Musical Compositions of Ed Bennett - Essay Example

The composition I would like to pay attention to is called “Vagabonds and Blood from the Earth”, which is a part of the “Dzama stories” album created by the composer in cooperation with Paul Dunmall, a British solo saxophonist (Fordham), in 2009. The written parts of the music were created for Bennett’s stunning ensemble called Decibel. The work was inspired by the paintings of Marcel Dzama, a Canadian painter. The chosen composition is the first part of the album; it virtually opens “Dzama stories”.

“Vagabonds and Blood from the Earth” is surely a powerful composition for the album-opening (in combination with the calm intro). Here, like in the rest of the album, Bennett created a powerful and balanced interplay of structural written music fragments and immediate striking improvisation. Then, the sharp “edge” between the calm fragment of the introduction and “blitzkriegs of turbulence, throbbing and thumping in turn” (Graham) seems to be rather innovative and daring, and the composition is significant as a part of Bennett’s “sound” representation (or “reading”) of Dzama’s works. To my thinking, the composition is virtually overwhelming in terms of emotional charge, and even thrilling (due to piercing strings and sharp dramatic transitions between calm and intense parts). In the moments of intensification (when strings reach especially high pitches and the entire composition becomes chaotic to some extent), this piece could even be associated with a horror movie or a thriller. However, despite my deep respect for the talent and creativity of this composer, this piece evokes rather negative and turbulent emotions in me: anxiety and some intangible foreboding. Read More