Title: The Third Death
Year: 2019
Instrumentation: Alto Saxophone & Piano
Duration: 7' 00"
Commissioned by and written for Lewis Banks as part of "Afterlife" for Alto Saxophone and Piano.
The Third Death is the 5th movement in a larger series of works called Afterlife (written for Alto Saxophone and Piano) which is inspired by David Eagleman’s short story cycle ‘Sum: Forty tales from the afterlives’ that comprises of several speculative stories that postulate a diverse range of scenarios in which humans might find themselves in the afterlife.
The Third Death is based on the chapter entitled “Metamorphosis”, which tells of an afterlife in which we find ourselves in an eternal waiting area prior to our release into whatever might come next. This holding area is full of those people awaiting their name to be spoken for the last time on Earth, which is the mechanism that grants a person’s passage to the next part of the afterlife. Therefore, this vast space is filled with individuals from history whose names are still being spoken on Earth and whose delay in this infinite lobby is uncertain. Thusly, this movement attempts to capture and convey the sense of inert expectancy that might be experienced in this timeless wait for our names to be given their final utterances on Earth. Moreover, a recurrent phrase is reiterated throughout this movement, which is representative of the relative musical pitches contained within my own name j-A-y C-A-p-p-E-r-A-ul-D. This acts as a metaphorical name being uttered on Earth and remains ambiguous as to whether it has been uttered for the final time in order to release the individual to the next stage of the afterlife.
The Third Death for Alto Saxophone & Piano (2019)
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