Can we hear our past? It is after all, an impossible venture but reimagining a once-occupied space from prehistory opens possibilities for sound worlds beyond the resonance. Based of my solo archaeological fieldwork in Moià,
Catalan in 2018, this work is founded on transcriptions of field recordings taken in the karstic caves of Coves del Toll. Reimagining a space and its past inhabitants, from the distant clattering of bones, wood and the movement of flames and underground water to museum records of ancient fauna such as the prehistoric bears and lions, perhaps the whispers and voices in the dark can speak.
 
Cave Speak was commissioned by the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra 21st Century Cyben Composers Program (2019-2020)
 
Difficulty: Advanced
Length: 9 minutes
 
Instrumentation: Chamber Orchestra
Flute
Oboe
Clarinet in Bb I, II
Bassoon
Horn in F I, II
Trumpet in Bb
Tenor Trombone
Timpani
Percussion I (2 Suspended Cymbal - medium and small - Tam-tam - Bass Drum)
Percussion II (3 Tom-toms - high, mid and low - Bass Drum)
Harp
Violin I, II, III, IV
Viola I, II
Violoncello I, II
Double Bass