Of time and sky : for piano /
(Although the title, which comes from a poem by Pablo Neru...)
Although the title, which comes from a poem by Pablo Neruda, was chosen after the piece was completed, its imagery captures the multi-dimensional way in which the composer approached the music. The work is essentially a series of developing variations on an idea which is stated in the left hand at the outset. During the course of the piece this material is compressed and expanded in both time and space and layered upon itself so that these variations unfold at different rates of speed and encompass different registers. With this approach Matthews gives the listener a series of various coexistent "times" and "skies." Canadian composer Michael Matthews (born 1950) was born in Gander, Newfoundland. He began formal composition studies in 1972 with Aurelio de la Vega at California State University, Northridge. He later studied with Larry Austin at the North Texas State University where he was awarded the Ph.D. in 1982. From 1985 to 2012, Matthews taught in the Marcel A. Desautels Faculty of Music at the University of Manitoba. He is conductor and artistic director of the GroundSwell new music series in Winnipeg. From 2002 to 2004 he was Composer-in-Residence with the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra. Matthews is a member of the Canadian Electroacoustic Community and the Canadian League of Composers. He is also Associate Composer of the Canadian Music Centre and currently divides his time between Montréal and Berlin.
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