Mothership (composition)

Mothership is a single-movement composition for orchestra and electronica by the American composer Mason Bates. The piece received its world premiere March 20, 2011 at the Sydney Opera House by the YouTube Symphony Orchestra under Michael Tilson Thomas, with featured improvisatorial soloists Paulo Calligopoulos on electric guitar, Ali Bello on violin, Su Chang on zither, and John Burgess on bass guitar. The premiere was broadcast live on YouTube and garnered nearly two million viewers.

Bates discussed the composition in the score program notes, writing, "This energetic opener imagines the orchestra as a mothership that is ‘docked’ by several visiting soloists, who offer brief but virtuosic riffs on the work's thematic material over action-packed electro-acoustic orchestral figuration." He continued:

The piece follows the form of a scherzo with double trio (as found in, for example, the Schumann Symphony No. 2). Symphonic scherzos historically play with dance rhythms in a high-energy and appealing manner, with the ‘trio’ sections temporarily exploring new rhythmic areas. Mothership shares a formal connection with the symphonic scherzo but is brought to life by thrilling sounds of the 21st Century — the rhythms of modern-day techno in place of waltz rhythms, for example.

The original orchestral arrangement of Mothership is scored for three flutes (3rd doubling piccolo), E-flat clarinet, two clarinets (both doubling bass clarinet), three oboes (3rd doubling English horn), two bassoons, contrabassoon, four French horns, three trumpets, two trombones, bass trombone, tuba, three percussionists, laptop, timpani, harp, piano, and strings.

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