About the Piece
Instrumentation: Full Orchestra: 1.picc.2.0.2-2.1.1.0-str.quintet (soloists)-str
Duration: 5 min
Program Note from the composer:
PIVOT is inspired by my experiences at the Edinburgh Festival where I enjoyed an array of fantastic performances across the arts. It is this variety that I have tried to capture in PIVOT which, as the title suggests, pivots from one experience to another. The Pivot is also a former name of the 200-year-old folk music venue and pub in Edinburgh, The Royal Oak.
PIVOT quotes fragments of The Flowers of Edinburgh, a traditional fiddle tune of eighteenth century Scottish lineage that is also prominent in American fiddle music and thus bridges between Edinburgh and St. Louis, where this music was premiered. Thank you to Aidan O’Rourke for his guidance on folk fiddle bowings and ornaments, which are incorporated into PIVOT.
Conductor’s Perspective
This work calls for string quintet soloists, which is a great way to highlight the principal players. The solo parts are not too challenging and often plays in unison (especially the folk sections) and can be done by good players.
The mixed meter section (the main theme) repeats itself, and remains the same almost every time it reoccurs. Therefore, once the musicians learn the pattern, it’s not as challenging as it looks like. The contrast between the fast and the slower folk-like tunes is really nice, and works very well as a concert opener, or as a contrasting piece with other longer and heavier works.
About the Composer
Described as a “composer of uncommon gifts and unusual methods” in a New York Times
profile and as “fearless” by NPR, GRAMMY-nominated Anna Clyne is one of the most in-
demand composers today, working with orchestras, choreographers, filmmakers, and visual
artists around the world.
Clyne has been commissioned and presented by the world’s most dynamic and revered arts
institutions, including the Barbican, Carnegie Hall, Kennedy Center, Los Angeles Philharmonic,
MoMA, Philharmonie de Paris, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, San Francisco Ballet, and the
Sydney Opera House; and her music has opened such events as the Edinburgh International
Festival, The Last Night of the Proms, and the New York Philharmonic’s 2021–2022 season.
Clyne often collaborates on creative projects across the music industry, including Between the
Rooms, a film with choreographer Kim Brandstrup and LA Opera, as well as the Nico Project at
the Manchester International Festival, a stage work about pop icon Nico’s life that featured
Clyne’s reimagining of The Marble Index for orchestra and voices. Clyne has also reimagined
tracks from Thievery Corporation’s The Cosmic Game for the electronica duo with orchestra,
and her music has been programmed by such artists as Björk.
Several recent projects have explored Clyne’s fascination with visual arts, including Color Field,
inspired by the artwork of Mark Rothko; Abstractions, inspired by five contemporary artworks;
and Woman Holding a Balance, a film collaboration with artist Jyll Bradley. Other recent
collaborators include such notable musicians as Jess Gillam, Martin Fröst, Pekka Kuusisto, and
Yo-Yo Ma.
In 2022–2023, Clyne serves as Composer-in-Residence with the Philharmonia Orchestra and
the Trondheim Symphony Orchestra, as well as the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra starting in
the 2023–2024 season. Past residencies include the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, Chicago
Symphony Orchestra, L’Orchestre national d’Île-de-France, and the Scottish Chamber
Orchestra.
Clyne’s music is represented on several labels and her works Prince of Clouds and Night Ferry
were nominated for 2015 GRAMMY Awards. Her cello concerto DANCE, recorded by soloist
Inbal Segev, the London Philharmonic Orchestra, and Marin Alsop, has garnered more than
seven million plays on Spotify.
Clyne’s music is published exclusively by Boosey & Hawkes. www.boosey.com/clyne
This biography can be reproduced free of charge in concert programs with the following credit:
Reprinted by kind permission of Boosey & Hawkes.
Performance Materials
● Perusal Score here on Boosey & Hawkes
● Score and parts rental through Boosey & Hawkes
Recording
Recording on YouTube by the BBC Symphony Orchestra conducted by Dalia Stasevska