The Rhyme of Taigu

The Rhyme of Taigu is a lively and powerful work for full orchestra. The piece explores the energy and spirit behind Japanese Taiko, or 'fat drum' (Taigu in Chinese). As a result, the percussion plays a key role, providing an aggressive drive throughout the whole work and often in competition with the brass, particularly in the thrilling climax.

Taigu is the Chinese pronunciation of the Japanese Taiko (fat drum). The piece explores the energy and the spirit behind this unique art form, in which organised rhythmic cells generate dramatic and powerful music. The Rhyme of Taigu consists of three sections: it begins with three drummers on the Dagu (Chinese bass drums) beating a slow rhythmic pattern, which fades into the background when the clarinet enters. Gradually, new patterns develop, each time in a faster tempo, building to a climax that concludes the first section. A brief solo clarinet cadenza leads into a middle section featuring a lyrical melody and imitative woodwinds, before the brass section creates a haunting atmosphere, eventually accelerating the music to a lively tempo and driving the work to the end.

Orchestration: picc, 2 fl, 2 ob, ca, 2 cl, bcl, 2 bn, cbn, 4 hn, 3 tpt, 3 tbn, tba, timp, 3 perc, pn (+cel), hp, str