Scott Ordway - In the Kingdom of Bells (2018)

Scott Ordway

In the Kingdom of Bells

For orchestra ( 2018 )

In the Kingdom of Bells

Scott Ordway (2018)

Instrumentation

2 Flutes

2 Oboes ( II. doubles English horn )

2 Clarinets in B-flat ( II. doubles Bass Clarinet )

2 Bassoons

4 Horns in F

3 Trumpets in B-flat

2 Tenor Trombones

Bass Trombone

Tuba

Timpani

Percussion ( 3 players )

1. Tubular Bells ‘’Chimes’’ ( placed on the far lefthand side of the stage from the conductor’s perspective )

2. Vibraphone with bow; crotales with bow, bass drum

3. Tubular Bells ‘’Chimes’’ ( placed on the far righthand side of the stage from the conductor’s perspective ); glockenspiel

If two sets of tubular bells are not available, an alternate version of the part in which all bells are performed by a single player on a single instrument is available from the composer upon request.

Harp Celesta

Strings

Duration: 13 minutes

Transposed Score

In the Kingdom of Bells

Scott Ordway (2018)

Performance Notes

1. Much of this work’s expressive content and narrative unfolding is contained in the careful control of dynamics, many of which are highly independent from one section of the orchestra to the next. Dynamics should therefore be observed as carefully as possible.

2. The designations ppp and pppp are reserved for playing that is effectively at the edge of silence. Many lines are designed to be inaudible at first, only emerging from the texture as another part recedes. In this spirit, each performer should adhere to their printed dynamic as best as possible, even if they are inaudible, unless marked solo, espr., or similar.

3. In the first part of the work (through Rehearsal D), any tenuto marked in the strings indicates an emphasis created by a fast bow stroke with very light pressure. In this section, the accent mark is similar to the tenuto, but more so.

Commissioned and premiered by the Tucson Symphony Orchestra, José Louis Gomez, Music Director.

First performances: 30 November and 02 December 2018, Tucson Symphony Center, Tucson, Arizona. Created with additional support from the Visby International Centre for Composers (Visby, Sweden) and the Mason Gross School of the Arts, Rutgers University.

Program Note

In the Kingdom of Bells is a meditation on a simple, but fantastical idea: I imagine the sound of all the world’s bells ringing at once.

There is no technological reason that this couldn’t happen. But what a profound force of human will and cooperation it would require! What an occasion of such overwhelming and universal joy that we, the community of humanity, had to organize a global festival of bells as the only commensurate response.

There are so many ordinary actions—like ringing a bell—that become unusual when practiced at a group scale, improbable at a city scale, extraordinary at a national scale, and miraculous at a global scale.

Like so many of the challenges that face our local, national, and global communities, the deficit in this thought experiment is one of willpower, cooperation, and organization rather than technology or resources. What would it feel like if, one day, we gradually became aware that all of the world’s bells were ringing at once? What would it feel like to learn that we addressed the climate crisis? If we learned that our societies had been transformed to become more equitable, more just, and more joyous places to live and grow?

With this piece, I invite audiences to consider the small and large issues facing our communities which are unsolvable except through cooperation and dialogue. The music, which begins from nothing and builds gradually to an ecstatic climax, reflects the gradual awakening of our will to act together. I am aware that this is utopian thinking but, for me, building an idea in sound is a precursor to building that idea in the world.

Scott Ordway Stockholm, August 2018

for Sophie

Commissioned by the Tucson Symphony Orchestra; José Louis Gomez, Music Director

In the Kingdom of Bells for orchestra ( 2018 )

Out of the still silence ( h = 56 ca. )

sempre ( pedal down ) ∑ -

( a distant murmur, as much like a single sustained tone as poss. )

Vibraphone ∑ arco blooming l.v. sempre ( pedal down ) & Chimes (R) soft mallets

sempre ( pedal down ) pp ( also distant and muffled )

& ? & & & & B

( a distant murmur, as much like a single sustained tone as poss. )

Scott Ordway ( b. 1984 )

Very slightly slower ( h = 44 ca. )

Very slightly slower ( h = 44 ca. )