Farr's Unforeseen Evolutions for piano and violin is an exercise in dynamism and technique for advanced players. Eerie plateaus featuring string harmonics and upper register piano droplets transform into blisteringly fierce passages of undulating notes, underpinned all the while by shifting odd-metered pulses. A demanding but highly rewarding work for those who can master it.
Gareth Farr is an indisputably colourful figure in New Zealand music. And whether scored for percussion duet or the resources of two large orchestras, Farr's music reflects his personality – bold, brash, or delicate and sensuous, but inevitably, immediately, engaging. Rhythmic elements of his compositions can be linked to the complex and exciting rhythms of Rarotongan log drum ensembles, Balinese gamelan and other percussion music of the Pacific Rim. In addition to his music for the concert chamber, Farr has written music for dance, theatre and television.
