Flammenarie

op. 44, 2009

For Byzantine style psalm singer, tarhu or lyre and piano
Duration: 15 min.

World premiere: 19 July 2012, Glasperlenspiel Music Festival, Tartu, Estonia. Voice, lyre: Vassilis Agrokostas, piano: Christian Elsässer

Composer’s notes

Flammenarie was my first piece with dramaturgic improvisation. I was interested in the balance of writing a melody with chords, atmospheres, length and form that conveys the course of the piece and at the same time provides enough freedom to improvise.

The piece was arranged especially for the CD recording. In later performances it was often played with the lyre instead of the tarhu – in these cases it is important that the used string instrument creates a tonal friction in the interplay with the piano.

The title Flammenarie (Aria of Fire) is connected to the games of fire – how they develop more or less and still convey warmth, intensity, surprise and variety.