Here is a picture, taken by photographer Michael Wilson, of one of the cello parts in Boulez's "Messagesquisse," one of my absolute favorite pieces of music because it kicks ass. It was taken during concert:nova's "Cello Portraits," their concert featuring the cello ensemble. Obviously, I was thrilled they performed this piece.
Why am I mentioning this? I studied this score a little too much, I must admit. But I couldn't put it down. I had to check out the score multiple times from the library.
The result of this obsession "Bullet Time" for 9 violas, although I conceived my piece before I discovered this one. Listen to this with headphones.
Many thanks to Qin Li, Chrys Woodbury, Jeongeun Kim, Ringo Chan, Melissa Tschamler, Laurielle Cobb, Travis Rollins, Akiko Haga, Keita Tanaka, my conductor Vince Lee and my sound engineer Zach Mueller. (They recorded this the day before Thanksgiving in one hour!) Also, thank you, Michael Fiday, for introducing me to this piece. I totally owe you.
Happy New Year, everyone!