Aquarelle from Sandglasses by Justė Janulytė

'Aquarelle' for mixed choir (2007)

Commissioned by the Gaida Festival and written for the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir.

Written in the style of 'pure' repetitive minimalism, this piece is based on the counterpoints of regular pulsations. Following an age-old tradition of cori spezzati, the choir is split into four micro-ensembles, whose textures vary by degree of density or clarity. The harmony is based on the slow sequences of diatonic scales, which imitate overlapping colours in watercolour, without distinct outlines. Since the piece does not employ verbal text, the singers only intone vowels or sing mormorando. Just because there are no consonants, it is also completely free of sound attacks. The single gesture used in this piece is the sound that emerges from silence and submerges back to it, like the tip of an iceberg, revealing just a small portion of the inaudible, yet imaginable sound world.

Justė Janulytė

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