ADJ•ective New Music •

locoMotives (SCORE ONLY)

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Composer: Anne Neikirk

Duration: 8:15

Scoring: harp and fixed electronics

Materials: score (9.5 x 13) (click here for fixed electronics file)

Program Note

locoMotives was commissioned by and is dedicated to Elizabeth Morgan-Ellis. Liz approached me about writing this work for her performance at the Philadelphia Fringe Arts festival. Her concert program focuses on Philadelphia composers, so I wanted to incorporate some element of the city into my work. The germinal sound source in locoMotives is a recording of one of Philadelphia’s Regional Rail trains. The familiar sound of a pitch bending as a vehicle passes, known as the Doppler effect, became the connective element of the piece. I recorded Liz playing several pitch bends on the harp for the electronic sounds, which mimic the Doppler effect of the train as it passed by my recording device. Other sounds in the raw audio include the ticking noises of the lowering crossing gates at a nearby road, as well as the whoosh of the wind as the train passed by. These sounds are all imitated in some way by the harp and augmented in the electronics. The experience of witnessing a powerful, fast-moving object fly by elicits both excitement and fear. There is a certain thrill to seeing a train whiz by at a close range, but not without some implication of violence or danger. I reflected this emotional content in the work. The title, locoMotives, also lends itself to a tongue-and-cheek double entendre between the train theme and the musical terms inherent in the word: loco for “at pitch” and motive for a short musical idea. Most of the melodic material in the piece is derived from the pitches inherent in the train whistle and the crossing gates. The term loco also means “crazy” or “insane” in Spanish, which to me resonated with the element of excitement and fear of the train hurdling by. I reflected this musically by making some equally violent and dissonant sounds in the electronics along with extended techniques in the harp. There are also moments of peaceful repose throughout the work, highlighting the beauty of the harp and embodying the comfort of riding in a train while watching the landscape pass by through the window. Finally, the natural dynamic arc of a train approaching from a distance, passing by, and fading away again is imitated in microcosm throughout the piece. Both the harp and the electronic sounds often swell from soft to loud and back to soft dynamics. All aboard!

— Anne Neikirk
Reproduction Notice:
This program note may be freely reproduced in concert programs, provided that proper credit is given to the composer.