Superfluous 2 by Matthew Coley

“Superfluous 2 was written in 2009 and is the next not-so-logical step from the more tonal and traditional Superfluous 1. The title is a play on the words “super fugue”, but also seemed befitting to the pieces and probably the ones to follow for reasons only found in the learning and performing of such a composition. While it was fun to write a fugue, and especially one of such modern construction, is it really necessary to write something of such complicated technical demand for a solo percussion instrument and player? If you have a slight addiction to fugues, like I do, then your answer, like mine, is probably a hushed, yet confident, yes.

The architecture of the fugue has always appealed to me on a level that seems superior to many other forms. To this effect, my composition, Concealed Chambers, was written in 2000 and is a solo marimba work in five movements. Movement three, Cortex, begins as a three-part fugue and ends as a four-part, of which the subject and harmonic language are the primary basis for the material in the other four movements. Beethoven made no mistake when some of his most memorable compositional moments are the “Ode to Joy” fugue of the last movement of the Ninth Symphony and the statuesque Grosse Fugue in Bb major, Opus 133 for string quartet. The fugues of Bach’s and Shostakovich’s books of 24 are an example of some of the most amazing variety of character that music and the structure of the fugue can exhibit. The award-winning composer, Bjorn Berkhout, who has written fugues for me, once said, “The fugue was the last great contribution to Western-classical music.”

I hope with Superfluous 2 you can bask in the joy of performing a work that follows in the steps of such a venerable and superior musical structure, while knowing that it is not a transcription, but actually written for the marimba with the spirit of any other contemporary composition. Also, remember to enjoy that what you are doing is super, but also superfluous.” – M.C.