The Dreaming
for nonet (fl ob cl hn bsn vln vla vc cb) (2026)
duration 15 minutes
commissioned by Intercontinental Ensemble
premiere 15 march 2026 with Intercontinental Ensemble at Kasteel Helmond
duration 15 minutes
commissioned by Intercontinental Ensemble
premiere 15 march 2026 with Intercontinental Ensemble at Kasteel Helmond
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composer's notes
The Dreaming is a work in three movements that takes its inspiration from the creation stories of indigenous Australia. Where other cultures know their landscapes through cartography, Australian Aboriginals have composed songlines (or dreaming tracks) that are sung while travelling. The words of these songlines are linked to features in the environment, guiding one not only through Aboriginal stories, laws and moral teachings but through the landscape itself.
The first movement, They Were Chased Across Sand And Sky, is loosely based on one of these stories - The Seven Sisters. This songline, traversing thousands of kilometers from west to east, tells of seven ancestral women being pursued by a powerful shapeshifting sorcerer across the land. On their way the sisters create several features of the landscape such as waterholes and mountains before finally being chased into the sky, becoming the Pleiades star cluster. The horn and contrabass take the role of the male sorcerer with the seven remaining instruments taking on the seven sisters. The first section features a long oboe solo over an airy droning atmosphere. As the melody begins to move through the other sisters the horn and contrabass interrupt with an attempt to charm the sisters through a playful melody over pizzicato accompaniment. Having resisted this temptation, three sisters now work together towards a flowing musical landscape, this time interrupted by a much more aggressive version of the sorcerer’s thematic material. Surviving this onrush, all seven sisters now start to ascend until finally they find themselves floating in the highest registers of the ensemble, having found peace above a bed of supporting harmonies.
The second movement, Finding Patterns Among The Stars, carries on without pause. Here the inspiration is the tradition of ancient cultures looking to the night sky and finding recognizable shapes and patterns among the uncountable random stars. This movement is made up of a ‘starry sky’ of staccato notes always falling throughout the whole ensemble. As our eyes (ears) slowly move a full 360 degrees (one rotation of the pattern) we start to perceive musical material taking shape. Fragments of melody and harmony come in and out of focus until we finally land on a new section, flowing gently. Here the ‘starry sky’ pattern is less perceivable, moving quicker and coming in and out of focus between ever more focused passages of music that eventually build to a long climactic section. Out of this we are suddenly dropped back into the night sky, this third rotation of the ‘starry sky’ pattern once again sped up, living among staccato winds and soft string chords that quickly evaporate.
The third movement, Gathering Storms, is a perpetuum mobile meditation on the wonders of the monsoon in the north of Australia. After the long dry season has scorched the earth and rendered rivers into small waterholes (billabongs) the arrival of the summer rains can be an overwhelming experience. As the Rainbow Serpent gathers the storms the main theme of the movement comes clearer into view: a descending series of notes inspired by the often-descending melodies of North Australian songs, reflecting their deep, grounded connection to the land. Finally, the storms subside into the distance waiting for nature’s cycle to repeat itself.
The Dreaming is a work in three movements that takes its inspiration from the creation stories of indigenous Australia. Where other cultures know their landscapes through cartography, Australian Aboriginals have composed songlines (or dreaming tracks) that are sung while travelling. The words of these songlines are linked to features in the environment, guiding one not only through Aboriginal stories, laws and moral teachings but through the landscape itself.
The first movement, They Were Chased Across Sand And Sky, is loosely based on one of these stories - The Seven Sisters. This songline, traversing thousands of kilometers from west to east, tells of seven ancestral women being pursued by a powerful shapeshifting sorcerer across the land. On their way the sisters create several features of the landscape such as waterholes and mountains before finally being chased into the sky, becoming the Pleiades star cluster. The horn and contrabass take the role of the male sorcerer with the seven remaining instruments taking on the seven sisters. The first section features a long oboe solo over an airy droning atmosphere. As the melody begins to move through the other sisters the horn and contrabass interrupt with an attempt to charm the sisters through a playful melody over pizzicato accompaniment. Having resisted this temptation, three sisters now work together towards a flowing musical landscape, this time interrupted by a much more aggressive version of the sorcerer’s thematic material. Surviving this onrush, all seven sisters now start to ascend until finally they find themselves floating in the highest registers of the ensemble, having found peace above a bed of supporting harmonies.
The second movement, Finding Patterns Among The Stars, carries on without pause. Here the inspiration is the tradition of ancient cultures looking to the night sky and finding recognizable shapes and patterns among the uncountable random stars. This movement is made up of a ‘starry sky’ of staccato notes always falling throughout the whole ensemble. As our eyes (ears) slowly move a full 360 degrees (one rotation of the pattern) we start to perceive musical material taking shape. Fragments of melody and harmony come in and out of focus until we finally land on a new section, flowing gently. Here the ‘starry sky’ pattern is less perceivable, moving quicker and coming in and out of focus between ever more focused passages of music that eventually build to a long climactic section. Out of this we are suddenly dropped back into the night sky, this third rotation of the ‘starry sky’ pattern once again sped up, living among staccato winds and soft string chords that quickly evaporate.
The third movement, Gathering Storms, is a perpetuum mobile meditation on the wonders of the monsoon in the north of Australia. After the long dry season has scorched the earth and rendered rivers into small waterholes (billabongs) the arrival of the summer rains can be an overwhelming experience. As the Rainbow Serpent gathers the storms the main theme of the movement comes clearer into view: a descending series of notes inspired by the often-descending melodies of North Australian songs, reflecting their deep, grounded connection to the land. Finally, the storms subside into the distance waiting for nature’s cycle to repeat itself.
