Ballad
0’00’’ purely, simply, unencumbered
3’02’’ gently, like strumming a guitar
5’59’’ calmly, like plucking a guitar, or humming to oneself
8’39’’ a mirage
9’34’’ loosely in place
13’14’’ sotto voce, a chant or prayer
18’17’’ cantabile
21’11’’ simply, freely, heard from a distance
25’29’’ as though with eyes closed
30’22’’ whistling in the dark
32’44’’ another mirage
37’26’’ staring at the river
Andrew Smith _ cello
Eve Egoyan _ piano
The word "ballad" implies a tale or narrative, and while there is no literal story being told there, I found myself thinking of the two performers as co-travellers in a terrain - or as dance partners - and the music as sometimes like a song they sing together, sometimes a landscape they cross, sometimes a mood, sometimes a monologue, and sometimes a fine line they trace. In the end, it is a ballad about the cello and the piano, and the way I hear them together.
(Linda Catlin Smith)
