Six Fish

guitar quartet

(duration ~ 18:00)

Now available from Rimshot Music

 

The six movements are loosely based on the idea of fish characters.
Richard Flannigan's fascinating work "Goulds book of fish" played an inspirational role in the development of the piece.
Six Fish was awarded the APRA / AMC Instrumental work of the year in 2005.

1. guitarfish
2. sunfish
3. spangled emperor
4. sling Jaw wrasse
5. leafy sea dragon
6. flying fish.

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"But perhaps the most memorable work was Nigel Westlake's Six Fish suite, performed under a shimmering blue light that echoed the sea-like imagery within the music. Gleaming arpeggios - executed in perfect tandem by Schaupp and Grigoryan - became musical metaphors for the movement of fish through the ocean, drifting in the current before changing direction with the flick of a tail. Spangled Emperor was buoyed by gentle bubbles that emerged from Field's guitar, while Koch's dobro became a plaintive whale call in Leafy Sea Dragon. And the Flying Fish in the final piece leapt from the water with swaggering bravado, slithering across the waves as the music built to a crescendo of white-capped riffs."
"The Age."

 

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