Dalton H. Regnier - circuitbreaker
Dalton H. Regnier - circuitbreaker
Dalton H. Regnier's circuitbreaker, for bass clarinet and marimba, was the first place winner of the inaugural ICA Low Clarinet Festival's composition competition. The seven-minute long work was written for Transient Canvas duo, who gave the world premiere performance at the festival. In addition to composing, Regnier is trained as an experienced clarinetist and is thoroughly familiar with contemporary techniques for the instrument.
circuitbreaker immediately captivates with a gripping unison riff, which finds new ways to develop throughout the piece. The return of familiar thoughts, but never in quite the same way, contributes to the interest of the music. Regnier's bass clarinet writing is intuitive, but relies heavily on extended techniques. These wild sounds are expertly blended into the musical language and contribute to the sense of cohesion in the duo. Bass clarinetist, Amy Advocat, is competent and convincing with these non-traditional sounds, especially various air noise which come up multiple times (the premiere performance is drastically improved in this compared to the initial recording first released on YouTube).
While the genre of bass clarinet and marimba duet music is a newer one, several cliché sounds still come up in Transient Canvas' repertoire. Regnier's implementation of extended techniques on both instruments can be described as stereotypical, as the sounds are those which have become standard practice in the contemporary music idiom. That being said, due to the work's length, overarching musical development, and technical unison lines which enable a greater sense of musicality, circuitbreaker becomes more than just another new work premiered by the duo.
Watch the premiere performance at ICA Low Clarinet Festival 2023 here.
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