École polytechnique
Hildegard Westerkamp
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1École polytechnique (1990) Lori Freedman, bass clarinet; Lisa Rodrigue, trumpet; Véronique Lucignano, trumpet; Daniel Fortin, percussion; Johanne Latreille, bells; Chœur de l’UQAM; Miklós Takács, conductor19:40
Programme notes
On December 6, 1989 fourteen women were shot to death by Marc Lépine at the École polytechnique in Montréal (Québec). A few months later I was invited to write a composition for the festival Montréal musiques actuelles / New Music America 1990 in Montréal. The resulting composition École polytechnique is dedicated to the fourteen women.
This dedication is the essence of the piece and is what gives the piece its meaning
This piece is also about life and death in a more general sense. It is about human life rhythms, their violent destruction — destroyed with the same kind of violence that creates wars, kills people, abuses children and the natural environment
École polytechnique is like a journey
On the unusually balmy Saturday of November 3, 1990 École polytechnique was premiered along with A Call to Prayer by Alvin Curran and Alma mater by Claude-Paul Gauthier in a stunning outdoor performance in Montréal during the festival Montréal musiques actuelles / New Music America 1990. The piece was written for the eight churchbells in the bell tower of the Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM), for the Chœur de l’UQAM, directed by Miklós Takács. Additional performers were Lori Freedman on bass clarinet, Lisa Rodrigue and Véronique Lucignano on trumpets, Daniel Fortin on percussion, and Johanne Latreille played the bells in the tower.
École polytechnique was commissioned by Montréal musiques actuelles / New Music America 1990. I would like to thank Hal Wake and Jeffrey Dvorkin of CBC Radio, André Rhéaume and Thérèse Champagne of Radio-Canada for supplying the newscast of the killings, as well as Lori Freedman, Sal Ferreras, and Tom Parriot for consultation on the instrumental parts.
Premiere
- November 3, 1990, Montréal musiques actuelles / New Music America
: Concert, Outdoor – Angle rue Saint-Denis / boulevard de Maisonneuve Est, Montréal (Québec)
About this sound recording
The November 3, 1990 premiere performance was recorded by Charles Amirkhanian, who was standing in the audience on the plaza. It captured the spirit of the performance so successfully that we decided to use it as the base for the heightened listening experience presented here.
- Composer(s): Hildegard Westerkamp
- Year of composition: 1990
- Duration: 19:40
- Instrumentation: churchbells, mixed chorus, bass clarinet, 2 trumpets, percussion and stereo fixed medium
- Commission: Montréal musiques actuelles / New Music America
