Grounds of Memory composed for Peyee Chen, the Dedalus Ensemble and the Quatuor Bozzini is based on texts by Emily Dickinson, notably her recently published “envelope poems”. This work, The Gorgeous Nothing, includes handwritten fragments, brief thoughts, and drafts of poems written by hand on used envelopes specially prepared for this purpose, made of scattered words, word clouds, and first stanzas of poems. This collection is a free source of inspiration and, along with other poems by Emily Dickinson, forms a basis for composition. This piece is the third part of a trilogy. The first and second parts, also composed for soprano and ensemble, are based on texts by Gustave Roud, Bai Juyi (772-846) and texts written by Jürg Frey. This third piece, for large ensemble, concludes the cycle. The selection of texts and poems touches on an existential sensitivity and evokes the vision of a path that never ends.

Commandée par la Soufflerie de Rezé, soutenu par Impuls Neue Musik (fonds franco-germano-suisse pour la musique contemporaine).

Premiere

• November 24, 2019, hcmf// 2019: 28. Quatuor Bozzini + Ensemble Dedalus + Peyee Chen, St Paul’s Hall — University of Huddersfield, Huddersfield (England, UK)