Pagan Peal for Orchestra

Program Notes

Pagan Peal draws inspiration from the tradition of summoning a church congregation with bell tolls, but instead of calling worshippers, it summons mythological creatures celebrating the renewal of nature. With each strike, a new magical being enters the ritual, including mythical birds with female faces—Sirin, Alkonost, and Gamayun—whose songs evoke a sense of mystical wonder. At its climax, the piece conjures the awakening of Mother Moist Earth, a figure embodying the nurture and life-giving forces.
Musically, the work incorporates Eastern-European traditions of bell ringing, using their rhythmic patterns and the spectral profiles of bells as the foundation for its rhythmic and harmonic language.