AMADOU
Flute, oboe, clarinet in Bb, 2 vibraphones, marimba, bassimba, narrator, voice (female or child), strings, keyboard. Written and recorded in 1993. Wallonia Chamber Orchestra and members of the Lamina Quartet, conducted by Georges Octors. Unpublished. Duration: 11m 10s.
I was selected to represent the French Community of Belgium’s radio station (RTBF) for the 1993 Paul Gilson “Music” Prize. The task was to compose a musical work based on a text, designed primarily for radio broadcast. This unique project gave me the opportunity to collaborate with prestigious partners, such as Pierre Coran, Georges Octors and Patrick Descamps. Amadou is a Senegalese pseudo-legend, inspired in Pierre Coran by his many trips to Senghor’s homeland. My approach as a composer was to use the music to highlight the arc-like symmetry of the text, as well as the ritualistic, slow pace typical of storytellers from the Senegal River Valley. I kept African allusions to a minimum, focusing far less on postcard imagery than on the spellbinding quality and symbolism inherent in the text. In short, spirit before letter.
The Paul Gilson Prize was ultimately awarded to Fritz Voegelin’s work, presented by Radio Suisse Romande, but Amadou was nonetheless a resounding success with listeners. A concert version was released a few years later, in 2002, featuring a smaller ensemble.