Triptych (1990) for piano solo

Duration: 22 minutes

Commissioned by Clive Swansbourne

The three movement Triptych was commissioned for Swansbourne's recitals at the 1990 Cheltenham Festival.

The movements can be played individually. The first: Tiderace is a study in the movement of water from the smallest seashore eddies to crashing torrents.

The second, "Mandela Blues and Stomp", is a response to the release of Nelson Mandela from Victor Verster Prison, near Capetown, on February 11th, 1990. It begins with a gesture of power and defiance. The ensuing slow Blues is based on the South African national anthem: "Nkosi Sikele i'Afrika". The Stomp is a hard-edged rhythmic piece based on a "Toyi-Toyi". This is a traditional call-and-response chant, which invokes the names of enemies in order to exorcise them.

The third piece "Self Image" builds, after a hesitant introduction, on some elements from the first two pieces, then builds to a passionate Coda marked "Glorious".

MP3 audio extract (1'30"):
Mandela Blues & Stomp

Other Chamber Music:
Un ange au lait
Eighteenth Century Scottish Dances
Coste di Montepulciano
Breakwell's Circus
A Silver Chanter
The Glen is Mine
True and False Relations
Three Glances
Sound of Jura
Fantazia Upon One Note
Post Modern Culture
Sunrise Over Loch Linnhe
Lowry Song
The Heights of Halifax