This Marvellous Machine

Description

….shaking off a shiver, he reached out towards the dust sheet and gently pulled one corner. The cover slipped away revealing the most amazing artefact. Brass tubes seemed to feed in and out, glittering with a mischievous sparkle as the moonlight danced across the room. Glass vials held multi-coloured liquids, blues, greens, reds and yellows. The main body of the machine seemed to be made up of junk found from some Parisian side street. A bicycle wheel had been placed precariously on top of a funnel from an old steam locomotive. A dustbin lid was tied to one of the brass tubes and wires surrounded the machine in pools of varying colours. Small hisses accompanied puffs of steam giving the impression that this marvellous machine was alive….

This piece for eight hands on one piano was inspired by the idea of a strange and wonderful machine, discovered by chance in an old abandoned workshop. It is not clear what the machine is for, but what is obvious, is that it is still functioning after many years. This piece was performed by the TLCMD group at the Jaques Samuel Winner’s Recital, Wigmore Hall, London, 20th October 2013. Allocation of hands is left to the performers discretion.

Due to commercial restraints, the printed version of this book is in portrait format. The digital download version however includes versions in portrait and landscape format that may prove easier for practical purposes.