Music

Central Landscapes

Piano, Teaching works

5 pieces for piano

About the work

I wrote this set of pieces, for pianists of intermediate ability, during 2009 while I was living in Alexandra in Central Otago as artist-in-residence for the Henderson Arts Trust.

Barbara Henderson, who lived in the Plischke-designed house before it became an artist’s residence, would visit her studio in the garden most weeks. So I wrote these pieces for her birthday, and they were played by my sister Joyce at Central Stories in Alexandra at Barbara’s birthday celebration.

There are 5 movements, which can be played separately or in this order:

  • Hoar frost with fire siren
  • Taking a line for a walk
  • Landscape with quail
  • Outlines through rising mist, and
  • River talk.

Central Landscapes is dedicated to Barbara Henderson.

I subsequently arranged the pieces for the Central Regional Otago Orchestra.

Central Landscapes for chamber orchestra

Scores and recordings

All 5 pieces were published by the Sunrise Music Trust in Take Flight — music from New Zealand for intermediate pianists. Gillian Bibby recorded the pieces for a CD that accompanies the book.

Take flight — publication