The Distortion of Memory (2024)
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PROGRAM NOTE
The Distortion of Memory, for solo classical guitar, was commissioned in 2024 by Trevor Babb (USA; consortium leader), Cristián Alvear (Chile), Ken Murray (Australia), Sergio Sorrentino (Italy), and Gaku Yamada (Japan). The work has a duration of nearly an hour when performed in its entirety, but its four 15-minute movements may be performed individually or in suites. Part One is informed by a strict compositional design that generates its musical architecture, while the three movements that follow present eroded, hazy recollections of the original material — each successive reminiscence becoming increasingly nebulous and dreamlike as memories evolve and transform over time. The Distortion of Memory is the third and final work in a triology of pieces for solo guitar that also includes The Complexity of Distance (2020, for distorted electric guitar, commissioned by Mike Scheidt of YOB) and The Fragility of Time (2022, for electric guitar, commissioned by Matt Sargent).