! ! ! A!girl!like!you! !
for$flute,$viola$and$harp$
and$an$optional$tape$introduction$ $ !
Ursula!Kwong-Brown! !
February!2015! !
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! A!girl!like!you! for$flute,$viola$and$harp$–$and$an$optional$tape$intro! ! Optional!Tape!Intro!c.!2!min! Acoustic!Trio!Duration!c.!6!min! ! ! A$girl$like$you!was!inspired!by!the!poem!“Dear!Song”!by!the!American!poet!Josh!Bell!from! his!book!No$Planets$Strike.$Here!is!the!opening!stanza:! A girl like you once showed me how the moon committed suicide. She put on her make-up, stepped from her shoes, laid down in bed, and lived. Why should I be the moon, she said, and she cried. We looked up at the stars. Then we looked up at the stars. White, tiny, smart, vicious, the stars, the stars, the stars. I started this letter fifteen times, but I could only end it once. ! Excerpt!of!!“Dear!Song”!from!No$Planets$Strike$(University!of!Nebraska!Press,!2008)$by!Josh!Bell! Reprinted!with!permission!from!the!author!
! ! Acknowledgements! Many$thanks$to$Rama$Gottfried$who$assisted$with$the$spatialization$of$the$electronics$ introduction.$My$Ableton$Live$project$folder$includes$Max$MIDI$plugHins$that$he$developed$to$ control$$Ircam’s$Spat$software$via$Ableton$Live.$$ $ Also$–$many$thanks$to$Keiko$Murakami,$Virginie$Tarrête$and$Garth$Knox$who$gave$invaluable$ feedback$on$an$early$version$of$this$piece$at$the$2014$Etchings$Festival.$$ $ U.K.B.$ ! ! ! Please!contact!the!composer!with!any!questions!! Email:!ursulakb@berkeley.edu! Website:!www.ursulakwongbrown.org!
NOTATION! ! GENERAL! The!score!is!notated!at!sounding!pitch.!! The!viola!is!tuned!to!scordatura!and!the!part!is!given!for!both!sounding!and!fingered!pitch.! ! Accidentals!follow!conventional!rules:!they!apply!throughout!the!bar!to!notes!in!the!same! octave!and!the!same!stave.!! ! All!tremolo!markings!are!unmeasured.!! ! Start!all!glissandi$immediately!at!the!beginning!of!the!note!value.! ! ! change!gradually!from!one!sound!or!way!of!playing!to!another!! ! ! ! ! ! feather-beaming:!notes!are!played!gradually! faster!or!slower.!The!note!above!the!bracket! ! shows!the!total!duration! ! ! ! !
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FLUTE!!
! variable!vibrato!! the!two!tremolo!bars!simply!mean!‘flutter!tongue’!and!never!! denote!a!specific!speed!of!articulation!
!flt.!
breath!tone:!use!the!fingering!needed!to!produce!the!marked!pitch;! however,!don’t!produce!the!normal!tone,!just!blow!air!through!the! instrument!
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! !!T.R.!
tongue!ram!(the!upper!note!is!fingered,!the!lower!note!sounds!a! major!seventh!below);!close!the!mouthpiece!with!the!whole!mouth! and!make!a!big!and!rapid!movement!with!the!tongue!against!the! teeth!by!saying!“HOT!”!or!“HT!”! pizzicato!(aka,!“slap!tongue”);!with!the!flute!in!normal!playing! position,!create!percussive!bursts!of!air!with!the!lips!and!tongue! using!different!syllables!such!as!“za”!and!“zo”!! !
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HARP! The!harp!sounds!should!always!be!allowed!to!ring!as!long!as!possible.! ! Weave!a!thin!strip!of!paper!from!E6-E7!(see!below):!this!will!remain!throughout!the!piece! !
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indicates!that!strings!are!muted!by!the!paper!
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glissando$with!plastic!between!tuning!pin!and!peg! knock!on!sounding!board!–!anywhere!resonant! strike!strings!with!open!palm!
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VIOLA! ! ! !!!Scordatura:!!sul!IV!tuned!down!to!B!
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! ! Parts!are!given!for!both!sounding!and!fingered!pitch.!! !
!!!!!!!!!S.P.!
!!!!!!!!!N.!! !
sul$ponticello$ $ molto$sul$ponticello:!$almost!on!the!bridge! ! normale:$$used!with!S.P.!and!M.S.P.! !
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harmonic:!fingered!pitch!(not!sounding)$$!
!!!!!!!!M.S.P.!
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! strummed!pizzicato:!! strum!upwards!with!finger!pad,!! strum!downwards!with!back!of!fingernail!
battuto$–$strike!vertically!to!produce!almost!no!pitch!! $$$
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add!moderate!bow!pressure!to!produce!a!mixture!of!pitch!and! noise;!then!decrease!pressure! ! add!bow!pressure!to!produce!a!scratching!sound!in!which!pitch!is! almost!completely!replaced!by!noise;!then!decrease!pressure!
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TECH!SPECS!! ! This!trio!can!be!performed!acoustically!or!with!a!pre-recorded!tape!introduction.!! The!following!technical!information!is!correct!as!of!May!2015.!!Please!contact!the!composer! for!any!developments!after!that!time:!<ursulakb@berkeley.edu>! ! ! !Equipment!/!Software! • Macintosh!or!PC!computer!that!can!run!Ableton!Live!9!Suite!and!Max/MSP!6.1! • Audio!interface!with!at!least!8!ADAT!inputs/!8!ADAT!outputs/!6!analog!outputs! • Mixer!with!at!least!6!outputs! • 6!speakers!surrounding!the!audience! ! ! Computer!Files! • Ableton!Live!Project!folder:!“A!girl!like!you!intro.zip”! • Max/MSP!file:!“spat_server_6channels_5may15.maxpat”! ! ! ! Speaker!SetRup! • The!speakers!should!surround!the!audience.!!The!following!set-up!will!be!used! for!the!May!11,!2015!premiere!in!Hertz!Hall!at!UC!Berkeley:!! !
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! ! Performance!Notes!! • The!piece!should!be!performed!with!minimal!lighting.!The!performers!can!use! stand!lights!or!a!focused!spot!light.!! • The!players!should!wait!onstage!during!the!2-min!pre-recorded!electronic! introduction!and!begin!playing!as!soon!as!it!finishes.!!