexander Balanescu who has inspired a number of my compositions in the past six years and who was creatively involved in suggesting, demonstrating and modifying many of the violinistic 'solutions' to the transfer of a multi-layered, multi textured work to a (so-called) single line instrument. This was composed in 1986 and first performed in Paris on 8 April 1986.


© Michael Nyman

Discography