Meditation for violin and piano
by Anthony Ritchie, Opus 133a
Takes an ancient Chinese poem as its inspiration. Creates a simple calm sound world.
- YEAR: 2008
- DURATION: 10'30
- COMMISSIONED BY: Tessa Peterson and John van Buskirk
- LEVEL: 3 | Professional and semi-professional musicians
Published by Promethean Editions.
Click this link to hear Tessa Petersen and John van Buskirk playing Meditation on Spotify
Programme Note
Meditation was commissioned by Tessa Petersen and John Van Buskirk for performance in a concert celebrating the opening of the Chinese Gardens in Dunedin, New Zealand, 2008.
The piece takes an ancient Chinese poem as its point of departure, a text that focuses on Nature and its relationship to humans. The music spontaneously expresses thoughts of Nature and beauty, using simple ideas based around modes, repeated ostinati, and a mixture of long melodic lines and shorter motifs. Various timbres on both instruments are explored, and the pianist plays on the strings of the instrument with mallets at the beginning and end of the piece.
The piece is structured in 3 main sections: slow-faster-slow, and all sections are played without a break.
- To P'ei Ti
- Before this serene evening landscape,
- I compose a few lines to speed you on your way.
- Vacantly I gaze into the distance,
- My chin resting against a ju-i stick.
- The plants wave in the breezes;
- Scented orchids have sprouted along that fence.
- From their sun-lit doorways
- The farmers are coming forward to greet us.
- Sweet spring has returned to the meadow,
- And the pond is again glimmering with water.
- Though the peach and plum blossoms are still to come,
- Each branch of each tree is smothered with leaf and bud.
- Hasten, then, my friend, to return -
- Sowing time is not far off.
- Wang Wei (701-761)