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Rolf Wallin:
Twine (1995)
for xylophone and marimba
Two streams of sound, both emerging from the same physical substance - wood - but still slightly different: the bright and hard versus the dark and soft. Two streams twisting and twining, separating and merging, opposing and caressing. Two streams living their own separate lives, but still influenced by the other.
The piece was commissioned by the Danish Radio for Safri Duo. The music is taylormade for two musicians who have played hundreds of concerts together, and accordngly are able to think and play as one. The words "twine" and "twin" are, of course, closely connected, and musical twins is indeed what they are, Morten and Uffe. The notation gives the two the freedom to shape the evolution of the music in the moment of playing. But at the same time it demands absolute technical brilliance, an almost telepathic rhythmic contact, and a highly developed musical intuition. I knew I would find these qualities in the Safri Duo, and I was not disappointed.