Migaloo

String Orchestra

3' 38"

Composed somewhere between July and September 2004.

Competition and Composition: New Music for Schools. Education Queensland and the Young Conservatorium Griffith University.

This is another work from the series of Competition and Composition projects undertaken by me at the Queensland Conservatorium saw a number of works produced for the finest bands and orchestras. This work was written for a group that did not win but was outstanding in what it achieved. The conductor, Christine Buwalda, is an amazing musician and her abilities as a teacher can be measured by the quality of the players in the group. I wrote Strip the Willow for her high school group and this work for her primary school orchestra.
Correspondence
Buwalda 18 Oct

Bundaberg, Queensland, Australia, with the Norville Primary School String Orchestra, 18 March 2005 with the composer conducting.
Subsequent performance:

• Southern Cross International Music Festival, Conservatorium Theatre, Young Conservatorium String Ensemble, Lisa Blumson conducting - 11 June 2005

Manuscript

Sketch, Manuscript Score

Program note see memo to Buwalda above

The response of the ensemble (and their conductor) and the audience of mainly parents and family was positive and enthusiastic.

The work has not been published, in fact, I haven't submitted it to a publisher and I am unsure as to why. It has some solid technical demands and might not fit a publisher's template of set levels, pedagogically speaking. It develops well and the whale and ocean sounds require good control of technique as well as thoughtful consideration from the conductor. The work is melodically engaging and rhythmically approachable for younger players with lots of repetition and tonal language they will be familiar with.