The duo Tvelys premieres the music for their theatrical piece "The Wonderful World of Colours" at KLANG on June 12, about three years after they came to me with the idea (an interactive concert for children aged 3-7) and the title of the piece. So, what has happened in the meantime?
First and foremost, a postponement due to an uncomfortably crowded and busy time following the initial shutdown, and the associated relocations and cancellations that became the new reality for most creative freelancers.
When, at the beginning of 2022 – after completing many other projects with the same fate – I finally got the opportunity to compose the music, it was a healing experience. Healing especially because of the theme: Colours.
Working with colours invites all the opposite of the above master planning: presence, sensing, tasting timbres. How to capture concentrated joy in the Yellow movement? How about an ambitious greed in the Green? Or a tranquil devotion in the Blue?
The questions can only be answered with timbres (the Danish word “klangfarve” is literally translated “timbre colour”).
For me, the process has been characterized by a rare meditation, a focus. All movements have been jammed intuitively in my studio through close listening. Subsequently, they have been subjected to the inevitable editing. The pure intuitive writing is often full of clichés and convoluted ideas, but I try not to be afraid of it. I believe that in that material, one can often distill the ‘real’ piece through rewrites and rewrites.
With their empathetic play, Julius and Uffe have lifted the six colour movements into a complex emotional universe where the audience is given the chance to be reflected. Both in the emotional states they like to be in – and in the ones they do not. To me, that is the real triumph of the piece.
The Wonderful World of Colours
Yellow
Green
Red
Blue
Orange
Purple
commissioned by KLANG with support from the Danish Arts Foundation and KODA Culture
for Tvelys
The concert is presented in collaboration with Genklange.