Demeanours

Description

Demeanours for Flute and Piano (completed 2024)

Demeanours was written over several years with each movement being dedicated to one of the composer’s students at the time. Celebrating the unique and often mature personalities of these young people, Demeanours seeks to capture the incredible natures of these students from the exuberance and high spiritedness of Ebullient to the dedication and diligence of Sedulous, culminating in the tenacity, determination and single mindedness of Pertinacious.

1. Ebullient is both melodic and agile. It makes use of quick articulation in the flute and shifts between sparkling virtuosity and moments of lyricism. It’s wide note range symbolises boundless freedom and an abundance of possibilities.
2. Sedulous although lyrical in nature, maintains a steady drive with its unrelenting melodic line in the flute. It conveys a sense of striving and perseverance through repeated motifs. With its darker middle section Sedulous highlights a more mature student and hints at the complexities in emotion that this age brings, before its final hopeful rising sequence and settled chord at the end.
3. Pertinacious With its relentless yet playful rhythmic drive, Pertinacious captures a sense of persistence, determination and unwavering resolve juxtaposed with youthful exuberance. Alternating between a flowing 6/8 and the dogged 3/4 time and containing strong Jazz influences, it embodies a strong purposeful personality with clear direction.