“An orchestral work of this power cannot be brought to a complete standstill, and I am relishing putting it into action at a later date - the work is co-commissioned by Radio France and the Tonkunstler Orchestra. Brace yourselves!” Colin Currie
On Thursday 2nd April, Colin was due to perform the world premiere of a new percussion concerto written for him by French composer, Bruno Mantovani with the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France and conductor Mikko Franck. Allegro Barbaro was co-commissioned by Radio France and the Tonkunstler Orchestra. This important new premiere has sadly been cancelled due to the Coronavirus pandemic.
Here Colin reflects on the work which he has been preparing for in recent months:
“Today marks what would have been the World Premiere of one of the most significant and extraordinary percussion concertos to date - Bruno Mantovani’s Allegro Barbaro. A monumental score, of great colour and energy, it also has a ferocious aspect and is wildly dramatic.”
When asked why Colin requested a new concerto from Mantovani, he responded:
“I have always been greatly compelled by Bruno's buzzing, bristling orchestration, and his percussion pedigree is of course deeply placed, having written perhaps our grandest virtuoso marimba solo, in the form of “Moi, jeu…” which I have been playing (and continually practising!) for years.” Colin Currie
Colin describes the use of percussion in the new work:
“The percussion rig is unique in the repertoire, in that it is assembled entirely of ‘un-pitched’ instruments - so no keyboards or melodies in the traditional sense. All the material and musical lines are rather spread very cleverly over drums, cymbals and woodblocks for the most part. There are also great moments of excitability focusing on the snare drum - perhaps the most effervescent effect in the arsenal. Many gestures are doubled in the orchestra, so a tom-tom flurry will get spiked by the brass, or a bass drum rumble shored up by the double basses.” Colin Currie