Battipalo
David Drexler
About this work:
Battipalo is one of a series of single-movement pieces built on classical ideas of formal structure, but starting with more contemporary ideas about what can serve as a "theme," what a "key" is, how one modulates from one key to another, etc. It is scored for the same instrumentation as Carl Nielsen’s "Serenata in vano," but the similarities probably end there. Battipalo is Italian for “pile driver,” and the first few bars will explain why it's called that. The pounding idea recurs a few times, though each time the players have some minor disagreements about timing and key. Other materials include a short drone, an interlocking rhythmic pattern loosely based on central African trumpet ensemble music, a bit of a funk bass line, and a lyrical melody for clarinet that returns in the cello at the end.
Year composed: 2006
Duration: 00:09:30
Ensemble type: Chamber or Jazz Ensemble, Without Voice:Other Combinations, 2-5 players
Instrumentation: 1 Clarinet, 1 Bassoon, 1 Horn in F, 1 Cello, 1 Double bass