noli me tangere (2015)

for orchestra and amplified percussion

Premiered by Orchestre Symphonique du Conservatoire de musique de Montréal under the direction of Louis Lavigueur on March 28, 2015. A subsequent performance was conducted by Thierry Jacques-Soudin on March 29, 2015 at Église Saint-Jean-Baptiste.

The creation of this piece stems from a preoccupation with the experience of static sounds, specifically sounds that are constant and unchanging such as room tones or the sound of a revving motor. On the contrary, I was also intrigued by sounds that are unpredictable, uncontrollable, and seemingly directionless. Both types of sound reveal details in spectral content that can only emerge in extended periods of listening. Thus, for the creation of this piece, I pushed myself to consider the time that each sound demands in order to fully reveal its integrity but also the time required to completely immerse the listener in preparation for its absence.  

The title of this piece, noli me tangere, is the Latin translation of a phrase from John 20:17. This phrase can be directly translated as “do not touch me” but it is interpreted contextually as “do not hold on to me.” In this passage of the Gospel of John, Jesus’ demand of Mary Magdalene not to linger on to him implies a particular concern for the passing of time and the timeliness of God’s will. Furthermore, the word, ‘touch’, implies a relationship between a source and its receiver, which is mirrored in the relationship between the vibrator and the membrane.