Labyrinth of McCormick takes listeners on a journey through the vast, echoing expanse of McCormick Place, Chicago’s renowned convention center. Inspired by the feeling of being lost within its sprawling hallways and repetitive architecture, this minimalistic work captures both the physical and emotional experience of navigating such an overwhelming space. Through layered textures, subtle shifts, and overlapping patterns, the piece reflects the disorientation, determination, and eventual triumph of finding one’s way.
The piece begins with The Entering Maze, evoking the initial awe of the convention center’s size. Sparse instrumentation and wandering melodic fragments mirror the vastness and uncertainty of the journey ahead. Repeating patterns in mallet percussion and woodwinds suggest the unchanging corridors, while distant tones in the brass convey the faint promise of a destination yet unseen.
In The Search, layers of ostinatos across the ensemble create a sense of movement, with rhythmic and harmonic shifts portraying the futile attempt to find direction. Frustration builds in the brass and percussion, culminating in The Panic,where fragmented motifs and a dense, accelerating texture evoke a spiraling sense of chaos. Echoing cymbals and sudden bursts of sound depict moments of dead ends and retraced steps.
The piece resolves in The Way Out, where clarity emerges from the chaos. The wandering theme returns, now confident and complete, as the layers thin and harmonies brighten. The music gradually resolves into a serene and consonant conclusion, representing the relief of finding direction and the satisfaction of emerging from the labyrinth. Labyrinth of McCormick is a sonic exploration of getting lost and finding yourself in the midst of disorientation.
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