Prelude to Red Hill

Prelude to Red Hill was composed to accompany images by David Malikoff and poetry by Hilary Elfick. The project reflected on the devastating effects of the bushfires at Red Hill, a tiny rural community near where I grew up in Port Macquarie. The piece follows the life of a fire from first spark, to raging flames, to dying smoke.

“Starts sprite, spitting, spiteful, intrusive, greedy, slinking,infiltrating, permeating, trickling into smallest space... "
Roars along the valley floor, sneers at stumbling oldies,wastes the wildlife...
"Stumbles, thrashes, over-reaching, dragged down by pygmies' ropes of water...
"Crumples, lies, exposed black bones in ash bed of its making,
quivers, twitches, whimpers,
slumps, shrinks,
smoulders,
Dies."

– Excerpts from Fire by Hilary Elfick.

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Recorded for digital release and premiered alongside photographs by David Malikoff and poetry by Hilary Elfick in 2016.

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Difficulty: ★★★

This piece is suitable for pianists around AMEB grade 6.