Waiting for the Aeroplane (solo piano)
Overview
Waiting for the Aeroplane captures a time when I was travelling to Greece to visit my family, who had recently returned there from New Zealand to live. The emotion of farewells, the sense of the distance between the two countries and the power of aircraft, and the frenetic activity of airports all found their way into the piece
The piece was my response to the emotional experience of contemporary air travel: long periods spent passing the time in a kind of awkward limbo, concluded by abrupt partings with loved ones. The alternating two-note ostinato which opens the work, and remains present throughout, evokes the sense of anticipation, while the interjections of melodic fragments above this ostinato are like the fleeting, distracted thoughts and conversations occupying the individual obliged to wait at the behest of influences outside his or her control. Intense jazz-influenced flourishes bring a brief rush of energy, seemingly signifying the arrival of a long-awaited, yet rushed, departure.
Instrumentation: solo piano
