The pieces in this collection are transcriptions of the solo movements from the ballet, Seven Wells. Each of the seven wells harbours one of the deadly sins ... Pride, Envy, Lust, Covetousness, Gluttony, Sloth, Anger. Although not immediately obvious from these solos, the depiction of the sins in the ballet is ambivalent; wells are sources of life (water) but they also occasionally conceal dangers. In turn, the deadly sins can be seen as perversions or an exaggeration of human behaviour, which when displayed in moderation are conducive to life. These exaggerations or expansions beyond what is acceptable are borne out in the music in two notable ways. Through the choice of representative acoustic instruments what is capable by a single human voice is effectively stretched out. In the original ballet the pitch range goes from the low notes of the contrabassoon to the piercingly high notes of the flute.

This approach is mirrored in the version for saxophones which utilises the baritone, tenor, alto and soprano instruments. The way the electronic instruments/programs were used to create the backing tracks likewise reinforces the idea of exaggerated behaviour. In this instance, there was a deliberate focus on the sounds that emerged at the extremes of the available note input ranges. These “peripheral” sounds were typically gross distortions of the more “indicative" timbres available from each program.

Seven Wells … Seven Sins was created for Sydney-based saxophonist, James Nightingale who is the alto saxophonist with Australia’s premier saxophone quartet, Continuum Sax. He has performed regularly as a casual saxophonist with Sydney’s orchestras since 1993, performing with the Sydney Symphony on their tour of Italy (2008) and recording Rachmaninov’s Symphonic Dances under the direction of Vladimir Ashkenazy (2007.) After graduating with a Bachelor of Music and a Master of Music (performance) at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, James completed his PhD at the University of Queensland (2011).

Sydney based composer Calogero Panvino came to music relatively late in life, as a university student studying economics and science. Soon after finishing his science degree, Calogero decided to follow his passion for music. He completed a Bachelor degree followed by a research Masters degree at the University of Sydney and he has been awarded numerous scholarships, grants and prizes for his work, including first prize in the 3MBS National Composer Award for his orchestral composition, Race Against Time. Calogero has an active interest in the natural world and is deeply concerned with the current state of the environment. This interest, his science background and a general appreciation of the arts are the main sources of inspiration for his music.

Executive Producer: Judith Neilson AM