Vamp

Unusually for me, Vamp is a series of miniatures and was written over a long period of time. The fourth movement was written first, in 2001, when I was a fellow at Tanglewood and working with the choreographer Eliza Miller. A few years later Eliza and I decided to work together again, and the piece Vamp was born. I wanted to put the last movement in relief, but I also felt that there was much more to say with the combination of piccolo, e-flat clarinet and percussion. The first two movements, which are both fast, pit the percussion against the winds in different ways. The third movement, the only slow piece in the set, is actually a succession of duets. The final movement, the shortest of the set, features all three players in tight rhythmic unison.

— Oscar Bettison

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