Composer

:

Terry Riley

Genre

:

Choral

Compose Date

:

August, 2001-July, 2002

Movement_count

:

10

Movement ....

Sun Rings is a contemporary classical composition by American composer Terry Riley. It was commissioned by the Kronos Quartet and NASA's Art Program, and premiered on November 3, 2002, at the University of Iowa's Hancher Auditorium. The piece is divided into ten movements and features a string quartet, pre-recorded sounds from space, and a choir. The first movement, "Planet Elf Sindoori," sets the tone for the piece with a slow, meditative melody played by the quartet. The second movement, "Earth Whistlers," incorporates sounds recorded by NASA's Voyager spacecraft as it passed through the Earth's magnetosphere. The third movement, "The Electron Cyclotron Frequency Parlour," features a playful, rhythmic melody played by the quartet. The fourth movement, "One Earth, One People, One Love," is a choral piece that incorporates the words of astronaut Rusty Schweickart, who spoke about the unity of humanity after his spacewalk during the Apollo 9 mission. The fifth movement, "The Earth's Magnetic Field," features a haunting melody played by the quartet, accompanied by sounds recorded by NASA's Polar spacecraft. The sixth movement, "The Lovers," is a slow, romantic piece that features a duet between the first violin and cello. The seventh movement, "The Sun Rings," is the centerpiece of the piece and features recordings of the sounds made by the sun's magnetic field. The quartet plays a frenzied, chaotic melody that represents the turbulence of the sun's surface. The eighth movement, "The Secret of the Life Flower," is a choral piece that incorporates the words of poet Alice Walker. The ninth movement, "The Melancholy of Departure," is a mournful piece that features a solo violin accompanied by the quartet. The final movement, "One Earth, One People, One Love (Reprise)," is a reprise of the fourth movement, bringing the piece full circle. Sun Rings is characterized by its use of pre-recorded sounds from space, which give the piece a unique and otherworldly quality. The piece also incorporates elements of minimalism, with repetitive melodies and rhythms that build and evolve over time. The choral pieces add a human element to the piece, with lyrics that speak to the unity of humanity and the beauty of the natural world. Overall, Sun Rings is a powerful and moving work that explores the intersection of science, art, and spirituality.

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