For flute & guitar. Six movements. Duration c. 8 mins

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The six melodies of Tense Melodies were originally written as incidental music for theatre productions in Christchurch, New Zealand in the early 1980s, and collected together for a facsimile publication in 1981 under the title Tense Melodies. Initially intended as educational pieces, they were publicly premiered in concert by guitarist Matthew Marshall and flutist Carol Hohauser on their national tour presented by Chamber Music New Zealand in 1995. The pieces were revised for a recording by Matthew and Carol in 2016.

The ‘tense’ of the Tense Melodies title refers to the fact that, as called for in the plays, half the melodies were written to evoke the past, and half the present or impending future. They are not at all highly strung; indeed, Relaxed Melodies would be equally fitting as a title. - Philip Norman

Tense Melodies has been recorded by Carol Hohauser and Matthew Marshall on the album Brighter Than Blue (Rattle RAT-D108)