Parallels, for two percussion players 1965
This work was written in July 1965. It exploits the palindromic idea, both aurally and visually. The special layout of the instruments in two parallel lines and the audible form of the music are closely linked. The gradual progress of each player across the stage and back again is a parallel to the form which clearly reverses itself at its central climax. As the players move, the instrumentation moves from untuned metal instruments, to tuned metal, to tuned wood, to untuned wood, to drums, and back again.
The form alternates Sections and Links which are generally articulated by their distinct sonorities. After the central climax, the Sections are in a sense varied by the retrograde movement of the music, whereas the Links, being themselves palindromes, remain unchanged.
Tim Souster 1966