Judith Bingham (1952-) - Four Minute Mile
Although
Nottingham-born, Judith Bingham grew up in Sheffield, so she’ll understand
this bluff Yorkshireman’s divulging of her age by way of introducing her
(to anyone requiring an introduction) as a seasoned campaigner rather than
a “Janey-come-lately”! As an active composer even before her composition
studies at the Royal Academy, she was a “natural” with a distinctive
voice - in both senses, having spent 13 years in the BBC Singers.
Chartres
(1993) was her big break, precipitating a succession of commissions that
brought her widespread international recognition - and a popularity
that is at least partly due to her style, which might be dubbed “compromisingly
modern”. However, equally significant is her eclecticism: inspirations
and subjects ranging from the aforementioned cathedral to the Hubble
telescope, and from ancient Egyptian writings to contemporary poetry, all
bound by the same innate flair for musical drama and imagery.
Although
her choral and orchestral works attract the most interest, Judith is accomplished
right across the board. Considering her Yorkshire background, it’s
hardly surprising that her output includes brass band works. Four
Minute Mile is one such, written in 1991 and only later re-scored for
symphony orchestra. Its inspiration, which also dictates the layout, is
obvious from the title. A Short Sprint for Orchestra this
may be, but it’s fair to say that the “mile” of the title is still
by no means a “sprint”, even for the current world record holder (at the
time of writing, this was Hicham El Guerrouj, July 1999, 3 minutes
43 seconds).
The instruction,
“Sprinting away with great vigour”, is evident right from the starting
pistol, which perhaps should have been marked “With blank expression”
(but wasn’t). The pervasive, muscular rhythmic drive relaxes - somewhere
around the end of the second lap - for a melodic passage featuring trumpet
and tuba, with a packed field of percussion maintaining the pressure on
these leaders. Naturally, a bell signals the start of the final lap and
the thrill of the race for the tape.
This neat
little conception is something of a latter-day equivalent of the Ruslan
and Ludmilla Overture. Like the world mile record ever since that famous
first-recorded sub-four minute run by Roger Bannister on 6 May 1954,
every now and then a performance will come along which clips a bit off
the previous fastest. So, get out your stopwatches - you never know . .
.
[The
author gratefully acknowledges the generous assistance of Giles Easterbrook
(Maecenas Music) and Chris Houlding, for providing information used in
the preparation of this note]
.
© Paul Serotsky
29, Carr Street,
Kamo,
Whangarei 0101,
Northland,
New Zealand
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