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Vertigo
Performed by Inge Smedts and Nico Schoeters on the album ''Cocktail Maison."
Vertigo is a symptom where a person feels as if they or the objects around them are moving when they are not. In Etienne Houben’s Vertigo, a challenging and sometimes frenzied duet for flute and marimba, that feeling is elicited through the ingeniously frantic and exciting musical material. Throughout the work, Houben uses undulating melodic lines, driving sixteenth-note motives, and varied time signatures to create an unsettling feeling. This piece is recorded on the album Cocktail Maison by the Belgian artists Inge Smedts (flute) and Nico Schoeters (marimba).
This piece comes as a professionally printed and bound score and includes individual parts in PDF format for printing or for tablet viewing.
• Flute
• Marimba (low A)
Etienne Houben chose a programmatic title for this rousing duet between marimba and flute. As is explained in the notes included in the score, “Vertigo” is an “energetic composition in which the flute and marimba complement each other and create a musical ‘vertigo’ as one musical body.” The piece begins simply with single notes on the marimba and slowly builds in energy and complexity to the primary theme. This section is highlighted by multiple ostinati in the marimba part. The frenetic pace reaches a climax and is interrupted by a largo, rubato section. The lyricism contrasts the pace of the opening beautifully. Additionally, the primary theme is presented in variations. The piece closes with material similar to the opening to bring the piece to a rousing finale.
Overall, both the marimba and flute parts have their technical challenges, hence the IV difficulty rating. However, at five minutes in length, this piece would be perfect for a college or professional recital for which the marimbist wants to collaborate with flute. It is a welcome addition to the repertoire for flute and marimba duo.
—Justin Bunting
Percussive Notes
Vol. 57, No. 4, September 2019
Vertigo is a symptom where a person feels as if they or the objects around them are moving when they are not. In Etienne Houben’s Vertigo, a challenging and sometimes frenzied duet for flute and marimba, that feeling is elicited through the ingeniously frantic and exciting musical material. Throughout the work, Houben uses undulating melodic lines, driving sixteenth-note motives, and varied time signatures to create an unsettling feeling. This piece is recorded on the album Cocktail Maison by the Belgian artists Inge Smedts (flute) and Nico Schoeters (marimba).
This piece comes as a professionally printed and bound score and includes individual parts in PDF format for printing or for tablet viewing.
• Flute
• Marimba (low A)
Etienne Houben chose a programmatic title for this rousing duet between marimba and flute. As is explained in the notes included in the score, “Vertigo” is an “energetic composition in which the flute and marimba complement each other and create a musical ‘vertigo’ as one musical body.” The piece begins simply with single notes on the marimba and slowly builds in energy and complexity to the primary theme. This section is highlighted by multiple ostinati in the marimba part. The frenetic pace reaches a climax and is interrupted by a largo, rubato section. The lyricism contrasts the pace of the opening beautifully. Additionally, the primary theme is presented in variations. The piece closes with material similar to the opening to bring the piece to a rousing finale.
Overall, both the marimba and flute parts have their technical challenges, hence the IV difficulty rating. However, at five minutes in length, this piece would be perfect for a college or professional recital for which the marimbist wants to collaborate with flute. It is a welcome addition to the repertoire for flute and marimba duo.
—Justin Bunting
Percussive Notes
Vol. 57, No. 4, September 2019
