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disruption

by david toub

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Jordan C Perry
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Allan Cronin
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tortkis
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Steve Layton
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davidtoub
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1.
unrest (2022) for piano 33:46
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2.
revolutionsdenkmal (2023) for alto flute, bass clarinet, alto sax, piano, violin, cello, contrabass 35:34
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disruption contains two recent works:

unrest (2022) for piano

revolutionsdenkmal (2023) for alto flute, bass clarinet, alto sax, piano, violin, cello, contrabass

unrest started out as an improvisation in July 2022, and I was divided on its instrumentation. I considered an ensemble consisting of piano, percussion (tuned and untuned) along with bass guitar, then was thinking of piano + drum set, and finally solidified on solo piano. A lot of the motifs echo earlier works like focused music and a few others, in that it makes use of certain intervals, single notes combined with rests, stretches of silence, and an arpeggiated 12-note series.

revolutionsdenkmal (revolutionary memorial) refers to an early work by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe in the Zentralfriedhof Friedrichsfelde in the Lichtenberg section of Berlin. The monument commemorated socialists and antiwar activists who were murdered by proto-fascists during the German Spartacist uprising in 1919, including Rosa Luxemburg and Karl Liebknecht, along with others killed during riots in 1920. Resembling a brick wall, comprised of actual brick fragments with bullet holes from the uprising, the monument created by van der Rohe was ultimately destroyed by the Nazis. Eventually, a “monument to the monument” was erected on the site and I visited it in 2018. van der Rohe’s original concept transcends its original intent of commemorating the murders of socialists during the Weimar Republic in Germany. It can be thought of as also memorializing all those who have fought against fascism, many of whom were shot in front of similar brick walls. The “wall” concept also resonates with those of us who are repulsed by racist walls designed to exclude immigrants of color who desire legal asylum in other countries.

revolutionsdenkmal is scored for the same seven instruments that had been used in my 1983-1984 work canonical ensembles. The instruments were considered to represent three individual groups (alto flute + bass clarinet + alto sax; piano; violin + cello + contrabass) and each group is assigned three-note chords. Other than the piano (which always performs its own three-note chords), no instrument plays on a solo basis. The violin and cello always employ a mute, and the single dynamic level is very quiet.

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released April 13, 2023

all works realized by the composer

cover design and photos: the composer

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david toub Wyncote, Pennsylvania

I'm a Philadelphia-area composer who writes minimalist music, with a few works ranging from 2 hours to more than 4 hours. Several of my works have been commercially recorded, including two CDs by the Belgian pianist Stephane Ginsburgh for both the World Edition and Sub Rosa labels. Performances have taken place in several countries, including the US, France, Belgium, Brazil, Ukraine and Japan. ... more

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