Livre de Résonances
for bells
for bells
In response to a request from the State, ‘‘Livre de Résonances’’ was written in 1989 and dedicated to bell-ringer and organist Eric Brottier, who premiered it on that same year for the ‘‘Journées Nationales de Campanologie’’ organized in the town of Châlons-en-Champagne. The composition of this work is based on the bells’ two main acoustic particularities: the spectral structure of their sound and their typical use of resonance. I also was eager to take advantage of their dynamic possibilities and to make use of their range, from the deeper to the higher-pitched scales.
In poetic terms, here is a sample of the ideas which determined the choice of the titles of each of the cycle’s three pieces (or movements):
"Heures lointaines" (‘‘Remote Hours’’): evokes the bells’ age-old relation to time, an experience that can be lived in a continuous, stable fashion, or through the bells’ unrelenting hammering.
"Entre ciel et terre" (‘‘Between Earth and Heaven’’): the bell tower elevates itself to an intermediary position between two realms: that of the Earth, dark and fretful, and at a superior level, that of the astrologers and the mystics.
"Pulsations nocturnes" (‘‘Nocturnal Pulsations’’): an almost incantatory meditation, a sort of internal chant anticipating the advent of silence.
composed in: 1989
commissioned work for the State (D.R.A.C. of Champagne-Ardenne)
premiered: in 1989, Châlons-en-Champagne, by Éric Brottier, for the ‘‘Journées Nationales de Campanologie’’
duration: 17’
publisher: Amis du Carillon de Notre-Dame-en-Vaux
also in the repertoire of Stefano Colletti and Anna-Maria Reverté