for violin, vibraphone and piano (2007)
duration: 12’
GRT • 128
YouTube (2. The Infinite Heartbeat)
score available from
Australian Music Centre
program note
These two interludes are adapted from the middle two movements of Sonata for Violin and Piano, written in 2000 for Melbourne violinist, Marianne Rothschild. In 2003, Miki Tsunoda and Caroline Almonte (Duo Sol) recorded the 3rd movement, The Infinite Heartbeat for CD and in 2006 they performed the 2nd and 3rd movements at the Aurora Festival of Living Music in Western Sydney. This trio adaptation was made specifically for percussionist Claire Edwardes and Duo Sol to play together on tour in 2007.
1: Alone in Space
“After eighteen days of a space mission I was convinced that all visible space - the black emptiness, the white, unblinking stars and planets - was lifeless. The thought that life and humankind might be unique in the endless universe depressed me and brought melancholy upon me, and yet at the same time compelled me to evaluate everything differently.” - Yuri Glazkov
2: The Infinite Heartbeat
“What struck me most was the silence. It was a great silence, unlike any I have encountered on Earth, so vast and deep that I began to hear my own body: my heart beating…” - Aleksei Leonov
reviews
“Another Australian work, two atmospheric pieces for violin, piano and percussion by Melbourne composer Stuart Greenbaum and titled Alone in Space and The Infinite Heartbeat set quiet extended violin cantilenas over equally quiet sounds from piano and percussion to effectively convey the infinite stillness of space.”
W. L. Hoffman, The Canberra Times, May 2007
“The second movement (“Infinite Heartbeat””) of Stuart Greenbaum’s Two Interludes in Space for vibraphone, piano and violin (2000) is the most lushly resonant item of the whole album. A sumptuous violin long-line is supported by rapturous ostinato-based textures.”
Michael Hannon, Loud Mouth, Music Trust E–Zine, April 2017
“Stuart Greenbaum's Two Interludes in Space displayed some gorgeous harmonic writing.”
Nicholas Routley, Australian Stage, April 2024