Trembling Aspen for 2 harps by composer John Oliver, Canadian composer
Channel: John Oliver
Date: 2020-04-14

I wrote Trembling Aspen 2 for two harps in the spring of 2011. 

The video you are watching is a computer demo performance. The work was performed by harpists Antoine Malette-Chénier and Ellen Gibling of the National Youth Orchestra of Canada in 2013. You can hear their performance here: https://youtu.be/7RAJOWaVcJM

I posted this version because the live recording video mentioned above is a mono recording, meaning that we can't hear the back and forth interplay of the parts.

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Sheet music here: https://gumroad.com/johnoliver

Links to everything John Oliver: https://linktr.ee/johnolivermusic

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HOW I CREATED THIS MUSIC

I liken this ambient music, which is constantly active, to the experience of staring at a Trembling Aspen tree during a late-summer breeze. A description of the tree is as good as a description of how I created the piece: "A slender, graceful tree with smooth, greenish-white bark; grows up to 25 metres tall; distinctive leaves that quiver in the slightest breeze. It is known for its ability to sprout from root suckers and form clones of many individual stems. Aspen clones can often be distinguished in spring or fall when groups of stems leaf out or change colour all at once. These clones can get quite large and can be very long-lived. Some are estimated to be over 5,000 years old." And,"The trembling aspen would make an interesting Shakespearean character. There are not many trees in the world you can find with your ears, that can live on for centuries or that make imperceptible connections underground. The tinkling of leaves, like a soft wind chime, can be heard from east to west, one of those familiar pieces of natural Canadiana."

Sources: 
1] https://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hfd/library/documents/treebook/tremblingaspen.htm
2] https://www.yourleaf.org/blog/andrea-bake/jan-27-2014/be-or-not-be-trembling-aspensubmitted by Andrea Bake on January 27, 2014

I used Nodal software to create the piece. Nodal enables the creation of music using controlled random selection of pathways through musical materials which are entirely designed by the composer. I explore the notion of imitation as derived from polyphonic techniques like canon and fugue, and merge them with the self-similar motion of natural phenomenon, like the movement of leaves in the wind. I create a very still music with large and small gestural elements that occur in unpredictable reorderings.