Horaţiu Rădulescu, "Sensual Sky"

Sensual Sky op. 62 (1985)
Ensemble Polychromie
Nvart Andreassian, conductor
Pierre-Yves Artaud, octobass flutes

-- Liner Notes --

Sensual Sky
version for 9 instrumentalists (alto flute, clarinet, alto saxophone, trombone, violin, viola, cello, string bass), sound icon and two octobass flutes pre-recorded by Pierre-Yves Artaud (1985)
Premiers: several versions (with different orchestrations): Turino, Festival Antidogma 1985 by the Ensemble Lucero under the direction of H.R.; Paris, Centre Georges Pompidou (1988) by the Ensemble 2E2M under the direction of H.R.

Dedication: To Petra and Laura

The two flutes on pre-recorded tape sustain the instruments on the stage like a monochromatic landscape, while equally having the goal of "provoking turbulence in the readability of the score". The varied colors of Sensual Sky are obtained due to clusters of notes of each instrument "hung" on an undulating axis. It is a "virtual spectral scordatura"; that is, a micro-tonal change of the tuning of one (or several strings) of an instrument. Following the example of the musician Christian Wolff, the composer draws a parallel between the guiding idea of his piece and Calder's mobiles.