1.picc.2.Ebcl.1.2–4.2.2.1–timp.perc(3):I=drum set/kick dr/tom-t/hi-hat/ride/splash/cowbell; II=marimba/wdbl/tpl.bl/cowbells/brake dr/tam-t/BD; III=xyl/susp.cym/cowbells/anvils/high bongo/whip/lotos fl–harp–strings(12.10.8.6.4)
Abbreviations (PDF)
B&B
"Balera" is the North-Italian term for a popular dance club, a dance floor, or a dance platform in the open air. "In a sense, the title represents for me the ‘event horizon’ on which an imaginary, wild dance scene takes place. A short section quotes and varies the ending of an earlier composition for ensemble, Mad Dog, from 2011. Already at that time I was thinking of a dance, or more precisely, in terms of the rhythm it is reminiscent of a tap dance in which the dancer’s shoes tap out the rhythm implied by the wood blocks with the syncopations. However, that is only the point of departure for a free development." (Bernd Richard Deutsch)
The short, energetic piece transmits furious dance rhythms to the sound of a symphony orchestra. The drum sets’ fast-paced beats communicate with forward whipping motifs in the orchestra and culminate in the breakneck accelerando of an explosive coda. Balera was written for the ORF project "Dance music for advanced dancers" and lived up to this name.