The first sketches of ‘Alliage’ (Fr. for ‘alloy’) dates from 1992 immediately after I accepted the commission to write a piece for a large orchestra on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of Hoogovens.
In 1993 I became seriously ill and the work came to a halt. The anniversary concert, in which the work was to be premiered, was cancelled because Hoogovens was in serious financial difficulty at that time and did not think it wise to celebrate the 75th anniversary exuberantly.
In 1994, after my recovery, I started on the revisions of ‘Triade’ (1991) for chamber orchestra and also rewrote ‘Passamezzo’ (1991) for saxophone quartet. In the years that followed, I wrote such works as ‘Notturno’ for oboe solo and 11 instruments, and Conciso for large ensemble (commissioned by the Holland Festival 1996). I only resumed work on ‘Alliage’ in December 1996. Of the first version, I only kept the first 26 bars; the other 663 measures are new. I completed the score in November 1997.
Various ideas underlie the piece. The idea of the five-part structure came to mind first, suggested by the Hoogovens logo. Like all my previous works, this work also has a fractal form, ie. a particular series of proportions determines both the largest and the smallest length ratio over time. The number sequence in ‘Alliage’ is 5:6:4:7:3. This adds up to a total time for the piece of 25 minutes; the movements follow one another without interruption.

A second idea was prompted by Hoogovens’ wish to integrate aspects of their company into the piece. The title therefore refers to an alloy of melodic material from different musical cultures. For example, a number of motifs are derived from Russian avant-garde music from the beginning of the twentieth century (Scriabin, Stravinsky), some are from South African folk music, and still others are from English / American popular music, ranging from Ellington to Lennon / McCartney. Of course I did my best to forge these very different components into one personal unity.

Part I opens with the six-tone chord found at the beginning of Scriabin’s Sonata No. 8, Op.66; it’s immediately followed by the six-tone chord containing the other six notes of the chromatic total of 12 within the octave. These two six-tone chords are important ingredients of the entire work’s harmony. I had already approached the harmony this way in my work, ‘Expulsie’ (1988-1990). In a moderately fast tempo (Moderato), two motifs are introduced one after the other, first in the horn solo, and then in canon form by 3 clarinets. Eventually, the first movement develops in an arc form: ABCBA.

In Part II, two very different themes are played one after the other at a fast tempo (Allegro). In the development that follows, motifs from the first movement are brought back and employed as accompanying voices. What follows is a renewed version of the two themes, which have now been brought into tonal balance.
In part III (Andante, moderately slow) another motif from part I is developed, after which a quiet, even movement in the harp begins; after a middle section that leads to a climax, the beginning of this movement is repeated. In terms of structure, this movement is very similar to Part I: ABCBA.

Part IV (Allegro molto, very fast) is a cross between a Gigue (an 18th century dance form), and a regular feature of the 19th century classical symphony, or the Scherzo. An accelerated form of the motif from section C of the previous movement is used as material for a first theme, after which a variation of a motif from part II appears as a second theme. This is also followed by a development and a reprise. In its sonata form, this movement is very similar to the second movement.
Finally, Part V concludes the entire work in a slow temp.

– Theo Verbey