Ideal for advanced performance students and professional musicians, Arctic Dreams I is a unique duo for flute, vibraphone and digital audio that incorporates soundscapes from Canada's Inuit culture. Evocative and, at times, jazzy, Arctic Dreams I traverses a range of tempo changes, polyrhythms and quasi-canonic passages, the vibraphone part including ostinato sections and fragmented rhythmic patterns, while the virtuosic flute part employs techniques such as key clicks and flutter tongue.
John Baldwin, Percussive Notes, August, September 2009
This is a trio for flute, vibes and digital audio. The digital audio part is from an earlier (1995) work by Hatzis and Keith Horner titled Voices of the Land from a radio documentary/composition titled Footprints in New Snow.
At one point the vibes player must sing while playing rolled octaves. An optional part for a child singer is also included. The vibes part includes many ostinato sections, fragmented rhythmic patterns, and only five measures with rolled four-note chords. The flute part is more virtuosic, with wide-ranging passages and leaps, trills, key clicks, flutter tongue, etc.
The significant points that need to be synchronized with the audio part are clearly marked. Various arrows denote changes of tempo in the audio part that must be adjusted to by the musicians. An outline of the audio part is included in the score only. The score abounds with meter changes, polyrhythms, quasi-canonic passages, dynamic extremes (pppp to ff) and tempo changes. This would be appropriate for university performance majors and faculty/professional musicians.'
Difficulty Rating Scale: V - Advanced
Born in Greece, educated in the United States and a Canadian citizen since 1985, composer Christos Hatzis (b.1953) is becoming widely known as a leading figure in contemporary classical music. His works are performed and broadcast throughout the world, and their frequent combination of a powerful spiritual foundation with an immediately accessible appeal has made a deep emotional impact upon audiences and performers alike.
