Arafura – SSA choir and gamelan (or 3 metallaphones and gong)

Duration: 7 minutes

Degree of difficulty: Medium

Commissioned for the Australian Society for Music Education (ASME) conference held in Darwin in 2003.
Premiered by the NT Music School Choir directed by Nora Lewis and has had several performances over the years.
Arafura was inspired by the beaches around Darwin, Australia. Many are edged by casuarina trees that whisper as the breezes blow through them.
The Arafura Sea and Indonesia lie to our north. The use of metallophones and gong, as well as the overall musical form, borrow from Balinese music in particular.
I was lucky indeed to take part in a Gamelan orchestra under the instruction of a Balinese music teacher; an amazing experience.
I have employed the use of spoken word and vocal effects in addition to conventional melodic lines in an effort to evoke images of the sea.
The 2002 terrorist attack in Bali occurred during the composition of this work and hence the reference to lost souls and the desire for peace.

There is also a version for SATB and prepared guitar orchestra.

This performance: The Darwin Youth and Children’s Choir directed by Emma Tantengco.  Recorded live in 2006 – Jerudong International School, Brunei. The concert was attended by the Sultan of Brunei.

Click here to hear Arafura on Sound Cloud

The work is available from the Australian Music Centre (AMC)

Click here to buy from the Australian Music Centre