Gavin Higgins: Endgame (2011) [for Saxophone Quartet]

Description

Endgame is the final phase of a game of chess in which only a few pieces are left on the board. It is also the name of the Samuel Beckett play from which the inspiration for this work is drawn. The play focuses on a group of four people in the endgame of their own lives; cyclical existences that are trapped in perpetual loops of repeated actions, phrases, minute movements, strange rituals, and static routines. References to beginnings and endings litter the work: Mentions of Jesus (who we are told died and was reborn, starting a new religion), the killing of a flea over fear that humanity might 'start from there all over again!', and the sighting of a boy that Clov fears may be a 'potential procreator' all add to the feelings of cyclical stasis in which we, the characters and audience, are trapped. The theme of repetition and the need to start again is at the root of my composition. The opening outburst is recycled throughout the piece, continuously restarting when each section is completed, whilst rows of notes are looped, recapped, and collide. - Gavin Higgins