Crash Ensemble: Wingform

The world premiere of Wingform, a new commission by Crash from composer-in-residence and guitarist Barry O’Halpin. 

Crash Ensemble 

Ryan McAdams Conductor 

Jack Phelan, visuals 

Barry O'Halpin Wingform 

‘Wingform’ (2017–2020) is an hour-length work in four movements, with solo electric guitar passages as connective tissue. It serves as the culmination of Barry O’Halpin’s period as Crash Ensemble’s composer-in-residence, alongside his first few years as Crash guitarist. 

“Wingform teems intensely with a living energy, taking full advantage of Crash’s unique ability to cover a breadth of musical ground: winding melodies, mechanical rhythms, rapid lines and hypnotic drones. The work combines an experimental and highly personal approach to the electric guitar with a fascination toward the contrasts and uncanny commonalities between ‘wild’ sounds in nature and human-made music and machinery, juxtaposing these elements in vividly surreal ways.”