Ensemble 20/21, Beyond Darmstadt: DIBERARDINO - Ornithopter

NICK DIBERARDINO Ornithopter
Steven Franklin, trumpet
Caleb Wiebe, trumpet
Eric Huckins, horn
János Sutyák, trombone
Guangwei Fan, trombone
Andrew Doub, tuba
Performed on Saturday, March 25, 2017
Gould Rehearsal Hall, Curtis Institute of Music, Philadelphia
An “ornithopter,” from the Greek “ornithos” (bird) and “pteron” (wing), is a flying machine designed to fly by flapping its wings. The history of human flight is full of attempts at ornithopters of various shapes and sizes, all characterized by their bird-like flight mechanics. In spite of efforts by Leonardo da Vinci and many other great minds, ornithopters are also almost categorically characterized by failure; these machines simply don’t work. After all, when compared to birds, people are frankly quite heavy. My piece takes the image of a struggling ornithopter as a guiding metaphor: the brass players work together here, flapping furiously, working against the odds to achieve lift in spite of their-pardon my candor-tremendous collective weight. Capricious and vigorous, and always a little unstable, this music imagines a whimsical ride in a giant brass ornithopter. Our flying machine is, like any good ornithopter, clearly prone to failure. Even so, it is still surprisingly potent.
-Nick DiBerardino
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