kurui [2018] for bass clarinet, piano/melodica and percussion was written for a performance at the Cooroora Institute on the Sunshine Coast of Queensland. The performance was part of my sub-residency within a residency by Clocked Out (Erik Griswold and Vanessa Tomlinson) at the Griffith Conservatorium in Brisbane. The institute’s name is derived from the name for possum in the Gubi Gubi language: kurui. Although it is a scrolling score the notation is relatively traditional, aiming to bridge the space between 'faithful" transcription of sound on its own terms and a more "interpretive" transcription of sound in human "musical" terms.
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A recurring motive is the distinctive grunt and repetitive "huffs" of the Queensland possum.
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In these examples spectrograms of possum sounds are aligned with the notation to demonstrate the approach. Despite the "noisiness" of the possum sounds - significant pitch components are also evident and these are transcribed into pitched material particularly for the piano/melodica and bass clarinet. The contours of prominent pitched components were initially sketched directly onto the spectrogram and then "lifted-off' and adapted into a more traditional notational framework.
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The characteristic screech emitted by the possum is transcribed for melodica and bass clarinet multi phonic. Other lower pitched noises are orchestrated by percussion and mid-range glisses by piano.
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A variety of grunts and short squeals are also transcribed.
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The work ends with the repetitive huff/clicks of the possum. Some of the prominent pitched content is highlights on bass clarinet and melodica.
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