Program Note

Amelia: After Harbour Grace is a work for solo piano, fixed media and optional live electronics. The piece draws its inspiration from Amelia Earhart’s historic 1932 solo flight across the Atlantic Ocean.  Evidently, it was not an easy 15-hour flight. In her Lockheed Vega she departed Harbour Grace, Newfoundland with the intent of arriving the next day in Paris, France. Instead, she landed in a farmer’s pasture near Londonderry, Ireland.  In radio and television interviews after the crossing she detailed the challenges she faced. She encountered severe thunderstorms which made it difficult to stay on course. There were other dangers too: when flying low she encountered fog which made it difficult to see; at higher altitudes ice formed on the wings of the plane; furthermore, a weld broke on her plane shortly after leaving Harbour Grace causing its exhaust manifold to burn all night long. 

Most of the audio files used in this piece were developed by processing, in various ways, fragments of a television interview Earhart gave on Paramount News in London shortly after her transatlantic flight. These audio files are juxtaposed against the piano part, creating a multilayered musical texture.  

The piece is divided into several sections. Inspired by the excitement and momentum of Earhart’s flight the opening section is fast paced, mapping additive rhythms onto melodic fragments derived from an Irish folk song. In a transitory passage a short recording of the piano’s music is captured and transformed using granular synthesis, first into a machinelike sonority before finally morphing into a cloudy texture. An extended slow section portrays the isolation of being alone over the great expanse of an ocean. A modulation and a crescendo highlight the excitement of finally seeing land. The piece closes with an enigmatic and melancholic passage, acknowledging the fact that this great aviator would go missing five years later while trying to become the first person to circumnavigate the globe at the equator.  

Amelia: After Harbour Grace was composed for Louise Bessette, a great Canadian pianist who herself is a pioneer, pushing the boundaries of contemporary piano music.