Ground I

The first in an ongoing series of pieces (Ground VI being the most recent to date), Ground I explores – rather freely – the formal aspects of the Passacaglia. Above a descending chromatic bass line (of the kind W. Byrd r H. Purcell might very well have used), the piece unfolds a set of variations combining melismatic lyricism and rhythmic energy.

Commissioned by Frédéric Guérouet and Ivan Milhiet, Ground I opens new perspectives on unusual instrumental mixtures, a concept the following pieces in the series will take further, for example in Ground II for organ and percussion or Ground IV for clarinet quartet.