Stylus is the third piece in an ongoing series of compositions based on J.S.Bach's The Art of the Fugue collectively entitled Spring Equinox. The composer was intrigued by the possibility of changing the semantic continuity of Bach's music (Contrapunctus VII) by means of strategically-placed asymmetrical repetitions. In aural terms the effect is similar to that created by the skipping of the stylus of a record-player. By using repetitions within repetitions, phasing repetitions (where the left or right bracket advances or retreats by a sixteenth-note after each iteration), and by occasionally choosing similar beginning and end points which result in continuous melodic and contrapuntal flow within a loop, he has sought to create a composition which parallels the original but nevertheless possesses a character and style of its own.
The original version of Stylus for tenor recorder (or flute or violin), viola and accordion is also available.
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.
