Richard Rijnvos: Riflessi

Since 1993 Richard Rijnvos has been concentrating on the realisation of compositions that are part of larger series. In the year 2007 Richard Rijnvos started a series of compositions under the collective title Riflessi. 'Riflesso' is Italian for sheen. It is cognate with the more familiar word 'riflessione' (reflection), yet its meaning has additional subtlety: reflective light of a tone different from that of its source. The Riflessi series consists exclusively of companion pieces. In other words: each Riflesso explores the same exceptional scoring of a classic from the last century. Riflesso sul tasto is a companion piece for Refrain (1959) by Karlheinz Stockhausen. This particular work is widely known because of the unconventional look of its score: arch-shaped staves plus a transparent strip with additional notes. The position of the transparency is free and decided upon by the performers. Thus the form of Refrain differs substantially with each performance. Riflesso sull’arco is a companion piece for Swinging Music (1970) by the Polish composer Kazimierz Serocki. It is scored for bass clarinet, trombone, cello and piano. Riflesso sullo spazio (‘reflection on space/time’) is a companion piece for Arnold Schönberg’s Suite, his opus 29. The work is a series of variations on the name of Arnold Schönberg.