Description
Music Files Below (left click to listen, right click to download)
"Time. One thing is absolutely inevitable: at some point your time is up"
This quote is ominously repeated, in part and whole throughout the program. The show explores the idea of time and how it shapes us through our lives. The concept is driven home through numerous orchestrational techniques like rim knocks, woodblocks, and various other "tick tock" type sounds. Clock samples, ranging from watch ticks all the way to large church bells, provide additional effect reinforcement throughout the show. Several effects include a metric accelerando and decellerando (imitating time slowing down and speeding up), a "Matrix" type slow motion effect, the use of the famous "dies irae" musical motif, and an abrupt ending to signify that "time is up!" The various tempi of the show also provide a programmatic influence. The show begins at 180BPM in 3/4 time. Each clock tick at the beginning (as well as every downbeat) hits EXACTLY once per second. The show gradually increases in tempo in an anxious push to the end. The ballad sits at 120BPM and the final movement is back to 180 with emphasis on each beat instead of the 3 beat emphasis at the beginning.
Although the original context of the show deals with the idea of dying or your "time being up", this show is also a great musical package for any ensemble interested in doing a show about the general concept of time.
Total Performance Time: 5:00
Tempo Range (in BPM): 60, 120, 180