ACUTE AWAKENING by Ariana Constantino

Acute Awakening by Ariana Constantino Composed for the UCLA Goldberg Variation Response Project, a collaboration of student composers and pianists, directed by Inna Faliks. World Premiere, Spring, 2017 at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA. Composer's Notes: It would be absurd to name any one composer as the greatest composer who has ever lived, but if that question was posed to a group of musicians, it is likely that the most popular answer would be J.S. Bach. His music has an uncanny ability to seamlessly marry highly intellectual compositional craft with profound emotional communication, and it is arguable that no composer since has come close to achieving this as perfectly as he. The Goldberg Variations, BWV 988, represent the height of Bach’s compositional prowess near the end of his life. When asked to write a piece in response to them, I was naturally at a complete loss. Composing in the shadow of Bach proved to be vastly intimidating, and Acute Awakening is an illustration of that very feeling. It encapsulates the notion of coming face-to-face with something so sublime as the Goldberg Variations and becoming aware ofnits perfection. Moto perpetuo 16th notes represent a sense of urgency which morphs through states of fear and inspiration. Quotes from Bach emerge from the texture and play with canonic imitation until the consistent motion and drive finally evaporates.