Recording

Inner Worlds

for inside a grand piano
7 minutes
2019

Purchase Score

Score

Preview the score here.

Inner Worlds: Inner Worlds - Lisa Neher from ACM on Vimeo.

Program NOte

Inner Worlds was written for Access Contemporary Music’s concert of the same name. The concert featured music written exclusively for the inside of a grand piano. Taking the name Inner Worlds as a jumping off point, I started thinking about what was inside our own planet. I was inspired by the layers of the earth: the hard outer crust, the firm but moving mantle made of magma and rock that shifts and reforms and erupts to make the volcanoes that surround me here in the Pacific Northwest, and the pressurized core made of swirling metals that create our planet’s magnetic field. Listeners will hear wooden spoon handles scraping and tapping against metal support beams inside the piano, inspired by the hard crust of the earth. Metallic glissandi, tapping of fingers and hard straws on the strings, and swirling sounds made by moving a sheet of paper around on the strings were inspired by the metals of the planet core and the shifting mantle. The low strings represent the planet core, the power and majesty of the earth. Throughout the work, an asymmetrical rhythmic figure ties the work together, representing the heartbeat of the planet. Inner Worlds was commissioned by Access Contemporary Music and premiered by Marianne Parker. 

Materials Needed

Large wooden spoon with thick (at least 3/8 inch - 1/2 inch wide) handle.
2 hard yarn mallets with large mallet heads
Hard acrylic or metal straw (the kind used for reusable cold drinks at espresso shops)
1 piece of 8 1/2 x 11-inch copier paper
Prepare the piano:
Wedge damper pedal so that the strings ring throughout the entire piece.
Place 8 1/2 x 11-inch piece of paper lengthwise across lowest strings. Leave space to pluck
strings and keep paper close enough that you can pick up a corner of the piece of paper.