violet (2001)

violet was the first of my works written using techniques derived from fine art painting. The piece marked the beginning of a series of works that explore these ideas in various ways.
In this case I was interested in making a piece that was constructed in much the same way as a painting: a layer of underpainting that covers the entire canvas; a series of more definite marks; several large blocks of colour, or figures, placed carefully on to the surface; and a final layer of tinted varnish that joins the layers together. What is on the surface is coloured by what is underneath.
violet was written in the summer of 2001, and is in a single movement. The work was not performed in its original form and was revised in prepartion for the first performance, which took place on 31 March 2010, with André de Ridder and the BBC Symphony Orchestra

instrumentation:
orchestra
2.2.2.3 | 4.2.3.0 | 1 perc. | piano | strings
duration: 8 minutes ~
first performance: BBC Symphony Orchestra, André de Ridder, 31 March 2010, Maida Vale Studios, London, UK

[page 11, bars 27-31]