Leah Reid - "Fall, Leaves, Fall"
Leah Reid - Fall, Leaves, Fall
Fall, Leaves, Fall is more of an uncomfortable recitation of Emily Brontë's poem of the same name than a composition.
Fall, Leaves, Fall was yet another work premiered at New Music Mosaic's "Timbre Vol. 1: Growth/Decay" virtual concert. The work, composed by Dr. Leah Reid for amplified saxophone and electronics, falls into the increasingly prevalent category of 'new music for saxophone', consisting of stereotypical extended techniques, limited usage of the actual instrument, and more focus on the background noise, this case made to sound like the ruffling of leaves, rather than actual music. Reid describes the piece as an "aphoristic composition", despite there being absolutely no subtlety nor clearness of thought. Fall, Leaves, Fall is more of an uncomfortable recitation of Emily Brontë's poem of the same name than a composition. It is always easy to tell when a composer is stifled by a concert theme, in this case 'decay', rather than inspired (watch the performance here).
However, the recording and performance of Reid's work is top-notch. Wilson Poffenberger gave an incredible performance of the few notes he did have. The most convincing part of the performance was actually the accompanying video, featuring autumn and winter landscapes inserted between clips of Poffenberger's playing. This technological professionalism, while expected from a composer and performer who is competent in electro-acoustic music, was refreshing to hear amongst other videos featured by New Music Mosaic.
I was not disgruntled by Reid's music, but Fall, Leaves, Fall left me with a baffling emptiness. It was as though the piece had no emotional connection and existed solely within its temporal space. In that case, I feel that Fall, Leaves, Fall would better serve its purpose as a purely electronic work.
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