Program Note:
Spinning Top was was commissioned for Musica Viva Australia by Andrea and Malcolm Hall-Brown to encourage greater support of the arts.
The piece is inspired by Jarrad Kennedy’s sculpture Spinning Top, located at the junction of Turbot, Wickham and Boundary streets in Brisbane. Kennedy’s artwork marks the site of the unrealised Holy Name Cathedral, designed by Archbishop James Duhig in the 1920s. The artwork is a scale-model of the dome of the unfinished cathedral that rests on its tip in the midst of the city high rises, like a spinning top that has come to rest. The artwork is reflected in the music through perpetual rhythmic motion and the cyclic nature of repetition.
The bright mood of the piece reflects the child-like nature of a spinning top toy. It is intended to be a joyous and celebratory piece, in honour of the generous spirit in which Andrea and Malcolm commissioned the work.
Spinning Top was composed in 2016 for the Benaud Trio.
