This piece was written for the Bert Weir Memorial Music Commission and is inspired by a painting he did in 1976. It was painted in the fall, at the forest edge and central to it is a tree with leaves in blazing red, yellow and orange colours. The vibrancy of those colours, the energy in the work and the feeling of movement captivated me. In his artistic statement, Bert Weir talks of trying to understand the feelings evoked by the natural world; the smell of the earth, the change of the light, the movement and sound of water. In turn, I have used musical tones and rhythms to explore and interpret Bert’s masterful work. In this painting, there are no straight lines, creating a feeling of movement and energy. The brush strokes are short, sometimes only dabs of paint and they all seem to move up, towards the top of the canvas. I try to capture that feeling of movement, energy and of joy in the music. In sections of this piece there are only short motifs that gradually join together to make a full melody. A short Celtic tune reflects Bert Weir’s own Celtic roots, explored only later in life. His sense of there being an underlying rhythm through all things can also be heard moving through the orchestra. The words spoken by the orchestra are taken from his artistic statement. From spending time with Bert Weir’s painting and writing, it is clear he was a thoughtful and inspiring man.
