Volume 23 Issue 7 - April 2018

I jumped into the performance with a lot of trepidation as I thought
everyone would leave after the first half.”
What surprised her was not only did people stay, but she had
an experience of feeling the presence of the audience in a totally
new way. “I found it extremely moving to be with my audience for
that long in that sound language. I felt people listening, and was
very excited by that – that feeling of shared listening. Of course the
experience of shared listening is always happening when you are
performing, but because of the level of comfort everyone was feeling
within the language over that period of time, I was aware of their
presence in a new way. I felt so transported by that and honoured that
they were with me. It felt really unique, expansive, and quite extraordinary.
We were all being transported at the same time.”
She went on to explain how works with a long duration create a
welcoming space for such listening. “When you are playing standard
repertoire, people have a sense of history with that work. They are already
prepared to hear a certain language. But when you’re playing a piece by a
contemporary composer whose language is unknown, there is a certain
adjustment period for the listener. The longer duration pieces allow time
for that adjustment period. The listener can then be more present and go
deeper into the sound language. It’s also a more profound experience for
me as a performer, to feel people experiencing the art in a totally different
way rather than having a more surface experience.”
After listening to the recording, she contacted the composer and
in return received two scores in the mail. Those scores were De Puro
Amor and Amor Duro, composed in 1991, which Egoyan proceeded to
learn and subsequently perform at the Music Gallery in 1996, while
the Music Gallery was still located at 179 Richmond St. W.
Events will have come full circle with the upcoming performance of
these two pieces on April 14, also with the Music Gallery, but this time
at the St. George-the-Martyr location that was the Music Gallery’s
home performing base for the past 16 years. The current performance
is also the launch of Egoyan’s CD recordings of these works, adding to
her extensive list of album releases. Earlier in the evening, writer Mary
Dickie will be interviewing former Music Gallery artistic director Jim
Montgomery about the years (1991-2000) at the 179 Richmond St. W.
venue, during which time Egoyan initially performed these works.
That initial performance of de Alvear’s music was “a seminal
moment,” Egoyan told me in our interview. The unique feature of both
these works is their long duration: De Puro Amor being one hour in
length and Amor Duro 50 minutes. “This was early in my performing
career, and I had never performed anything before of that duration.
When people write for me, it’s like having
them dress me ... I slip into that world and
there is a sense of trust and openness.
Both of de Alvear’s pieces on the program are composed using a type
of loose proportional notation. The pitches are pre-determined by the
composer, but the durations are approximate and time is determined by
the distance between the notes on the printed page. There are very few
markings of dynamics or phrasing. This approach allows the performer
to be very present in real time. “It gives me space to listen and make
decisions based on how the piano sounds in the space and I can adjust
the dynamics and pedalling in real time based on what I’m hearing,”
said Egoyan. “The rules are more open and generous, so everyone can
create. It’s not improvisation though, because the inherent structure
and form is already there, but the composer is trusting her interpreter
to draw the audience into real time. Both harmony and register are of
the utmost importance, and through that window everyone is guided
into an experience of the piece.”
NMC String Orchestra | Iris Ensemble | Accordes | Robert Aitken flute and direction
music by Roger Reynolds*, Claude Vivier and Brian Harman* (*world premieres)
Royal Conservatory of Music 21C Festival
Mazzoleni Hall | 273 Bloor Street West
Sunday May 27, 2018 | Intro 5:15 | Concert 6:00
www.NewMusicConcerts.com
thewholenote.com April 2018 | 11