Commissioned by the Düsseldorf Symphoniker, Germany, 2024.

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Spinphony is based on the experience of the bicycle, which has always been a part of my life. In childhood, it was the vehicle that connected me with other children on the block; in my youth, I rode for exercise, taking long rides in the mountains or cycling around the Netherlands. Recently, I taught my daughter to ride, to go back and forth with her to school.

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The tempo changes are made through metric modulations, which are calculated using the relationship between a given tempo and the next, similarly to the gear changes used by multi-speed bicycles. These metric modulations represent the changes required to negotiate climbs, descents, and flat terrain, which require slow, fast, and sustained pedaling cadences. In the percussion section, there are familiar bicycle sounds, such as horns, bells, and rings, as well as the friction of ball bearings rotating inside balloons, which emulate the sound of tires rolling on pavement. The character of the music represents the contrast between the fatigue in the legs on climbs, with the excitement of high-speed descents – the pains and pleasures of mountain biking.