Michael Fiday - The Force for Good

Michael Fiday - The Force for Good

Fiday's inventive scoring is the highlight of the work, allowing all members of the ensemble to present the music with high levels of virtuosity and excitement.

In The Force For Good, Michael Fiday revitalizes the traditional concept of variation form with energetic rhythms, captivating scoring and wild, contemporary jazz harmonies. The piece was written for and premiered by the next music quartet Hypercube, comprised of electric guitar, saxophone, piano, and percussion. Fiday describes the work as "a set of variations... based on the well-known chord progression from John Coltrane's Giant Steps." While not always evident as a primary source, which is by no means required of contemporary variations, Coltrane's chords come in and out of focus as the music unfolds throughout the piece. Fiday's inventive scoring and combinations of the players is the highlight of the almost twenty-minute long work, allowing all four members of the ensemble to present the music with high levels of virtuosity and excitement.

Opening with a hypnotic drum circle created by all players from inside the piano, The Force for Good introduces a complex and high-energy groove, permutations of which reoccur throughout the variations. As Fiday develops the music, he introduces wide-ranged angled melodies, appropriating traditional jazz improvisation. While effective, at times these sections come across as mentally distracting, especially when tenor saxophonist, Erin Rogers, has to navigate the tricky realm between the specificity of contemporary music and the relaxed feel of jazz-adjacent music.

Fiday has a solid control of form in his music, with The Force for Good being no exception. Even with its interspersed peaceful moments, the music never becomes dull, even in subsequent listens. The opening rhythmic figure ends up coming full circle, ending the piece with clamorous pounding and giving the audience a sense of musical closure.

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© 2022 Brutal New Music Reviews
originally written and published 20 November 2022

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