Panacea by Grant Luhmann

for Meera Gudipati and the United States Coast Guard Band, Adam R. Williamson, Director

PA N AC E A for solo flute with live processing and wind ensemble

GRANT LUHMANN

iii

for Meera Gudipati and the U.S. Coast Guard Band, Adam R. Williamson, Director

Instrumentation Solo flute with live processing (see technical notes) Piccolo Flute 2 Oboes English horn 2 Clarinets in Bb Bass clarinet in Bb 2 Bassoons Contrabassoon Soprano saxophone Alto saxophone Tenor saxophone Baritone saxophone 4 Trumpets in Bb 4 Horns in F 4 Trombones 2 Euphoniums 2 Tubas Double bass Harp 3 Percussion: 1: Marimba, glockenspiel 2: Steel drums 3: Seashell chimes, sizzle cymbal, rainstick, tubular bells (with yarn and rawhide), tam-tam, bass drum

Score is in C Duration: 16 minutes

GENERAL NOTES Panacea is a concerto for live-processed flute and wind ensemble. Throughout the piece, the soloist’s sound is captured by a microphone, routed to a computer, processed by a patch in Max/MSP 7, and played over speakers in the hall. The patch creates a greatly augmented soloist who at one moment may perform as a single voice only to later be transformed into an orchestra of flutes spanning the entire range of human hearing. The patch’s capabilities can be broadly divided into two simple categories, delays and transposition. This enables the soloist to perform feats such as performing close canons with themselves at varying intervals, sustaining bass notes ordinarily accessible only by organ pedals, and creates hundreds of clones playing nearly, but not quite at the same time, leading to a wash of sonority. The soloist, of course, is only half of the picture. If the electronics are to be viewed as an extension of the soloist, then the band is an extension of the electronics. The ensemble frequently imitates the processed music coming from the patch, making use of micropolyphony (dense canons moving at different rates), timbral trills, registral extremes, and electronicsevoking percussion such as marimba and steel drum. This role is not permanently prescribed, however, as throughout the piece, the band gradually acquires a more independent voice, culminating in the ensemble-led section at m. 194. Changes to the normal wind ensemble instrumentation have been made to account for the prominent role of electronics in this piece. The woodwind section has been reduced, particularly the flutes and clarinets. Other instruments play outside of their prototypical roles: Trumpets spend most of the piece muted, trombones rely heavily on harmon mute timbral trills, and horns fluttertongue for long stretches at a time. This has the dual effects of decreasing competition in the flute’s register, which tends to be filled with electronic feedback delays, and increasing the ensemble’s ability to imitate the airy, tremolo-heavy music that the soloist often plays.

PERFORMANCE NOTES Note that trill markings are used for both trills and tremolos wider than a step in order to preserve rhythmic intent.

Harmon mute tremolo: For brass, with harmon mute inserted, rapidly alternate between closed and open hand position, creating as rapid of a “wah-wah” effect as possible.

Chord tremolo: Trill freely between root note and any of the notes in parentheses, alternating the interval rapidly. Sometimes combined with fluttertongue. Note that all tremolos should include the root note; i.e., the player may tremolo from C to E or C to F, but not from D to F.

Fltz.+tremolo: Fluttertongue and tremolo with the fingers simultaneously. At low dynamic levels, particularly in saxophones, this technique is expected to produce air noise and be somewhat unpredictably.

Timbral trill: ttr signifies a timbral trill, a rapid alternation between a normal fingering for a note and an alternate fingering that produces a noticeable change in timbre with minimal change in pitch. The balance of minimizing pitch change while maximizing timbral change is left to the judgment of the player.

TECHNICAL NOTES The soloist requires amplification, preferably via clip-on mic to minimize signal from the ensemble. The requisite patch is run in Max 7, and several IRCAM plugins are needed. Max 7 can be downloaded as a free trial; necessary plugins are available on request from the composer. The patch is structured around a series of 20 “cues” that each change sound processing presets. For instance, cues 2 through 5 form a series of increasingly complex delay patterns with transposition that serve to gradually expand the range of the processed flute. Each cue must be triggered via an input into the patch. This can be accomplished by having an assistant follow the score and trigger cues as notated, or the soloist may use an AirTurn Bluetooth pedal to advance the cues.

To activate the patch, open the patch in Max 7. Check the dsp settings by clicking on the red box labeled dsp; this will allow configuration of routing. Ensure that the ADC/DAC is turned on by clicking on the grayed-out X. When activated, the power symbol in the lower right corner of the window will turn blue.

Next, press the space bar or foot pedal to advance the piece to Cue 1. This cue serves as an equipment check: It patches through amplification with no processing. Allow the soloist to play a few notes, confirm that audio is routing through correctly, silently wait at least 5 seconds, and then advance to Cue 2. It is important to silently wait at least 5 seconds before advancing to Cue 2 to allow the buffer to empty. For rehearsal purposes, any cue number may be typed into the numbered box “Next Event”; the next click on the circle-shaped button under “next bang,” or the next press of the space bar or foot pedal, will trigger the event typed into the Next Event box. This allows skipping to any cue in the piece. Furthermore, the player may go backwards 1 event by pressing the left AirTurn pedal, or the assistant may go backwards one cue by pressing R. The large window labeled “Current Event” designates what cue the patch is currently set to. It is imperative to the success of the piece that the event number always matches the cue dictated in the score.

Lastly, there is a recording function built into the patch that records the sound being sent to the speakers. This may be useful either for rehearsal purposes or for creating a mix of a live recording. To use this, press the button labeled “open.” This allows selection of a file name and saving destination. When ready to record, press the large gray X to begin the recording process. Press it again to end the recording. To record again, press “open” again to create a new file.

To summarize: 1. Set up audio hardware 2. Open Max 7 3. Use the dsp status button to configure routing 4. Press the gray X above “DAC ON/OFF,” confirm that the power button in lower right of window is on 5. If recording, press “open” in the recording box, choose a file destination and name, then press the nearby large X to initiate recording 6. Advance to Cue 1 by either pressing the space bar or right pedal on the AirTurn 7. Have the soloist play a few notes; amplification of the soloist should be present 8. Wait at least 5 seconds, then advance to Cue 2. Processing will now be active 9. Perform the piece, advancing cues as indicated by the score 10. The final cue, Cue 20, turns all audio output off 11. Press the large recording X again to stop recording.